In wake of Wheldon's death, Hoosier family remembers their similar loss

NORTH VERNON, Ind. (WISH) - “They knew there’s a risk. You never think it’s going to happen.”

That’s a description of race drivers and racing families from a member of a racing family who know what it’s like to lose a loved one to the sport.

Jeff O’Connor sells insurance in North Vernon. That’s how he kept a promise to his mom. She didn’t want her son to risk his life. Not after seeing her husband, Jeff’s father, die so violently.

A crash killed Pat O’Connor in the first lap of the 1958 Indianapolis 500.

Jeff O’Connor has seen the film clips of his father’s crash. He’s also seen the replays of Dan Wheldon’s fatal crash last weekend at the Las Vegas Speedway.

“As I watched the replays,” he said, “the first thing that went through my mind was: Wow! How similar was that to what I’ve seen of my dad’s accident?”

O’Connor was only 2 years old at the time of the tragedy. But since then, he’s learned that his dad – and other drivers – were apprehensive about the ’58 race.

On race morning, Pat O’Connor “had an extra bowl of cereal. An extra glass of milk,” Jeff said – explaining that for some reason, his dad “just kind of took his time getting to the track.”

If Pat O’Connor had some kind of apprehension about that race, “unfortunately, it came true,” his son said.

To hear more of the family’s story, click to play the video above.