Dan Wheldon made the move to IndyCar in 2002. He had spent a year before that in Indy Lights and had also raced in the U.S. F2000 National Championship and the Toyota Atlantic Championship a few years before that. Wheldon ran two races in 2002 for Panther Racing before moving to the series full time in 2003 for Andretti Green Racing. Wheldon was pretty successful in his first year and took the Rookie of the Year Award. He came back in 2004 and was even more successful. He won his first race at Twin Ring Motegi in Japan and went on to win two more races before the year finished. He would barely miss out on winning his first championship as his teammate, Tony Kanaan, took it. But that would not be it for Wheldon. He returned to Andretti Green Racing in 2005 and he would take six wins en route to his first championship in the series. Among his wins was one at the most historic track on the circuit: the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It was Wheldon's first win at the track, but it would not be his last.
Wheldon moved over to Chip Ganassi Racing for the 2006 season and he kept pretty much the same success. He won two races and fell just short of the championship once again. This is where I started to follow his career a good bit. He became one of my favorites along with teammate, Scott Dixon. Wheldon returned to Ganassi Racing in 2007 and took two more wins to add to his already fantastic career in the series. 2008 once again brought another decent season to Wheldon with two wins and a nice finish in the points, but he would not return to Ganassi in 2009. He headed over to Panther Racing where he did not find the same success. He was not able to win any races with the team in 2009 or 2010, but he still remained one of the favorites and most popular in the series. I remember fondly watching some races with him behind the wheel of the camouflage National Guard paint scheme that he ran for the team. 2011 brought a limited schedule to Wheldon. He would only run three races, including the fateful race at Las Vegas, but one of those would be one of the defining moments of his career before his passing only a few months later.
I remember that weekend at Indianapolis. You had so many favorites in the race like Wheldon, Dario Franchitti, Marco Andretti, Tony Kanaan, Scott Dixon, and a whole lot more. It was sure to be a great fight for the win. The race began and Dixon became the early favorite, but around the middle part of the race, a rookie driver by the name of J.R. Hildebrand began to assert himself as a favorite and legitimate contender. The race moved quickly through the afternoon and before we knew it, only twenty laps remained. Danica Patrick had the lead and Tomas Scheckter ran second, but both were low on fuel. Patrick and Scheckter had to pit, which gave Bertrand Baguette the lead on lap 188. But there were also questions if Baguette had enough fuel. He rode around trying to save fuel for a few laps, but it was not enough. He finally had to make the move to pit road with four laps to go and that allowed the rookie I mentioned earlier, J.R. Hildebrand, to take the lead. Dario Franchitti, Scott Dixon, and Dan Wheldon ran behind him, but Franchitti was also saving fuel. This allowed Dixon and Wheldon to get by. Wheldon was able to pass Dixon as Hildebrand took the white flag. Only one question remained. Did J.R. Hildebrand or any of the other drivers have enough fuel to make it to the finish? Hildebrand made it into turn 1 and the turn went smoothly. He flew through turn 2 easily and made it to the backstretch with the win in hand. He drove down the backstretch and made it into turn 3 quickly. Only one corner remained. A lapped car was driving through turn 4, but Hildebrand would make it around. Then, it happened. Hildebrand went too far to the outside of the corner. His car did not turn on exit and piled into the outside wall. His right side was heavily damaged and he coasted along against the wall, but the lead was still in his hands. But that would all come to a close. Dan Wheldon, who had saved enough fuel, shot to his inside on the frontstretch. Wheldon flew by and his hands came out of the cockpit of his car in triumph as he had won the Indianapolis 500 in the one hundredth year of the event. Wheldon coasted around to victory lane where he would place the ceremonial wreath around his shoulders and drink the sacred milk at Indianapolis. It was a stunning finish and one of the most memorable that I can remember.
Dan Wheldon's legacy still lives on today even after his tragic passing two years ago to the day. Shortly after his death, it was announced that the new car starting to run in IndyCar in 2012 would be named after him since he had been a key factor in testing the car. In fact, the car he helped with so much has actually saved lives. If you don't believe me, take a look at Dario Franchitti's wreck at Houston only one week ago. Without the new car, I believe Franchitti would have lost his life, but Dan Wheldon prevented that. That in itself is one of the most memorable things from Wheldon's life. Also, Wheldon was posthumously named the most popular driver of IndyCar in 2011. It was an award that Wheldon deserved not just because he wanted to be remembered, but because he was one of the friendliest and most likeable drivers in the garage. That is one of the main ways I want to remember Wheldon along with the great success he had in the sport he loved so much.
What do I remember the most about Dan Wheldon? I remember that smile he flashed whenever someone talked to him. I remember that British accent that he used in every interview. I remember how kind he was to everybody in the sport and how willing he was to help anybody that needed his help. But most of all, I remember how hard of a competitor he was in the race. He wouldn't wreck you on track, but he would race you as hard as possible to win the race. If he didn't have the car to win, he wouldn't over do it. If he was able to get by you, he would do it as cleanly as possible to take the spot or even the win. That was just the way he was and I respect him for that. I don't think it actually hit me that it had been two years since he passed until I came to school with my Lionheart tribute shirt made to remember his life and achievements. I can't believe it has been that long since he left our world. I miss you so much Dan and I hope one day to be with you and be able to talk to you in heaven. I want to end this year's remembrance of Dan Wheldon's life with two things. The first is something cool that I noticed at school today. Each day, we have a word that helps prepare students for the SAT test. Today's word was revere. Revere means to regard with awe and respect. I believe that was a sign. A sign that Dan Wheldon deserves to be revered for his accomplishments and his amazing life on the day he so tragically left us. I will bring this year's remembrance of Dan Wheldon to an end with a quote from Marty Reid that is still one of the most recognizable statements made on the day of October 16th, 2011. "People ask me why, when I sign off I say 'until we meet again'. Because goodbye is always so final. Goodbye Dan Wheldon."
Credits:
-Statistics:
http://racing-reference.info/race/2011_Indianapolis_500/O
http://racing-reference.info/driver/Dan_Wheldon
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Wheldon
-Full 2011 Indianapolis 500:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W1CqBtGezss
-Image:
http://www.wibc.com/Pics/news/wheldon/wheldon1978-2011a.jpg
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