Local female-owned trucking company sponsors Legge in Indy 500

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WPTA) - A local female-owned trucking company is working to inspire younger generations of women through their support for a racing driver.

Chrissy Schoenefeld is the owner of the Fort Wayne trucking business ‘Statewide Trucking,’ a company that was started by her grandmother in 1978. After a push from her aunt, Schoenfeld took over the company and has owned it ever since.

This weekend, she’ll attend her first Indianapolis 500, after backing driver Katherine Legge, the only female driver in the race this weekend, something she’s more than honored to do.

“As a mom of two girls, a 17-year-old and a 14-year-old that are making decisions on what their future will look like, it’s so cool to have someone like Katherine,” Schoenefeld said. “If you watch her interviews and hear her talk, you know, she’s out there talking about how just because it hasn’t been done before doesn’t mean it can’t be done.”

Schoenefeld said the two teamed up after she and her family went to qualifications, where she talked to Legge while getting an autograph for her daughters.

She said she told Legge that she also worked in a predominantly male field, and admired watching other women do the same. From there, she said Legge told her to send her a direct message via social media, and she didn’t hesitate.

“As soon as we left the field, I sent her a message, and she got back to me instantly,” Schoenefeld said.

Now, she gets to watch as Legge competes this weekend, with her logo, ‘Statewide Trucking’, written across Legge’s helmet.

Legge also has the chance to make history this weekend, as she attempts to compete in both the Indy 500 and Coca-Cola 600 in Charlotte, North Carolina. The two races mark the longest races on the IndyCar and the NASCAR circuits.

Legge marks the sixth driver, and the only female driver to ever attempt to drive in both. Schoenfeld says she hopes both of their stories prove to younger generations of women that anything is possible.

“It’s nothing I would have ever imagined. Our company is super small. My grandmother started it in Fort Wayne, and so this is...I don’t think she ever would have imagined this,” Schoenefeld said. “She loved racing and was a big fan of Andretti racing, so I think she’d be super proud, but I mean, it’s crazy. This all happened so fast.”

The Indy 500 is set to start at 12:45 p.m. on Sunday, May 24. The Coca-Cola 600 is scheduled to start at 6 p.m.