Driver Barclay’s Condition Improves

Orange County race car driver Steve Barclay was moved from critical care to a regular room today and his condition was upgraded to good, a spokesman at Methodist Hospital said.

Barclay, 45, of Orange suffered a concussion and broken arm, wrist, collarbone and ribs in a crash Friday during the Rookie Orientation Program at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Doctors said Barclay was continuing to improve, although they gave no indication when he would be released, Methodist spokesman Jon White said.

Barclay was originally listed in serious condition after his crash in the second turn. He had driven 56 laps with a fast lap at 189.673 before his accident.

The wreck, which ended Barclay’s long-held dream of starting in the Indianapolis 500, occurred as his Buick-powered Lola darted to the right in the second turn, striking the outside concrete barrier and rocketing across the track into the other wall.

The car slid several hundred feet with its bottom pinned against the side of the wall. Barclay was knocked unconscious.

A California land developer, Barclay had been racing for only five years, and the major achievement for the former UCLA lineman was winning the hard luck award in the West Coast Formula Atlantic series.