Not many people can say, or at least will admit, being a fan of NASCAR. Typically, this sport is seen as both boring and extremely masculine, and therefore, not a lot of females see a point of watching the four-hour, Sunday races. But there is a new reason for women across America to start watching – and her name is Danica Patrick.
Most people could easily recognize Patrick from her “Go Daddy” commercials, but would not be able to recognize her face inside a racecar helmet. Patrick got her start in racing as an Indy car racer, but she is on her rise to the top with an eighth place finish at last weeks Daytona 500. She had qualified first going into the race, and it was only in the last lap that she was bumped out of her top three finishing position. For a woman to be racing in the Daytona 500 is amazing; however, even more amazing is that Patrick is one of thirteen drivers (male or female) to lead both a Daytona 500 lap and an Indy 500 lap.
Patrick has given females a reason to believe that anything is possible with developing the right mindset. Although racing can be very unpredictable and dangerous, Patrick has vastly improved in her skills enough to adapt to the spontaneity of racing. When she placed fourth in her very first Indy 500 race, she appeared to be young and brimming with the excitement that accompanies rookies in their first big race. Her progression from those first races is apparent; at the Daytona 500, Patrick was more mature and seemed to have a plan as to how she wanted the race to go.
Hopefully with Patrick blazing the trail for female racers, NASCAR will become a true coed sport. And furthermore, hopefully women will rally around Patrick for being bold enough to blaze that trail going at 200 miles an hour.