AUTO RACING: Shawna Robinson was racing pioneer

Danica Patrick has been hyped as a motorsports pioneer and a cultural icon.

Though Patrick has struggled in her early transition from the open-wheel ranks to stock cars, the spotlight remains intense for the 27-year-old.

Shawna Robinson knows the feeling.

From 1991 to 2005, Robinson competed in 72 races at the top three levels of NASCAR. The resume includes eight starts in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

Robinson, who now works closely with the NASCAR community as an interior designer in the Charlotte, N.C., area, has followed the emergence of Patrick closely and has noticed several commonalities.

“It was a big deal for a female to race in NASCAR when I started, but the attention I received for my first race doesn’t compare to what Danica has faced,” said Robinson, in a phone interview. “Danica has taken advantage of her opportunities. I wish I had earned that much attention.”

According to Robinson, the media exposure can be both a positive and negative for a female racer. Basically, a female must compete with a mix of aggression and caution.

“There’s a lot of pressure to perform, and you are judged quickly,” Robinson said. “If you do something good during a race, it became this great thing. If you make a mistake, then it’s something terrible.”

Patrick, who had an average finish of 34th in her first three Nationwide races, will not compete in Saturday’s Scotts Turf Builder 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway. Scott Wimmer will drive Patrick’s No. 7 JR Motorsports Chevrolet. Patrick, currently focusing on her IndyRacing League schedule, is scheduled to run 10 more Nationwide races this year beginning
with the June 26 event at New Hampshire

Speed bumps
A total of 15 women have competed in the NASCAR Sprint Cup events, with Sara Christian recording the lone top-five finish at Heidelberg Raceway in Pennsylvania in 1949.

Jennifer Jo Cobb, who competes in the Camping World Truck Series, is currently the lone female competing on a regular basis in NASCAR. Chrissy Wallace has been a part-time
competitor in the truck series the past two years, while several females are involved in the NASCAR Drive for Diversity program.

Robinson, a native of Iowa, competed in everything from snowmobiles and compact Daytona Dash cars to massive diesel rigs in the Great American Truck Racing Series before reaching NASCAR.

Along with the way, Robinson wasn’t always surrounded with fawning fans and helpful competitors.

“Some of those racers in the semi trucks were rough,” said Robinson, whose father helped to form and promote the truck series. “They would call me names and say that I had no business in the sport.”

The big rigs competed at Bristol Motor Speedway in 1981 and 1982.

Instead of creating a scene by striking back, Robinson focused on the big picture and the bottom line.

“I just tried to run well and speak through my racing,” Robinson said.

After wrestling with the 8,000-pound semis on dirt tracks and speedways, Robinson faced a major adjustment when she stepped into a stock car.

“Going from racing at 130-mph in a diesel truck to a 2,400-pound stock car at Daytona was definitely different,” Robinson said. “It felt like I was slow. I had to learn to how to draft and adapt to other things.”

Marketing muscle
Robinson, who was supported by a variety of sponsors during her career, said that she isn’t offended by Patrick’s controversial magazine layouts and GoDaddy.com television commercials. The commercials and photo spreads often feature Patrick in various states of undress.

“I think the photos are tastefully done,” Robinson said. “I understand why Danica was chosen as celebrity, but those photos are of Danica the model and not Danica the racer. Her sponsor is making those decisions.”

Both female and male drivers entering the sport often face a stark dilemma. They need the sponsorship dollars to fuel their team, but they are unable to attract media or sponsor
attention unless they first have the money to race.

“All the marketing and photos can only help so much,” Robinson said. “You have to do the job when you get in the race car.”

Late in her career, Robinson earned a degree of national attention in a couple of unique ways. In 2003, she ran three NASCAR truck races for Team Texas with an all-female pit
crew. In 2005, Robinson ran six races for the Keith Coleman Racing team with sponsorship from Vassarette, a maker of women’s lingerie.

“You have to take the opportunities you can get in racing,” Robinson said. “I would have loved to been part of a photo shoot that featured Hollywood glamour shots. Showing your feminine side is fun and it works, but you also have to show ability on the race track.”

The highlight of Robinson’s stock career came in 1994, when she became the first woman to win a pole in the NASCAR Nationwide Series with a track record lap of 174.330-mph at
Atlanta Motor Speedway. Robinson’s last Nationwide race came in Bristol Motor Speedway in 2005.

Robinson feels the timing was right for Patrick’s move to NASCAR.

“I think the sport needed her, and I tried to tell people in the sport that they needed me,” Robinson said. “It’s amazing how many more know who Danica is. She’s brought a lot of new fans to the series.”

Role model
Nationwide Series regular Eric McClure said his first impressions of Patrick were refreshing.

“I met Danica during the pre-race truck ride at Las Vegas,” McClure said. “She was nice and introduced herself, although you can tell she’s a very competitive person. [Patrick] has
every right to compete over here if she has the desire and means to do so, which she does.”

And McClure said he no issue with a female competing in a macho arena that has long struggled to find diversity.

“It’s no different than myself or any other driver that brings sponsorship,” McClure said. “If you want to do it and are able, then do it. It’s an open sport. Racing with Danica is no
different than racing anyone else, minus the TV cameras. “

McClure got a personal taste of Danica-Mania during introductions for season-opening race in Daytona.

“[Danica] was walking behind me and the ESPN cameras crashed into us, knocking my sister and one of our sponsor reps down,” McClure said. “Had I not been in a forgiving mood,
and had they not actually given me good coverage, ESPN would have been buying some new cameras.”

Bristol resident Jenna Wagner hopes to follow a similar path to Patrick. After starting her racing career in entry-level four-cylinder cars, the James Madison University senior was
recently selected to compete in Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup, a 10-race series spanning seven road courses in the United States and Mexico.

“I think [Patrick] will be a factor in NASCAR in the coming years,” Wagner said. “She is going to do wonders for women in racing.
“I want to take my own path though. I hope and pray that I am as successful in racing as Danica is, but we’re just going to take it one step at a time.”

Robinson hasn’t given up on her racing career. She admits to being intrigued by the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and the July 15-17 Legends Cars at Charlotte Motor
Speedway which will offer a $1 million purse.

“I definitely miss the sport,” Robinson said. “I feel that I still have the ability to race, but the opportunity and timing has to be right.”

agregory@bristolnews.com I (276) 645-254