INDY DIARIES: The high-banked, high-risk road to Indianapolis

Over 99 runnings, the Indianapolis 500 has become the most famous event in motorsport. That iconic status is built on a bedrock of hundreds of small stories, and to celebrate the centennial race, RACER.com has asked some of the people who are part of Indy's fabric to share a few of those stories with us. Check back every day between now and race day for a new 'Indy Diary' entry.

The quickest route to get to the Indianapolis 500 in the 1950s-60s was also the fastest way to end up in the funeral home.

Salem, Winchester and Dayton were high-banked, half-mile bowls of bravado that weren't for everyone, but could be the fast ticket to stardom if a driver excelled on them. Bob Sweikert, the 1955 Indy champ, lost his life at Salem, while brave men like Bill Vukovich and Rodger Ward simply chose not to run them.

"Anytime anybody ran fast on the high banks they felt like you'd make a good race driver at Indy," explained A.J. Foyt (pictured with Parnelli Jones, above), who triumphed at Salem and Winchester on his way up. "I think the only reason I got an Indy ride was winning at Salem.

"They were hard to run because of our cars and a lot of people got killed. The tracks were so fast, the high 16 seconds for a half mile, and that was fast. You had to be really careful or they would kill you."