Patrick Dempsey Interview

The Miami Herald caught up to Patrick Dempsey this past weekend before the Grand-Am Koni Challenge sports car race and asked him a few questions.

Q: Is it true that your wife told you to stop watching racing on TV and get to a driving school to learn?

A: She got me out. We have a good relationship. She’s extremely supportive and encouraging. She said, “why don’t you start to act on what you like (doing).”

Q: What do you like about the racing culture and atmosphere?

A: The climate of Hollywood is a lot different than coming to a race. The people are either professional drivers or people who are extremely successful in other fields who come here as a hobby. It’s a nice melting pot with a lot less ego. There is certainly ego among some of the drivers – not all of them – but I would say across the board most people are accessible and friendly, (have) a great sense of humor, there’s a playfulness to it and also a professional side.

I feel more comfortable with this group than I do anywhere else outside of my family.

Q: Is it hard with your contract to be able to race?

A: With Grey’s Anatomy it’s now in my contract that I’m allowed to race. They were actually surprisingly supportive. I’ll do this race and I’ll do next week and then I’m off for a number of weeks doing the movie (filming Made of Honor). I’m not allowed to race during that period. I’ll start back in July and do probably five more races.

More of the interview at The Miami Herald.