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Townsend Bell waited the entire offseason to learn if Fox Sports wanted him as an analyst for its inaugural season of IndyCar coverage. When he finally got the job, and was having his very first phone call with his new producer, his wife burst into his California office to tell him their Pacific Palisades neighborhood was on fire and they had to evacuate.
Bell and his wife drove to her mother’s home in Santa Monica and watched television coverage of the deadly Los Angeles-area wildfires. He texted with neighbors, watched footage from his Ring camera and tried his best not to worry.
Then he remembered that he’d left all his racing gear at the house, one day before he was set to leave for a three-week trip that includes a driving stint in next weekend’s Rolex 24 at Daytona. Bell convinced his wife to let him rush back to their home, but he needed to figure out how to get through the traffic snarl back to the Palisades.
His solution? Rent a scooter off the street.
Bell tried to scooter his way back into Pacific Palisades but the ride turned off, forcing Bell to run, up hill, the final two miles to his home. As the flames moved closer and closer, Bell called his wife and asked her what three things she wanted him to grab for her. He spent 12 minutes racing through the house and taking pictures for insurance purposes.
Bell grabbed his racing helmet, his ear plugs, and everything he needed for a whirlwind trip in which he was introduced this week in Indianapolis as part of the Fox Sports booth and then traveled on to Daytona International Speedway to compete for Vasser Sullivan Racing.
He’s got lodging in Daytona, but when the race ends a week from Sunday, Bell doesn’t know where he will be living. His Pacific Palisades home was one of about 20 that did not burn down in a neighborhood that lost hundreds of homes. It has extensive smoke and soot damage that will make it uninhabitable for probably a year.
Bell’s two rental properties in Malibu burned to the ground, and when he left California last week, his wife was staying in a friend’s guest house in Sherman Oaks. And, Bell remains haunted from his scooter ride because he passed mothers as they rushed into neighborhood schools to get their children. Those schools are now gone.
“The whole Palisades looks like a nuclear bomb went off,” Bell told The Associated Press. “I don’t even know what to do next. There’s no water, no power, no gas, no schools, no post office, hardly anything left in our neighborhood at all.”
It’s not an ideal way to start a year that was shaping up to be a big one on New Year’s Day. Bell was on a family vacation in New Zealand, where his two sons begged to stop inside the Rolex store the day before. Bell’s shoulders slumped as soon as they entered: the Rolex he won for a class victory at Daytona in 2014 was stolen in a 2018 burglary of his home.
Bell, 49, has been racing open-wheel cars since 1998, winning the 2001 Indy Lights championship and the 2015 United SportsCar Championship.
He raced in 31 IndyCar races for six different teams from 2004 to 2016 with nine top-10 finishes. He raced in 10 Indianapolis 500s with his best finish a fourth in 2009.
Bell has been involved in broadcasting for more than 20 years, including serving as a a driver analyst for IndyCar for NBC booth since 2013.
His mood lifted early New Year’s Day when Jimmy Vasser called and asked if he could join the Lexus program for this year’s Rolex. Just one day earlier, Bell, who has not raced in three years, thought he’d never have another chance to replace his stolen watch.
Bell will be both driving and assisting NBC Sports’ coverage of the race. Despite the uncertainty of what comes next when he returns to California, his mood is light as he eyes a chance to replace his stolen watch before starting his new Fox Sports gig.
“You know, I was racing here when my home got burglarized. I am racing here and have no idea what comes next besides dealing with insurance when I get home,” Bell said. “So yeah, Daytona has a weird and eerie vibe. But I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to be here.”
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