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Written by:
Jeff Olson
Senior writer, RACER Magazine http://www.racer.com/speedtv
Senior writer, RACER Magazine http://www.racer.com/speedtv
04/20/2008 - 07:58 PM
Indianapolis, Ind.
Danica Patrick's first IndyCar win was a natural next step in a long road. (LAT photo) ยป More Photos
The scene was dinner with the usual gang, and the subject eventually got around to Danica. When the subject turns to Danica, two questions are almost always directed my way:
A) What’s she really like? And b) What do the other racers really think of her?
In other words, dish some dirt. Tell us something good. You know her. You talk to her. Spill.
Nobody ever asks me to dish on Ed Carpenter or Vitor Meira or Darren Manning, but people are fascinated by Danica Patrick. They see a young woman racing against -- and beating -- men, and they wonder what she’s all about. They want something sordid and salacious, and I always disappoint.
My response runs along this line: She has always been polite, friendly and personable. She is bright, talkative and pleasant. When she’s away from the intensity of racing and the constant demand of everyone and everything around her, she’s downright charming. She offers no drama and is no diva, and I can’t say the same about every one of her male competitors.
That’s always followed by, “Oh, come on!”
Seriously. I have never had an uncomfortable moment with her, and I can’t say that about all of the male racers I’ve dealt with over the years. Never a meltdown, never a rude comment, never any behind-the-scenes whining or attempts to intimidate, never an attitude. Yes, we’ve all seen her in various stages of emotion, from joy to tears to pouting to anger. We’ve seen her get in Dan Wheldon’s face. We know she’s not friendly with Buddy Rice. We’ve seen her stomp and heard her swear.
Almost all of which we’ve also witnessed from every man driving a racecar, yet rarely does their behavior raise an eyebrow. If a man had won for the first time and wept, people would’ve considered him rightfully emotional. Danica wins and weeps, and people consider her weak.
Let’s cut through the crap. The public holds Danica Patrick to a baffling double standard. If a man gets angry after he’s punted into the wall at 180 mph, he’s justified. If Patrick gets angry, she’s vilified. If a man gets into it with his crew chief over strategy, he’s fighting for his cause. If Danica does it, she’s b*tchy. If a man uses sex
During an interview at Sebring in early March, she addressed the reaction to her Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue photo shoot. She was surprised that some of the reaction was not positive; in fact, a good deal of it was sour. Didn’t make sense to either of us. After all, the photos were tasteful and artistic. It wasn’t Hustler. It was SI, for crying out loud. But some people were offended, as if she’d done something awful. As if sexy was out of bounds.
I mentioned a promotional photo shoot that Tomas Scheckter did a few years ago that included various shots of him sans shirt. On the beach, around the house, shaving, etc. Just as Patrick’s SI shoot, Scheckter’s photos were tasteful and professional, but obviously intended to attract attention through sex appeal. And nobody said a word. Nobody sneered or insinuated that he should cover up. Just the opposite. I heard from more than one woman who thought the photos were hot.
Patrick agreed with the assessment that different rules regarding what is and isn’t acceptable are applied to her, but her reaction to that assessment is what’s most refreshing. She shrugs as if to say whatever and moves on. She isn’t a cause. She isn’t trying to make a statement. She isn’t racing for women’s rights or some greater political or social reason. There’s no other agenda. If she could race without the attention and pandemonium surrounding her, if she could race without this men vs. women drivel, she clearly would. She simply wants to race and wants to win.
When a man has that attitude, we admire it as independent and rugged. When Patrick has that attitude, she’s considered selfish or a touch too competitive for a lady.
Enough, already.
What she accomplished Sunday in Motegi was indeed a landmark. Not a new topic, but a new stage of an already established topic. The fact that women can compete against men on the racetrack is yesterday’s news. Shirley Muldowney won 18 NHRA events and three championships in the 1970s and ’80s -- and, like Patrick, was criticized for being attractive and using it to draw attention. Like it might be possible to ugly oneself up a bit.
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