Capital Raceway Promotions, Inc. v. Smith

A defect inherent in the nature of man is that perversity of spirit which attracts us to spectacles of danger in which our fellow men risk death for our amusement. Although the events in the coliseums of ancient Rome were somewhat different from those held in their modern counterparts, spectators were perhaps subject to similar risks for there must have been occasions when a lion escaped the arena to prowl among the patrons or a gladiator lost control of his weapon to the detriment of a front row observer.

On April 24, 1971 a “funny car,” designed to reach speeds in excess of two hundred miles…