Schmidt to have more foot surgery

Tuesday, Oct. 19, 1999 | 10:53 a.m.

DALLAS -- Sam Schmidt of Henderson was airlifted today from a Dallas hospital to Indianapolis, where he will face additional surgery at Methodist Hospital.

Schmidt, 35, sustained foot injuries in an accident during the Indy Racing League Mall.com 500 Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway.

He underwent surgery at a Dallas hospital late Sunday night on his right foot. Orthopaedic surgeons removed the top part of the big toe and fused the joint in his secondary toe.

Schmidt will have surgery Thursday in Indianapolis on his left foot, which was crushed when his Sprint PCS Dallara/Aurora hit the wall head-on after he and Scott Sharp made contact on lap 126 of the 208-lap race.

"Sam's left foot was pretty much shattered (in the accident)," said Ruthie Culbertson, who handles media relations for Treadway Racing. "The surgeons opened it up (Sunday night) and popped some of the joints back into place, but they will have to go back in and put some pins in once the swelling in the foot goes down."

Culbertson said Schmidt was in "good spirits" despite being in intense pain. She added that the ankle specialist who examined Schmidt said the driver faces a lengthy recovery process that could be as long as three months.

Schmidt crashed after Sharp attempted to pass Schmidt on a restart following a caution period. Sharp got all four wheels in the grass at the bottom of the track as he tried to pass Schmidt at the start/finish line, lost traction and came back up on the track where he brushed Schmidt's car, sending him into the outside wall.

Sharp later took full blame for the incident.

"Everyone slowed up (on the restart) and I caught everyone too quickly," Sharp said. "My mistake. There was no place for me to go.

"I feel really bad. The whole team, that whole Treadway Sprint PCS Team, is a great bunch of guys. My heart goes out to Sam."

Scott Goodyear, who was involved in a single-car crash Sunday when he cut a tire and hit the wall in Turn 4, was released from the hospital Monday afternoon.

Robby Unser remained at a Dallas hospital in good condition with soreness in his chest after a single-car accident late in Sunday's race.

Three members of Tyce Carlson's crew, who were injured when rookie driver Niclas Jonsson lost control of his car in the pits during Saturday's final practice session, remained hospitalized Monday evening.

Tracy Hash was hospitalized in serious condition with a complex compound fracture of his left leg; Thomas Bose was in fair condition with rib fractures; and Jeff Howerton was in fair condition with a broken right leg.