1925: DePAOLO AVERAGES FASTER THAN 100
In spite of taking 21 laps of relief from Norman Batten, while he gets his badly blistered hands bandaged, Peter DePaolo, driving a supercharged Duesenberg, is the first to win in less than five hours, averaging 101.127 mph. His elapsed time of 4 hours, 56 minutes, 39.46 seconds is less than Ray Harroun's 1911 time by an hour and three-quarters.
1926: "UNKNOWN" WINS RAIN-SHORTENED RACE
Frank Lockhart, who two years later will lose his life in an attempt to break the World Land Speed Record at
Daytona Beach, shows up at Indianapolis as a 23-year-old unknown. He is due to serve as a relief driver for Bennett Hill. In the meantime, driver/owner Peter Kreis is stricken with pneumonia and cannot drive. Lockhart replaces him, sets a one-lap track record of 115.448 mph on an incomplete qualification run and then wins the rain-shortened race (400 miles) by two full laps.
1927: LOCKHART BREAKS 120
Defending winner Frank Lockhart is the first to qualify in excess of 120 mph. His four-lap average is 120.100 mph, with his fastest being almost 121 at 120.918 mph. He sets another record by leading the entire first 200 miles. Dutch Baumann takes over when Lockhart makes a stop, but the defending winner is back in front by Lap 91. He drops out at Lap 120 with a broken connecting rod.
1928: DURAY PUSHES RECORD TEMPORARILY OUT OF REACH
Leon Duray (real name: George Stewart) wins the pole with a four-lap record of 122.391 mph. His new single-lap record is 124.018 mph. His tiny supercharged straight-eight Miller engine displaces only 91˝ cubic inches. Largely due to specification changes in 1930, which eliminate superchargers for the next several years, both records will remain unbroken for nine years.
1930: ARNOLD UTTERLY DOMINATES
It seems like a movie script. Harry Hartz, recovering from injuries, plans to drive his own car right up until the first qualifying day. He makes an incomplete attempt and then turns the car over to 24-year-old Billy Arnold, who qualifies for the pole. Arnold leads all but the first two laps, wins by five laps and is the first to average 100 mph without the aid of a relief driver. His record of leading 198 out of 200 laps in the same race has never been broken and probably will stand forever.
1936: THREE BY MEYER . IN MORE WAYS THAN ONE
Not only is Louis Meyer is the first driver to win the "500" for a third time, but he is also involved in the beginning of three major Indianapolis Motor Speedway traditions. He is the first to be presented with the keys to the Pace Car (a Packard), it is the first year for the Borg-Warner Trophy, and he unknowingly begins a tradition by being photographed in Victory Lane drinking what appears to be regular milk. It is actually buttermilk. Milk industry executives seize upon the opportunity and make sure that milk is handed to the winner for the next several years. Milk disappears from the victory celebration between 1947 and 1955, but it returns for good in 1956.
1937: SNYDER DOES 130
With supercharging once again permitted, Jimmy Snyder is the first to turn a qualifying lap in excess of 130 mph. The new European formula of 183 cubic inches supercharged (and 274 cubic inches unsupercharged) will come into effect in 1938, but for the time being a massive 366 cid is still permissible. Chief mechanic Art Sparks takes advantage of that, and Snyder rides a rocket ship. He starts all the way back in 19th but is leading by Lap 3! He is far ahead when his transmission breaks after 27 laps.
1937: WILBUR BEATS "HEP" BY TWO SECONDS
Wilbur Shaw is forced to slow in the closing stages because of a severe loss of oil pressure in a car he designed himself and helped build. He holds off fast-closing Ralph Hepburn and beats him to the finish line by 2.16 seconds, the closest finish up to this point and a record, which will not be broken for 45 years.
