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Gidley to visit Daytona three years after huge crash

Memo Gidley, who has faced three years of rehabilitation following his monstrous shunt in the 2014 Rolex 24 Hours, is to return to Daytona International Speedway this week as a guest of IMSA.

Memo Gidley

Memo Gidley

James Holland

#99 GAINSCO / Bob Stallings Racing Corvette DP Chevrolet: Alex Gurney, Jon Fogarty, Darren Law, Memo Gidley
#99 GAINSCO / Bob Stallings Racing Corvette DP Chevrolet: Alex Gurney, Jon Fogarty, Darren Law, Memo Gidley
#99 GAINSCO / Bob Stallings Racing Corvette DP Chevrolet: Alex Gurney, Jon Fogarty, Darren Law, Memo Gidley leads the field to the start
P class and overall pole winner Alex Gurney celebrates with Bob Stallings and Memo Gidley
Memo Gidley

Gidley, along with wife Mari, plans to meet the media on Thursday and then plans to visit with doctors and staff later this week at Halifax Health Medical Center, where he was transported after the incident and spent several days undergoing treatment for his injuries.

The former Indy car driver was endurance “third man” in the Gainsco/Bob Stallings Racing #99 Daytona Prototype in 2014, accompanying Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty. The impact occurred when Gidley went to lap a GT-class Porsche car, and when he ducked out from behind the backmarker, he found a Ferrari limping to the pits with mechanical trouble. The closing speed was estimated to have been well over 100mph.

Gidley, a Mexican-American with dual citizenship, suffered a broken back and extensive injuries to his left arm and left leg. His treatments since have been chronicled on his website

Said Gidley: “Daytona is a special place for me and I’ve been wanting to get back as soon as I was healed. It’s been a long recovery journey, and a big part of my motivation was to be here now. The healing has gone so well and I’ve been cleared by doctors to drive again.

“I’m looking forward to saying ‘thank you’ to so many people that were part of helping me when I was injured. IMSA and everybody associated with this race gave me a lot of support and I want to say thanks.

“Even though many have been in contact on email or over the phone, I haven’t seen them in person for three years. When you work to help somebody, it’s always nice to see how it ended up, and I want them to see how strong I am and that I’m back.  I also hope that my recovery can inspire anybody else dealing with something similar.”

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