My husband said it best. He told me, ?Just because you're a race car driver doesn't mean you're supposed to die.' I think that's the truth of it.

I don't think you can ever question the decision that your boss makes. If he would have said 'race' or 'don't race,' that's what I would have done. I race for him. . . . I don't think that anybody can critique the fact that he said don't race. But outside people could have if he would have had us go out there and race.

I've been fortunate Daytona is a place I've run better than anywhere else, and that's a big race. Maybe it has to do with attention and pressure and the drive to do well when a lot of people are watching.

The first Indy was definitely the one I remember. It's my favorite race I've ever done. It's the most memorable race I've ever done, for sure. Even more than when I won. I just remember everything about it.

I mean, you've kind of got the track down, especially with ovals. The only thing that improves is that when race conditions come, you know what to expect slightly more from the track and from your car.

You know, sometimes the little victories that I have throughout the season are not necessarily obvious on the track. Maybe they're another aspect of what I'm doing, winning little victories here and there to get everything in line to be able to perform from top to bottom on race day.