INDIANAPOLIS – John Menard began his journey to his “Promised Land” 40 years ago. He finally reached it Sunday afternoon.

Menard’s “Promised Land” was victory lane at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He began his quest in 1979, fielding his first car in the Indianapolis 500 with snowmobile racer Herm Johnson as his driver. Both were from Eau Claire, Wisconsin and that entry didn’t make the field that year.

Finally, in 1981, Johnson put Menard’s Eagle/Chevrolet into the show, starting 14th and finished ninth, completing 186 of the 200 laps.

After missing the race in 1982, Menard and Johnson were back in 1983 and Johnson finished eighth.

What followed was a magical time for Menard and for the Indianapolis 500. Menard was an American-made lumber magnate who believed in American-made engines at the 500. He saw an advantage in the Buick V-6 engine because it was allowed an extra 10 inches of boost from the purpose-built racing engines.

With the extra turbocharger boost, Menard’s cars were fast; very fast in fact. With such drivers as Gary Bettenhausen, Scott Brayton and Arie Luyendyk behind the wheel of Menard’s Buicks, they were often fastest in qualifications.

Unfortunately, they were rarely around at the end of the race and the extra boost often popped the engines.

When the Indy Racing League began in 1996, Menard hired a tremendously talented, USAC midget, sprint and Silver Crown driver named Tony Stewart. The combination was spectacular in the IRL, but again, the team experienced issues un the Indy 500 that kept them out of victory lane.

Over time, Menard’s racing interests led him away from the Indy 500 as his son, Paul, began a career in stock cars. Paul is the first to take his father to Victory Lane in Indianapolis, but that was in the Brickyard 400 in 2011. From a family point of view, that was a tremendous thrill for Johnson Menard, but he still wanted to experience victory lane after winning the Indianapolis 500.

NTT IndyCar Series team owner Roger Penske brought Menard back to Indy as the two joined forces to have Menard’s chain of home improvement stores sponsor Simon Pagenaud for both races at Indianapolis and other selected races including Road America in Menard’s home state of Wisconsin.

In 2016, Pagenaud won the INDYCAR Grand Prix at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Menard got to experience IMS Victory Lane after an IndyCar race.

Still, it wasn’t the Indianapolis 500.

That remained Menard’s dream race.

His dream came true on May 26 when Pagenaud won a thrilling 103rd Indianapolis 500, fending off a dramatic duel with Alexander Rossi of Andretti Autosport.

As the team was celebrating in victory lane, Menard showed up. He was still visibly excited from what he just experienced and had yet to congratulate his driver when he spoke with NTT INDYCAR Mobile.

John Menard, you finally won the Indianapolis 500.

“Isn’t that wild? I can’t believe it’s true,” Menard told NTT INDYCAR Mobile. “And, we won it in style. It’s not rain-shortened, that was a good part of it. This is the ‘Big One.’

“In 1979, I showed up and didn’t make the race. We tried off and on for 40 years. Finally, we made it.

“Simon Pagenaud has brought us to the ‘Promised Land’ and he brought us in style this year. The job he did at the end was unbelievable.”

Menard watched the Indy 500 from the pit box in the No. 22 pit area along with Team Penske IndyCar General Manager Kyle Moyer.

“We had a strong car, but we were short on fuel because we led so many laps early,” Menard explained. “We got the fuel figured out and then, everything fell into place.

“And then, we got passed. How could this happen?

“After that, the race was on. Alexander Rossi was fast, and he was ruthless.

“It was a good race.”

Menard has completed the full set of race wins at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, including son Paul’s NASCAR win in 2011, Pagenaud’s INDYCAR GPs in 2016 and 2019 and now the 103rd Indianapolis 500.

“Paul’s win at the Brickyard was the highlight of my racing career because I’m his dad,” Menard said. “But Simon is such a great guy and he did such a good job, this was a great win.”

Menard regrets that he could never get the old Buick V-6 into victory lane back in the day.

“If I knew then, what I know now, we could have won it,” Menard said. “We made a lot of mistakes. But we had a lot of fun.

“Those were the most entertaining days of my life.”

It’s only fitting that a driver from France gave Menard his first Indy 500 win, because Menard’s family are originally French-Canadians from Quebec. They were fur-trappers and lumbermen who ventured into the woods of western Wisconsin in 1835.

“At least part of me is French,” Menard said.

And on Sunday, the French driver and the French-Canadian ancestor from Wisconsin can now be called winners of the Indianapolis 500.