Sam Schmidt was an up-and-coming star in IndyCar in the late 90’s before a crash that rendered him a quadriplegic, but he’s never lost touch with the sport: he’s now a team owner, as well as the founder of the Sam Schmidt Paralysis Foundation.
Paralyzed driver Sam Schmidt completes qualifying lap with car using head movements
There was an amazing moment at Indianapolis today, as quadriplegic driver Sam Schmidt drove a specially outfitted car nearly 100 miles around the Indy 500 racetrack.
Timothy T. Ludwig-US PRESSWIRE
Sunday, he debuted a major technological advancement: Schmidt can’t move his feet or arms, but he’s had a car fitted with a system that allows him to drive using head movements. He took it for a ceremonial qualifying lap at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Sunday:
Not only did he take her for a lap, he hauled, too:
Sam Schmidt reaches 97 mph in a Corvette @IMS. He's quadriplegic. The world is an amazing place.
— Mike Kitchel (@mikekitchel) May 18, 2014 The car is called the SAM Project -- in honor of Schmidt, obviously, but also it stands for “semi-autonomous motorcar” -- and the hope is that similar technology can help improve the quality of life for those living with paralysis like Schmidt. You can read about the technology -- and Schmidt’s story -- in this Indianapolis Star piece.
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