The Indy 500 started in 1911. The cars are faster (obviously). But what else has changed?

"I didn't win the 1911 500. Marmon won the 1911 500. I just happen to be the driver."

– Ray Harroun, conversation with Donald Davidson, Indianapolis Motor Speedway historian

113 years ago | May 30, 1911: Ray Harroun, 32, driving a bright yellow, single-seat Marmon Wasp, a racecar he helped design, wins the first Indianapolis 500.

Harroun’s six-cylinder 110-hp Wasp, considered a powerhouse back then, had less horsepower than nearly any car you can drive off a dealer’s lot today. He wins at a speed that many of us drive every day, as car website Jalopnik notes.

Still, the Wasp is radical for its day. It has only one seat for a driver, while other racing cars have two, one for a driver – and the other for a mechanic, who rides along to monitor and maintain the car during the race.

Harroun is the first winner at Indianapolis, setting a standard for others to follow. But like the cars that followed his Wasp, the Indy track, its spectator stands, and the popularity of America’s premier racing event, have all changed dramatically over the last century.

What would Harroun see at the 108th Indianapolis 500 now?

The Indy racing cars are faster, safer, more sophisticated

For starters, Harroun who would live to be 89 before his death in 1968, was known to visit the Speedway garages during May and would've been familiar with qualifying speeds that had crossed the 160 mph threshold.

One can only imagine what Harroun and race fans in the late 1960s would make of qualifying speeds that consistently top the 230 mph mark.

While Harroun didn't have to qualify for his own spot in 1911, his average race speed was 74.6 mph. Here's a look at how that pace would compare with the average speed of 168.193 of last year's Indy 500 winner, Josef Newgarden.

How long does it take Indy racers to complete 200 laps?

How driver finish times compare:

• 1911 | Harroun: 6 hrs., 42 min., 8 sec.
• 2023| Newgarden: 2 hrs., 58 min., 21 sec.

The Indy race track still has a row of bricks from 1909

Indianapolis 500 race speeds are incredibly faster

Race speed is the average speed by the winning car during the race.

Indy 500 race winnings have increased substantially

Total purse refers to the overall prize money awarded to race participants.

And let's not forget the origin of rear-view mirrors on Indy cars

What else would Harroun see? All Indy cars have rear-view mirrors these days, but Harroun's Marmon Wasp was the first Indy racecar to have one.

Harroun installed it with a bracket above the dashboard rather than have a mechanic ride in the race with him, as was the custom of the day. Besides repairs, mechanics also helped keep track of other drivers' positions during the race.

Harroun's mirror proved ineffective on the bumpy brick track, however. He later said he couldn't see anything.

Source Paste BN Network reporting and research; indianapolismotorspeedway.com; thehenryford.org; Reuters; in.gov; motortrend.com