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For those of you who know him, Ron apparently was hit by a car while out on his bicycle a few days ago, and is the ICU with massive injuries that are going to take months of rehab. Thankfully, his brain functions look good.
He is at:
Kern Medical Center
1700 Mt. Vernon Ave.
Bakersfield, CA 93306
He might appreciate cards once they take him out of the induced coma.
Our dear friend, engineer, pilot and all around great human Ron Mathis succumbed to injuries suffered from being struck while riding his bicycle home from work on September 15th. Our Runoffs win was bittersweet to say the least, but much of the success was the result of Ron's efforts and his work with Steve and others in the Citation camp.
I have known Ron since the late 90's and was humbled by his presence in our paddock and his love for our racing efforts. His accomplishments are many and I am sure I don't know but a fraction of them however they include outright victories at LeMans (2x I believe), Daytona 24 (with a car he designed) and Petit LeMans. He engineered for Audi on their R10 not to mention some Indy Car, Atlantic, Touring Car and even PacWest's NASCAR truck team (his observation of the girth of the guys in NASCAR caused Ron to become a vegetarian). Ron was also lead engineer for the Edison 2 a car which won the $5 million X Prize for high mileage vehicles. He had a great twin engine Barron that he routinely flew in speed trials. For the past few years Ron has been working at XCOR as a lead engineer on their manned space craft in Mohave.
I am saddened beyond words; it is like losing a family member. I am grateful for all of the great times and knowledge that he shared with us. God Speed Ron.
http://www.racer.com/imsa/item/13556...o-hospice-care
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Very_Light_Car
Wow! I knew he was in bad shape after the accident, but had hoped he would pull through.
It's really sad to lose such a good and talented member of the racing community before his time. :(
RIP, Ron.
I'm damned near a loss for words about this.
Ron was probably the brightest guy I've ever met, as well as the most humble about his accomplishments - zero ego about what he was doing or had done. He just loved having something new and unknown to him to sink his teeth into, and if you had an idea on something that he found later to be useful elsewhere, he would later enthusiastically tell you about it and give you the credit. And when he knew that he was right about something engineering-wise, he didn't back down, even against the corporate political guns -his stories about matching his stubborness with some corporate big-wigs were hilarious.
A big, big loss to those who knew him.
Dammit, Ron. I'm really going to miss you!
So sorry for all his family and those who knew him.
Definitely sounds like someone I wish I had known.
A terrible loss and so sad. Our condolences to you and his family.
Race on!