Quake near Sonoma unsettles Castroneves
Disoriented driver initially thought plane had crashed
During the 6.0 earthquake that rattled the Napa Valley early Sunday morning, Helio Castroneves became fixated on pictures hanging on his hotel room wall.
“Mirrors breaking in the bathroom, you hear the alarms, pipes ( breaking), and not a single picture moved,” the Verizon IndyCar Series driver told USA TODAY Sports on Sunday at Sonoma Raceway, a few hours before the season’s penultimate race was run.
“I want the guy who put those nails in to come to my house.”
Castroneves lives in Fort Lauderdale, where earthquakes like the one that rocked the Napa Valley don’t occur.
Castroneves was asleep in a downtown Napa hotel, about 10 miles north of the earthquake’s epicenter in American Canyon, which is about 15 miles east of Sonoma Raceway. The earthquake is the area’s most significant in 25 years.
Castroneves’ room started shaking about 3:20 a.m. local time. Disoriented, the Brazilian didn’t initially know what was happening, because his only earthquake experience occurred years ago in Japan. But that was a minor temblor.
This time, ground movement forced a hotel evacuation. It was outside where the scope of the situation came to light. Castroneves shared the story exchange he had with Team Penske teammate Will Power and company President Tim Cindric.
“Will thought it was the end of the world; I thought it was a plane crash,” Castroneves said. “It was this rumbling noise, and it completely trashed the bathroom. It was like a movie, and I was in it.
“A very scary moment. I’m still shaking.”
Cindric posted photographs on Twitter of hotel damage with debris scattered. “Not fun,” he wrote.
Track officials said the 12-turn, 2.385-mile circuit was not damaged.
Sonoma Raceway President Steve Page said the decision to continue with the race was made after surveying the facilities and learning that all local roads were open.
He said the track’s emergency services were in place.
“It completely trashed the bathroom. It was like a movie, and I was in it. A very scary moment. I’m still shaking.” Helio Castroneves
“Welcome to California,” said Page, who lives in Sonoma. “I thought I was going to get thrown from my bed.”
Derrick Walker, IndyCar’s president of competition and operations, said the drivers were told of a contingency plan at a morning meeting.
“If something happens during the race, where do you go, how do you communicate,” he said.
Walker said nothing showed IndyCar the race shouldn’t continue.