This past weekend at the U.S. Street Nationals at Bradenton Motorsports Park in Florida, Pro Mod racer Ken Cruz went for the ride of his life, demolishing his beautiful flamed Camaro when the throttle hung wide-open at the conclusion of a run in a scene that left everyone in attendance — and even those of is watching the video days later — looking on in horror.

Nothing appears to be amiss on the hit of the throttle – the car screams right down Broadway, but just after the finish line the chutes don’t blossom and you can hear the engine RPM continuing to rise, until all hell breaks loose in the shutdown area.

Photo: Mike Reedy

According to the information we have, the throttle hung open and Cruz was unable to get it to release, causing the car to continue to accelerate not only through the eighth-mile but through the quarter and off the end of the track into the dusty field. Reports say that the car traveled off the track at well over 250 MPH and into the field – where it continued its journey over 1,000 feet before finally coming to rest. 

Cruz was taken to the hospital for precautions, but thankfully all of his safety equipment did its job and incredibly, he was released with only minor bumps and bruises. The car is another story, as it was in rough shape after its unplanned flight. The chassis can be salvaged and the team is already hard at work with an expected return in a few months. It’s a real shame, as Cruz had just broken into the 3-second zone (eighth-mile) and was working towards improving even more. 

A scary crash, to be sure. But the level of safety equipment required in today’s Pro Mod-level cars is designed to help a driver stay alive in an instance like this, and we’re glad it did so. 

Thanks to Free Life Films for the video!