Tim Kozak was airlifted from the dirt track
An official was struck by a race car at Eagle Raceway in Eagle, Nebraska on Saturday night. The short track is a 1/3-mile high banked clay oval.
The incident took place during the Hobby Stock B main. The cars were circling under a caution period.
The official that was struck was in charge of the cone rule, per a statement from a fan in attendance. He would place a cone in the middle of the front straight away.
What is the cone for? It keeps drivers single file on restarts.
The cars aren’t allowed to pass below the cone. They have to run to the outside of the cone on restarts. Once the green is dropped and the field passes, the cone is pulled off the track surface, usually by a string.
Who was struck? Tim Kozak was the man that was stuck by the race car. Fans stated that he was alert and awake at the scene.
An emergency helicopter was flown into the dirt track. He was taken to Bryan West Hospital in Lincoln, NE. He suffered a fractured vertebra in his back and neck.
Eagle Raceway owner Roger Hadan says the speedway put in a new medical team at the dirt track this year.
“This is the first year we put this crew together,” Hadan said. “They did the best job they could have possibly have done.”
Now, Eagle Raceway is discussing plans for a fundraiser for Kozak during Saturday’s races.
Kozak remains in critical condition as of Sunday night.
