INDIANAPOLIS (AP) " Here are some of the favorite races, by year, in AP Auto Racing Writer Mike Harris' four decades covering the Indianapolis 500:
1970 " My first 500 and my first interview with Indy icon A.J. Foyt, worried that one of my questions would set off the enigmatic "Mr. Indy." It was the first of hundreds of interviews with the first four-time Indy winner.
1972 " Roger Penske and his clean-cut "college kids," wearing spiffy dry cleaned uniforms and constantly sweeping the floor of their speedway garage, were the butt of jokes from the Indy old-timers until Mark Donohue gave Penske the first of his record 14 Indy victories in only his fourth try.
1977 " Foyt's fourth 500 win and the only one I got to cover. And the driver who finished 29th that day was Janet Guthrie, the first woman to race at Indianapolis.
1980 " Johnny Rutherford's third victory, this one coming in a radical, bright yellow Chaparral, dubbed the "Yellow Submarine." After the checkered flag, Rutherford stopped to pick up rookie Tim Richmond, who had crashed earlier and hitched a ride in on Rutherford's sidepod " a sight never seen before or since.
1982 " Gordon Johnson winning what was then the closest finish in Indy history " 0.16-seconds " after Rick Mears erased an 11-second lead over the final 16 laps. That was the same race in which front row starter Kevin Cogan crashed at the start, hitting fan favorites A.J. Foyt and Mario Andretti. Andretti was out, but Foyt went on to finish 19th.
1985 " Danny Sullivan gave Penske another win in spectacular fashion, somehow hanging on when he spun while leading the race with 80 laps to go. Sullivan and Mario Andretti were hooked up in an entertaining battle for the lead when Sullivan spun. Andretti zoomed into the lead, but Sullivan regained the top spot and won by 2.5 seconds.
1990 " Emerson Fittipaldi and Bobby Rahal dominated at times during the race, but "Flying Dutchman" Arie Luyendyk wound up winning at an average speed of 185.981 mph, a race record that still stands. It was the first-ever win for the long-haired Luyendyk at the top level of open-wheel racing.
1991 " Possibly my favorite Indy 500 because of the late-race battle between Rick Mears and Michael Andretti, two of the best here. Andretti, who led more laps (431) than any other non-winning driver at Indy, led Mears by 15 seconds when a yellow flag came out 19 laps from the end. Andretti pitted under the yellow, and Mears took the lead. On the restart, Andretti made a daring outside pass in the first turn. The determined Mears then passed Andretti in the same spot the next time around the 2.5-mile oval and went on to win his fourth 500.
1992 " Perhaps the wildest, most eventful race in my four decades here. A cold, windy day made the track particularly treacherous and led to numerous crashes, eliminating 13 of the 33 starters. In the end, Al Unser Jr. held off runner-up Scott Goodyear by a record 0.043-seconds " the closest finish in Indy history.
2000 " In the midst of the schism between the Indy Racing League and CART, team owner Chip Ganassi brought Jimmy Vasser and Juan Pablo Montoya to the IRL's 500 and gave the old guard something to smile about as Montoya won one for CART, dominating the last 100 miles. He was the first Indy rookie to win the race since Graham Hill in 1966. It was also the first 500 with two female drivers, Lyn St. James and Sarah Fisher, in the field.
2001 " Helio Castroneves became the second rookie to win in as many years, holding off teammate Gil de Ferran as Roger Penske got his first 1-2 finish ever. Castroneves thrilled the fans and earned the nickname "Spiderman" when he celebrated the win by climbing the fence on the front straightaway.
2005 " The debut of Danica Patrick at the 500 was all-encompassing event. DanicaMania was rampant all month at the speedway as she set records for her gender by qualifying fourth, leading the race and finishing fourth. Dan Wheldon, who grew up in England dreaming about winning this race, did just that. Still, Patrick's performance overshadowed his feat.
2006 " Michael Andretti came out of retirement to race at Indy with his 19-year-old son and Indy rookie Marco, and the family almost pulled off a stunner. The elder Andretti took the lead seven laps from the end but was passed by his son with three laps remaining. Penske driver Sam Hornish Jr., running third, charged past a desperately blocking Michael Andretti and chased down Marco, making the pass for the win on the final straightaway to win by 0.0635-seconds, the second closest finish here. It was also the first time in Indy history the leader on lap 199 did not win the race.