AMR INDYCAR Safety Team

INDYCAR and its AMR INDYCAR Safety Team are an industry leader in motorsports safety and has been instrumental in revolutionizing the sport.

Under the supervision of Dr. Geoffrey Billows, INDYCAR’s director of medical services, and Tim Baughman, INDYCAR’s director of track safety operations, the AMR INDYCAR Safety Team continually evaluates the latest equipment and its on-track procedures and protocols.

The AMR INDYCAR Safety Team consists of approximately 30 safety personnel with a minimum of 18 attending each event – a trauma physician, an orthopedic physician, two paramedics, 12 firefighters/EMTs and two registered nurses. Team personnel have an average of 20 years of experience in their respective fields.

“About 75 percent of our team is comprised of civil servants who are officers in their departments, such as captains, lieutenants or fire chief, which means they have vast amounts of experience managing people and managing ground scenes and incident command,” Baughman said. “Many have bachelor’s degrees in fire science and we also have people who have gone beyond the scope of their local fire departments by being involved with disaster task force teams.”

The team travels with four safety vehicles equipped with the most sophisticated Holmatro rescue equipment and state-of-the-art technology, including a 360-degree video camera in the windshield of each vehicle that provides real-time video via mobile network to AMR INDYCAR Safety Team members and race control.

The AMR INDYCAR Safety Team works in conjunction with and coordinates the safety personnel staffing at each venue, including firefighters, ambulance and tow-truck providers and track maintenance crews.

DR. GEOFFREY BILLOWS

Geoffrey Billows, M.D., has been a member of the AMR INDYCAR Safety Team since 1998 and has served as director of medical services for Indianapolis Motor Speedway since November 2006.

Dr. Billows is an assistant professor of clinical emergency medicine at Indiana University School of Medicine.

A graduate of the University of Cincinnati School of Medicine, Dr. Billows completed his residency in emergency medicine at IU Health Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis. Before attending medical school, Dr. Billows was a firefighter/paramedic for 13 years with the city of Fairborn, Ohio.

DR. TERRY TRAMMELL

Terry Trammell, M.D., serves as a safety consultant to INDYCAR and is a longtime member of the INDYCAR Safety Team.

Dr. Trammell has been active in providing trackside medical care since 1973, including serving as orthopedic consultant to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and director of medical services for CART. He is a founding member of the International Council of Motorsports Science and a founding fellow of the FIA Institute for Motorsport Safety.

Dr. Trammell is a sought-after lecturer on spinal injuries and conditions, and has authored numerous articles published in professional journals.