Unser Jr. shows Christmas spirit.

Two-time Indy 500 winner, Al Unser Jr., put on a huge light display outside his Albuquerque home to help cheer up his sick daughter Cody over the festive holiday.

It's been nearly two years since then 12-year-old Cody suddenly began feeling poorly while participating in a sixth-grade middle school basketball practice. Almost overnight she lost use of her legs and later was diagnosed as suffering from transverse myelitis, a rare condition caused by a neurological infection in the spinal cord.

Cody, who will be 14 on Jan. 3, has returned to school, rides in a wheelchair and can walk with the assistance of ARGO braces. In September 1999, the Cody's First Step Foundation was formed to help bring attention to this rare ailment.

"There is progress, it's very, very slow," Al Unser Jr. said about her recovery. "She's making good grades and has got a lot of drive."

Unser is eagerly looking forward to the second year of a new drive for him. After competing in the CART series for 17 years, he switched to the Indy Racing Northern Light Series for 2000, driving once again for his original Indy-car owner Rick Galles.

Unser won in 2000 at Las Vegas, led 220 laps during the season and finished ninth in the standings, 102 points behind champion Buddy Lazier.

Christmas came early for the team when Starz Super Pak announced in November that it would return as primary sponsor for the 13-race Northern Light Series season in 2001, and Gemstar-TV Guide International, Inc. signed on as an associate sponsor.

Unser said he always has looked on the Christmas holidays as something special for his family. This December he's made it even bigger and better for not only Cody but also his other three children, Alfred, 18, Shannon, 12, and Joseph, 3, with a gigantic outdoor lighting display.

The centerpiece in front of his ranch home outside Albuquerque, N.M. (the back part of his 27 acres borders the Rio Grande River) is a 16-foot long stagecoach carrying a 14-foot tall Santa Claus being pulled by three 10-foot tall Clydesdale horses. It is in silhouette form, and blinking lights make the wheels of the coach and the legs of the horses appear to move.

Unser also has a Santa-on-a-snowmobile display. This originally was chained on the front edge of the property, but vandals tried to steal it, destroying a number of lights. Since, Unser has moved that display to the roof of his house.

"It seems to be a real big hit with my kids, especially Little Joey," he said. There's a story to how he acquired these unusual, fun holiday displays. Unser Jr. was driving his motorhome back to Albuquerque after attending the inaugural SAP United States Grand Prix in late September at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

He and his girlfriend had made a habit all season of stopping along the way home to shop for antiques. They were motoring down Interstate 44 by the small town of Conway, Mo., about 38 miles northeast of Springfield. Unser looked over and spotted this gigantic Santa in front of a shop on a side road and pulled off to look at it.

"Quite a few dollars later, I left with it," he said with a laugh. The owner of the shop never knew that one of his customers that day was famous. "I had no idea who he was," said Richard Curb, proprietor of the Den of Metal Arts in Conway.

Unser also purchased a large Christmas wreath, a hanging display that says, "Merry Christmas," and a 9-foot long star that radiates light rays from its points. He also bought a Halloween cat and pumpkin display.

"It was a lot of money, but it will last years and years to come," Unser said. "It was money well spent."

The new purchases were added to another special display Unser has on his driveway that circles the front of the house. When the outside retaining wall was torn down at the Speedway and replaced by a higher one for the advent of the first Brickyard 400 in 1994, Unser brought home 80 feet of the old wall, the yellow and green lights and USAC scoring stand. They were part of the track when Unser scored his Indianapolis 500 victories in 1992 and 1994.

It'll be a few weeks before Unser and the Galles team start revving up for the 2001 season opener, the Pennzoil Copper World Indy 200 on March 18 at Phoenix International Raceway. Unser said he's proud to be a part of the growth of the Indy Racing Northern Light Series.

"You don't know who's going to win until the checkered flag," he said. In the meantime, Unser and his father, four-time Indianapolis 500 winner Al Unser, are keeping in shape racing snowmobiles.

"Me and dad are hard on the snowmobiles," he said. They race for a trophy and bragging rights in what they call the "Runway Classic." The runway is on their property in Chama, N.M., near the Colorado border. Unser's uncle, three-time Indianapolis 500 winner Bobby Unser, used to land his plane on the runway.

"We're going to Idaho where (Indy Racing cousin) Johnny lives," Al Unser Jr. said.
"That's black-diamond racing. (Johnny) carries a beeper, and I asked him, 'What's that for?' 'Avalanche!' That's extreme snowmobiling."

All of that is exciting and fun, but the day Cody walks again will be the one that Al Unser Jr. cherishes most over Indianapolis 500 victories, huge Christmas displays and family feuding on snowmobiles.