May 30, 2005

'ALWAYS BE A LADY'

DanicaPatrick.jpg

If you haven't heard of Danica Patrick, you'll likely be hearing a great deal about her in the near future.

Patrick on Sunday became the first woman to lead a lap in the Indianapolis 500. She also became the first to finish in the top 4 - not to mention the first to finish on the lead lap - and she damn near came close to winning the whole shootin' match until she was passed with about 13 laps left. St. Petersburg's own Dan Wheldon took the coveted trophy at The Brickyard.

And, uh, she's only 23.

Patrick led three times for a total of 19 laps, including two stints at the point in the final 28 laps. So, she effectively answered the critics who questioned her ability and stamina to run with the guys on a superspeedway - and run up front.

She follows in the path of Janet Guthrie, Lyn St. James, Desire Wilson and Sarah Fisher, open-wheel racers who competed for years at Indianapolis in the '70s, '80s, '90s and '00s.

But unlike Patrick, Guthrie and St. James had no open wheel experience. Guthrie and St. James were in their 40s when they raced at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. And Fisher showed promise but lacked experience and never got a bigtime ride in the Indy Racing League.

If a woman is to ever have a shot at being a serious competitor in Indy-car racing and a contender at the Indy 500, then Danica Patrick is the prototype. As the third driver in the Rahal/Letterman Racing stable, she's more than prepared.

At 16, she went to Europe to run Formula Vuxhall and Formula Ford. At 19, she was back in America contesting the Barber Dodge series before moving on to the ultra-competitive Toyota Atlantic series -- where she finished third in 2004.

At 5-2 and 100 pounds, Patrick might seem too frail to wring out an Indy car or rubs wheels at 200 mph. But she compensates with confidence.

Consider how she made up for some glaring rookie miscues.

First, after starting fourth and becoming the first woman to lead a lap at Indy, Patrick stalled her car in the pits, knocking her from fourth to 16th.

She worked her way back to seventh, then had another embarrassing mistake during a caution with 45 laps to go. Patrick was revving her engine to take green when her No. 16 car suddenly swerved to the right between the third and fourth turns, colliding with Tomas Enge and sending Tomas Scheckter spinning into the wall.

As it turned out, the crash helped her get to the front.

Patrick managed to get the car straightened out and limped back to the pits -- her left wing and nose cone sheared off by the crash. The Rahal Letterman crew quickly repaired the damage, getting her back out while still on the lead lap. She returned to the pits a second time under yellow, getting a full tank of fuel and four new tires. Then she tested her nerves - and fuel supply - by staying out on the track when leaders went in for gas and tires. If she hadn't had to drive conservatively to maxmize her mileage, she might have been drinking from the milk bottle in victory lane.

Still, you're going to have ridiculous naysayers whenever a woman makes a mark in a sport dominated by men. People like Robbie Gordon, the former open-wheel racer who now (allegedly) competes in NASCAR.

Gordon bitched this week that Patrick has an advantage because she only weighs 100 pounds:

Gordon, a former open-wheel driver now in NASCAR, contends that Patrick is at an advantage over the rest of the competitors because her weight. Because all the cars weigh the same, Patrick's is lighter on the race track.

Gordon says he won't race against Patrick until the Indy Racing League does something to take her advantage away.

The Indy Racing League does not consider the driver's weight in its race specifications. The car has to weigh at least 15-hundred-and-25 pounds before the fuel and driver are added.

Teams in Indy have estimated that Patrick will gain close to 1 mph in speed because of her small, light stature.

What's Gordon bitching about? I mean, it isn't like he has a big set of testicles to lug around the track. Or talent, for that matter.

The Indianapolis Star had a nice feature from the pits, including her mother's point of view during the race:

Toward the end of the race, team co-owner David Letterman stood next to Bev Patrick in the pit stand.

With three laps left, Letterman squatted to get a view of the scoring pylon. Patrick was in fourth.

Letterman's face crinkled.

About an hour before the start of the race, seven shirtless men lined up against a fence near Patrick's garage.

Six of them had a letter of her name written on their bodies. The last one had a heart with the number 16 inside.

When a door to her garage opened, someone, thinking it might be Patrick, yelled, "Uh, uh, uh . . ."

A woman -- not Patrick -- emerged.

"Ohhhhhhhhhhhh," the disappointed men groaned.

"Sorry," the woman said. "I always wanted to look like that."

The Indy 500 might never be the same.

After the race, in the pits, Bev Patrick talked to the reporter from Glamour magazine.

"I tell her to be a lady, always be a lady," Bev said. "And don't be ashamed of it, right?"

"Absolutely," said the reporter.

And as expected, many are focusing on her appearance:

Just six weeks ago, Danica Patrick was little known beyond the world of auto racing.

But after an appearance this week on David Letterman's show, countless media interviews and some sexy ads, the Wisconsin native is becoming a media phenomenon as tomorrow's Indianapolis 500 approaches.

Her quick ascension is no coincidence. While she's only 23, Patrick has packaged her driving skills and good looks like a seasoned veteran, according to people who market sports stars for a living.

"I saw her on David Letterman. She is bright, attractive, and, for her age, she did very well," said sports marketing expert Max Muhleman, Charlotte, N.C., who has worked with racing stars for 30 years, most notably as the manager of Coca-Cola's NASCAR involvement.

"Danica just cries out for major product opportunities."

Patrick successfully used her talents and her looks to snag a sponsorship from Argent Mortgage Co., a national mortgage firm based in Irvine, Calif. Her racing uniform prominently displays the company name.

On Argent's Web site this week, a photo of Patrick -- her long, black hair blowing across her face -- appears at the top of the home page.

"I don't deny the fact that I like to be made up to be pretty," said Patrick, who is comfortable posing for so-called glamour photos.

The Indy Racing League has also tried to cash in on the buzz. Earlier this year, the league used a photo of a leather-clad Patrick -- which is part of her official media kit -- to promote the racing series in Sports Illustrated's swimsuit issue and other magazines geared toward men ages 18-34.

She's clearly comfortable in front of the camera - to the delight and dismay of fans who saw her FHM photo layout.

And since I know many who will find this site through searching for Danica will be looking for the photos, here they are. They make Anna Kournikova's photo spreads look demure by comparison. We certainly live in interesting times.

(Be prepared, folks. Some of these get a little, um, racy. Don't click if you're easily offended.):

Photo No. 1

Photo No. 2

Photo No. 3

Photo No. 4

Photo No. 5

Photo No. 6

Photo No. 7

Photo No. 8

UPDATE:

The wires had a few shots of Patrick with her fiancee Paul Hospenthal at the Indy 500 victory banquet:
Here, here, here, here, here and here.

Posted by Jeff at May 30, 2005 12:22 AM | TrackBack
Comments

Gord's just pissed because he will never -- repeat, NEVER -- get into those panties.

Rock on, Danica!

Posted by: Margi at May 31, 2005 01:44 AM
Post a comment









Remember personal info?