Kansas City, Kan. ? If only a major-league baseball team played near Kansas Speedway, the trek to the ballpark would feel so much more doable.

So the decision whether to partake in media availability at the oval track, where drivers did some track testing Wednesday in advance of the April 26 Road Runner Turbo Indy 300, wasn’t all that difficult. Well, that and the fact Danica Patrick was waiting to talk to me. (OK, so it wasn’t just me).

It was worth the trip.

The woman who can turn the racing world on with a smile, a photo shoot or even something as simple as a news conference was on her game Wednesday. She seems more relaxed, in a better mood, since logging her first victory, last April 20 at Twin Ring Motegi in Japan. She no longer has to worry about being labeled the Anna Kournikova of motor sports. Even before her first victory, she was far more accomplished at her sport than Kournikova ever was at hers. Still, there is no winner’s circle for second place.

If you’re scoring at home, make it one motor sports victory for Patrick and two perfect scores in the area of impersonating a swimsuit model in the past two Sports Illustrated swimsuit editions.

Thanks to Patrick, her bright-eyed smile and her dead-on portrayal of a swimsuit model, her sport is recession-proof.

I asked her how proud she was of growing the sport and doing so in part because her two SI photo shoots went so well.

“That’s subjective,” she said. “You might think that’s great. He might think that’s awful. It’s one of those things that’s all up to opinion.”

Technically, she’s right. Technically.

“I will say I worked very hard to pretend to be a model for a day,” she said. “I worked extra hard this year. It’s always fun. And to me, I’m very competitive, so it was a competitive challenge for me to see what I could do with my body.”

Down, thought bubble, down. Baaaaaaaaad thought bubble. Bad, bad, bad!

Anyway, Danica returned to talking about racing. Awhile later, I tuned back in. When I did, she was talking about the Streets of Long Beach Race, April 19 in Long Beach, Calif.

“I think there is some similarity between Long Beach and Indy,” she said. “Kind of more cultural than just a race. Pro-celebrity race, 10 or 15 celebrities who draw people in, the downtown atmosphere. It’s a party.”

Last Sunday in St. Petersburg, Patrick said she didn’t see any signs that the recession will impact the IndyCar series.

“It felt like I was at Indy, to be honest,” she said. “The stands were completely full. As far as what I was doing with fan interaction, they were all standing at the transporter, right where the cars are, waiting for autographs. They were everywhere. They were cheering. And the attendance was the best I’ve seen at St. Petersburg. We can only hope that continues and translates to viewership because that’s really the big number, how many people are watching. We all need to get Versus (Sunflower Broadband Channel 38) on our TV.”

She smiled that winning smile again, and the sport picked up another fan.