Helmet Saves Andretti's Vent Man ©1999 SpeedCenter Publishing Crew member only bruised after being run over during refueling When vent man Ty Manseau was run over by Michael Andretti on Sunday during a routine fuel stop at the Miller Lite 225 in Milwaukee, it was his helmet that prevented serious injury. Andretti was visibly shaken by the incident and commented: "I have never done that before. I've never hit anybody in the pits before. I feel terrible. The car was creeping and then I thought they said to go and that's when I caught (Manseau)." A black tire mark on Manseau's helmet indicated how serious the incident really was. Just a week earlier during the Motorola 300, Gil de Ferran knocked down crew member Dave Stephens, whose helmet was cracked from the impact. Stephens was released from St. Louis hospital with only a mild concussion. These two incidents occur as CART is stepping up safety regulations in pit lane. Before the Milwaukee race it was announced that by early July when the series arrives at Cleveland, all team members who are over the wall during the race will have to wear helmets. But most teams started wearing helmets at Milwaukee. The incident in Andretti's pit will only accelerate the adoption of helmets in pit lane.

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