More than a century ago, “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing”–otherwise known as the Indy 500–would get its unlikely start from a 5-mile race first held on this date in 1909 at the now famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

That race, the brainchild of local businessmen, was envisioned as a sales tool of sorts. Spectators would watch as cars faced off against one another, then were presumably inspired to go to local dealerships and inquire about purchasing their favorite performer on the track.

Before it would become the Indy 500, the event would undergo several changes. For starters, the dangerous and deadly surface of crushed rock and tar would be replaced with brick, leading to the track’s nickname as “The Brickyard.”

And rather than the originally planned multiple smaller races, organizers would focus on one larger spectacle; thus the Indy 500 was officially born in 1911. This year marked 100 years of the grueling racing event that’s provided plenty of dramatic moments. It was suspended only during World Wars I and II.

Starting in 1936 and by 1941, most of the track was covered with asphalt, in part to patch rougher areas of the surface. By 1961, only a small 3-foot section of bricks at the start-finish line remained (and still remain) as a tribute to the speedway’s storied history.

A lot has changed in a century. That first Indy 500 in 1911 was won by driver Ray Harroun, who finished the race in six hours and 42 minutes, and the top prize was $14,250. In 2011, Dan Wheldon bested the field with a time of two hours and 56 minutes and took home more than $2.5 million in winnings.

Dubbed as but one of the “Triple Crown of Motorsport” races, the Indy 500 attracts an average of 400,000 fans each year, making it the most well-attended event in U.S. sports.