On Sunday of Memorial Day weekend, 33 IndyCar drivers lined up for their shot at winning the 2025 Indianapolis 500 and a sip of the famous milk presented to the winning driver. With several laps to go, Indiana dairywomen Abbie Herr and Ashley Stockwell made their way from the American Dairy Association Indiana (ADAI) suite at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway down to Victory Circle. In the meantime, Stockwell, who served as the rookie milk presenter this year and was responsible for presenting a bottle of milk to the winning team owner and another to the chief mechanic, was looking up team owners of the front runners so she could more easily find them amid the crowd of people and excitement. Herr was beside Stockwell, beaming with excitement as this year’s veteran milk presenter, who was about to hand the bottle of milk to the winning driver, who would turn out to be Álex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing, in front of a sold-out crowd of 350,000 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and more than 7 million viewers on Fox Sports.
“This is the most amazing thing I’ve ever been part of. The energy in Victory Circle was electric,” Herr says. “Everyone was so excited. This was Álex’s first Indy 500 win, and it was so cool to be part of that. You never really think about an IndyCar driver and a dairy farmer being in the same circle. It’s so hard to describe it. It’s been a whirlwind.”
Herr served as the rookie milk presenter last year before stepping into the veteran role in 2025. Besides advising Stockwell to not drop the milk, Herr shared some other helpful advice with her co-presenter this year.
“I told her there were going to be a lot of people and to take in the moment,” Herr says. “Being behind Victory Circle and seeing how emotional and excited all the people are who are coming up there to celebrate with the winning driver is unlike any other experience. Definitely take it all in.”
That moment in Victory Circle was a dream come true for Herr, who grew up watching the race.
“I’ve always loved the Indianapolis 500 and the tradition of dairy farmers presenting milk to the winning driver,” she says. “My family started going to the race in the 1960s. When I was a kid, my mom and dad would get up early and go down there, but my siblings and I stayed home and watched it on television. Now that I have two daughters of my own, being a woman at the forefront of this tradition means so much more. I hope to inspire them and other female dairy farmers to get out there, represent the dairy community and tell their story.”
Creating a legacy for her daughters, Alexis, 12; and Sadie, 10, and setting an example about what women in agriculture can do was one of Herr’s goals throughout this experience. While Alexis and Sadie were not able to be in Victory Circle with their mom, they were watching nearby with her brother, Logan.
“Afterward, I looked down and saw my brother bringing my daughters up to meet me,” Herr says. “It meant the world to have them there, and I hope it inspires them. I love that they will be able to look back in the future and say, ‘My mom got to do that!’”
In addition to inspiring her daughters, she is also passing along her passion for the Indy 500.
“This was their first race, and they said it was so much fun. I think they caught the bug of being an Indy 500 fan,” Herr says.
Herr and her husband, Steve, milk 400 cows with eight robots at Herr Dairy Farm in Kendallville, Indiana, along with his parents, Dave and Mary Herr. Her brother, Logan Hicks, also works on the farm.
This is only the second time that the two milk presenters have both been women. The last was in 2008 when Indiana dairywomen Anita Schmitt from Evansville and Sam Schwoeppe from Huntingburg were chosen.
Herr says it was “so much fun” to share this experience with another young woman who is in the same stage of life as she is.
“It’s been awesome getting to know Ashley better this year. Sharing this experience with her – all the media interviews, the parade, the Fastest Rookie Luncheon, and of course, race day activities – and getting to know her family has been such an honor. Our kids are also similar in age, so that was nice,” Herr says.
Stockwell’s husband and her fellow ADAI board members encouraged her to apply to be the rookie milk presenter.
“I applied knowing I would get to work with Abbie if I was selected, and it was really impactful getting to share this experience with her this year,” Stockwell says. “Most people don’t think about women being dairy farmers or farmers in general, so it was good to get our voices out there. We are both moms, and it was really unique that we could do this together.”
Setting a positive example and being a role model for her children was also a priority for Stockwell throughout this experience.
Stockwell and her husband, Kyle, are the third generation at Stockwell Farms in Hudson, Indiana, where they milk 750 cows and are raising the fourth generation – their four kids, Konner, Karter, Kyra and Kooper. Kyle’s father, Kevin Stockwell, is also involved in the operation and does the crop farming.
“Kyle and I had talked about me doing this for several years, and eventually he said, ‘It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and you have to do it. Plus, the kids will be at a good age where they will remember everything,'" Stockwell says.
Herr and Stockwell went through media training this winter in preparation for the many media interviews that started in mid-April and ran through race day on May 25. They also played key roles in the Fastest Rookie Luncheon during the week prior to the race and the Indy 500 parade.
“Race day was my favorite part of the whole experience, and I’m most excited about getting to present the winning driver with the bottle of milk next year,” Stockwell says. “Trying to find the chief mechanic and team owner can be stressful because it is not obvious who these people are when there is a crowd of people around the winning driver.”
She described the energy in Victory Circle at the end of the race as thrilling.
“It’s overwhelming excitement in the best way. I don’t think you could put words to describe the emotion in that moment. You don’t realize how much milk means to the Indy 500 until you are there,” Stockwell adds. “To be on an international stage with a professional race car driver and get to tell dairy’s story about why dairy is good for all of us has been life-changing. It has been super impactful for me and my family to get our story out there. It’s also been very humbling to be able to represent dairy farm families and speak on behalf of all of us.”
About the tradition
The tradition of Milk in Victory Circle began in 1935 when three-time Indy 500 winner Louis Meyer asked for buttermilk after winning the race. This evolved into a ceremonial hand-off of the milk between an Indiana dairy farmer and the winning driver. While buttermilk is not one of the options drivers can select, each driver selects whole milk, 2% or skim milk as their preference prior to the race. Whole milk is the most popular option among drivers. New this year was the option for drivers to have another bottle of milk for their children should they win the race.
Winning driver Álex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing selected whole milk in a pre-race poll. Image courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Not only did winning driver Palou not dump the remainder of the bottle over his head after taking a gulp of ice-cold whole milk this year, but his daughter also received a mini bottle of milk to enjoy after the big win.
“I love that his daughter got to be part of that moment with him,” Herr says. “He also shared his milk with his wife, who was standing right next to his car in Victory Circle. I’m a family-oriented person, and the fact that he wanted his family involved in this tradition is so special.”
Advice for other dairy farmers interested in promoting dairy
Aside from being an Indiana dairy farmer, one of the requirements to be selected as a milk presenter is a willingness to do media interviews, other outreach activities and open their farm to visitors. While most community outreach opportunities will not be on a televised global stage like the Indy 500, Herr and Stockwell acknowledge that telling your story in any format can be terrifying. However, they reassure other producers that it is worth it.
“It’s scary to put yourself out there and tell your story,” Herr says. “All dairy farmers have a different story to tell. No two farms are exactly the same, and we all have different reasons for doing what we do. However, we all have the same goal of having happy and healthy cows. I hope other producers take the chance to connect other people to dairy farming and talk about what they do.”
The Stockwell family has opened their farm up to the public with an open house at least five times over the last 12 years.
“It’s super important to us to open our farm so people can learn what dairy farming is actually like,” Stockwell says. “It’s especially important for those consumers who may have heard negative things but have never been to a dairy farm to see it for themselves.”
Herr and Stockwell both recommended media training for producers who may be hesitant about how to eloquently share their story.
“I hope that we inspire not only my children but other dairy farmers for generations to come to get out there and tell their story,” Herr says.
