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sports A23
Tuesday 9 January 2018
Column: Danica Patrick shifts careers, courts new fan base
By JENNA FRYER Danica Patrick autographs her new book during a book signing in Charlotte, N.C, Thursday, Jan. season ended. She is not
AP Auto Racing Writer going to entertain ques-
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — 4, 2018. Patrick is back to work after a short offseason. tions about a rumor she
Danica Patrick’s days as a was spotted on a date with
race car driver are pretty Associated Press Green Bay Packers quarter-
much over. She says she back Aaron Rodgers.
has two races left in her, who showed up, at least Patrick is no fool. She left the action photos. Why would she? Keep ev-
the “Danica Double,” but eryone guessing and she
she has yet to announce 90 percent were fans of her Illinois home at 16 for The two teen boys stam- remains in the headlines.
rides for either the Daytona As for her “Danica Double,”
500 or the Indianapolis 500. Patrick through racing. Europe to try to become mering to talk to her? it appears she jumped the
With nothing racing related gun when she announced
to announce, Patrick has Roughly a dozen women a famous race car driver. They have a fledgling her Daytona and Indy fare-
stormed into her second well tour. She had not ac-
act and shifted gears away who had participated in Despite mediocre results on blog, called “Out of Your tually secured rides for the
from the track. two showcase events be-
She returned to work last Patrick’s pilot program that the track, the “Danica Ma- League,” and Patrick gave fore revealing her plan.
week promoting her new Patrick said the double “is
book, “Pretty Intense,” a launched her book stood chine” was marketing ge- them positive mantras coming a lot slower than I
90-day food, body and would like it to,” but vowed
mind plan that she swears in line together, some nius and Patrick became hoping they’d learn noth- that it will happen. It’s nev-
will change your life. She er been this hard for Patrick
exercised on live televi- wearing “Warrior By Dani- a brand. Now the brand ing is out of reach. As they to go racing, and a large
sion, prepared a meal, part of these struggles is
did a media blitz in New ca” athletic gear, all living is shifting off the track and walked away from the star, because of the economic
York City, then capped her climate. She has fallen into
week by returning to North proof that “Pretty Intense” she’s deftly navigating the she called after them: “You the category of a driver
Carolina for her first book who needs to bring spon-
signing. had worked. landscape. guys should have asked sorship for a race team to
And so begins regular life hire her.
for Patrick — if “regular” is “I was the fattest I’ve ever The middle-aged men in me out. I’d have said yes.” She understands the cir-
a thing for one of the most cumstances, but didn’t
recognizable female ath- been,” said Julie Grunwald line to buy her book? Well, Patrick is not going to talk think it would be this diffi-
letes in the world. cult.
“I’ve been doing different of Charlotte, whose before she joked with them that about the end of her five- “I thought this time around,
things and talking about because I had less stuff, less
different things, it’s like a and after photos and story “Pretty Intense” is “practi- year relationship with fel- sponsors, less teams, less
fresh start, almost, with everything, that it would
my career,” said Patrick, made Patrick’s book. cally a picture book,” and low NASCAR driver Ricky go faster and be more
who will turn 36 in March. straight-forward,” she said.
“Cooking on TV with reci- “I see muscles I’ve never revealed she’s wearing her Stenhouse. The two broke “But nothing in my world
pes I wrote, going on TV ever is.”
wearing workout clothes ... had before. It wasn’t as undergarments in many of up shortly after the 2017 Patrick said her plans to
it’s so different. It has been race in next month’s Day-
fun to do something differ- tona 500 are further along
ent.” than an Indianapolis 500
It made sense for Patrick deal, but seemed certain
to choose a bookstore in both races will happen.q
Charlotte, the heart of NAS-
CAR country, for her first hard as I thought,” said
signing. Autograph signings
are a weekly requirement Grunwald, who has shed
for race car drivers, so this
was going to be a piece of nearly 20 pounds and uses
cake.
The line began to form Patrick’s guide as her new
about an hour before she
arrived. At the front were normal. “The workouts
two race fans and a little
girl wearing a Patrick shirt were intense, but doable.
who had driven 45 minutes
to see their favorite driver. It took a while to get used
There was a fan with the
ticket from a recent NAS- to no dairy or sugar, but it’s
CAR race hanging on a
lanyard around his neck. been a total life change.
A pair of high school boys,
one wearing a neon Go- I’ll never go back. I’ll nev-
Daddy jacket, nervously
awaited their chance to er eat the same way I ate
meet the race car driver.
Of the roughly 200 people ever again.”
Grunwald represents the
new fan base Patrick is
currently courting. Yes, the
bulk of the audience at this
Barnes & Noble was com-
prised of race fans, but for
Patrick to succeed in her
second act her base needs
to grow.
Underestimating her next
career move would be a
mistake.
