Morgenthau comments on Indy driver Patrick

Danica Patrick Finish Excites NASCAR Female Owner
Pioneer Beth Ann Morgenthau watches, admires female driver

CONCORD, N.C. -- Beth Ann Morgenthau, the only full-time day-to-day female car owner in NASCAR Nextel Cup Series racing, watched Sunday's Indianapolis 500 from her #49 Schwan's Home Service transporter in the garage at Lowe's Motor Speedway -- and her eyes stayed locked on driver Danica Patrick.

"I guess it's just natural for a female to pull for the female driver but it was incredibly exciting to see how well she did," said Ms. Morgenthau, who owns the #49 Schwan's Home Service Dodge of driver Ken Schrader.

"But it was incredibly impressive, not just to see her finish so well but to overcome so much adversity to do that, and to do so as a rookie driver. Any driver doing that well would be admirable but the fact she did it as an Indianapolis 500 rookie is very, very impressive," Ms. Morgenthau said. Patrick finished fourth in the race.

BAM Racing fielded a female driver when the team first formed, and has female crew members as well.

"I'd like to see more and more females involved in motorsports, whether it is NASCAR racing or Indy Car racing or drag racing or whatever," she said. "I'd like to see more females not just as drivers but as car owners and officials and crew members and everywhere else in racing.

"Someone running as well as Danica Patrick did today in front of an international television audience is great for our sport -- I'm hoping there were thousands of little girls all across the country watching on television, rooting for her and dreaming of the day they will run in the Indianapolis 500 or the Coca-Cola 600, and the day they will drive the Schwan's Home Service Dodge."

-wc-