Janet Guthrie was born in Iowa City, Iowa, on March 7, 1938. Her family moved to Miami, Florida when
she was three. She attended Miss Harris' Florida School for Girls for all but
one of her elementary through high-school years, then graduated from the
University of Michigan in 1960 with a B.Sc. in physics. She joined
Republic Aviation in Farmingdale, New York, as a research and development
engineer, working on programs that were precursors to
Project Apollo. In 1964, she applied for the first Scientist-Astronaut program,
and got through the first round of eliminations. She treasures a letter from
astronaut Deke Slayton, a memento of that attempt.Meanwhile, she had purchased a Jaguar XK 120 coupe, and began competing in
gymkhanas, field trials and hill climbs. This led to the purchase of a Jaguar XK
140 for competition in Sports Car Club of America races. Her career in physics
slowly yielded to the allure of sports car racing, and by 1972 she was involved
in racing on a full-time basis. Along the way, she posted two class
victories in the 12 Hours of Sebring.
Her big break at the top level of the sport came in 1976, when long-time team
owner and car builder Rolla Vollstedt invited her to test a car for the
Indianapolis 500. That year, she also became the first woman to compete in a
NASCAR Winston Cup superspeedway stock car race. In 1977, she became the first
woman to qualify for and compete in the Indianapolis 500; she was also first
woman and Top Rookie at the Daytona 500 in the same year. She finished ninth in
the Indianapolis 500 in 1978.
Janet Guthrie's helmet and driver's suit are in the
Smithsonian Institution, and she was one of the first athletes
named to the Women's Sports Hall of Fame. Her autobiography,
"Janet Guthrie: A Life at Full Throttle" (Sport Classic Books), was published in 2005. In 2006, she was inducted
into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame. She is
listed in "Who's Who." She does extensive platform and keynote
speaking. Among her television credits are "James Michener's
Sports in America" and over a dozen appearances on "Good Morning
America."