Anyone who follows racing now knows: Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. is dating Danica Patrick. Last month, they revealed their relationship, not long after Patrick separated from her husband. More than likely they’ve had a relationship for quite some time which means that up until now she has been living a lie. This is very common among many pro athletes, especially in the NFL and NBA, and I’ve always maintained that any athlete who is having an extra-marital affair (assuming that was the case with Danica) will not perform anywhere near his or her skill level. Keeping a relationship hidden and away from the media can be detrimental to an athlete’s self-esteem and performance. But now that Patrick has left her husband and she and Stenhouse have gone public, their relationship has become a non-issue and we should see both of them winning races during the coming NASCAR season. And if they get married, and have a baby, their ability to win will be even greater. Athletes who are happy and whose lives are in harmony perform at a higher level than those whose lives are in disharmony.  According to an interview in the Boston Globe, Stenhouse said, “Well, we are happy and that is good, right? I feel like what I’ve learned in my career in racing is that any time you are happy off the racetrack, it tends to show up on the racetrack.  That is one good thing that we have going. We are both happy, we are focused on racing and having fun.’’