The idea of competing in racing\u2019s iconic Memorial Day Double \u2013 the Indianapolis 500 followed by NASCAR\u2019s celebrated Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway \u2013 is both daunting and enticing; equal parts mentally and physically demanding. But the reward, a rare and deserved sense of achievement.<\/p>\n
Logistical challenges, weather forecasts and all, 45-year-old British racer Katherine Legge is ready to give \u201cThe Double\u201d a proper go this Sunday. Her schedule preparing has been as hectic off the track as behind the wheel. And after the final Indy 500 practice Friday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, she conceded, \u201cdo I have time to think?\u201d<\/p>\n
Legge has spent much of this week doing media interviews and making appearances on behalf of her sponsor e.l.f. Cosmetics around the country in advance of her ambitious quest to join Robby Gordon, Tony Stewart, Kurt Busch, Kyle Larson and the late John Andretti as the only drivers to run both the Indy 500 and NASCAR\u2019s 600-miler on the same day.<\/p>\n
The hard work behind the scenes is done \u2013 complete with contingency plans for rain delays as the weather forecasts remain \u201ciffy\u201d for the Midwest on Sunday. At this point, Legge must rely on the hard work of her HMD Motorsports with A.J. Foyt Racing team to prepare her No. 11 Chevrolet for Indy and the Live Fast Motorsports team, who is fielding the No. 78 Chevrolet for Charlotte.<\/p>\n
Despite only announcing the formal plans for this historic run two weeks ago, Legge turned in a solid qualifying run and will start her fifth Indianapolis from the ninth row, her Chevrolet holding the 26th position on the 33-car grid.\u00a0<\/p>\n
True to her character and heart, Legge opened her only press conference of the race weekend not talking about her car or her expectations but instead paying respect to Kyle Busch, 41, the two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion who passed away Thursday.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am devastated for [Busch\u2019s wife Samantha] Sam and the kids,\u201d Legge said. \u201cYou know, he and Samantha were two of the nicest people to me, welcoming me to the series. \u2026 they took the time to get to know me and give me some help and advice, and I would classify them as friends now.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s desperately sad. . \u2026honestly, racing has lost one of the greatest drivers, in my opinion, of all time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Even carrying such a heavy heart, Legge must focus forward to competing in America\u2019s biggest single day race challenge. Perspective and preparation have been the key to her week both on and off the track. And perhaps, now, never so important.<\/p>\n
As with those talented drivers who attempted The Double before her, Legge has proven to be a versatile driver during her two-decades career, competing in sports cars, IndyCars and stock cars.<\/p>\n
Although the bid to race at both Indy and Charlotte has long been a goal of hers, the logistics and go-ahead only came together two weeks ago, a short span compared to those drivers that have done this previously. Yet, Legge conceded, that may present a slight upside.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith more time, you probably overanalyze every possible scenario, instead we\u2019re in execution mode,\u201d she explained. \u201cIt\u2019s just been, \u2018Okay, what\u2019s the next problem we solve?\u2019 And honestly, that mentality probably helps when you\u2019re attempting something this chaotic.\u201d<\/p>\n
Legge\u2019s NASCAR team owners, B.J. McLeod and his wife Jessica, were both trackside Friday at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway watching Carb Day final practice and will be at Indy for the start of the 500. Live Fast Motorsports is doing a sponsorship \u201cDouble\u201d of its own \u2013 with signage on both sides of the IndyCar\u2019s nose piece as well as fielding Legge\u2019s NASCAR Cup Series Camaro.<\/p>\n
\u201cI definitely am enjoying this opportunity to go up there and be able to be a part of it,\u201d McLeod said. \u201cWe\u2019re excited to be there supporting her on that side and I\u2019m there for her, not from a knowledge standpoint \u2013 since I know nothing about an IndyCar \u2013 but anything she needs we\u2019re there to support her.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd obviously from the Cup side I\u2019m very involved to make sure she has what she needs to have a successful night and we\u2019re looking forward to making that happen as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Even with all the meticulous planning, the effort will require some good weather fortune. Legge planned to be in Charlotte Saturday afternoon for the brief Coca-Cola 600 practice and qualifying sessions. She has only eight previous NASCAR Cup Series starts \u2013 one this year \u2013 and has never competed on the 1.5-mile Charlotte oval previously, so that track time is very valuable.<\/p>\n
A reserve driver will start the Live Fast Motorsports car at Charlotte should the Indy race delay her trip.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think the advantage for me is adaptability,\u201d Legge said. \u201cMy entire career has been built around jumping between disciplines, learning quickly, and being comfortable in uncomfortable situations. That\u2019s probably the biggest thing I\u2019m relying on this weekend.\u201d<\/p>\n
Certainly, the support is there and Legge said she\u2019s received well wishes from not only drivers such as Larson and Stewart, who have raced The Double, but also from competitors she has shared grids with for years.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think there\u2019s a shared understanding within motorsports of how difficult and rare this challenge really is,\u201d Legge said. \u201cThat\u2019s been very humbling because drivers understand better than anyone what goes into even attempting the crazy things we sign ourselves up for.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverybody\u2019s working incredibly hard,\u201d she added, \u201cAnd I have to remember how lucky I am and how grateful I am to be here, because I am.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The idea of competing in racing\u2019s iconic Memorial Day Double \u2013 the Indianapolis 500 followed by NASCAR\u2019s celebrated…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":688822,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[446],"tags":[49,48,634,82],"class_list":["post-688821","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nascar","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-nascar","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/688821","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=688821"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/688821\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/688822"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=688821"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=688821"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=688821"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}