Gabi DiCarlo to be Honored in Indy
Great Clips driver Gabi DiCarlo will be one of a select group of female drivers being honored at the upcoming Women in the Winner’s Circle Luncheon on July 24 at the Plaza Village Pavilion inside the Indianapolis Motor Speedway today.
DiCarlo, who is competing full-time in the ARCA RE/MAX Series, is honored to have been chosen to participate.
“I’m very grateful to have been chosen for such an acclaimed luncheon where successful female drivers from all forms of racing will be honored,” said DiCarlo. “I am definitely in good company, and I wouldn’t be where I am in my racing career without the continued support from my sponsor, Great Clips.”
The luncheon will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., which will also include a grand march highlighting the graduates of the Lyn St. James Driver Development Program.
The Women in the Winner’s Circle Luncheon us held annually to help raise funds for the Women in the Winner’s Circle Foundation (formerly the Lyn St. James Foundation), founded by racing driver and motivational speaker Lyn St. James.
Co-hosting with St. James will be Basketball Hall of Fame commentator Nancy Lieberman. In addition to DiCarlo, more than 40 winning female racers will be introduced including Sarah Fisher, Janet Guthrie, Milka Duno, Ashley Force and Danica Patrick.
Fellow ARCA RE/MAX Series racer Alli Owens (read the Alli Owens FT exclusive interview here) is also scheduled to participate in the program.
In addition, the Mildred Marcum Pioneer Award, named in honor of ARCA’s co-founder and patriarch, will be awarded at the luncheon. Marcum worked as a NASCAR official alongside the France family in the 1940s and 50s before starting ARCA as a Midwest-based auto racing sanctioning body with her husband John in 1953.
Marcum, who is currently 94 years old and still works at ARCA’s Temperance, Michigan headquarters on a daily basis, was the first ever recipient of the Mildred Marcum Pioneer Award in 2005. Other recipients have included the late Barbara Parks, who co-founded the NHRA alongside her husband Wally Parks, and journalist/author/racing driver Denise McCluggage.
So who do you think will be the first woman to break through in one of the NASCAR circuits?
I’ve got my money on Chrissy Wallace. She has a quality ride at Germain and it doesn’t hurt being a Wallace.
My vote goes to Chrissy also. It shouldn’t work the way it does, but her talent aside, her family connections gives her an advantage no other woman has ever had.