Spectator Killed in Sprint Crash
A sprint car went out of control, jumped an interior catch fence and hit two spectators, killing one, Saturday night in front of about 2,000 spectators at Perris Auto Speedway.
Paul Bagley was killed and his wife, Helen, injured when driver Jack DeArmond Jr. lost control of his SCRA Sprint Car along the front straightaway, causing it to catapult over the fence and into the pits near Turn 1 during the B Main event.
Helen Bagley and DeArmond were transported to Riverside County Regional Medical Center after the crash, which occurred at about 8:40 p.m.
The track suspended racing the rest of the night.
Paul Bagley was on the board of directors of the Knoxville Sprint Car Nationals, the largest World of Outlaws race of the year.
The Bagleys also had a son, Jeff, who was killed in a sprint car crash at Ascot Park in 1989. Coincidentally, the Jeff Bagley Classic is scheduled for Saturday at Ventura Raceway.
-- Martin Henderson
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