NECK BRACE SAVES RACE-CAR DRIVER.

Byline: Sharon Cotal Staff Writer

CANYON COUNTRY - Dave Hessing of Canyon Country was in the stands at Daytona the day of Dale Earnhardt's fatal Nascar crash and, since he is a Nascar driver himself, the incident opened his eyes to the safety issues of the sport.

That, and the insistence of his girlfriend, Julianne Seeley, also a driver, is the reason Hessing was wearing a doughnut-neck collar for the Late Model Main Event at Irwindale Speedway on April 21.

And it's a good thing he was.

On the first lap of the race, one of the drivers on the front row failed to reach full speed, causing a chain-reaction crash that sent 28 of the 31 cars off the track for repairs. Five of the 28 were unable to make it back out onto the track and Hessing, caught up in the middle of it all in his late model Monte Carlo, was one of those five.

``We were all bunched up nice and tight, and when we got to the first turn, someone missed a shift or something, starting an accordion effect,'' Hessing said. ``I hit the car in front of me, then the guy behind me punched my clock.''

Hessing estimates he was hit five or six times before the crash was over, leaving him feeling like a pinball in a pinball machine. But thanks to the safety equipment he was wearing, the 37-year-old walked away from the worst crash he has ever been involved in.

``I felt that the safety equipment really helped me. The neck brace and the right-side head rest really helped save my neck when I got hit hard in the driver's side,'' he said. ``I don't think I defied death, but I was lucky to not get hurt badly and to be able to walk away.''

Hessing's team, CPR Racing, has sent the car to have the frame straightened and repaired, and it should be ready for his next race this Saturday back at Irwindale Speedway.

``I'm anxious to get back out there and show what the car and our race team is capable of doing,'' he said.

CAPTION(S):

2 photos

Photo:

(1 -- 2) Above, Nascar driver Dave Hessing became aware of the sport's safety hazards the day he was in the stands at Daytona as racing legend Dale Earnhardt died. Hessing crashed his car April 21 at the Irwindale Speedway - but he could walk away, thanks to a neck brace. Below is what is left of Hessing's car.