Danica Patrick & Dan Wheldon: Afternoon Delights
I've been sleeping for the last 15 hours but I've been doing a lot of sleeping lately, so hopefully this isn't all that alarming... I don't even know why I'm telling you this... Moving on.
I spent the bulk of my Sunday in Indianapolis watching the 89th Indy 500. I was raised primarily on F-1 racing but my dad, Zayde, and Uncle Max really like the 500 and this is the 11th time they've taken me along. And in 11 visits, there are maybe two races that I can remember as being more exciting. The 1989 wheel-to-wheel duel between Emerson Fittipaldi and Al Unser, Jr. comes to mind, as well as the '92 photofinish between Unser, Jr. and Scott Goodyear. I was 7 and 10 in those years and remember both battles like they were yesterday. But on the whole, the 200 laps of racing has been boring enough (for me), that I often relied on books, my Game Boy, or other devices like binoculars [redneck watching is highly enjoyable for me] for entertainment until the final laps. But this year, for obvious reasons, things were different.
I think it's fair to say that I wanted to see Danica Patrick win just as much as I simply wanted to watch a woman race that could actually contend. I'm not old enough to have seen Janet Guthrie race but I've endured multiple performances by Sarah Fisher and Lyn St. James. I think it's fair to say that they raced in mediocrity, always destined to finish in the middle of the pack or not at all. I remember the 1998 race where they actually collided to take one another out of the race. It was a pathetic moment, to say the least. But the truly pathetic thing is that they were never contenders and no one really expected them to be... just being in the race was enough. Way to go, ladies! You got in and that's saying something. Fuck that. I'll be honest.. in a lot of ways, I preferred they not be in the race at all. That sounds like an odd comment coming from another woman but it doesn't do "the cause" much good when your sole representative really can't hack it in the field. To make a loose analogy, Jackie Robinson couldn't enter major league baseball and just be an ordinary, run of the mill ball player. He had to be one of the best, he had to set the world on fire. Doing otherwise would have set back the infusion of blacks into baseball 20 years. To break into a sport or field in which you are the minority requires one to be twice as good, twice as fast, twice as sharp. And finally, with Danica Patrick, there is a woman that can legitimately mix it up with the best - not for 75 laps but for the entire 200. It's about time. A braindead rookie mistake in the pits saw her fall from 4th to 16, and she fought back admirably, only to lose the nose and wing of her car in a spin on the Turn 4. Somehow though, she came through relatively unscathed and eventually took the lead in an impressive display of grit, masterful racing, and impressive strategy. The only disappointing moment on Sunday was the collective realization that Bobby Rahal's gamble on her fuel supply failed. She was passed 3 times in a lap and a half for a 4th place finish. But considering the madness she endured throughout the race, I can't say any other driver, with the exception of winner, Dan Wheldon, had a better performance.
From green flag to checkered, it was one helluva race, boasting 27 lead changes and an English victor. But one thing is certain - Danica Patrick will win this race sooner than later... I just hope I'm there to see it. I also hope Robby Gordon's there as well, racing the Jenny Craig car.
Good on, Indy.. Good show.
I spent the bulk of my Sunday in Indianapolis watching the 89th Indy 500. I was raised primarily on F-1 racing but my dad, Zayde, and Uncle Max really like the 500 and this is the 11th time they've taken me along. And in 11 visits, there are maybe two races that I can remember as being more exciting. The 1989 wheel-to-wheel duel between Emerson Fittipaldi and Al Unser, Jr. comes to mind, as well as the '92 photofinish between Unser, Jr. and Scott Goodyear. I was 7 and 10 in those years and remember both battles like they were yesterday. But on the whole, the 200 laps of racing has been boring enough (for me), that I often relied on books, my Game Boy, or other devices like binoculars [redneck watching is highly enjoyable for me] for entertainment until the final laps. But this year, for obvious reasons, things were different.
I think it's fair to say that I wanted to see Danica Patrick win just as much as I simply wanted to watch a woman race that could actually contend. I'm not old enough to have seen Janet Guthrie race but I've endured multiple performances by Sarah Fisher and Lyn St. James. I think it's fair to say that they raced in mediocrity, always destined to finish in the middle of the pack or not at all. I remember the 1998 race where they actually collided to take one another out of the race. It was a pathetic moment, to say the least. But the truly pathetic thing is that they were never contenders and no one really expected them to be... just being in the race was enough. Way to go, ladies! You got in and that's saying something. Fuck that. I'll be honest.. in a lot of ways, I preferred they not be in the race at all. That sounds like an odd comment coming from another woman but it doesn't do "the cause" much good when your sole representative really can't hack it in the field. To make a loose analogy, Jackie Robinson couldn't enter major league baseball and just be an ordinary, run of the mill ball player. He had to be one of the best, he had to set the world on fire. Doing otherwise would have set back the infusion of blacks into baseball 20 years. To break into a sport or field in which you are the minority requires one to be twice as good, twice as fast, twice as sharp. And finally, with Danica Patrick, there is a woman that can legitimately mix it up with the best - not for 75 laps but for the entire 200. It's about time. A braindead rookie mistake in the pits saw her fall from 4th to 16, and she fought back admirably, only to lose the nose and wing of her car in a spin on the Turn 4. Somehow though, she came through relatively unscathed and eventually took the lead in an impressive display of grit, masterful racing, and impressive strategy. The only disappointing moment on Sunday was the collective realization that Bobby Rahal's gamble on her fuel supply failed. She was passed 3 times in a lap and a half for a 4th place finish. But considering the madness she endured throughout the race, I can't say any other driver, with the exception of winner, Dan Wheldon, had a better performance.
From green flag to checkered, it was one helluva race, boasting 27 lead changes and an English victor. But one thing is certain - Danica Patrick will win this race sooner than later... I just hope I'm there to see it. I also hope Robby Gordon's there as well, racing the Jenny Craig car.
Good on, Indy.. Good show.
posted by Flash at 5/30/2005 12:49:00 PM
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