Comments on: What Defines Bravery?

By: Doug White

Doug White — Fri, 21 Sep 2012 14:12:54 +0000

Conway’s exit wasn’t brave, but I’d call it courageous. It took a lot of courage to step out of an IndyCar seat. Every driver whose been lucky enough to retire on his own terms will say that there comes a moment when you are thinking about your safety, about not getting killed, or not killing someone else, and not about going fast. And that’s the moment to step out. Conway could have faked it, qualified at the back, pulled in with “handling problems”. Instead, he was forthright, honest, honorable. He told the truth. I’ve never been a huge Conway fan, but I do respect him for not endangering other drivers or fans, and for having the balls to tell AJ Foyt that he was stepping out. His IndyCar career is likely over, and that’s probably as it should be. And I’m sure Mike knew that was a likely result, and he still did what he thought, no, what he KNEW was right. Brave? No. Courageous.

By: Tim Cronin

Tim Cronin — Fri, 21 Sep 2012 05:07:44 +0000

This is exactly it. Once Conway knew he couldn’t get run an oval, he had no business doing so, even if it was 5 minutes before the race. To be consumed by fear when you’ve got the rest of the field around you (and are thus responsible for their safety if you screw up) would invite disaster.
It’s a brave man who realizes that. Period.

By: Oilpressure

Oilpressure — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 21:15:09 +0000

OK, kids…let’s go back to our corners and settle down.

By: Hal Bush

Hal Bush — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 20:34:00 +0000

Oh yeah, fanboy. Like I am going to prove to some guy/gal who parades around as speedgeek how I know what I know. Take it or leave it, but he knew it far before you know.

By: The Speedgeek

The Speedgeek — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 17:05:14 +0000

Nice comeback. So, that’s a “no” on the question of whether or not you have something concrete on Mike Conway’s motivation, then? Ok, just wanted to clear that up.

By: Hal Bush

Hal Bush — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 15:54:23 +0000

IndyCar has a sphere? Yikes!

By: The Speedgeek

The Speedgeek — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 15:22:45 +0000

You know that for a fact, bud? The Days of Thunder part, I mean. I thought that was a documentary. I mean, Ned Jarrett and Larry Nuber are in it and all…

No, really, do you know anything concrete about Conway’s mindset before he got off the plane in Ontario? If so, I think we’re all (and by that, I mean everybody in the IndyCar sphere) curious.

By: Hal Bush

Hal Bush — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 14:20:07 +0000

His ‘epiphany” about ovals was weeks before Fontana and “Days of Thunder” is just a movie.

By: The Speedgeek

The Speedgeek — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 03:06:19 +0000

I do just want to chip in here that say what you will about his timing and decision as a whole (oh, and people have said what they will), I hardly think this was premeditated months in advance. If it were, why would Conway have gone through the trouble to fly out to California and then test the car on Wednesday? If he were going to bag on the team after Baltimore all along, why wouldn’t he have just done so the Tuesday after that race weekend? Had he done that, he could have couched the whole thing as “parting ways with AJFR, so that I can pursue other options”, or some such euphemistic thing, and come off with a fraction of the stink on him that he now has. The timing of the whole thing tells me that Mike intended to race at Fontana, and then either didn’t like how the car was (like, on a huge scale) or just had an epiphany of sorts that he was done on ovals. Anybody who’s seen Days of Thunder knows what I’m talking about. “Get out of that racecar, get out of that racecar…oooooooohhhh.”

My take on whether or not it was “brave”…well, just read Mr. Skink’s comments above. He said every last bit of it.

By: The Lapper

The Lapper — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 00:35:09 +0000

I don’t question Conway’s bravery, but I do question his using Foyt to run the twisties and “quiting” on the last race because it was an oval and he wanted none of that. Self centered is what I call it and he used Foyt, the sponsors and the team for his pleasure. Nothing commendable about that.