Kit Fox / Medill
WASHINGTON — The first time Danica Patrick sat behind a steering wheel, her Go Kart had no brakes. She slammed into a concrete wall and ruined her parent’s gift to their two daughters.
The first time she raced professionally in an Indy car, she woke up in a hospital with her mother and a priest standing over her.
And on Sunday, Patrick will compete in her first NASCAR Daytona 500.
Patrick’s story is one of firsts: The first woman to lead an Indianapolis 500; the first to win an IndyCar series race, and the best finish for a woman in an Indianapolis 500 at third place.
“The media started asking me who my role model was. That was a really weird question for me because I never really had one,” Patrick said at the National Press Club Tuesday. “I always wanted to be the first me, not the next somebody else.”
In a forum usually reserved for diplomats and political figures, Patrick answered questions from members of the media and public at the National Press Club about her transition to NASCAR, being a woman in a male-dominated sport and life as a racecar driver.
Q. What is the biggest difference between an IndyCar race and a NASCAR race?
Q. Why did you decide to leave Indy racing and transition into NASCAR racing?
Q. How do you prepare physically and mentally for the rigors of driving in a race?
Q. How much weight do you lose during a race?
Q. What would constitute a success for you in NASCAR?
Q. Have you ever received a speeding ticket or do you find it difficult to drive slowly on the freeway?
