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HR0532 |
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LRB094 12620 CSA 47408 r |
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| HOUSE RESOLUTION
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| WHEREAS, Danica Patrick, a 23-year-old resident of Phoenix |
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| and native of Roscoe, a northern Illinois town of 6,244 near |
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| the Wisconsin border, became the first woman to lead auto |
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| racing's premier event and finish fourth in the 89th running of |
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| the Indianapolis 500; and
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| WHEREAS, Driving in only her fifth Indy Racing League |
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| (I.R.L.) event, Ms. Patrick posted the fastest speed in |
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| practice and qualified fourth, another best for a woman, for |
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| the 33-car starting grid; and
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| WHEREAS, She put her name alongside Babe Didrikson |
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| Zaharias, Billie Jean King, and Annika Sorenstam on the list of |
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| women who made athletic history by making their presence felt |
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| in a male-dominated sport; and
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| WHEREAS, Three women have driven in a combined 15 Indy 500s |
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| before Ms. Patrick, and Janet Guthrie was the only woman to |
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| finish in the top 10; she was ninth in 1978; and
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| WHEREAS, Danica Patrick hopped into her first go-kart at |
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| the age of 10, started racing on a half-mile asphalt track at |
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| Sugar River Raceway in Broadhead, Wisconsin, and left Hononegah |
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| High School at the age of 16 for driving school in England; and
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| WHEREAS, Before this year, she was an accomplished driver |
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| in the Toyota Atlantic series, and she finished fourth in the |
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| previous I.R.L. race in Japan in April; the co-owners of her |
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| car are Bobby Rahal, the 1986 Indy 500 winner, and David |
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| Letterman, the late-night talk-show host; the team's top |
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| driver, Buddy Rice, won the Indy 500 last year; and
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| WHEREAS, About 250 locals in her hometown of Roscoe held a |
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| party during the running of the Indianapolis 500 in honor of |