Hans Herrman walked away unscathed from this accident at the 1959 German Formula 1 Grand Prix, exactly how he managed to not only survive but survive without injury (other than some minor grazes) is a mystery.
The crash happened at the AVUS Race Track in West Berlin in 1959, the track is essentially two long straights with a banked hairpin at each end, similar to an American Speedway. Hans apparently clipped a hay bale with the rear right tire of his BRM, which then sent the car barrel rolling down the track, sans Hans.
It was later said that if he had been wearing a seatbelt he would have died, the fact that he was thrown free of the car saved his life, he was just lucky there was no one coming up behind him
I’ll wager he needed a Scotch or two (or seven) when he got back to the pits.
The below video comes with a warning about loud German commentary, if you’re in the office hit the mute button.
Ben Branch has had his work featured on CNN, Popular Mechanics, the official Smithsonian Magazine, Road & Track Magazine, the official Pinterest blog, the official eBay Motors blog, BuzzFeed, and many more.
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