Neal Parker’s death at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park marked the second time a driver had lost his life in the shutdown area of the famed facility located in Englishtown, NJ.
Parker, 58, of Millville, NJ, died after his Chevrolet Monte Carlo Funny Car crashed through the containment device following the failure of his parachutes to deploy.
The cause of Parker’s death was unknown as qualifying concluded on Friday evening. The New Jersey State Police is investigating the accident. A spokesperson confirmed on Friday evening Parker had suffered head injuries.
Neal Parker’s death at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park marked the second time a driver had lost his life in the shutdown area of the famed facility located in Englishtown, NJ.
Parker, 58, of Millville, NJ, died after his Chevrolet Monte Carlo Funny Car crashed through the containment device following the failure of his parachutes to deploy.
The cause of Parker’s death was unknown as qualifying concluded on Friday evening. The New Jersey State Police is investigating the accident. A spokesperson confirmed on Friday evening Parker had suffered head injuries.
The Raceway Park shutdown area was overhauled following Scott Kalitta’s fatal accident in 2008. Last year two alcohol Funny Cars tested the containment device with their drivers emerging uninjured.
Parker’s accident didn’t afford him the same opportunity. Moments after recording a personal best elapsed time, his parachute never deployed, said NHRA Vice President of Operations Graham Light. He shot past a safety runoff area, through a pea-sized gravel trap, breaching several safety nets and finally crashing into water-filled barrels.
“He went through all of it,” said Light, speaking at a somber news conference at the raceway.
The NHRA resumed racing in the afternoon following a four-hour delay for police investigation and repair to the containment device.
“It’s a high-speed, risky form of auto racing,” Light said. “We all dread when these days happen. It’s tough to deal with for the whole racing community.”
Parker was in his second season of racing in the NHRA’s Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series. Prior to that, he was a regular competitor on the IHRA tour where he raced in their Alcohol Funny Car division following the discontinuation of the Pro Outlaw division.
The Pro Outlaw division was essentially an open-bodied version of the Pro Modified category consisting of nitrous injected and supercharged race machinery. Parker became the first driver in the class to record a five-second run.
Tom Carter, Parker’s friend, was next in line to run in the same lane. The somber Carter described the fallen driver.
“He was one of the best drivers I’ve known, his natural abilities to drive,” explained Carter. “He never had a problem being fearless. He was an excellent, confident and capable driver.”
The NHRA has dedicated the race weekend to Parker’s memory.
