About the_race_gIRL

Three years ago, I started theracegIRL.com. It began as a passion for IndyCar and an entertaining look at the sport we love. It was always intended to be a fun and lighthearted way to fill a niche. Since then, so much has changed. I’ve started a business and work in the racing industry full time. I’m proud to be able to say that I set a goal & achieved it, accompanied all the while by what has now become my alter-ego, the race gIRL.

Thank you to everyone who has ever laughed at my blog, followed me on twitter or “liked” my facebook page. You’re my inspiration because you love this great sport as much as I do. You rock my world. XOXO

the race gIRL: The Early Stages

(Note: The following was written on July 1, 2009 when I started theracegIRL.com)

I’ve been called the charmingly inappropriate gIRL next door. It’s all about life, love and IndyCar. If your life runs on ethanol and sarcasm too, I’d love to hear from you…  my contact info is at the bottom of the page.

Those who can’t race… blog!

As a kid, the sound of race cars was constant. Whether it was the action at the Hales Corners Speedway we could hear from the backyard, or the IndyCar Series broadcast on TV, the roar of the engines was like a permanent soundtrack to my childhood.

Now, the names I used to hear on the TV – Mario Andretti, Rick Mears, Emerson Fittipaldi – have changed, but the excitement has never ceased. In fact, it’s only gotten more exciting as I’ve adopted my father’s passion for this thing they call IndyCar.

I went to my first Indy 500 in 2005. I only knew a few drivers and thought I’d go just to see what this “greatest spectacle in racing” was all about. The pre-race activities were entertaining. Celebrity parade… cool. Jim Nabors singing “Back Home Again in Indiana…” heartwarming. National anthem complete with flyover… gave me some goosebumps. But then those six fantastic words came out of Mari Hulman-George’s mouth: “Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines!” From my seat in turn four, I could hear the sound of those powerful engines and from that moment, I was hooked.

It didn’t matter that I didn’t know who Dan Wheldon was at the time. Or that I thought it was cool that “a girl” lead 19 laps and finished fourth. That first race was about the pure excitement that can only be experienced at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Why the Blog?

Now, I’m on a mission. A few recent events in my life have lead me to explore my passions and drive toward spending my life doing something I love. A quote from racing legend Mario Andretti recently struck me: “If everything seems under control, you’re just not going fast enough.” Well said, Mario. As it turns out, nothing in my life is under control right now. So maybe I’m just not going fast enough.

I’ve spent the last five years in the stands, and I believe that there are two kinds of people in this world: those who watch from the stands and those who get up out of that bleacher seat and race you to the pits. I’ve decided to stop being the former because the latter is more my style.

Email me at the_race_gIRL@yahoo.com or follow me on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/the_race_gIRL.