Earth Shattering News: Top Gear Presenter Richard Hammond Nearly Died
You guys know we don't post news unless it's really big or important... at least to us. We aren't huge politicos and this isn't a political site, so we don't post about the war, who we're going to vote for next month, rising gas prices, global warming, scary Christian fundamentalists, or even Republican underage cyber-sex. However, when we almost lose Richard Hammond, co-presenter on Top Gear and host of Braniac, we must report it. Top Gear is a show on the BBC dedicated to awesome fucking cars and pushing them past all sorts of speed limits. It's presented somewhat like Masterpiece Theater meets Formula One, and we love the shit out of it. You've probably seen it on the Discovery Channel or viewed clips of it on Google Video. It's the only show featuring charming Brits driving ridiculously expensive cars at speeds that make racing enthusiasts' pants tight. It's one of the few shows that make us bite our fists in awesome-tude. It's a word I made up just for Top Gear. Again, we love Top Gear.

Richard Hammond is the younger of the two presenters, 36 with two kids and a fine human being for his contribution to wicked awesomeness. We almost lost him last month when he veered off course in a 300mph jet-powered car at Elvington airfield near York. Let me repeat that, in case you're like me and you just scan over articles. JET-POWERED CAR. THREE HUNDRED MILES-PER-fucking-HOUR. He was trying to break the land speed record on film when his jet-powered car veered off course, landing him in Leeds Hospital where he was treated for significant brain injuries. On the points system doctors use, (15 is normal, 3 is flatline) he was a three. It was a fifty/fifty chance he'd live.

Thankfully he did, and narrowly avoided having doctors bore a hole in his head to drain blood and reduce the swelling. His wife and children helped him through the ordeal, and an obsession with Lego bricks helped him recover without significant brain damage. Thank God for Lego. Hopefully "The Hamster" will return to Top Gear, as he signed a two year contract with the BBC before the accident. Perhaps next time he'll let the old guy do the crazier shit. We at the Anti-Fanboy wish him a quick recovery and the best of health. Godspeed Hamster.

Source: BBC News UK

This entry was posted on Monday, October 23, 2006 at 8:53 AM.