Today I’m talking about something I know nothing about. Could be dangerous! But not as dangerous as auto racing. In the 1970s, one woman broke the gender barrier in this once all-male sport.
In 1977, Janet Guthrie was the first woman to qualify for and drive in the Indianapolis 500. The race was first held in 1911, so Janet was breaking a 66-year-old tradition.
Janet was born in Iowa in 1938 and grew up in Florida. Her love for machines led her to learn to fly planes when she was only 13 years old. She made her first parachute jump at 16 years old. She was off and running!
At the University of Michigan, she studied physics. “The beauty of it just entranced me,” she said.* She started her career as an engineer for an aircraft manufacturer.
Her first car
Janet needed a car to get to work, so she bought a used 1953 Jaguar XK120 M coupe. She loved that car! And she loved speed. In 1963, she began competing in solo events called gymkhanas. A gymkhana features a starting point, a finish line and obstacles to maneuver though in between, all within a stated time limit.
By 1972, Janet was racing full time. She had learned the craft at the Sports Car Club of America driver’s school and began racing in another Jaguar, an XK 140. She built the engine of that car, did her own body work and sometimes slept in the car.
In the 1976 World 600 (now the Coca Cola 600), Janet finished 15th, becoming the first woman to compete in a NASCAR Winston Cup Superspeedway race. It’s the longest closed-course NASCAR race, 100 miles longer than the Indy 500. She competed in four more races that year.
The allure of speed
What attracted Janet to this all-male — and very dangerous — sport?
“You have to think about what you are doing all the time. You have to commit yourself to going very fast. It commands every faculty you have,” she said. Besides, she added, “It is exhilarating and it’s fun!”**
Although she admitted at times to being hurt by the negative comments from men who didn’t think a woman had the strength and stamina to race, she had a pretty good comeback.
“I don’t carry the car, I drive it,” she said.***
Janet competed in her first Daytona 500 in 1977, finishing 12th, when her car’s engine failed with 10 laps to go. When she competed in the Indy 500 that year, she finished 29th, again slowed by engine problems. She competed in two more Indy 500s, finishing ninth in the 1978 race. In total, Janet competed in eleven IndyCar events, with a best finish of fifth place.
Money’s the problem
So, why do so few people know about Janet Guthrie today? The answer to that is money. Despite her historic firsts, Janet was unable to find sponsors. She was puzzled by that fact — surely, a female driver would attract a lot of attention for her sponsors? But without financial backing, she was forced into retirement.
In 1982, she spoke at a 10-year celebration of Title IX on the steps of the Capitol building in Washington, DC.
“We are here to celebrate our accomplishments, but also to point out how much work remains to be done,” said Guthrie. “We have the framework in place to insure equality, to insure what is morally and legally just. We have to call attention to the progress that is being made.”****
Billy Jean King, the tennis great who broke ground in her sport, understood the stakes for Janet. King had put her reputation on the line in the “Battle of the Sexes,” her 1973 match against Bobby Riggs.
“The biggest difference between my challenge match with Bobby Riggs and Janet’s historic races at Indianapolis and Daytona is the difference between hitting a ball into the net and hitting a concrete wall at 200 mph. Janet put everything on the line, including her life.”†
But for Janet, being a female first isn’t foremost in her mind. She knew that her racing career was in part a result of the women’s movement, and she’s glad to have moved the needle. But what’s really important to her is her achievement on the track.
“I want to be remembered as damn good racing driver,” she said.††
And that indeed is her true legacy.
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* Automotive Hall of Fame, 2019 inductee.
** Tom McEwen, “Janet Guthrie: She’s Paid Her Dues for Indy,” The Tampa Tribune (May 25, 1977), p. 29.
*** Bill Lyon, Janet Guthrie has paid her dues and is ready to roar,” The Chicago Tribune (May 27, 1979), p. 161.
**** Ronn Levine, “A Celebration for Title IX,” The Washington Post (June 17, 1982).
† “Qualified,” ESPN 30-for-30 documentary (Debut: May 28, 2019).
†† Patrick Donovan, “Janet Guthrie: The First Woman to Qualify for the Indy 500,” The Hollywood Times (May 28, 2019).