Mr. Eisenberg was attempting to release a parachute when he wrecked his modified Porsche 911 Turbo at 244 mph at Elvington Airfield near York in October 2020 during a speed record attempt.
An inquest revealed that a daring entrepreneur who crashed at 244mph while attempting to set a speed record in a Porsche 911 Turbo took one hand off the wheel to activate a parachute.
The 47-year-old Zef Eisenberg died at Elvington Airfield near York on October 1, 2020, while attempting to prove he had developed the world’s fastest Porsche and set a record “flying mile.”
His “extensively customized” automobile flipped over at great speed, barrel rolling and spinning end over end for 500 meters before coming to a rest.
The affluent businessman died at the scene after sustaining “several severe injuries.”
Mr. Eisenberg, an ultra-fast motorbike racer, requested that his Porsche be outfitted with a parachute as part of a custom design.
The investigation revealed that he erroneously applied the brakes before deploying the parachute, causing the vehicle to become unstable and take off.
Jamie Champkin from Motorsport UK, the organization that granted Mr. Eisenberg permission to undertake the challenge, stated that the vehicle landed on its nose.
“Unsurvivable” incident
Mr. Champkin stated to the coroner: “It took the vehicle 513 meters to come to a stop after traveling 513 meters in the air.
“As soon as it is in the air, there is no friction other than air friction to slow it down in any way.”
He added: “According to our estimations, it was traveling at least 150 mph and possibly 250 mph when it impacted the ground, and our very simple calculations indicate that the impact force might have been as high as 37,000 pounds, or 218 times Mr. Eisenberg’s body weight.
This occurrence was not survivable under the circumstances.
Coroner John Heath issued a judgment of misadventure for the death of Mr. Eisenberg, who sustained fatal injuries while “driving at about 244 mph during a record speed attempt.”
He had to remove his left hand from the driving wheel of the street-legal-adapted vehicle to pull a lever to deploy the parachute.
Steve Gardner, who was a crash investigator for North Yorkshire Police at the time, remarked that the force required to press the lever forward and deploy the parachute was “pretty significant.”
The vehicle was not equipped with an alternate gadget, a steering wheel-mounted button.
Moments before Mr. Eisenberg lost control, a slight but observable twitch was noted on the steering wheel.
On that day, he completed ten circuits of the airfield, and analysis of the vehicle reveals no defects in the brakes, tires, or aerodynamics.
Relatives who participated remotely in the inquest had concerns about Mr. Eisenberg’s use of a six-point harness that was fastened to the vehicle in five locations.
‘True genius with distinct talents’
Thrill-seeker Mr. Eisenberg escaped Britain’s fastest motorcycle collision in 2016 when his turbine-powered motorcycle failed to halt at the end of the runway at the same airfield.
However, he had to relearn how to walk after shattering bones in his legs and pelvis.
Before migrating to the island of Guernsey, the former teenage bodybuilder from north London made his money with the Maximuscle fitness brand of protein powder, which was eventually sold to the pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline.
His interest in motorsport-inspired him to host the ITV show Speed Freaks, which focuses on the design, construction, and engineering of extreme cars.
His family praised him as a “genuine genius with exceptional abilities.”
To prevent future tragedies, Mr. Heath stated that he will submit a report requesting that Motorsport UK review legislation regarding the strength of the chassis at the place where harnesses are mounted, even though this was not a factor in Mr. Eisenberg’s passing.
