17/12/2025
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On December 14, 1909, workers laid the final of the 3.2 million, 10-pound bricks that paved the oval track at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
In the years since, most of that brick has been covered by asphalt, however, one yard still remains exposed at the start-finish line. Kissing the bricks after a winning race continues as a tradition among Indy drivers.
In 1908, auto-headlight maker and race promoter Carl Fisher made a decision to build a new five-mile track, allowing car manufacturers a safe place to test and showcase vehicles. After landing three partners, Fisher bought 320 acres of farmland on the outer edge of the city of Indianapolis, across the street from his Prest-O-Lite headlight factory. Ultimately, plans were revised to build a 2.5-mile banked oval featuring grandstands all around.
At Fisher's behest, the original surface of the track was a sticky combination of gravel, limestone, tar, and 220,000 gallons of asphaltum oil. Steamrollers then pressed the mixture into a solid road surface.
This track surface idea proved disastrous, as the first races of both motorcycles and cars suffered blown tires and drivers dealt with the rapid disintegration of the abrasive pavement. Five people died during the first auto race alone, and Fisher was forced under threat of a boycott to suspend racing at the track until a safer surface could be installed.
Bricks were chosen because traction tests showed they were less slippery than gravel and sturdier than concrete. When the “Brickyard” opened, it was much less dangerous, and only seven people were killed at Indy between 1909 and 1919.
