Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-09-25
STORIES OF THE CIRCUIT

The circuit chasers come to this city
generally but once a year, and they bring
with them number of good stories. During
their travels they manage to play jokes in
Vulnerable on one another, and all enjoy
the result, while now and then some hui
morous incident happens out of the orth-
nary. The most laughable of any hap
pened at Bay City, Mich, during circuit
meet, in which f. Ed. Spooner, the we'll
known cycle correspondent, was the inno-
cent victim. He has reputation for hard
work, and frequently spends a great por-
ton of the night in getting up stuff When
he goes to sleep he never knows when he
will wake up. Sometimes he will sleep for
twelve or fourteen hours, or perhaps
longer, and then again he is apt to wake up
in few hours. t-7
AT Bay City his watch stopped the after
neon before, and so intent was he in work
ing that he never had occasion to- look at
it before retiring. The next morning about
SO O'Clock, while the racers were seated
on bench in the lobby of the hotel
Spooner was spied coming down the steps
two at time. with his typewriter with
him, and all ready and dressed He reach
ed the counter with a hop, skip and jump,
slapped down his key, and wanted to
know by what route he could reach the
race track in the shortest possible time.
The clerk looked at him in wonderment
With an impatient gesture Spooner pulled
out his watch and said:
Il ought TO have been out there half an
hour ago, and don't care to lose any time"
With his typewriter still in his hand he
started for the front door, bent on hiring
the first vehicle for transportation to the
race track On his way out he spied the
racing men, who were looking at him in a
funny sort of way.
What is the matter with you fellows?"
inquired he. why amt you out on the
track"
.., It's too early" replied one of the party.
Spooner pulled out his watch and looked
at 1t. and then at the hotel clock.
Your watch is stopped said one of the
racers .'7'7
We'll. I'll be -" was all spooner said
as he Sheepishly vent back to his room
The winner of the match race recently
at Albany, n. Y, in which Tom Cooper
Eddie Bald and Arthur Gardiner were the
contestants. has received a good deal of
praise. The purse was a good-sized one
ana was captured by Cooper. 1t seems as
though Bald had declared he would not en-
ter INTO another match race with Cooper
ara Riser because he alleged that they
worked together. He and Arthur Gardiner
we're quite chummy, and the Albany peo-
pie, Knowing that he would not ride
against Cooper and Kiser substituted Car
diner for the latter and invited Cooper 10
participate. He accepted. and feeling quite
S It mat the two would ride against
race was to be run in three heats, and Bald
captured the first heat in fair enough styIe
dhere was a single pacemaker in the race
and Cooper was forced to take position i'm
mediately behind him. He preferred To he
the third man from the pacemaker. so as Io
De able to jump the sprint ahead of tho
punch. On the second heat Cooper was
Eext to the pacemaker again and inst no
fore the three-quarter mark he heaan ~
squirt, leaving the pace behind and RIM
n!ng directly into the face Of a heavy
WIND that struck the track at that point
He gained fully six lengths by the steal
and won the heat In easy fashion.
On the third and deciding heat he was in
ms ola position behind the pacemaker. He
.eld on and continued to ride for some dis
lance beyond the point where he started
TO sprint in the previous heat His tactics
must have puzzled the other two riders
When he did make sprint he secured n
5000 ieaa, which enabled him to win the
race. Gardiner, who was second man at
the time Cooper sprinted, waited for Raid
10 come abreast of him before puttinp on
speed. At the tape Gardiner succeeded in
;na ny "a ndiu OUT Tor second place. Accord
ing to the report there was some lively
taking In the dressing room after the
event, in which Bald and Gardiner were tha
partielpants Bald accused Gardiner OF be-
ing no friend of his. and told him that he
had helped Cooper to win the event ami
was IN cahoots with Cooper There were
iots OF other things said, and as an out
come Bald and Gardiner do not speak.
The circuit chasers will race this af,or-
noon at Philadelphia. Next Monday thev
appear at Trenton. N. j., and Tuesday will
race at Cleveland. Ohio, where will he two
gays sport. Next Friday and SATURDAY. will
pc spent at Detroit, Mich. The folIowinp
monday they will be at Racine. Wis
which Will be the most northern noint
from this place they will gradually work
south. taking In all of the leading cities
ana winding up at Jacksonville, Fla. Mo-
Vemper ~. This is cited as an Illustration
o! the distance the riders travel. Begin
hing with next Monday at Trenton the
schedule on hand runs for ffty-five davs
curing which time thirty-eight DAYS will
be taken up In racing. The total distance
covered Is footed up to be 1883 miles much
greater than the distance across the entire
continent. The entire crowd after leaving
trenton viii use special car The biggest
Jump Tor any one night will be from Buf-
iaio to Cleveland, distance of 437 miles
IN the schedule, however. there are several
otner instances where the men will have ~
travel over 400 miles during the night.
wniie very Few are less than 100 miles.
or all the riders on the circuit of any note
Tom Cooper. perhaps. has made the least
showing. By good many cycle writer's II 4
Is claimed that Cooper was oyertrained at 1
the start. while others are of the oninion
that he Is suffering with some sort Of dis
ease. Cooper. however denies both of fbnse
stories He told The Star man that he
made great mistake in going down south
TO train. While at Atlanta, before the !
opening OF the present season, he seems
to think that the climate of the place MN =
entireiy unsufted for him, and that the
germs OF malaria were introduced into his