Editing Indianapolis 500 (section)

==Culture==
[[File:Indiana quarter, reverse side, 2002.jpg|thumb|130px|An IndyCar on the Indiana state quarter]]

===Memorabilia===
Many people promote and share information about the Indianapolis 500 and its memorabilia collecting.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ni500cc.com/|title=National Indy 500 Collector Club|access-date=1 May 2016|archive-date=February 8, 2005|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050208182601/http://www.ni500cc.com/|url-status=live}}</ref> The National Indy 500 Collectors Club is an independent active organization that has been dedicated to supporting such activities. The organization was established January 1, 1985, in Indianapolis by its founder John Blazier and includes an experienced membership available for discussion and advice on Indy 500 memorabilia trading and Indy 500 questions in general.

The longest-running Indy racing memorabilia show is the National Auto Racing Memorabilia Show.{{citation needed|date=May 2012}}

===Entertainment===
{{main|Indianapolis 500 in film and media}}
The Indianapolis 500 has been the subject of several films and has been referenced many times in television, movies, and other media.

===Milk===

[[File:2011 Indy 500 Winner - Dan Wheldon.jpg|thumb|[[2011 Indianapolis 500|2011]] winner [[Dan Wheldon]] holding a bottle of milk]]
[[Louis Meyer]] requested a glass of [[buttermilk]] after winning his second Indy 500 race in 1933. After winning his third title in 1936, he requested another glass but instead received a bottle. He was captured by a photographer in the act of swigging from the bottle while holding up three fingers to signify the third win. A local dairy company executive recognized the marketing opportunity in the image and, being unaware Meyer was drinking buttermilk, offered a bottle of milk to the winners of future races. Milk has been presented each year since then, apart from 1947 to 1955. Modern drivers are offered a choice of whole, 2%, and skim.<ref>{{Cite web |title=From The Marbles |url=https://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nascar-from-the-marbles/ |access-date=2022-08-10 |website=sports.yahoo.com |language=en-US |archive-date=February 22, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170222054350/https://sports.yahoo.com/nascar/blog/from_the_marbles/post/Kasey-Kahne-Brad-Sweet-to-split-Great-Clips-Nat?urn=nascar-wp5942 |url-status=live }}</ref>

At the [[1993 Indianapolis 500]], winner [[Emerson Fittipaldi]], who owned and operated an orange grove, notoriously drank [[orange juice]] instead of milk during the televised winner's interview. He eventually relented and also drank from the milk bottle later in the post-race ceremonies after the broadcast was over, but the public relations damage had already been done.<ref>{{cite web |date=12 June 2012 |title=The Greatest 33: Emerson Fittipaldi |url=http://www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com/history/50951/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120510152856/http://www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com/history/50951/ |archive-date=2012-05-10 |access-date=2012-03-30}}</ref> The snub led to Fittipaldi being booed during driver introductions at the next race on the schedule, held at the [[Milwaukee Mile]] in Wisconsin, a state known for [[Wisconsin dairy industry|its dairy industry]]. Some continued to boo Fittipaldi as late as [[2008 Indianapolis 500|2008]], in which he drove the pace car.

In [[2016 Indianapolis 500|2016]], as a promotion, the track gave out commemorative bottles of milk to 100,000 attendees to toast the winner with milk after the race.<ref>{{cite web|author1=IMS|title=World's Largest Milk Toast Planned for 100th Running of the Indy 500|url=https://www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com/events/indy500/news-multimedia/news/2016/03/16/worlds-largets-milk-toast-planned-for-100th-indy-500-2016|publisher=Indianapolis Motor Speedway|access-date=May 31, 2016|date=March 16, 2016|archive-date=May 17, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160517010535/https://www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com/events/indy500/news-multimedia/news/2016/03/16/worlds-largets-milk-toast-planned-for-100th-indy-500-2016|url-status=live}}</ref>[[File:Danica-r.JPG|thumb|upright|[[Danica Patrick]] on Pole Day at Indy, 2007]]

=== Female drivers ===
{{main|List of female Indianapolis 500 drivers}}
Female participation of any sort at Indianapolis was discouraged and essentially banned throughout the first several decades of competition. As such, female reporters were not even allowed in the pit area until 1971.<ref name="INDY10">{{cite web|title=Women in Racing- Indy 500 Style!|url=http://www.zimbio.com/Dan+Wheldon/articles2/Women+in+Racing+Indy+500+Style|publisher=Zimbio}}{{dead link|date=March 2018|bot=InternetArchiveBot|fix-attempted=yes}}</ref> There have been nine female drivers to qualify, starting with [[Janet Guthrie]] in [[1977 Indianapolis 500|1977]].

[[Sarah Fisher]] has competed nine times, the most of any woman. [[Danica Patrick]] holds the best finish (3rd) for a woman and is the only woman to have led laps during the race. [[Katherine Legge]] is the most recent woman to have competed in the race (2024), and holds the fastest one-lap (231.627 mph) and four-lap (231.070 mph) qualification speeds for a woman in the history of the race.