Monday, August 11, 2014

Tony Stewart - Kevin Ward Jr.
Just The Facts Please

By now everyone has heard about the Tony Stewart and Kevin Ward Jr. tragedy. Heck, the mainstream of race fans observed a portion of the actual disaster via video which was shot from the stands by a fan!

Indeed, NASCAR Race Mom has an attitude in regards to accountability. However, at this juncture, that opinion is worthless. NASCAR Race Mom was not there; did not witness; is not part of the official investigation.

Nevertheless, there are a plethora of media outlets you can pursue if you wish to join the fault frenzy. It is so easy to vilify and disparage a person who is down. Sensationalism is not new and is a proven method to “sells papers.”

NYU Journalism Professor Mitchell Stephens, in his book "A History of News," writes that sensationalism has been around ever since early humans began telling stories, ones that invariably focused on sex and conflict.

In this age, when with the click of a mouse, it's possible to call up news from literally every corner of the globe; from newspapers, blogs and news sites too numerous to count, extravagant claims and/or interpretations draw that all important traffic to your site.

However, this is not a harmless quest. Distorted embellished journalistic reports can generate false hopes, unwarranted fears or a legacy of unwarranted character assassination. NASCAR Race Mom is of the strong belief that this type of reporting is disreputable and should be avoided at all cost.


Therefore, here is NASCAR Race Mom’s report.


On 08/09/2014, three-time NASCAR champion, Anthony Wayne "Tony" Stewart and fellow competitor, Kevin Ward Jr. in a Sprint Race at Canandaigua (N.Y.) Motorsports Park were involved in an on-track incident. Stewart and Ward were racing for a spot in the top-ten when they initially collided.

When Ward exited his car during the resulting yellow flag, he walked down the dirt track towards Stewart’s #14 racecar. Stewart's car passed close to Ward and it appeared that Stewart’s right rear tire hits Ward. An ambulance took Ward to a hospital, but he died before it arrived.

"This is an ongoing investigation, and all options remain available," Sheriff Philip C. Povero of Ontario County, New York, reported this morning. "We're continuing to gather and analyze every piece of evidence we can."

Tony Stewart, who does not have a wife nor children will benefit from the love, understanding, and support from his fans in this upcoming difficult period in his life. 

"There aren't words to describe the sadness I feel about the accident that took the life of Kevin Ward Jr.," Stewart said Sunday, according to a written statement tweeted by NASCAR. "It's a very emotional time for all involved. ... My thoughts and prayers are with his family, friends and everyone affected by this tragedy."


This post will probably not garnish a ton of “clicks,” however, it is what NASCAR Race Mom accurately knows about the unfortunate event. 


Andy Lally* expressed it very well.


From Andy Lally Facebook page: Sad day. Just in case someone gets the urge, please don't tag me in a link to video of the accident from last night. I have no opinion on it yet as we do not have all the facts. RIP Kevin Ward.

*Andy Lally is 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Rookie of the Year

According to information posted on the website of the Empire Sprint Series, the series in which he raced, Ward's funeral service will take place at the Trainor Funeral Home, 143 Schuyler Street, Boonville, NY. Visitation is scheduled for Wednesday from 1 to 4 p.m. and 6 to 9 p.m. ET, with the funeral Thursday at 11 a.m.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

tony stewart clearly sped up and swerved to intentionally hit kevin ward, let me guess just racing right, If stewart gets away with this act, Im done with nascar and all the association with nascar, Is the almighty dollar really more important than a human life.