By Dave Lewandowski
indy500.com
Thursday, September 1, 2005
2005 Indianapolis 500 winner Dan Wheldon couldn't offer an educated opinion about reasons behind the Chicago Cubs' latest frustrating season, but he knew was on hallowed ground Aug. 31.
Wheldon threw the ceremonial first pitch before the Cubs-Los Angeles Dodgers game at Wrigley Field, which is three years younger than the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
"Obviously, Wrigley Field is similar to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in that it has that same mystique to it," Englishman Wheldon said. "I don't follow baseball too much, but I know how cool that stadium is and the history and heritage behind it."
Maybe the Cubs could have used Wheldon coming out of the bullpen. A leadoff single by Jerry Hairston was all they could muster against Derek Lowe in a 7-0 loss. Then again …
"It wasn't as good a throw as the one I did at Shea Stadium; it was a little high," said Wheldon, referring to his New York appearance while on his 500-Mile Race Victory Tour. "This was more of an English cricket throw than a pitch. I was throwing it a little high on purpose to show them I had a different pitch than the one I did at Shea Stadium. It just dropped about 10 feet too late."
Wheldon also met "Rudy" Ruettiger, subject of the 1993 big-screen movie directed by David Anspaugh and written by Angelo Pizzo, who also wrote "Hoosiers" about Indiana high school basketball. Wheldon, whose longtime dream was to win the Indianapolis 500, could relate to the film version of Ruettiger's aspirations of playing football for Notre Dame.
"It's a movie that's not only good but somewhat relevant to you because you're involved in a particular sport - just a slightly different one," said Wheldon, who invited Ruettiger to be his guest at the IndyCar Series race Sept. 11 at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Ill.
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