How a speedway became a legendary sports site and sparked America\'s car culture The 1909 opening of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway marked a foundational moment in the history of automotive racing.
At the same time, he explores how the track\'s past reveals the potent links between sports capitalism and the selling of nostalgia, tradition, and Racing legends..
Ingrassia looks at the Speedway\'s history as a testing ground for cars and airplanes, its multiple close brushes with demolition, and the process by which Racing became an essential part of the Golden Age of Sports.
This story revolves around Speedway cofounder and visionary businessman Carl Graham Fisher, whose leadership in the building of the transcontinental Lincoln Highway and the iconic Dixie Highway had an enormous impact on American mobility.
Brian Ingrassia tells the story of the legendary oval\'s early decades.
Events at the famed track and others like it also helped launch America\'s love affair with cars and an embrace of road systems that transformed cities and shrank perceptions of space.
How a speedway became a legendary sports site and sparked America\'s car culture The 1909 opening of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway marked a foundational moment in the history of automotive racing
