DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. —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….