Blood and Smoke by Charles Leerhsen

“The First Indy 500 – The Wild Origins of America’s Greatest Race”

History comes alive in this thrilling, true account of the first Indianapolis 500 and the dawn of the automotive age. In 1911, forty cars roared onto the starting line to prove themselves in a sport still considered reckless and untested—automobile racing. Drivers pushed their machines to a then-unthinkable seventy miles per hour without seat belts, roll bars, or even windshields, braving oil-slicked tracks, blinding smoke, and exploding tires.

The Indianapolis Motor Speedway itself had only recently opened, earning a deadly reputation after its inaugural 1909 races left seven dead, including spectators. In this high-stakes world, each car carried not just a driver but a riding mechanic—someone to pump oil by hand, watch for overtaking rivals, and even fend them off by tossing tools or parts. This is the gritty, dangerous, and wildly entertaining story of how one race helped ignite America’s love affair with speed.