Stock Car School Wrapping Up for Now for Danica Patrick

The most challenging part of Danica Patrick's stock car schooling may prove to be the extended Spring Break she's about to take.

Saturday's Nationwide Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway will be Patrick's last NASCAR competition until June 26. She is leaving the "dough" to return to her bread-and-butter, the IZOD IndyCar Series and her very real chance at becoming the first woman to win the Indianapolis 500 on Memorial Day weekend.

She said Friday that she intends to keep testing her No. 7 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet in between her duties in the IndyCar Series, which starts its season March 14 in Brazil.

This week was the first time she split time in both the Indy car, which is part of MIchael Andetti's multi-car team, and her stock car, which is owned by Dale Earnhardt Jr. And judging by her comments Friday, her Indy car was nearly as challenging during the preseason test as her transition to stock cars has been.

"I feel like some of it was circumstantial, getting into the Indy car again and getting used to how fast they are and the down force,'' Patrick said from Las Vegas. "Unfortunately, I didn't have a very good car so I didn't feel very comfortable.

"I'm sure that there will be the first couple of laps, where it's, 'what have I got here?' and then I'll settle in and it'll be like riding a bicycle.''

The bigger question will be how long it takes her to get reacclimated to the stock cars when she arrives at New Hampshire Motor Speedway this summer.

It's been a methodical and steady process for Patrick. She was 23rd fastest in practice at the 1.5-mile Las Vegas track and said she felt much more comfortable than a a week ago at the two-mile California Speedway, where she added a 31st place finish to her 35th-place debut on Feb. 13 at Daytona.

People criticized her for apparently blowing by the live television crew and cameras seeking comment from her following Saturday's race at California Speedway.

But television doesn't typically expect interviews with other 31st-place finishers and Patrick was frustrated. It's never been acceptable to her to finish three laps down. She's as competitive as it gets and that's what people still don't understand.

If she didn't have that fire, if she didn't care so much, she would not stand a chance.

"I'm trying to forget about that one,'' Patrick said half-joking.

The difference between her and the other 31st-place finishers is that the media is hanging on her every word, interpreting her every action, still not sure what to make of all this.

Here's what to make of it: She's serious about her racing.

Now it's time for everyone else to take her seriously, too.

In the middle of her Friday news conference she was asked if she regretted posing in the racey FHM Magazine years ago. As she listened to the question, Patrick's body language changed and she was clearly annoyed.

"No, I don't," Patrick said. "I've always felt comfortable with everything I've done and that's just my style. I do the things that I think are interesting and fun and show my personality.''

Can you remember the last time Carl Edwards was asked if he regretted posing shirtless on the cover of ESPN The Magazine, or later in the Body Issue, which featured athletes in various states of undress?

And who didn't see the tabloid "expose" coming? As soon as the country's two most famous race car drivers, Patrick and Dale Earnhardt Jr., teamed up, you knew that the National Enquirer was going to come up with a story. Or rather, a tall tale.

This week, an unnamed source - an anonymous friend-of-a-friend -- who knows someone who once watched a NASCAR race -- told the Enquirer that Patrick claimed she could beat her team owner, Earnhardt on track and that because of the trash talk, there was a huge behind-the-scenes feud percolating.

The only thing worse than the outlandish, unsourced allegatioins is the legitimate racing media having to follow up on it all. Patrick and Earnhardt are unfazed. Their public relations teams are understandably insulted to even be asked for a comment.

"It goes without saying, it's completely false,'' said Mike Davis, Director of Communications for Earnhardt's JR Motorsports team. "Putting any more time or thought to it would give it way more attention than it deserves.''

Even by National Enquirer standards, the manufactured "Danica versus Junior" feud story falls flat.

The first phase of Patrick's great NASCAR experiment concludes this weekend. Judging by the television ratings, the increased ticket sales she's credited with helping stimulate and the souvenir sales she's generating, it's been a success so far.

Hopefully, however, those are not the standards Patrick is using.

"Until you're up at the top, you're never satisfied,'' Patrick said.

"I think what I learned last week was setting the wrong goals, which was not having one. ... after last weekend and the way we ran, finishing 31st, this weekend, we've got to say, let's finish in the top 25. We're inching up on it and I'm feeling much more comfortable.''

As for her good-byes this weekend, Patrick said, "I was just telling the guys, I'm kinda sad.

"There's no end to how much learning we can do.''