The Brumos 924 Carrera GTR shared by Kathy Rude, Deborah Gregg and Bonnie Henn kicks up some spray at the 24 Hours of Daytona in 1983. Murenbeeld/Motorsport Images

There was another young driver who was destined to become one of the greatest talents ever seen. Her name was Kara Hendrick. I met Kara while I was racing my Ford Mustang at Sonoma Raceway (then Sears Point), and when she introduced herself to me, all I could see was her huge smile. Her energy was jumping off her like the energizer bunny. She was full of questions about how to have a career in racing. She told me about her racing successes in Midgets and how she wanted to – no, had to get sponsorship so she could move into the higher ranks. I asked around and discovered that she in fact was really good – so good in fact that she often equaled, or sometimes beat, the likes of Jeff Gordon in Midget races. I gave her my contact info and told her I was working hard just to keep my own career going, but that I would help her all I could. We stayed in touch, and then I heard the news of her tragic death in October of 1991 in a midget race at El Cajon Speedway while setting a track record. Kara was only 22 years old. There was a decal made in her honor, which was a pink heart with Kara’s name on it, and I placed it inside my IndyCar for the 1992 Indy 500. It was my way of getting Kara to run the Indy 500. I created a Kara Hendrick Scholarship at my annual driver development program as a way to highlight a special talent and continue Kara’s legacy, and also to tell a story of what can happen.

When I started my driver development program in 1994 I was delighted to see how many young females were not only racing, but who had career aspirations in the sport. It inspired me to work hard to help provide them with the best advice and advisors I could assemble. It was a different world, and a world where moms and dads were now OK with their daughters doing what their sons had been doing for decades. Things were changing. But there was also much work that had to be done to fill the knowledge gaps. There were many young and talented female racers on the horizon, and I was not only excited but motivated to do whatever I could to help them. Next week, I’ll tell you about some of them.