At the Starting Line for Danica Sue Patric

Danica Sue Patrick was born on March 25, 1982, in Beloit, Wisconsin. She grew up in Roscoe, Illinois along with her younger sister, Brooke. [2] Even though she came from a family that had cars in their blood, she was the girliest of girly-girls. Overtime, her driver dad and mechanic mom got her into cars. Patrick loved watching her father race, and soon wanted to try it for herself. When she was ten years old, her family decided to go go-karting, which is where Danica had her first ever car crash. The crash didn’t phase her, though. She kept her cool, and handled it like a natural racer-which was what she was meant to be. [4]

She began racing go-karts and continued for a total of seven seasons. Her father, being a racer himself, gave her many tips to help her out. By the age of twelve, she had won her first Grand National Championship. She won two more after that, for a total of winning three Grand National Championships. In 1998, she placed ninth at the Formula Vauxhall Winter series as a sixteen year old. This gave her the title of the highest ever finish by an American, let alone a woman. [4]

Even though Patrick was a racer, not all of her girly-girl side faded away. In high school, she was on the cheerleading squad and loved it! Unfortunately she didn't make it all the way through high school, and dropped out at age sixteen. That gave her the chance to move to England and started racing open wheeled cars. Later, she earned her GED. Her success increased in 2000. She raced in Formula Ford Festival, and became the highest scoring American that ever raced in that race. This soon got her noticed by American racing driver, Bob Rahal, and joined his team. In 2002, she was the first female racer to compete in Monterey, Mexico in the CARTS (Championship Auto Racing Teams) series. Three years later, in 2005, she competed in the Indianapolis 500 where she held the first place spot for nineteen laps, and then lost it for a fourth-place finish. [1] She also earned the IndyCar Rookie of the year award. [4] These early achievements help kick-start her career as an auto racer.

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