By Bob Margolis, Yahoo! Sports
September 6, 2006
INDIANAPOLIS – Everyone knows about Danica Patrick.
With the open wheel Indy Racing League receiving so much attention due
to Patrick's presence and popularity, many have wondered if and when a
woman driver would make a similar splash in NASCAR.
And while NASCAR continues to work toward providing women more
opportunities to race in its series, thus far women have enjoyed only
limited success in stock car racing.
In fact, just a handful of women currently compete at NASCAR's highest levels – with Erin Crocker
being among the most visible – and none have established themselves or
their gender in a way that could be considered successful, unless their
participation alone in NASCAR's premier series can be considered a
victory.
Other forms of motorsport in America have been far more successful in delivering opportunities for women.
Patrick, for one, has only enjoyed moderate on-track success in
IndyCars (her best finish is fourth), but considering the exposure she
has brought to that series, her driving ability may be of secondary
importance.
After a brief and unsuccessful stint in stock cars, meanwhile, former full-time IndyCar driver Sarah Fisher also is returning to the IRL, though she has yet to secure a regular ride for next season.
Those successes pale in comparison to what women have accomplished in
drag racing, as the fairer sex has been winning races and championships
in the NHRA for decades. Still, their accomplishments have, for the
most part, gone unnoticed by the public at large.
With one exception: Shirley Muldowney.
Muldowney broke the gender barrier in drag racing over 40 years
ago, and she went on to win countless races and four championships
competing against the best drivers in the world in the sport's top
class, Top Fuel dragster.
Even Hollywood was fascinated, producing a successful movie about Muldowney called "Heart Like a Wheel."
Muldowney in 1975. (AP)
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Muldowney arguably is the most significant female
sports figure of the last century, having competed not only against
women, but also against men – and with great success. She opened the
door for women in drag racing decades ago, and many women today are
able to walk through that door when given the right opportunity.
Five in particular – Melanie Troxel (Top Fuel), Hillary Will
(Top Fuel), Erica Enders (Pro Stock), Karen Stoffer (Pro Stock
Motorcycle) and Angelle Sampey (Pro Stock Motorcycle) – currently
compete at the top level of NHRA competition, and each one credits
Muldowney with blazing the path they currently travel.
Troxel and Will compete in the same type of car that Muldowney
raced. But when Muldowney was racing, top speeds were around 280 mph.
Troxel and Will are racing at speeds approaching 330 mph.
Both drivers are with well-financed teams that have fielded
champions in the past, and both readily admit that having that kind of
opportunity is key for a woman – or any driver, for that matter – to be
successful.
"I don't think that there's been the right opportunity for a
woman to succeed in NASCAR like we've had here in drag racing," said
Troxel, who led the Top Fuel points race earlier this season. "Shirley
opened doors decades ago and all women have been able to benefit from
that. NASCAR hasn't had their Shirley Muldowney yet."
But the NHRA has.
Will says had it not been for Muldowney, she wouldn't be in the sport.
"I doubt that any of us would be here now if it wasn't for her
breaking the barriers years ago," Will said. "She deserves all the
credit for the abuse she took and the difficulties she had to deal
with."
Enders grew up around the sport and started racing at age
eight. Her exploits as a teenager were chronicled in a Disney movie
called "Right on Track."
She was a champion in the Junior Dragster class and now drives a 2,000-horsepower Dodge Stratus at speeds in excess of 200 mph.
For her, it was all about having female role models in drag racing.
"I would come to the track with my dad and watch and get to meet
racers like Shirley and Shelly Anderson and think 'I can do that,'"
said Enders, who believes women can compete against men in all forms of
racing, including NASCAR.
Stoffer says that just to be able to compete at a sport's highest level is an accomplishment, whether you are a man or a woman.
Stoffer, who has been racing for two decades and was very successful in
drag racing's Sportsman ranks before turning professional, says her
goal is to be the best driver out there, not just the best female
driver.
"For me, it wasn't that I wanted to be a woman in drag racing,
I wanted to be involved with the sport because I loved it," Stoffer
said.
She believes that because it is a one-on-one sport, drag racing
has established an atmosphere of competition that puts everyone on a
level playing field.
"You're not racing against another woman or another man out
there," Stoffer said. "When the helmets are on, you're racing against
another competitor."
NASCAR's barrier
Some say NASCAR is too tough for women to race in and that drag
racing, which competes on a quarter-mile track for only seconds at a
time, is easier both physically and mentally than wheeling a stock car
for hundreds of laps while running side-by-side with the competition.
Troxel with fans. (AP)
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"If they think this is easy, then I invite them to
hop inside my car and take a ride," Troxel said. "It's not as easy as
it looks. There are a lot of things happening in just 4½ seconds. You
have to be absolutely perfect during that time.
"There are strong G-forces [estimated to be between five and
six G's] and if something goes wrong, you've got your hands full at 300
mph."
Sampey, a three-time champion in Pro Stock Motorcycle, has won
40 races and set records in the category. She says that even though the
time spent riding her motorcycle during a race is short, drag racing is
a much more physical sport than most people believe – although she
credits much of her success to mastering the mental aspects of racing.
"It takes a lot to keep my motorcycle under me and going
straight at 190 mph, but the hard part is the mental part," Sampey
said. "You have to be focused on getting it right every time. You can't
come in and change tires and make changes like other racing. You have
just seven seconds to get it right. Seven seconds to do it better than
the other person in the other lane."
Sampey believes NASCAR racing may be too tough for women to
compete in successfully, what with its heavier vehicles and 500-mile
races. But she says that there could be a woman out there that can
train hard enough to do it.
"I'd be willing to try," she said.
Enders feels that comments made about women in racing by NASCAR
legend Richard Petty and F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone, which put women
somewhere other than in a race car, are narrow-minded and simplistic.
"We're just like the guys, we work hard and we dream big," she said.
Enders would love to see a woman compete in NASCAR's Nextel Cup Series and believes women across the country would, too.
"If there was a woman racing against Tony Stewart or Jeff Gordon, I'd be right there rooting for her," Enders said.
The Danica Factor
Each of the women agrees that even if Danica Patrick's on-track
accomplishments thus far haven't been earth-shattering, the fact that
she is drawing attention to her sport is far more important.
"I would argue that she may not be with the best team right
now," Troxel said. "That is so important whether you're a woman or not.
You may be the best driver out there, but if you're not with a team
that can show that, you're bound to struggle."
Troxel says that with Patrick's move to Andretti Green Racing,
which is considered one of the IRL's top teams, the pressure will be on
for her to prove herself.
"In any form of racing, it all comes down to the right person
and the right opportunity," said Troxel, who struggled for years to
find the right team with the right financial support. She currently
drives for Don Schumacher Racing, one of the top teams in the NHRA.
Sampey, however, is the only one who agrees with Patrick's use
of her sexuality in obtaining more exposure and for financial gain.
"I'm all for it," Sampey said. "I'd love to do a calendar like she did if I had the opportunity."
The others laughed at the prospect. But Enders took it differently.
"That's OK for her," Enders said of Patrick's calendar. "I just
think that to be taken seriously, you need to focus on the racing."
The success of women in drag racing goes beyond drivers, as
championship-winning Kim LaHaie is one of the sport's most successful
crew chiefs, and Ann Paluso is the manager of Harley-Davidson's NHRA
drag racing operation. Paluso has overseen that manufacturer's rise
from obscurity in the sport to now being its official motorcycle, and
her factory-backed Harley-Davidson team has won two championships in
Pro Stock Motorcycle.
Standards
These successful women drivers have huge fan followings, in part
because of their accomplishments, but also because they are women. And
they all hope NASCAR finds its own Shirley Muldowney to blaze a path to
success in stock car racing.
As women in racing, they acknowledge that they may still be
held to a higher standard, which so far, they have been able to meet –
partly because each one is driven to prove that they can be the best at
what they do.
And not just because they are women.
"When I get into that dragster, there's no other place in the world
that I want to be," Will said. "Everything I do in life is motivated by
driving that car."
Veteran motorsports writer Bob Margolis is Yahoo! Sports' NASCAR reporter. Send Bob a question or comment for potential use in a future column or webcast.
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