May 1, 2011

Today's Tune: "Ride The Wild Wind" By Queen

May 1, 1994 photo of Ayrton Senna by Mark Sandten / Getty Images

Like many Formula One racing fans, today I'm remembering three-time world champion Brazilian racing driver Ayrton Senna. Senna died on May 1, 1994, from severe head injuries sustained in a crash, while leading in the controversial 1994 Italian (San Marino) Grand Prix.

That whole weekend was pretty wierd, as many many things went wrong, before and during the actual race. During the Friday qualifying, Rubens Barrichello (also from Brazil) was involved in a bad accident, when his car flew into a stack of tires and a fence after becoming airborne. Barrichello would eventually recover from his injuries, but Austrian driver Roland Ratzenberger was killed in qualifying the next day (Saturday), when he crashed into a concrete wall. Ayrton Senna, was very upset by the incidents and how things were handled at the time, but he would still race on Sunday.

Unfortunately, there was another accident and safety car issues at the start the race, then tragedy struck after the restart. Senna's car ran off the track and crashed into a concrete wall. The car broke into pieces, pieces which caused multiple and fatal head injuries to the racing legend.



BBC News coverage after fatal crash



Crash / Tribute video with music by Moby


Queen drummer Roger Taylor has a well known passion for cars and racing. He wrote the automotively inspired "Ride The Wild Wind" (1991), which serves as the 'Today's Tune' for this installment.



Queen - "Ride The Wild Wind" (1991)

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