Soapbox derby car crashes at Fourth of July race in Washington Borough

FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES

A typically fun-filled Fourth of July soapbox car derby turned ugly today when a contestant lost control of her homemade car, careening it into a bale of hay that rammed into a spectator's chair, knocking her to the ground as she clung to her children, according to local police and a derby organizer.

The spectator, Amanda Gaughran, of Washington Township, suffered a broken collarbone, said George Duckworth, a sergeant with the township police department.

Duckworth said Gaughran was sitting at 9:05 a.m. in a camping-type folding chair, "probably within three feet of the hay bale," and was holding two children when the crate-car crashed into the hay.

Based on a picture shown to the sergeant, that he said was apparently taken at the moment of impact, Gaughran’s "got the kids right in her arms securely" as she toppled to the ground.

A 12-year-old girl was driving the soapbox car when it lost control, said Sgt. Duckworth and Ralph Banghart, a derby organizer. Gaughran — who police said is in her late 20s — was holding two young boys, ages 14 months and 4 years old, at impact, but the boys were unharmed except for scrapes suffered by the 14-month-old, Duckworth said.

The 12-year-old driver, meanwhile, was "very shook up, almost in shock," Banghart said.

Banghart said the derby has been a Fourth of July tradition in this Warren County borough for 30 years, and that accidents involving spectators are very rare. The race involves 7- to 14-year-olds who work for weeks or months building "crate-cars" that are partially made of wood.

On race day, the contestants roll down an eighth-mile hill. Although the hay bales are set up to protect the young drivers, he noted, drivers sometimes lose control and crash.

"The crates don't make any noises coming down the hill, they're quiet, so if you're not paying attention, they can get on you quickly," he said of spectators seated or standing behind the hay.

Banghart said he will think about whether changes might be made in the future to better protect spectators.

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2011/07/soapbox_derby_car_crashes_at_4.html