"I knew I'd never see anyone": When Danica Patrick reflected on ego in an empty retreat

About seven years ago, former racer Danica Patrick opened up on her battle with ego and reflected on how she spent hours walking alone on a vast property, listening to music by East Forest or Trevor Hall.

Patrick, who started karting in school and dropped out to pursue a professional racing career in the UK, was and is still the only female IndyCar race winner. She won the 2008 Indy Japan 300 when she was 26 and later joined NASCAR in the early 2010s. During a 2015 interview with Lewis Howes, Patrick was asked if she had a battle with her ego throughout the last 20 years.

"Yeah, of course, the ego comes in. I mean, whether it be, you know, what I'm doing, how I'm doing, what I think of myself from a performance standpoint or a look standpoint," Partick said (23:13 onwards).

Patrick launched her book 'Pretty Intense' in December 2017 and was about to retire from racing after competing in her final races - the Daytona 500 and the Indy 500. The former Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) driver lost sponsorship from long-time partner GoDaddy following the 2015 Cup Series season and chose to give up racing in both NASCAR and the IndyCar Series.

Patrick also described how she manages her ego flare-ups with walking meditations and other unconventional ways.

"I've learned is to identify when I'm being led by ego versus soul. That's been really helpful and you almost laugh at the ego, like ego comes up and you're like, 'jerk,'" Patrick said.

"A lot of sort of walking meditations... I was on a property that was completely empty and there's trails and I knew I'd never see anyone and I would play music and I just stick it in my pocket and I don't know music really helps me like East Forest or Trevor Hall... I just don't think it's possible to get out in nature and not feel happy, grateful, small but part of a big thing. It's just a really productive space," she added.

Danica Patrick also set several records in stock-car racing. She was the first woman to get a pole position in the NASCAR Cup Series and holds the record for most starts, laps led and top-10s by a female.

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Danica Patrick's transition from racer to entrepreneur

After racing, Danica Patrick turned to entrepreneurship. She built her wine label, Somnium, in Napa Valley. She also launched Warrior by Danica Patrick, an athleisure line and now hosts the Pretty Intense podcast, where she invites guests to talk about health, mindfulness, and growth.

Patrick's Pretty Intense book also includes a 90-day plan of workouts, a paleo-inspired eating plan with about 50 original recipes and guided mental habits. She has also worked as an analyst in recent years and covered the Indy 500 and Formula 1 on Fox and Sky Sports, respectively.