KOKOMO, Ind. – Robert Ballou went from the highest of highs to the lowest of lows in the blink of an eye on Sunday night at Kokomo Speedway.
Ballou is now on the mend with a broken arm following a hard crash seconds after he picked up the win in Kokomo’s Bob Darland Memorial race for non-winged sprint cars.
“I want to thank everyone who has reached out and checked on me the last few days,” said Ballou. “It is disappointing to get hurt right when things really pick up out here, but I am thankful the injuries aren’t more serious. We will be out a while, but we will be back.”
MORE: Ballou Wins Kokomo, But Suffers Broken Arm
The Rocklin, Calif., native put together a strong weekend before his crash, finishing second on Friday night at Gas City I-69 Speedway before flexing his muscle on Sunday with the Bob Darland Memorial victory.
As he took the checkered flag, circumstances left the car of Koby Barksdale out of shape in front of him. With nowhere to go, Ballou tried to take evasive action, but couldn’t avoid making hard contact with Barksdale’s ailing machine.
Getting upside down following the hard hit, Ballou ended up with a compound fracture of the radius and ulna bones in one of his arms, which has led to multiple surgeries and forced him to the sidelines for an extended period of time.
“Hopefully I can heel up quick and get back to doing what I love in not time at all, but I want to make sure I am good to go before getting back behind the wheel,” Ballou noted. “Again, just want to thank my fellow drivers, fans, and everyone that has reached out and checked in on me.”
Prior to his injury, Ballou accrued three victories, six top-five and 12 top-10 finishes in 16 starts this season.