Max
05-20-2003, 03:30 PM
Father takes the wheel as injured son recovers
By JIM PEDLEY
The Kansas City Star
Racing legend Kenny Bernstein said Monday that he and doctors are in a wait-and-see mode concerning the health of Bernstein's son, Brandon.
Brandon, 30, was injured Sunday in a crash during the first round of eliminations at the NHRA event at Englishtown, N.J.
He suffered two crushed vertebrae and probably will be out of the seat of his top-fuel dragster for several months.
But there are no signs of paralysis or permanently debilitating injury.
"His legs are good, his arms are good, the spinal canal is good, and the spinal cord is good," Kenny Bernstein said.
"It could have been worse," Brandon said.
When the NHRA arrives this week at Heartland Park in Topeka, Kenny Bernstein will be back in the cockpit of the Budweiser top-fuel car, of which he is the owner.
The elder Bernstein, 58, retired from driving after the 2002 season. He passed the ride on to his son.
Brandon quickly showed he had his father's talent -- Kenny won two NHRA top-fuel championships and four funny-car titles -- by winning three national events this season and finishing second to Larry Dixon in top-fuel points.
Sunday at Englishtown, Brandon's quest to become a rookie champion came to a horrible end. During his run, the car got away from him and ended up hitting a wall.
"It was quite a hit when I went into the wall and again when I landed on the other side," he said. "It didn't knock me out, but I sure felt it."
He had to be cut out of the car.
"Whether it's surgery or rehab," Kenny said, "it will be two to three months. That's to be normal again. I know this, there is absolutely no reason at all that I can think of to rush Brandon back into the car. He's out of the (championship) deal now for sure. It might be considerably longer than three months for him to be racing again."
He said doctors were going to wait until swelling went down before making any major decisions. That could be Wednesday.
• INJURED IN INDY: Also suffering back injuries over the weekend was Craig Dollansky.
Dollansky, a regular in the World of Outlaws series, crashed while driving an Infiniti Pro Series car during a race Saturday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
He suffered a compression fracture to a vertebra in his lower back. He had surgery Sunday.
"He's alert after the 61/2-hour surgery, but he's pretty uncomfortable," said Dollansky's wife, Julie.
Dollansky's Outlaws ride will be taken by Kasey Kahne for the next three events. Dollansky was in third place in the Outlaws standings.
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By JIM PEDLEY
The Kansas City Star
Racing legend Kenny Bernstein said Monday that he and doctors are in a wait-and-see mode concerning the health of Bernstein's son, Brandon.
Brandon, 30, was injured Sunday in a crash during the first round of eliminations at the NHRA event at Englishtown, N.J.
He suffered two crushed vertebrae and probably will be out of the seat of his top-fuel dragster for several months.
But there are no signs of paralysis or permanently debilitating injury.
"His legs are good, his arms are good, the spinal canal is good, and the spinal cord is good," Kenny Bernstein said.
"It could have been worse," Brandon said.
When the NHRA arrives this week at Heartland Park in Topeka, Kenny Bernstein will be back in the cockpit of the Budweiser top-fuel car, of which he is the owner.
The elder Bernstein, 58, retired from driving after the 2002 season. He passed the ride on to his son.
Brandon quickly showed he had his father's talent -- Kenny won two NHRA top-fuel championships and four funny-car titles -- by winning three national events this season and finishing second to Larry Dixon in top-fuel points.
Sunday at Englishtown, Brandon's quest to become a rookie champion came to a horrible end. During his run, the car got away from him and ended up hitting a wall.
"It was quite a hit when I went into the wall and again when I landed on the other side," he said. "It didn't knock me out, but I sure felt it."
He had to be cut out of the car.
"Whether it's surgery or rehab," Kenny said, "it will be two to three months. That's to be normal again. I know this, there is absolutely no reason at all that I can think of to rush Brandon back into the car. He's out of the (championship) deal now for sure. It might be considerably longer than three months for him to be racing again."
He said doctors were going to wait until swelling went down before making any major decisions. That could be Wednesday.
• INJURED IN INDY: Also suffering back injuries over the weekend was Craig Dollansky.
Dollansky, a regular in the World of Outlaws series, crashed while driving an Infiniti Pro Series car during a race Saturday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
He suffered a compression fracture to a vertebra in his lower back. He had surgery Sunday.
"He's alert after the 61/2-hour surgery, but he's pretty uncomfortable," said Dollansky's wife, Julie.
Dollansky's Outlaws ride will be taken by Kasey Kahne for the next three events. Dollansky was in third place in the Outlaws standings.
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http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/sports/5898539.htm