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Where were you when…? (32 posts)

Topic tags: 1994, Ayrton Senna, F1, Imola, Roland Ratzenberger

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KeeleyObsessed said 1 year, 6 months ago:

I thought I’d start a topic which I don’t think I’ve seen anywhere before on this website. It may well fall flat on it’s face, but I’m willing to give it a go.

Many people can remember exactly where they were when they heard certain pieces of news such as the 9/11 and 7/7 attacks, the death of the Queen Mother and Princess Diana, and various others. I realize I could be touching on a very sensitive subject, but do people remember where they were on that fateful weekend in 1994 where Ratzenberger and Senna died?

I can’t answer this question for myself, as I was born in January 1995. But my Dad had been following F1 for quite a while before (and often sings of Nigel Mansell’s talent when his tyres blew in the 1986 finale), but had missed the 1994 Imola GP as he was meeting up with his parents (my grandparents) that weekend. I believe he rushed home as soon as he could when he had heard the news simply so he could watch the video recording of the race (being a big F1 fan, he wouldn’t completely miss the race).

Does anyone else want to share there stories? Maybe if someone on here was there that weekend and saw it happen? I’d love to hear some of your stories..

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Girts said 1 year, 6 months ago:

I was only 10 years old then and didn’t follow F1 yet but I remember myself being in the biggest room of our small two-room flat and listening to the big radio speakers as Senna’s death was announced. I also remember my parents saying that another driver had died on the previous day. Somehow I immediately knew that a great man had gone. A couple of weeks ago, I was able to watch SENNA movie for the first time. After watching it, I knew how damn right my feelings were on the day he passed away.

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Doance said 1 year, 6 months ago:

I was a baby in 1994.
As for Mansell’s tyre blowout, my parents were at that race and my mum remembers it happening. She was in the Stag Hotel watching on tv.

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Cristian said 1 year, 6 months ago:

In 1994 I was beginning school :P

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Alianora La Canta said 1 year, 6 months ago:

In 1994 I was quite little. It was the first time I saw a F1 start (before I’d only managed to catch the action partway through). It was also the first time I’d seen a car crash without being “helped” in an obvious way by another car, meaning I was completely clueless about what was normal for such an incident. I remember being glad it wasn’t Damon Hill (who I supported at the time) but only because I couldn’t see how hitting a wall was supposed to help with getting to the end of the race first. It took about three races after that for me to learn that drivers who hit walls usually survived the experience…

I was only managing to catch about one word in five of what Murray Walker said, and I knew something had gone massively wrong because suddenly I could understand one word in two of what Murray said. Not enough to figure out what was wrong, but enough for a sense of major foreboding. A lot of things were clearly happening but none of it made sense, so eventually (about 10 minutes after the race re-started) I got bored and went outside to play. I discovered Ayrton had died due to the crash when I came back in for tea and the news came on. After that, it took the best part of two years to realise that Ayrton was somewhat more than just Damon Hill’s team-mate. The “Senna” film was good partly because it felt like I could see the weekend with proper awareness of what was going on for the first time.

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KaIIe said 1 year, 6 months ago:

I can’t remember where I was during the race (was 7 at the time), but I remember goofing around as usual in the evening, and then my dad shushing me because of the shocking news. The next day I remember talking about why Senna had to die with my friend over the sandpit.

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Funkyf1 said 1 year, 6 months ago:

I was sitting in front of my Tv in disbelief. Being in Australia, we generally have late broadcasts, my father and I, both fans of F1 used to share a Sunday ritual of staying up late to watch CH9. To this day I can’t remember my dads reaction of whether or not he was there, all i re-call is Senna running off the track, plowing into the barriers and sitting there motionless. I stared at the tv, as my neighbour was banging at the door, he had just seen the same accident. He asked me the next day if I saw what happened as I never answered the door. I can still see it now.

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GeeMac said 1 year, 6 months ago:

I was 9 (and a half), watching the race in my parents living room (where I watched practically every race for the next 16 years!) I had already been following the sport for 3 years due to the fact that I was an odd kid, obsessed with cars, and was a big Senna/Williams fan already. My first reaction was “For goodness sake, you are handing this to MSC!”, but I soon realised it wasn’t good. The signs were all there: Senna’s head moved and then stayed so eerily still, the marshals didn’t go to the car, Murray Walker’s tone changed, and my parents sat in silence. I’ll never forget that day, it also happens to be my Mum’s birthday.

My older brother had 2 friends, twin sisters if I remember right, who were devout Senna fans, and I remember that they cried for about a week solid. It all made me even more interested in Senna and the sport, and lead to me reading more and more about both. I soon realised that Senna was way more than just another world champion, someone who won a few races in 93 and was mostly famous (in my book anyway) for his left hook on Eddie Irvine. So in a way, that day and my F1 obsession are intrinsically linked. Quite odd.

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Fixy said 1 year, 6 months ago:

Being born on April 1995, it wasn’t even planned for me to be born during the 1994 San Marino GP.

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ajokay said 1 year, 6 months ago:

I was 9, and I was watching the race on TV in my lounge at home. All of my memories point to it being the first F1 race I ever watched in full.

I remember drawing a diagram of what had happened for my dad as he was out of the room when it happened, and they never show replays when something like that happens.

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f1alex said 1 year, 6 months ago:

I was in the womb…

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Ell said 1 year, 6 months ago:

I was nothing, I would have to wait 4 years (August 1998).

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James_mc said 1 year, 6 months ago:

I don’t remember it, don’t know if I watched it or not.

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MattHT said 1 year, 6 months ago:

I was in my front room watching it, it was the first race I watched.

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ob1kenobi.23 said 1 year, 6 months ago:

My daughter was visiting that day so myself, my son in law & my grandson were in the sitting room watching the race. My son in law was a huge Ayrton fan & hated Alain & Michael. I was a huge admirer of Ayrton, although not a fan.
When I saw the incident I was’nt too worried as I had seen Gerhard have the exact same accident some years earlier & although his car went on fire, he walked away from it & was racing a few weeks later.
When I saw his head twitch & not move again I could feel a chill run down my spine & a feeling of impending doom & realised that it did not look good. My son in law kept asking me if I thought he would be OK & I had no idea what to say except “I hope so”.
We were just coming to terms with what had happened to Roland & Ruben’s acrobatics at Aqua Minerali which had left him in the hospital.
I had watched Ayrton race in FF 2000 & stood within 10 feet of him in the paddock & was devastated to learn he had succumbed to his injuries.
It was freak, other than a piece of carbon fibre piercing his helmet he too would have walked away unscathed.

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