updated 12:50 p.m. ET May 29, 2006

INDIANAPOLIS - Danica Patrick was downright testy when she climbed out of her car. She drove a nearly flawless race Sunday, only to finish four spots worse than her electrifying debut at the Indianapolis 500 a year ago.

“She was soooo upset,” said her father, T.J. Patrick.

During the long walk back to the garage, Danica had some time to reflect on her performance and put a little perspective on things.

No, she didn’t win the race. But, considering she had a speed-deprived machine and couldn’t catch a break in the pits, eighth place looked pretty darn good.

“I can see the optimistic side of things,” Patrick said. “I drove a clean race today. I didn’t make any mistakes. The team didn’t make any mistakes. From last year to this year was a huge improvement.”

Patrick finished fourth as an Indy rookie — the best showing ever for a woman at the Brickyard. She made a couple of major mistakes, stalling her car in the pits and spinning out on a restart but still managed to grab the lead with 10 laps to go, a first for a woman.

Alas, she didn’t have enough fuel to run at top speed all the way to the end, allowing winner Dan Wheldon and two others to get by before the checkered flag came out.

This time, Patrick and her two Rahal Letterman teammates were hampered by a Panoz chassis that clearly didn’t produce as much speed as the Dallara model used by most of the top teams. She was the only racer to crack the top 15 in a Panoz.

“We didn’t have the fastest car,” the 24-year-old Patrick said. “We weren’t close to having the fastest car. So I should be happy. I am happy.”

Still, she knew it could have been even better if not for some unfavorable timing in the pits.

Early on, Patrick got out of sequence with the other top cars because of problems with her right rear tire. She was forced to make her last two stops under green, then watched in dismay as crashes brought out the yellow flag shortly after she pulled back onto the track. The rest of the cars running up front were able to stop during the caution periods.

“Without a couple of yellows,” her father said, “she would have been there at the end.”

As it was, Patrick wound up about six seconds behind winner Sam Hornish Jr. She was just coming off the fourth turn as Hornish dipped to the inside and passed 19-year-old Marco Andretti for the second-closest victory in Indy history.

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Patrick has yet to pick up her first Indy Racing League win, but two strong runs in the biggest event have shown that she’s more than just a novelty. After all, Hornish had never completed 500 miles until his victory Sunday. Patrick is now 2-for-2 in making it through the longest, most grueling race on the circuit.

Yes, this woman knows how to drive.

“She’s not some flash in the pan,” T.J. Patrick said. “I don’t know anyone who drove a better race today.”

His daughter was especially strong with other cars around, the true sign of a skilled racer. Patrick was constantly getting by other cars at 215 mph — both those she was chasing and those she was lapping. After starting 10th, she dropped back five places on the very first lap but managed to get as high as fifth before the day was done.

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“I made it through traffic really well,” she said, sounding rather proud of herself. “I was putting chunks of cars behind me.”

With Patrick and Andretti, the IRL appears to have two young Americans it can build around — personable, talented drivers who can lure new fans to a sport that has been caught in a downward spiral for much of the past decade.

Patrick certainly did nothing to hurt her enormous popularity, which was evident by the huge crowd that gathered outside her garage after the race. A big cheer went up when she emerged to sign autographs and pose for pictures on a still sweltering day. No one seemed to mind that she didn’t win.

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“We love you!” one fan yelled.

“Thank you,” Patrick said softly.

She looks forward to putting it all together next May. She would love to have a car that was as strong as the one she drove in 2005. She would love to make it through another 200 laps without a glaring mistake.

“From a driving standpoint, I did much better. That’s what you’re striving for,” Patrick said. “And when I get the right car, I’m going to win.”

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