Beth Paretta

Remembering a pioneering woman reporter at the Speedway 50 years later, and what has—and hasn’t—changed.

As Paretta Autosport competes in the Indy 500 for the first time this month, its founder talks about her aspirations for an all-women racing team and her wish to retire the phrase “Lean In.”

Ride-along mechanics were a fixture into the late 1930s, and “Back Home Again” blared over the speakers for the first time in 1946. Point being, the Indy 500 and its traditions have had some tune-ups over the years.