Is it true that Dale Earnhardt Sr. undid his seat harness and ......?

Question

... seat belt on the last lap last turn in the Daytona 500 at which he was killed?

Answer 1

They did have to cut him out of the seat belt, but that has been a rumor that has has been around since his death.

Answer 2

no

where did you hear that?

Answer 3

i personally do not believe that his seat belts broke like nascar is letting on. For those of us that have sat inside anytype of racing car or truck knows pretty much how thick, wide and heavy those belts are. I have never heard of a seatbelt breaking in a race car or even a passenger car before his death.

Answer 4

The therory was that an earlier "side by side" bumping incident caused the belts connection ,to the frame work of the car,to be damaged,thus failing when the crash happened.This was checked and found to be false.

The force of the crash caused a seperation  of the skull from the spinal collum.This severed the spinal cord causing his death.

Answer 5

The only fact I know to be true is that Sr. didn't like wearing the Haas Devise so he didn't and that's what would have possibly saved his life and is the reason they are now required to wear them

Answer 6

No he did not undo the belt. What was he hit the wall with such force that it basicly snaped his neck. He will forever be missed and nascar will never be same without him.

Answer 7

I don't think so. What would be the point to something like that? There were numerous reportings at the time of his death that stated the belts were cut to remove him from the car.

Answer 8

i have heard that before too we will never really know nascar has hidden most of the details

i also heard they cut his belt off of him

Answer 9

If you can remember he was seen by a doctor a few times way before the race about a heart condition,truth be known he was probably unfit to drive and was on medication. Probably had a heart attack before hitting the wall. Either way aren't we glad that loser is gone

Answer 10

There are so many different reports as to the cause of his death. The sad thing is most of the reports are even written by feasible people. I have read where his restraining equipment "dumped" and nobody cut him out, they were found that way. I have read that he had a habit of loosening his belts, and I have read that they had to cut him out of his belts. I have also read that the car was impounded, but the guard swore he saw lights (like from flashlights) as somebody was purposely cutting the belts to hide another major flaw or factor in his death.

The bottom line is, I don't think we will ever truly know the exact "why" of how it happened. Just that he died from a basilar fracture to his head.

Answer 11

there have been many stories about dale sr's seat harness, that maybe it was cut or nicked and it failed to hold him back upon impact.  many of those stories end with the conclusion that he hit his head on the steering wheel and that's what caused his death.  

the more plausible accounts cite his refusal to wear the Hans device as the cause, the effect being a Basilar skull fracture:

"A major cause of death amongst drivers during races was through violent head movements, where the body remains in place because of the seat belts but the momentum keeps the head moving forwards, causing a Basilar skull fracture resulting in serious injury or immediate death.  Notable  NASCAR drivers who died from Basilar skull fractures include Adam Petty, Tony Roper, Kenny Irwin, Neil Bonnett, John Nemechek, Dale Earnhardt and Clifford Allison." (wikipedia)

that can only happen if the seat harness actually DID hold him tight.

Answer 12

I think it was the third gunman on the grassy knoll that shot him and made him wreck and the rest was a cover up...that's the only way someone like him could ever really wreck.....Come on people I think #1 fan had the most logical answer...The belts were said to be modified and that's why they were said to have failed...being that it's 4 point harness if one strap "failed" they would still possibly have to cut him out of the other 3 straps