NaroEscape

Some of you guys are amazing....

42 other drivers will start on Sunday. There will be long time pros like Johnson, Gordon, Stewart and Earnhart from teams like Hendrick, Penske, Rousch, Gibbs, etc. that put out some exceptional cars.

And all of them will be starting behind Danica.

Give her credit where credit is due. If qualifying at Daytona is so easy as some of your seem to think...where are all the others?
Nobody's saying she's going to win, but she did accomplish something that every GUY out there would want to do and most never have...

Veloce Raptor

The metric is, if it's a guy, he gets tons of slack until the last race. If it's a girl, none given whatsoever.

EXACTLY, Bob. Which is why I started this thread.

Land Jet

I never said anything about Dale Jr, you started this conversation was about Danika.

Veloce Raptor

True to form, you run from the inconvenient truth...lol. Again, dude, if winning pole for Daytona was so easy (and IIRC there is a bunch of money in it), why did none of the "better' drivers get it?

Yeah, she is SUCH a horrid person...

Coochas

I would really like to see Danica win something. There have been times where I thought her behavior in interviews was less than admirable, but I think this applies to quite a few professional drivers. I really liked Lewis Hamilton initially until he started taking everything out on his team.

Danica is in a great position to make headway into the sport for women. I for one would love to see any woman win in NASCAR, Indy, F1, ALMS or whatever.

ProCoach

Jeff Gordon's daughter, Ella, photographed by her mother after asking her parents if it would be ok to get a picture with the top qualifier.

Some folks need to see how powerful a motivation and affirmation for women drivers (and those who aspire to become a racing driver) this is.

Many have opined, including VR and myself, that racing is an intellectual exercise. That smart people do well. The skills and thinking that go into this are NOT gender-specific.

nshanny

Coochas: +1

Many of the professional drivers out there are a-holes at some point in their career regardless if it is NASCAR, F1, GrandAm, etc.

To be fair to Danica, although she has been a twit at times, she is definitely held to a different standard by some in this group as well as the general public. It seems that guys are forgiven more easily than women when they come across as aggressive, full of themselves, and opinionated, be it this sport or any other.

My one last point concerns those who believe this is "nothing" to take pole position: get real. If any believe otherwise, then get out on the track with other professional drivers and prove your point. The difference between us amateurs and professionals is huge as is the case in any sport, be it racing, soccer, football, etc. If it were that easy, then most of us would be doing this for a career. Even those who never win a race at the professional level are typically heads and shoulders above those of us in DE or amateur racing.

Falcondrivr

Anytime she has that suit on she's playing the role. If she would have come across that same kid away from the track, no picture. I personally watched her blow off a couple couple of kids wanting autographs at the airport before the St. Pete Grand Prix. Not in a nice way either.

Veloce Raptor

+2

All perhaps true. However, have you ever been to an F1 race? Ever tried to get a driver's autograph? Good luck with that...

Falcondrivr

I don't have patience for anyone who treats others like dirt because they have achieved a level of success, be it drivers, actors, entertainers, or successful business people.
There are way too many really genuinely nice ones out there to put up with the ****s. Warren Sapp is a perfect example. A total ******* to the core and is a despicable person. Only person ever to be kicked off my airplane in a random city and banned for life from our company.

SeanR

Damn, after all these years the envy some of you guys show for a woman in this sport is amazing. Get over yourselves or go prove you can do it too.

multi21

This^^. As a father of a daugher that has raced in karts since the age of 5, I see how she is treated differently when she arrives at a new track vs. her home track. She has to earn respect each time she goes out to a new venue. If she does well or better than expected from the "established drivers" at that track, then she is hated. It never changes so I have to give Danika the benefit of the doubt on her attitude because it can be a grind, especially at the pro level with the type of media exposure and constant questioning going on.

But to be perfectly honest, even my daughter does not look up to Danika Patrick. There comes a point where you see past the gender and see people as "Drivers" and not a man or woman. As a driver, Danika has not accomplished much, eventhough she is a trailblazer in her sport.

If you look at the many female drag racers, especially the Force sisters, you can see that they are treated and looked upon differently than Danika Patrick, because they win.

Now I don't want to offend any NASCAR fans, but is there anything more meaningless than pole position for a 500 mile race, regardless of who gets it? With the amount of shuffling going on with wrecks and pitstops and phantom debris yellow flag cautions, etc. someone in a good car starting 42nd can make it all the way to the front. Not so in most other series.

Veloce Raptor

Well then I guess you don't watch any pro sports because it is rampant when you get really close. You are entitled to your opininion, however, I have not seen her "treat others like dirt". I have, however, seen many at her level throw helmets at other drivers, flip the bird, start fistfights with other drivers & crew...all on live TV.

Falcondrivr

Oh I watch. But that doesn't mean I'm a fan. You can't get away from them. I agree with you that many of these people are just spoiled ********. She's one of them.
She's a way better driver than I am (who isn't?) Warren Sapp was a good foootball player, Charlie Sheen is a good actor. I don't admire any of them as people.

mklaskin

Well, Sheen might be on to something...