Youngsters should be allowed to race

It's tragic when any racer dies on the track. But the tragedy is magnified immeasurably when the racer is a child.

Peter Lenz, an accomplished 13-year-old motorcycle racer who looked much younger than his age, died Sunday on Indianapolis Motor Speedway's road course during a warmup lap before the U.S. Grand Prix Riders Union event for two-wheel prodigies.

Lenz fell from his 125cc bike and was struck by one ridden by a 12-year-old competitor who apparently didn't see the 5-foot Lenz standing on the track and waving to indicate he was uninjured. An Indiana coroner ruled it an accidental death from multiple blunt force trauma.

Lenz will be buried today near his home in Vancouver, Wash.

The death became headline news because of the riders' ages and the fact that their race was part of Indy's MotoGP weekend, which featured the world's premier bike circuit.

A few Internet Neanderthals have labeled it child abuse that youngsters so young are allowed to race at up to 125 mph on two-wheel rockets.

The "child abuse" label is nonsensical and insensitive to the young riders and their grieving families.

There isn't a major racing organization that fails to put safety first. That emphasis is doubled when it comes to racers who are too young to be licensed to drive on public streets.

Many youngsters want to hop in a go-kart or climb onto a dirt bike to race with the wind. Few have the innate talent to make it a career. Lenz seemed to be one of them.

The key is providing safe environments and the best safety equipment available for high speed pursuits.

While beginning racers, who can be as young as 5, cannot fully comprehend racing's risks, the boys involved in Sunday's tragedy were old enough to be aware of the dangers. It was their choice.

And, yes, it is not unusual for kindergarten-aged boys and girls to race.

Four-time NASCAR Sprint Cup champ Jeff Gordon raced Quarter Midgets at age 5, and two-time champ Tony Stewart raced go-karts at age 7.

Kurt Busch began racing when he was 15, but younger brother Kyle was 6 when he began puttering around in a go-kart and was 13 when he began racing at Las Vegas Motor Speedway's Bullring.

The NHRA and the speedway offer competition for kids in the Jr. Dragsters class, where speeds can reach 70 mph and drivers race for only an eighth of a mile.

The Bullring is one of hundreds of tracks that sanction competition in Bandolero cars, which are similar to go-karts with full bodies. Youngsters can begin training in both series at age 8.

There have been no fatalities in Quarter Midgets, Jr. Dragsters or Bandoleros, according to Chris Blair, vice president of racing operations at the speedway.

Blair's 10-year-old son, Austin, has been racing Bandoleros and Quarter Midgets for four years. The youngster grew up around racing. His first athletic endeavor was youth soccer at age 5.

"We saw how many injuries there were in soccer and read about head and spinal cord injuries in soccer and football," Blair said. "Those were some of the reasons we got involved with racing when he said he wanted to race.

"We felt he would be much safer racing with a roll cage, seat belts and harnesses and neck protection."

Sadly, those options aren't available on motorcycles.

But youngsters who wish to race on two wheels shouldn't be denied the opportunity to do so.

Jeff Wolf's motor sports column is published Friday in the Las Vegas Review-Journal. He can be reached at jwolf@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0247. Visit Wolf's motor sports blog at lvrj.com/blogs/heavypedal/ throughout the week.