Imagine...

You are a renowned Indy Car driver, and it’s Memorial Day weekend. You’ve driven 199 laps around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s 2.5-mile oval. You’re on lap 200. More than 250,000 race fans are hootin’ and hollerin’ as you speed past them. Thirty-two cars are behind you. The pagoda is in sight. You see the black and white checkered flags waving through the hot, sticky air. You cross the Yard of Bricks. You’ve won! You’ve won the greatest spectacle in racing! You’ve won Indianapolis 500! Here comes the milk … 

The milk...?

Why do Indy 500 winners drink milk? Our friends at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway help provide the answer.. 

The beginning of this tradition dates back to the 1933 winner of the Indianapolis 500, Louis Meyer. Just like you or I might drink a glass of cold water, Gatorade or lemonade on a hot day, Meyer regularly drank buttermilk to refresh himself. When the three-time champion won his first race in 1933, he drank a glass of buttermilk out of habit. 

When Meyer won his second race in 1936, he asked for a glass of milk again, but instead was handed a bottle. The next morning, an executive at the former Milk Foundation saw a photo of Meyer and his bottle of milk in the sports section of the newspaper. He decided to make sure the moment happened again upon the completion of future races.   

This tradition continued for 10 years until 1947, when milk was no longer offered, but the practice was revived in 1956 and has been a tradition ever since.