Pippa Mann will once again partner with Dale Coyne Racing for the Indy 500. For the last four she years, she has driven the team’s third car in the series’ signature race. While Mann may not have had the world’s most successful racing career, she uses her time in the car to raise money for a very worthwhile cause. To date, she has raised more than $135,000 for Susan G. Komen in an effort to cure breast cancer. This year, as part of that campaign, Mann will be auctioning various items on eBay. According to a press release from IndyCar, the item include “1:18 die-casts and artwork signed by various drivers, Mann’s race worn, pink helmet and suit, a karting night at Speedway Indoor Karting, as well as the popular ‘Turn the cockpit pink’ option where names of people are placed in the cockpit to honor the memories of loved ones lost, or those who are fighting or who have fought cancer.” The auctions will start May 1st and will wrap up the week following the Indy 500.
Last year, Mann had her best result ever at the famed oval, finishing 18th; though she has finished 13th in a few of the ten other races she race run with Coyne Racing in the last five years. This year could turn out to be her best race yet. At the season opener in St. Petersburg, FL, Sébastien Bourdais won the race for Coyne Racing. The team didn’t just squeak out a victory, they dominated the race. I was there. They slayed the giants of Team Penske and Chip Ganassi racing. It may have only been the first race of the season, but the Coyne cars have the speed needed to win. With Mann behind the wheel of one of these, she’ll have the right equipment to run a strong race. Hopefully, the race proves fruitful for both her and her charity work.