It's October 10th, 1901, at a horse track in Detroit, Michigan, where the city's first car races are underway.

38-year-old Henry Ford nervously grips the wheel of his self-built racer as it's rolled out to the starting

line. Today is his first ever race, and he has stiff competition. Next to him is his sole competitor

and one of the reigning monarchs of early American racing, Alexander Winton. Filling the lawn

beside them is a crowd of uninterested spectators. People flock to the racetrack, selling out

the event with high hopes of seeing the still-novel automobile in action. But so far, the event hasn't

been all it's cracked up to be. The preliminary races have been long and lackluster, with one car

winning at a pace slower than a human running on foot.

So to perk up the crowd, the contest's clear favorite, Alexander Winton,

got behind the wheel and broke a world speed record.

But the thrill has already worn off.

Now Henry watches the spectators yawn and talk amongst themselves,

exhausted from a long and slow afternoon.

But as the two racers start their engines, the crowd's eyes dart back to the track, where a David and Goliath battle is about to unfold. As the drivers set off around the track,

Alexander takes an early lead, while the inexperienced Henry lagged behind, losing ground at every turn.

But as they complete more laps, Henry grows confident.

He starts to close the gap.

And while Henry catches up, Alexander's car begins to fail.

Smoke billowed from his engine, while Henry's car demonstrates pure mechanical prowess.

He shoots past Alexander,

and as Henry crosses the finish line in first place, the crowd goes wild.

Henry Ford's victory will earn him $50, and a legion of new fans, sparking an illustrious racing

...