What a shame...on a couple of levels

[dcris]

Pics here: http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/201...er_head-o.html

EAST RUTHERFORD — A 56-year-old motorcylist was killed this morning, heading to work at the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, when he was hit head-on by a Ferrari, authorities said.
Stephen Lenge, of Kinnelon, was on his way to work, where he was helping construct the set for the upcoming Electric Daisy Festival, authorities said today.
He was arriving at 7:45 a.m., driving north on Berry’s Creek Road , the service road that winds around the parking lot, said Sgt. Dante Ruocco, a N.J. State Police spokesman.
A pair of 2006 Ferrari F430s — one red, one silver — were heading toward him on the other side of the road, police said. The automobiles, which cost several hundred thousand dollars, are owned by Gotham Dream Cars of Englewood and were being driven by employees of the company, Ruocco said.
Gotham rents high-end sports cars and holds events like Dream Car Sprint in which customers can pay $100 to drive a Ferrari or Lamborghini. The two luxury vehicles were returning from a gas station when 19-year-old Joseph Meyer, of Oviepo, Fla., lost control of the silver Ferrari and spun out of control, striking two cement curbs, according to Trooper Christopher Kay, another State Police spokesman.

Robert Sciarrino/The Star-Ledger
Wreckage from a fatal accident, which took the life of a motorcyclist early this morning, leaks fluid onto the asphalt of parking lot J. at the Meadowlands Sports. In background is one of the two exotic cars involved in the 7:45 head on between the motorcyclist and another car, not pictured.
The driver of the red Ferrari, 28-year-old Dumont resident Joseph Ferreti, swerved over the double yellow line to avoid being hit, but collided with Lenge’s motorcycle head-on.
Investigators worked through the afternoon taking measurements and trying to determine how fast the Ferrari was travelling. Though the investigation is ongoing, it appears the Ferraris were travelling faster than the 25 mph speed limit, Ruocco said.
Both Meyer and Ferreti suffered minor injuries and were treated at Hackensack University Medical Center, Kay said. Charges had not been filed as of last night, according to Kay, who said the Ferraris were "traveling at a high rate of speed."
Gotham’s event was cancelled.
"This incident was off-site from our event and no customers were involved," said Fazel Adabi, a spokesman for Gotham. "Unfortunately, there was a fatality from a motorcycle rider involved in the incident. First and foremost, we offer our condolences to the family and friends of this individual."
Both the State Police and the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office are investigating, Kay said.

[Shomegrown]

Sending a 19 year old out in an F430, what could possibly go wrong?

[dieselraver]

Sending a 19 year old out in an F430, what could possibly go wrong?

i don't see how age is a major player. he went to get gas, he could easily have been driving the rental Impala.

and on another note, he could easily have been 40 and still done something dumb.

stupidity knows no boundaries.

[Brendon1098]

The FBI agent who lost control of the F50 must have been 19 too, god what a horrible age..

[pknopp]

No way I would allow a 19 year old take a Ferrari anywhere unless his name was Mario.

[madrussian]

At least the silver one has proper stance now.

[Inspector Detector]

Sending a 19 year old out in an F430, what could possibly go wrong?

I'd feel safer letting babies play with guns.

[devianb]

i don't see how age is a major player. he went to get gas, he could easily have been driving the rental Impala.

and on another note, he could easily have been 40 and still done something dumb.

stupidity knows no boundaries.

But an Impala doesn't have 480 hp. I seriously doubt a 19 year old can resist the temptation to do something cocky.

[Shomegrown]

i don't see how age is a major player.

Insurance companies spend millions compiling statistics that say otherwise.

[TetsuoShima]

Insurance companies spend millions compiling statistics that say otherwise.

LOL and red cars really are more likely to get into an accident!

[Brendon1098]

This kid has probably driven more super cars than any of you have dreamed of super cars because of who he works for. Hell, i'd even go to say he's gotten more as& because of his bosses cars than you have because of anything related to cars. Stop hating

[XenoLlama]

LOL and red cars really are more likely to get into an accident!

My purely anecdotal evidence with n=1 indicates this is true. (my red mk5 gti has been run into on 6 separate occasions, several while parked!)

Therefore I can safely claim that my red car has been hit more than my not red car. Therefore this individual red car owned by me gets hit more than the individual not red car owned by me.

...I'll show myself out.

[dieselraver]

Insurance companies spend millions compiling statistics that say otherwise.

i think you get my drift though. while he was 19 years old, any tool working at a sports car dealership that gets their hands on a pretty/fast car is going to be tempted to do something stupid.

point .

the m5 in for service,

the C63 that was being driven. etc etc.

it could have easily been a 30 year old, a 40 year old etc.

[Shomegrown]

i think you get my drift though. while he was 19 years old, any tool working at a sports car dealership that gets their hands on a pretty/fast car is going to be tempted to do something stupid.

point .

the m5 in for service,

the C63 that was being driven. etc etc.

it could have easily been a 30 year old, a 40 year old etc.

Do you understand statistics?

Take 100 random 19 year olds and 100 random 40 year olds.

Toss all 200 people the keys to a Ferrari and have them go fill it up unsupervised.

Which group is more likely to have problems?

I never said all 19 year olds are idiots and I never said no 40 year olds would also crash. It's a fact though that 19 year olds tend to have less maturity and less experience - and thus are far more likely to do something stupid.

If you can't understand that, then, well, you're stupid too.

(not directed at you, but the whole group here)

[Shomegrown]

This kid has probably driven more super cars than any of you have dreamed of super cars because of who he works for. Hell, i'd even go to say he's gotten more as& because of his bosses cars than you have because of anything related to cars. Stop hating

lolololololololololololol

No better than a valet. Yippie, nothing to envy there.

[1.8Tquattro]

(not directed at you, but the whole group here)

Look man, this is The Car Lounge, everyone here has only driven their car in a 100% responsible manner while on public roads.

[SGLoki]

stupidity knows no boundaries.

no, there are no bounds.. it is just amplified between 16 and 22.

shame.

[Mailbox]

lolololololololololololol

No better than a valet. Yippie, nothing to envy there.

lol what have you done that's better than racing 2 F430 down a street?

[roadtripper]

[Air-over-water]

At first I just thought this was a stancefools car in the background.

[PDing]

Whoa! My friend and I were contemplating about going to the driving event last week for the 13th. Really terrible to read about this. The asshats are the ones that always survive.

[dubjager]

lolololololololololololol

No better than a valet. Yippie, nothing to envy there.

Seriously... just because you are driving your bosses car around town doesn't mean I envy you in the least.

I am very sorry to hear about this...

[Brendan@bwalkauto]

lol what have you done that's better than racing 2 F430 down a street?

Not killed another motorist while driving other high powered cars?

[1Point8TDan]

I would be tempted to do something stupid too and I'm 7 years older than the Ferrari driver. I mean, a) its a nice and fast car, b) does not belong to me personally (drive my own cars in a different manner).

[bmann]

Pics here: http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/201...er_head-o.html

EAST RUTHERFORD — A 56-year-old motorcylist was killed this morning, heading to work at the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, when he was hit head-on by a Ferrari, authorities said.
Stephen Lenge, of Kinnelon, was on his way to work, where he was helping construct the set for the upcoming Electric Daisy Festival, authorities said today.
He was arriving at 7:45 a.m., driving north on Berry’s Creek Road , the service road that winds around the parking lot, said Sgt. Dante Ruocco, a N.J. State Police spokesman.
A pair of 2006 Ferrari F430s — one red, one silver — were heading toward him on the other side of the road, police said. The automobiles, which cost several hundred thousand dollars, are owned by Gotham Dream Cars of Englewood and were being driven by employees of the company, Ruocco said.
Gotham rents high-end sports cars and holds events like Dream Car Sprint in which customers can pay $100 to drive a Ferrari or Lamborghini. The two luxury vehicles were returning from a gas station when 19-year-old Joseph Meyer, of Oviepo, Fla., lost control of the silver Ferrari and spun out of control, striking two cement curbs, according to Trooper Christopher Kay, another State Police spokesman.

Robert Sciarrino/The Star-Ledger
Wreckage from a fatal accident, which took the life of a motorcyclist early this morning, leaks fluid onto the asphalt of parking lot J. at the Meadowlands Sports. In background is one of the two exotic cars involved in the 7:45 head on between the motorcyclist and another car, not pictured.
The driver of the red Ferrari, 28-year-old Dumont resident Joseph Ferreti, swerved over the double yellow line to avoid being hit, but collided with Lenge’s motorcycle head-on.
Investigators worked through the afternoon taking measurements and trying to determine how fast the Ferrari was travelling. Though the investigation is ongoing, it appears the Ferraris were travelling faster than the 25 mph speed limit, Ruocco said.
Both Meyer and Ferreti suffered minor injuries and were treated at Hackensack University Medical Center, Kay said. Charges had not been filed as of last night, according to Kay, who said the Ferraris were "traveling at a high rate of speed."
Gotham’s event was cancelled.
"This incident was off-site from our event and no customers were involved," said Fazel Adabi, a spokesman for Gotham. "Unfortunately, there was a fatality from a motorcycle rider involved in the incident. First and foremost, we offer our condolences to the family and friends of this individual."
Both the State Police and the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office are investigating, Kay said.

Apparently it was the 28 year old who hit the biker head on. The 19 year old lost control and hit the curb, which caused the other guy to swerve into oncoming traffic and hit someone head on.

I thought it was notable that both of the guys were named Joe. Guys named Joe apparently suck at driving.

That's not to say I disagree with Shomegrown. Putting a Ferrari in the hands of a 19-year old seems like a risky proposition, as demonstrated by this article.

[Brendon1098]

lolololololololololololol

No better than a valet. Yippie, nothing to envy there.

That R8 you've shown video's of isn't yours is it?

[Vision33r]

I've driven on that road many times around Giants stadium and it is well known for going high speed.

I don't know the exact situation but my guess is they were both going very fast and the red car was probably following way too fast. If the silver car loses control and he's going under 50 which the speed limit there was probably 45 he could've easily brake and not have to cross the yellow line.

[Shin Akuma]

Apparently it was the 28 year old who hit the biker head on. The 19 year old lost control and hit the curb, which caused the other guy to swerve into oncoming traffic and hit someone head on.

I thought it was notable that both of the guys were named Joe. Guys named Joe apparently suck at driving.

That's not to say I disagree with Shomegrown. Putting a Ferrari in the hands of a 19-year old seems like a risky proposition, as demonstrated by this article.

What? Why?
If the 28 year old actually hit the biker, why/how is the other driver's age relevant?
I don't get.

[feels_road]

I don't know the exact situation but my guess is they were both going very fast and the red car was probably following way too fast. If the silver car loses control and he's going under 50 which the speed limit there was probably 45 he could've easily brake and not have to cross the yellow line.

it appears the Ferraris were travelling faster than the 25 mph speed limit

But I agree, likely rather high speed and insufficient distance. I am assuming the road is curved, which may have made it more difficult to see the motorcycle approaching.

[Vision33r]

What? Why?
If the 28 year old actually hit the biker, why/how is the other driver's age relevant?
I don't get.

I would put direct blame on the 28yr old. Although he was trying to get out of the way, he was probably going way too fast and close. Had he not been speeding he wouldn't have to cross the median to evade. Charges should be filed against the 19 yr old for speeding and reckless driving. Exotics don't lose control, inexperienced drivers do.

[FujiTekniques]

That R8 you've shown video's of isn't yours is it?

You do know the Ferraris didn't belong to these valets, right? Hardly "balla, yo" status.

Just so we're clear, my buddy was offered essentially the same job in Boston - driving a few Ferraris, Aston Martins, etc. around, ferrying them between the garage in Boston and the owner's home in Wellesley. The other part of the job? Driving clients at high speeds to help them understand the car's potential and then letting them take the wheel. Doesn't that just sound awesome??!

This is hardly a career-changing dream job. The pay was sh!t and you incurred full responsibility for any damages sustained under your watch. There were no benefits - health, dental, 401k, etc., and really, you're not learning advanced control techniques. You're a valet, pure and simple, who gets paid peanuts for a guy who is a millionaire to write off his personal vehicles as business expenses.

And while I have all the respect in the world for my friend, he's a massive pothead with no driver training beyond what he learned in driver's ed. No track days, no autocrosses, not even an advanced control clinic. Not exactly the ideal fit for someone flying down the Mass. Pike in a 400+ b.h.p. supercar.

Sucks for the motorcyclist. He didn't do a damn thing to deserve this.

[Shomegrown]

But I agree, likely rather high speed and insufficient distance. I am assuming the road is curved, which may have made it more difficult to see the motorcycle approaching.

Yeah, there are basically zero reasonable explanations for losing control of a Ferrari in a 25 mph zone. They were doing something stupid. I don't know why anyone would even bother to argue otherwise.

[Shomegrown]

That R8 you've shown video's of isn't yours is it?

Nope.

[Shomegrown]

What? Why?
If the 28 year old actually hit the biker, why/how is the other driver's age relevant?
I don't get.

They were probably both being stupid, but the 19 year old caused the accident (from what's been presented so far).

[vwgtiIII]

This kid has probably driven more super cars than any of you have dreamed of super cars because of who he works for. Hell, i'd even go to say he's gotten more as& because of his bosses cars than you have because of anything related to cars. Stop hating

I don't really understand how you guys are trying to dismiss this argument. Really? You don't think a 19 year old guy is going to even attempt to do what 19 year old guys do?

You don't have to be so butt-hurt about this. Like Shomegrown says, it isn't exactly a secret about the drastically higher probability that people in certain demographics are likely to speed and engage in aggressive, hazardous driving.