That's My Girl!

Danica Patrick and Helio Castroneves, April 20, 2008 - "MOTEGI, Japan (AP) - Danica Patrick became the first female winner in IndyCar history Sunday, taking the Indy Japan 300."

Ever since my dad first told me about Denise McCluggage, one of the first female race car drivers in the 1940's, when I was in Jr. High, I've had a vision of driving race cars, or at least getting to some driving school. I've been behind the wheel since I was about 6 years old when I almost "drove" my mom's car into the river. Sitting behind the wheel, I happily took it out of park and into neutral and found myself slowly coasting down toward the water. Mom came out and fixed my situation, surely through her mothering psychic tendencies. Then I moved onto my Dad's or God-sister's laps to steer on some quiet dirt road. Eventually I was romping around in arroyos with my uncle in my Toyota 4x4.

At various times, I could be found driving everything from a golf cart [into the lilac bushes], to a 15 passenger van, to a Ferrari Modena, to one of my dad's V8 Lightning Motorcycles Trykes at the ripe old age of 11! (http://www.lightningmotorcycles.com/ ) Though I adore my Tundra, I'm on the lookout for a more fuel efficient vehicle. I won't get started on the astronomic gas prices these days which no one seems to know who sets them. But I've never actually sold one of my cars in order to buy a new one. I have very little idea of how the process actually goes.

In any case, I love to drive. I've always loved to drive and I take it seriously, unlike so many people on the roads today (ahem, New Orlineans!) I love that I have a standard transmission and when I'm driving an automatic I realize how boring it is. My dad taught me how to double-clutch when I got my first car - a 1980 Subaru GL Hatchback! This poor thing was a sad gray, I eventually had to use a screw driver for an antenna, and neither of the rear windows would lock. When I locked my keys in my car I would just reach through the back window with the original long antenna and poke through one of the rings to save myself from having to call a locksmith. That car saw some hard times. Because it had 4-wheel drive we thought it was invincible and would take it "romping" through arroyos it had no place being. It was even searched for drugs once. I say that lightly since there were none whatsoever in the car and so she only experienced the embarrassment with me rather than the slammer. To top things off, my Subaru was decked-out with the ill-designed "cow catchers", or bumpers, attached by wood and screws and fitted with metal bars painted white that served as the impact landings. Hard to imagine, so I'll have to find a picture of it. Needless to say, my poor car was the recipe for endless humor. But I've never found a car so efficient at getting me out of the snow, or providing me with a better reason for taking the back roads of NM - the speedometer didn't go over 70mph so I was safer to stay off the highways. Back then gas was about $1.30 a gallon.

So that was the car that I learned how to double-clutch for on account of the tranny being somewhat old and stingy. I also learned about patience with that car because I couldn't force it to do the things it just wasn't designed for. I also had to learn to love the slow lane, because I had dreams of getting to the fast lane and those dreams are the kind that take their time. I still dream of the fast lane and the closest thing I can come to attaining this is driving the trykes, which are nothing like any other vehicle out there.

But for now, I'll have to keep dreaming of the racing school and let Danica and Denise rule the roads.