The Indianapolis journal., 1896-06-14
RIDERS At NEW ORLEANS
GRAND CIRCUIT CYCLERs WILL
START NORTH THIS WEEK.
some OF the Crack wheelmen Going
TO Australia to Look After Busf-
ness fn the Anfipodes.
Special to the Indianapolis Journal.

MIA circuit chaSerS from the west, IN tnelr
special sleeper. arrived at San Antonio late
the night before the National Circuit
races In that city. June ). and there met the
men OF the East fresh from the training
quarters at Louisville. The number OF men
from the East was seven, OF the racing con-
tingenf the number from the West. eight
Sixteen people came in from the West,
twelve from the East, and at Galveston.
Will and Jack Coburn. the former the lad
whose sensational performances have al
ready startled the cycling world, and their
trainer. joined the party. Shaw, OF Joliet,
has also Joined the circuit party. and when
they reached New Orleans to-day there
were still more additions, including Tom
Cooper and George Grant. From now on
there will be steady additions and the forty
men that will enter at Kansas City will
have become twice that number before Pc
oria and the first great meet Of the year
is reached Peoria will see the gathering
OF the clans and some Of the most royal
battles of bicycle history.
At present the number OF first-class rid
ers competing on the circuit numbers near
ly dozen There are Gardiner. of Chicago.
as game and speedy rider as ever trav-
eled: Otto Ziegler, the little California de-
mon: Clinton r. Coulter, of Mansfield,
man that came out so prominently in the
early past year; Charles Wells. of San
Francisco. a man of surprising ability, con-
sidering his great size; Sam Cox, of Chi
cago; ]. B. Bowler, of Chicago; Harry
Clark, of Denver. and Pat O'Connor, the
only real Irishman on the American racing
path: Bob Terrill. of San Francisco, who
IS riding far better this year than last;
Eli Winesett. as large a man as Wells.
weighing two hundred pounds and but nine
teen years old, and DR.. Parker. of Detroit.
who resembles Cabanne in his riding, and
a man with a long sprint and winning
one. Jimmy Macfarland IS with the party
and he closely resembles the great Zim-
norman I'm position and riding. With all
the opposition put up against racing by
some Of the large makers there are to-day
but two. at the most, of the good riders of
last season. that are unsigned, and these
men are awaiting the acceptance of offers.
The great attendance at the meets, the
warm racing that is being put UP by the
professional riders. the universal hand of
good fellowship that is shown for the hith-
erto reviled professionals. ali excite won
der in the hearts of those who said that
professionalism was not TO be the success
that was predicted for it one year ago. Sim
gle pacing is the thing, as has been proven
the past week in race after race so paced
these races all being fast and the contests
very keen at the finish. with more men in
at the death than have been seen in years
or since the inception of tandem and multi
cycle pacing. The multieycle. as a pace
maker, is the most unfair thing introduced
Into cycle racing.
nr1ao t,air
by night, but the men would not have it so,
preferring not to take the risk thus early
In the season of competing under electric
lights. Hot Springs. Ark, has taken the
18th of June and has nice list of prizes.
IN honor of the visitors. who enjoyed the
Mexican national amusement. St. Louis has
given up it's date and Kansas City has
changed from the 2Sd to the 10Th. the for
mer the date of st. Louis This allows five
days to prepare for Peoria, for which all
are thankful. Interest in the great meets
of the season continues. and the Viking
Gold meet. at Toledo, July 21 and 22, the
National l.. A. w. meet, at Louisville, and
the Springfield meet. the greatest three
meets In history, claim attention. The prize
lists for professional riders at these meets
will approximate $4,000, and this money is
going to be sought for by every rider of
any prominence in the world
The national meet assumed greater i'm
portance this year than has ever been the
case before, owing to the fine track in
Louisville. there bein~ no finer in the world.
and owing TO the proverbial hospitality of
the Kentucky men. The Viking All-Gold
meet IS, of course, attracting unusual at
tention. owing TO its great prize list, and
men all over the country that hear of the
5000 TO be, given TO the professionals al
that meeting at once determine that that
Is the place where the racing OF the year
will be done. Outsiders, those that are 9TH
ers than circuit chasers, viii take a vaca-
ton along about the time OF the three great
meets and will. in one month, see all OF
them. five weeks, at any rate, being suffi-
cient to travel the circuit to them all.
The percentage table will again be
omitted this week. Five starts must be
made by any man TO gain a position in the
percentage table, this being the minimum
The table published formerly in these let
ters was on the work of rne men for the
early part of the circuit. and had no bear
ing on the real table. Five starts was the
minimum last season and this will be the
case again during the coming year. 1t il
manifestly unfair, for instance, 10 allow 9
man TO remain at the head of the percent
age table whose number of starts is bu
three, and whose ability is not such as Il
bring him out on tho circuit. The race FOL
the top of this table is going TO be mos
interesting during the coming year, and a
least a dozen men will be in the hunt fol
the position.
Messrs. Wilbur Knapp, the old-time pro
fessional champion. s. c. Chapman ant
Chandler, of San Francisco, have departed
Cor Australia in quest of business for thei
respective houses. and TO look over tn,
question of racing in that country as
means of building up business for Ameri
can products in the wheel line. Five larg,
makers are represented by the trio and al
Of these five may be willing TO send ;
team should report say favorably OF tn
country and the outlook for business. Man,
good men of America will watch anxiousl,
for these reports. for your average racin,
man likes to travel. With Australia in tn
field for American commerce in the cycl
line, and France and England clamorln,
for American goods. superior to thei
own, there may be a future for an all
round-the-world trip for American racinl
men, Such trip is being considered b,