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IndyCar
INDYCAR: Conway Getting Close
After Mike Conway's terrifying accident at this year’s Indy 500, the Englishman is almost ready for his return to the IZOD IndyCar Series.
After a promising rookie campaign in 2009, Mike Conway looked like a serious challenger in 2010 until it all went wrong on the penultimate lap of the Indy 500. (LAT)
Mike Conway’s sophomore season in the IZOD IndyCar Series was going according to plan until the 199th lap of this year’s Indianapolis 500.
The 27-year-old Englishman qualified 15th for his second visit to the Speedway and even managed to lead 15 laps – second only to race winner Dario Franchitti – before launching off the back of Ryan Hunter-Reay’s rapidly decelerating car, setting off an accident that looked far too much like a plane crash for the No. 24 Dad's Root Beer Dallara-Honda.
With a compression fracture to his back plus fractures and tissue damage to his lower left leg, a return to the cockpit for 2011 looked like the most realistic choice for Conway, but as one might expect, the Dreyer & Reinbold driver has been racing against the clock to try and make the season finale at Homestead on October 2nd.
Conway’s recovery process has been nothing short of grueling – far more intensive than any of the strength and conditioning training he’d done prior to the accident – and as he shared on Friday from his home in the UK, the pain from rehabilitating his leg and back will be quickly forgotten once he gets back behind the wheel of an IndyCar.
On the topic of making his return to racing in the IndyCar Series at Homestead in two weeks, Conway admitted it was still being discussed, yet by his tone of voice, the Briton isn’t getting his hopes up as a bit more mending is required.
“It was a possibility; it’s still a bit undecided. We’ll know in the next couple of days – maybe by the weekend. It would have been good to get back for the final race, definitively, but the goal is long-term, not just [homestead] so that’s where we’ve focused. I fly out Monday for the States. I’ll be at Homestead regardless, and can’t wait to see everyone and to support the guys fighting for the championship.”
Prior to the crash, the effort required to do an hour of cardio training or lifting weights was a breeze compared to the regimen Conway’s doctors have him on now.
“It’s full-time, Monday through Friday. Trying to get my leg stronger and my back stronger, obviously. After that, I go into a cryo freezer that’s minus 130 degrees Celsius for five minutes; it’s supposed to help speed up the blood flow through the body and the healing process. I do that in the morning, do the gym training, then into the pool for strength training and then into the freezer. We do that over again in the afternoon. My training is from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day.”
The constant rehabilitation activities, according to Conway, have also helped to keep him distracted from missing the remainder of the 2010 IndyCar season. Well, that, and also sitting in a sub-zero freezer twice a day…
“It has kept me focused…kept my mind sharp and has taken my mind off my leg a little bit. Not being able to drive my [IndyCar] has been tough, so all of the training stuff has been good for me in that sense. And that cryo chamber…it’s bloody cold…it doesn’t get any easier, either…it was minus 137 for me today…makes getting back to the warmth of Homestead a happy thought while I’m stuck in there.”
If his desire to drive again wasn’t enough, support from family, friends and fans has kept Conway motivated since his crash on May 30th.
“I’ve got some really good people around me who help quite a bit. It’s been amazing. All of the letters and emails I got after the crash and since has been really, really nice. It‘s the first time I’ve experienced that kind of support before. Thanks to all of the people who’ve sent things to me and to the team. I have a big stack of letters waiting for me that I have to send responses to. It has been rather overwhelming, quite frankly.”
Before the Month of May, Conway earned three top-10 finishes from the first five races and looked like a serious candidate to crack to top-10 in points at the end of the year. Despite being forced to watch from the sidelines, Conway says that while his top-10 aspirations have been put on hold, he has followed the championship intently over the last few months.
“It’s great to see Will [Power] still leading; his points have dwindled down a bit, though. The wise old fox, Dario [Franchitti], is hot on his tail. It will be interesting as always to see how it turns out when we get to the last race. It always seems to come down to the last race, which is good. I’ve been keeping an eye on everyone, on who has been in my car, and Justin [Wilson] has struggled at times, so I can’t wait to get back to race with him. I think we’ve made a good team together. It’s tough to watch the races; not being in the car is far from easy for me, but I’m rooting for everyone.”
Upon his return to the series in 2011, Conway expects to take up right where he left off.
“I think we learned a lot from 2009 and it showed. We were quicker everywhere this year, and went well at Indy, too. With some good pre-season testing, I expect everything to be right back on track for me and for the team. It would be great to come back and pick up where I left off. It will have been a long winter, but I can’t wait for that first proper test day to come around. I can’t wait.”
Marshall Pruett is SPEED.com’s Auto Racing Editor, and also covers IndyCar and sportscar racing for the site. Pruett grew up at ‘Pruett's Olde English Garage,’ his father's shelter for abused foreign cars, and spent his childhood being dragged across the West Coast to help with his dad's amateur racing exploits.
Pruett spent 20 years working in the IRL, CART, IMSA, and most of the known open-wheel feeder series before retiring from active duty in 2001. And in case you were wondering, he isn’t related to Scott Pruett.
Marshall lives in Northern California with his wife Shabral, and can be emailed . He can also be harassed on Twitter .
The 27-year-old Englishman qualified 15th for his second visit to the Speedway and even managed to lead 15 laps – second only to race winner Dario Franchitti – before launching off the back of Ryan Hunter-Reay’s rapidly decelerating car, setting off an accident that looked far too much like a plane crash for the No. 24 Dad's Root Beer Dallara-Honda.
With a compression fracture to his back plus fractures and tissue damage to his lower left leg, a return to the cockpit for 2011 looked like the most realistic choice for Conway, but as one might expect, the Dreyer & Reinbold driver has been racing against the clock to try and make the season finale at Homestead on October 2nd.
Conway’s recovery process has been nothing short of grueling – far more intensive than any of the strength and conditioning training he’d done prior to the accident – and as he shared on Friday from his home in the UK, the pain from rehabilitating his leg and back will be quickly forgotten once he gets back behind the wheel of an IndyCar.
On the topic of making his return to racing in the IndyCar Series at Homestead in two weeks, Conway admitted it was still being discussed, yet by his tone of voice, the Briton isn’t getting his hopes up as a bit more mending is required.
“It was a possibility; it’s still a bit undecided. We’ll know in the next couple of days – maybe by the weekend. It would have been good to get back for the final race, definitively, but the goal is long-term, not just [homestead] so that’s where we’ve focused. I fly out Monday for the States. I’ll be at Homestead regardless, and can’t wait to see everyone and to support the guys fighting for the championship.”
Prior to the crash, the effort required to do an hour of cardio training or lifting weights was a breeze compared to the regimen Conway’s doctors have him on now.
“It’s full-time, Monday through Friday. Trying to get my leg stronger and my back stronger, obviously. After that, I go into a cryo freezer that’s minus 130 degrees Celsius for five minutes; it’s supposed to help speed up the blood flow through the body and the healing process. I do that in the morning, do the gym training, then into the pool for strength training and then into the freezer. We do that over again in the afternoon. My training is from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day.”
The constant rehabilitation activities, according to Conway, have also helped to keep him distracted from missing the remainder of the 2010 IndyCar season. Well, that, and also sitting in a sub-zero freezer twice a day…
“It has kept me focused…kept my mind sharp and has taken my mind off my leg a little bit. Not being able to drive my [IndyCar] has been tough, so all of the training stuff has been good for me in that sense. And that cryo chamber…it’s bloody cold…it doesn’t get any easier, either…it was minus 137 for me today…makes getting back to the warmth of Homestead a happy thought while I’m stuck in there.”
If his desire to drive again wasn’t enough, support from family, friends and fans has kept Conway motivated since his crash on May 30th.
“I’ve got some really good people around me who help quite a bit. It’s been amazing. All of the letters and emails I got after the crash and since has been really, really nice. It‘s the first time I’ve experienced that kind of support before. Thanks to all of the people who’ve sent things to me and to the team. I have a big stack of letters waiting for me that I have to send responses to. It has been rather overwhelming, quite frankly.”
Before the Month of May, Conway earned three top-10 finishes from the first five races and looked like a serious candidate to crack to top-10 in points at the end of the year. Despite being forced to watch from the sidelines, Conway says that while his top-10 aspirations have been put on hold, he has followed the championship intently over the last few months.
“It’s great to see Will [Power] still leading; his points have dwindled down a bit, though. The wise old fox, Dario [Franchitti], is hot on his tail. It will be interesting as always to see how it turns out when we get to the last race. It always seems to come down to the last race, which is good. I’ve been keeping an eye on everyone, on who has been in my car, and Justin [Wilson] has struggled at times, so I can’t wait to get back to race with him. I think we’ve made a good team together. It’s tough to watch the races; not being in the car is far from easy for me, but I’m rooting for everyone.”
Upon his return to the series in 2011, Conway expects to take up right where he left off.
“I think we learned a lot from 2009 and it showed. We were quicker everywhere this year, and went well at Indy, too. With some good pre-season testing, I expect everything to be right back on track for me and for the team. It would be great to come back and pick up where I left off. It will have been a long winter, but I can’t wait for that first proper test day to come around. I can’t wait.”
Marshall Pruett is SPEED.com’s Auto Racing Editor, and also covers IndyCar and sportscar racing for the site. Pruett grew up at ‘Pruett's Olde English Garage,’ his father's shelter for abused foreign cars, and spent his childhood being dragged across the West Coast to help with his dad's amateur racing exploits.
Pruett spent 20 years working in the IRL, CART, IMSA, and most of the known open-wheel feeder series before retiring from active duty in 2001. And in case you were wondering, he isn’t related to Scott Pruett.
Marshall lives in Northern California with his wife Shabral, and can be emailed . He can also be harassed on Twitter .
2013 INDY 500 Practice
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