It May be Tougher to be an FW2, But Just as Rewarding

Post #3 – Rosie’s Daughters – Kendra Bonnett and Matilda Butler

On April 21st, The New York Times announced: “Patrick Becomes First Woman to Win a Major Auto Race.” Driver Danica Patrick won the Indy Japan 300 by beating the two-time Indy 500 winner Helio Castroneves.

Wow, I thought, there are still new frontiers for FW2s (First Woman To’s) to conquer. But opportunities to break new ground are fewer. And that’s good too.

So what’s the significance of being a First Woman To? Ultimately it’s not the achievement of one woman but the opening of a field to a critical mass of women. And further that the achievement occurs under ordinary circumstances. In other words, it’s no fluke that Patrick should be in the race.

The FW2-Generation of women (what we call Rosie’s Daughters) broke both the actual and perceived barriers to female participation. They succeeded in turning their firsts into accepted roles for themselves and subsequent generations of women. Shirley Muldowney (a Rosie’s Daughter) is known as “The First Lady of Drag Racing,” and a logical role model for young drivers like Patrick.

It’s nice to see that subsequent generations are still raising the bar and finding new barriers to crack. Congratulations to Danica Patrick.