JR Hildebrand Rides Again

Fresh-faced IndyCar star JR Hildebrand—a rookie no more, and not yet a veteran—takes the wheel in Indy Monthly‘s May issue. The 24-year-old suffered a series of maladies, both physical and personal, in 2011. “These things happen in auto racing,” says a member of Hildebrand’s team. “But everything happened to JR, and I mean everything, in one year.”

The blow to his personal pride that was his final-turn crash at the Indy 500’s 95th running in 2011 was hardly the worst of it, but it certainly made for thrilling television:

>> BONUS: Hildebrand’s Panther Racing Team and its owner, John Barnes, surprised him last year with his dream car—a cherry-red 1966 Chevelle that he says his father would have coveted. Follow him as he vies again for 500 glory, and ride shotgun with him here:

Photo, left to right, via JR Hildebrand’s Facebook page and by Dale Bernstein