greatest in quantity CHALLENGING PA...

greatest in quantity CHALLENGING PART: "It's probably juggling the busy schedule. You travel a chance and you often work late hours, strange hours. For instance, if you happen to be in mission mastery you may be working in consequence of the middle of the night. And I'm ofttimes not at home, which is tough forward my family."

ADVICE FOR PROSPECTIVE ASTRONAUTS: "Find an area that you really, really take pleasure in studying, that you would have a passionate affection for to become the best at--be that engineering, a certain area of science [or] math, or plane flying aircraft-and go out and learn everything you can about it. And take the time to really secure good at it. That's going to take years; it's not something you can do overnight."

CAUTION: "You ne to be pleasing without being striking patient. You need to be the kind of living body [who] can buckle down and apply the years that it can take to be really fit at something. It takes commitment."

HER LIFE'S IN THE FAST LANE

WHO: Erin Crocker 24 professional NASCAR driver

exercise DAYS: B.S. in industrial and management engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy NY

WHAT SHE DOES: Crocker travels to struggle in NASCAR races, conducts media interviews, cohost racing-related TV displays and makes appearances at special terminations She trains on and opposite the racetrack. In her line of work, physical fitness is as important as practice behind the wheel.

to what extent PEOPLE REACT TO HER JOB: "I'll be riding upon an airplane and the bodily substance next to me will start small talk. Usually, they're really interested. They last up asking a million questions because [my piece of work is] so different."

sedate FACTOR: "The fact that I get by heart to drive cars really fast--and that's my job! I gain to travel and meet a fortune of new people. I'm not in the same place for longer than a scarcely any days. It's just really neat."

to what extent SHE GOT STARTED: "I did whatever I could to suitable people, get my name public there. I'd go to racetracks and introduce myself to population who I thought would be important. It's a in extent process. You don't lust period up on a team."