14 years

[Craig.]

Have passed since one of the most tragic weekends in F1 history. The 1994 Imola Gp weekend culminating in the death of Ayrton Senna on the 1st of may 1994.

It's amazing how quickly time flies. I can still remember that weekend like it was yesterday.

[The Ruptured Duck]

amazing how F-1 has changed since then.  I only wish I could have seen those days in person.

[todayshorse]

Blimey. I dug out my copy of autosport from that week. Chilling stuff.

I injured my wrist at work that weekend and was looking forward to actualy sitting down and watching the race rather than trying to snatch bits of it during work.

What a bizarre weekend it was

I consider myself lucky to have seen Senna race at Spa in 1990, and saw him on the podium. Admittedly from a distance

[MWISimmer]

I can still remember that weekend like it was yesterday.

Me too, it's something I'll never forget.

Rubens Barrichello was extremely lucky to be alive after that race meeting as well, he had a terrible accident which threw him into the fence IIRC.

[expat]

We all remember Senna, but forget Roland Ratzenberger who died in qualifying the day before. FIA President Max Mosley attended the funeral of Ratzenberger, despite the overwhelming attention on Senna's funeral. In a press conference ten years later Mosley said, "'Roland had been forgotten. So I went to his funeral because everyone went to Senna's. I thought it was important that somebody went to his".

The following day (1 May), during the customary drivers' briefing, the remaining drivers agreed to the reformation of the Grand Prix Drivers' Association, with Senna, Gerhard Berger and Michael Schumacher as its first directors. The Association subsequently pressed for improvements to car and circuit safety in the wake of Imola and other serious crashes during the 1994 season; It took a further six years before the  FIA mandated in 2001 the use of the HANS device, designed prevent the type of injury suffered by Ratzenburger

Matt

[C]

We all remember Senna, but forget Roland Ratzenberger who died in qualifying the day before.

Well said - one of the most talented drivers of his generation, who probably would have had limited opportunities in F1 (due to his age), but certainly would have gone on to further success in touring cars and endurance racing. I still remember exactly where I was when both deaths were announced.

As for Senna, my favourite memory is "our Nige" stopping to pick him up in front of our stand at Silverstone in 1991.

[MWISimmer]

With all respect Matt, I doubt anyone has forgotten Roland.

As for Senna, my favourite memory is "our Nige" stopping to pick him up in front of our stand at Silverstone in 1991.

Great memory, you have to laugh at the way he was kicking the marshall who tried to stop him..

Mine has to be his first lap in the wet at Donington 1993... 5th at the first corner, nailed Prost for 1st at the Melbourne hairpin. Awesome.

[Craig.]

No ones forgotten about Roland. I just think there are several reasons for his death being overshadowed. 1: It wasn't shown on tv IIRC. It was only covered in most countries as a news piece.
2: as morbid as it sounds, there is only a small portion of video of the crash. It's impossible to tell how the crash started or why the crash would have killed him. What the video shows looks like a standard crash which many drivers had survived before. It doesn't show the highspeed accident before hand. I think a lot of people find it easier to accept and remember Senna's death because it was covered from every angle repeated a 100 times on live T.V. and some countries even rather disturbingly showed the paramedics working on him while he was lying in a pool of his own blood.

This is why I said tragic weekend. Rubens had perhaps the worst accident of the lot and came away from it alive if somewhat beaten up. Just one of those tragic Irony's I guess.

[expat]

No ones forgotten about Roland. I just think there are several reasons for his death being overshadowed. 1: It wasn't shown on tv IIRC. It was only covered in most countries as a news piece.
2: as morbid as it sounds, there is only a small portion of video of the crash. It's impossible to tell how the crash started or why the crash would have killed him. What the video shows looks like a standard crash which many drivers had survived before. It doesn't show the highspeed accident before hand. I think a lot of people find it easier to accept and remember Senna's death because it was covered from every angle repeated a 100 times on live T.V. and some countries even rather disturbingly showed the paramedics working on him while he was lying in a pool of his own blood.

How very true. If we look at the coverage of the Manchester United plane crash, it was a couple of radio reports and then read it in the papers for the next couple of days. No glorious technicolour in those days to keep the story alive.

Matt