One thought crosses Nicky Whiteside’s mind every time she watches one of IndyCar Series driver Danica Patrick’s commercials for GoDaddy.com, “That’s gonna be me one day.”
“There aren’t any women driving in NASCAR right now,” she said. “I want to be the first one.”
It’s true that the Sprint Cup Series is devoid of female drivers, but in the next couple years, Whiteside plans to try her luck in oval and dirt-track racing as a start to an auto racing career she hopes someday results in a spot on one of the top circuits.
But right now she’s happy to fly down Blue Ridge Avenue in a homemade wooden car as part of Culpeper’s seventh annual Soap Box Derby.
The rising freshman at Liberty High School spent the first five years of her Soap Box career driving in the Stock Division and the last two in the Super Stock class.
With one year of eligibility left, Whiteside plans to step up to the Masters Division next year and that has her parents feeling a little nervous.
Whiteside has learned plenty of tricks — such as angling toward the cones on the side of the street to pick up more speed — during her seven years as a Soap Box driver, but she has yet to hoist one of the winner’s trophies that towers over most of the drivers.
And besides, Whiteside wants to beat Patrick to the punch when it comes to landing a NASCAR ride.
“I think she’s really cool and she’s one of my heroes,” Whiteside said. “But she’s doing pretty well right where she is, so I think she should stay put.”
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