MotoAmerica Superstock 1000 racer Hayden Gillim suffered a scary, high-speed crash into a tire wall during Motul Superbike/Bazzaz Superstock 1000 Race Two Sunday, August 27 at Pittsburgh International Race Complex, in Wampum, Pennsylvania, but the Cycle World Suzuki pilot incredibly escaped any injuries other than bruises and is already home in Owensboro, Kentucky.
“That was a fun ride,” Gillim told Roadracingworld.com in a telephone interview Monday.
It was the start of the 12th lap of the 18-lap race when Gillim rode off the 2.8-mile course’s first corner at high speed. Hayden crashed in the spacious run-off area, but he was carrying so much speed that he bounced and tumbled until he impacted a tire wall-fronted Armco barrier head-first. His GSX-R1000, meanwhile, catapulted itself over the barrier, flying approximately 60 feet in one bounce, before landing on the back side of the barrier.
“I think I was just getting anxious,” said Gillim. “[Sylvain] Barrier and [Danny] Eslick were pulling away, and I got a little overzealous trying to get by Jake [Lewis]. I missed my braking marker and got in there pretty hot.
“I got out there and couldn’t get the thing to slow down in the grass. The wall was coming up pretty quick, so I tried to lay the bike down. But it caught and threw me over the top, and I ended up crashing into the wall.”
Gillim was seen on TV feeds being helped to his feet at the accident scene and walking into an ambulance, but he was transported to a local hospital. There, Gillim says he underwent a CT scan and doctors told him he did not suffer a concussion or another other injuries aside from bruising.
“I got pretty lucky,” said Gillim, who left Pittsburgh around 7:00 p.m. local time and arrived home at approximately 5:00 a.m., according to friend, co-driver and fellow racer JD Beach.
Asked about the run-off area at Turn One and if anything needs to be done to prevent a similar scenario, Gillim said, “I think for sure we need to put a little bit of Airfence there. Maybe a gravel trap and some Airfence. I know the track was real busy dealing with the new chicane, but all of the run-off areas are all grass. It would probably be good if they added gravels traps at Turn One and Turn Three.”