Sather's feminine side shines through on 'Tyra' (cont'd)

Sather, once a cheerleader and runner up as Miss Teen North Dakota, was an easy choice for the show. Heck, she could double for Danica when Lifetime does the movie of the week.

But don't get fooled by Natalie's smoky looks; she's tough as nails. She's had her share of concussions. She's jousted on the track with men old enough to be her father in taking the American Sprint Car Series (ASCS) Midwest points championship in 2007 and in winning 2008 rookie of the year honors at Knoxville Raceway in Iowa.

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The attractive young driver is a self-proclaimed tomboy, who last season won a race as a member of the NASCAR Drive for Diversity program in the Whelen All-American Series and also bakes a mean chocolate chip cookie. She lists hunting and shopping as her hobbies. She calls herself "my father's son" and would rather be no place else than at the race shop, wearing jeans and T-shirts during the week and a fire suit on weekends.

After discussing Natalie's accident, Tyra began styling the driver's jet black hair, which runs thick and down the length of her back. Would she turn it into Dynasty-meets-disco? A Farrah Fawcett flip? Tyra chose for Natalie an old-style pompadour -- a 50's look brought into 2009.

The talk-show diva sprayed and pulled and combed and teased the thick mane, singing loudly the whole time. Racing stock cars, Natalie hadn't lost her hearing, but Tyra's singing may now have done the trick.

To finish the job -- on the hair, not her ears -- Natalie went backstage for the full makeover, including makeup and a new outfit: lime green shorts a young lady aiming to cause a stir might wear to the Kentucky Derby on a warm Saturday in May, along with an abbreviated fancy bolo-style jacket to be worn if bull fighting on Rodeo Drive.

She rose above the garish costume and looked absolutely gorgeous, albeit teetering ever so slightly on four-inch stilettos. Natalie had broken a bone in her foot while racing. Training for the Miss North Dakota pageant she trained herself to walk in heels despite the pain.

As a member of the NASCAR PR team based in New York, I was (gladly) serving as Natalie's PR man the day of the shooting. She flashed me a look saying, "If they really want me to wear this loud outfit right now, is it possible to flash backward in time, and when NASCAR gets a call from Tyra looking for a race-car driver to do a makeover on national TV, maybe just send them over to the open-wheel people?"

I responded with my best telepathically confident "game on" nod, as if to say, "You look simply gorgeous, girl, and when out there revealing this makeover, America will be yours."

(I normally don't interject "girl" in the middle of unsaid thoughts, but this was The Tyra Banks Show. When in Rome ...)

As an African drum brigade set down a pounding beat, Natalie strutted onto Tyra's stage. She effortlessly pivoted on those perilous heels like Edyta on Dancing with the Stars. She vogued with the attitude of an MTV dancer. The crowd went wild.

While she prefers to walk on pit road in racing shoes rather than on the catwalk in stilettos, Natalie said the experience was unforgettable and, ultimately, fun.

"Getting all 'dolled up' is something I don't do very often, let alone on national television," Natalie said. "I was asked to appear on the show since I am a female in a male-dominated sport, and most of the time I find myself wearing jeans and a T-shirt, hair in a pony, with no makeup. I have been known to say, 'I am the girliest tomboy you will ever meet.'

"But, on the same note, as much as I like to be girly, I do struggle with it. Going on the Tyra show gave me some great tips on makeup, and fashion. I would have preferred to discuss racing, how Peyton Sellers and H.C. Sellers, my crew chief, are helping me, working on the cars, and competing against guys. But let's be honest: What girl doesn't like to get a makeover!"

Here's what you need to know about Natalie Sather. An appearance like this is monumentally important in a young driver's career. Agreeing to do it as an out-of-the-comfort-zone TV stunt, can go sideways and stick with you a long time. When Natalie got off stage, she didn't want to know how she looked or sounded. She asked, "Did I represent NASCAR well?"

Natalie Sather came from Fargo, N.D., to the big city, and during the course of a few fast minutes, she laughed, she cried, she strutted her stuff, and she invited America to get to know a tough, hard-core racer with real emotions, who is a genuine young lady easy to root for.

If portraying grace and style while showing real human emotion are good for the sport, then yes, Natalie, you did well, very well.

• Natalie Sather and 36 other fans are featured in Andrew Giangola's book
The Weekend Starts on Wednesday: True Stories of Remarkable NASCAR Fans.
The book is available in the NASCAR.COM Superstore.