Omaha daily bee., 1897-02-28

championship and Mr.. Rhodes was fast
road rider, his Omaha friends insisted upon
his entering the race, which he was induced
to do after a good deal Of eoaxing. Never
having ridden a race before he was
naturally a little backward but after he
got to going once he simply nan away from
the rest OF the field, and won IN Al. II was
certainly a surprise to his friends, as well
as to himself, and as "a reward FOR MS
wonderful performance he now bears the
title Of the half-mile champion OF Nebraska
for 1899, and wears a handsome $50 gold
medal. The next state meet was held in
Omaha at the old fair grounds on September
29 1890 under the auspices of the Omaha
Wheel club. The safety championships were
won by Bert Porterfeld, while the two mile
ordinary state championship was won by
Louis Flescher; the one and five-mile
ordinary championships by G. X. Denman,
all of Omaha.
In 1891 the state meet was held at York.
Mockett of Lincoln won the two-mile ordi-
nary state championship in 1903, and Hol-
ton OF Omaha took the one-fourth mile ordi-
nary and one and two-mile safety cham-
pionships in 4:3 2-5, $40 is and 7:11 re-
spectively.
1890 Lincoln had it's first experience with
bicycle races when Manager Billie Mardis
took a train OF Omaha amateurs down to the
Capital City and put on a six-day race In
Bohanans hall The track was about
Omaha riders who competed were Flcscher,
Wertz and Mears Mardis also induced Ed
! Mockett, then a Lincoln novice, to start in
the race
| THEY wHIPSAwED MARDIS.
OF course Mardis was looking after the
| good, hard dollars both for himself and MS
| 'boys" as he called them. and in order to
create enthusiasm in the event he held them
back and allowed Mockett to gain lew
| laps thinking, of course, that when the last
night came he would turn the boys loose
and they could easily regain their lost
| ground and beat Mockett out, but the
doughty Ebenezer was foxy boy ana on
Saturday night when the Omaha contingent
began to cut out a warm pace he quietly
dropped in after the bunch and there ne
stayed 1t was impossible for the boys 10
gain on him and he won the race easily
ant the Omaha crowd came home with a
pocketful of money which was salve for
the wounded feeling caused by their igno-
minious defeat
Mockett was looked upon a champion
by the Lincoln people, and when he succeeded
in defeating several others OF Nebraska 6
| swift men in match races on the 'wash-dlsn
| track as it was called, his friends Thought
him a world-beater. 1t was not long, now.
ever. until other men could not be induced
, to race on the "wash-dish," and the track
was torn down. A few races were held at
the State Fair grounds in the fall of 1881
| after which time interest in the sport al
: | Lincoln began to die out.
On July A. 1892 the fourth annual meet oi
| the Nebraska division held at Hastings
road race from Juniata to Hastings, dis
tance of six miles, was run in the morn
ing and was won by Jack Eastman OF
Omaha. The one-mile ordinary championship
| was won by Mockett of Lincoln by default
, The one and two-mile safety state cham
picnships we're also won by Mockett OF Lin
coin in 249a and 6:10la, respectively. All
| Of the open safety races, five in NUMBER, were
won by Billy Schnell Of Omaha. Mocketl
rode in nothing but the championship and
of course won these easy.
INCREASED INTEREST IN RACING.
During 1892 there were number OF other
race meets of less prom inence held through
out the state and people who had before
looked upon the sport .afs. boing rather tame
became interested in it, endsWhen the racing
season of 1893 rolled aToun<i3 the sport had
double the number of followers that 1t mad
the year previous The staSeS meet was held
at Lincoln in that year, on Jaly a. under the
auspices of the Capital City Cycling club
Lincoln riders had won the5state champion
ehips in 1892 and Omaha riders had been
left out almost entirely, thenstore they SET tc
work early in the spring lof, 1893 and trained
hard for the state meet with the Intention
of redeeming themselves (which they did
nicely. Russell Condor of Omaha won the one
| mile championship in 2:54;Pixley of Omaha
: the one-cuarter mile champ iphshp in 39 3-5
) ship in 5:5S 2-5, and thus swept the platter
| clean and left Lincoln without win to Its
credit, save the boys race in which Omaha
did not have a representative. number
Of other meets were held In the state during
that year, of which perhaps the one under
the auspices of the Tourist wheelmen al
! Omaha on July % was the most important
: The winners at this meet were: Holton
Congdon ProulX, PiXley and w. M. Barnum
In 1894 the first meet was held at Omaha
| INN rn1p %
> Daxon, and the races were won by Condor
!; | Barnett and PiXley.
. The state meet took place at the busting
. | little town of Kearney on July and ol
that year. The championships were won py
p | Barnett OF Lincoln, and Frederickson o.
. | Fremont while the other events went tt
y | Gerwlng, Mcclure and Bowles OF Denver
!, | This was the first season that "Class b. Of
n | semi-professionalism was tried. Some goot
i meets were held later in the year at Wayne
Fremont, Plattsmouth, Superior, Nortf
Platte and other small towns throughout tn
"a state
n HERE EDGHILL STARTED.
e. The season of 1895 opened up early, ant
i from racing standpoint was far ahead
l. all previous ones. The first important even
1t OF the year was the Decoration day roa'
W race held in this city under the ausplce
N OF the Associated Cycling clubs, on Ma!
1t 30. First prize was won by F. E. Edwood
lie a soldier from Fort Omaha, who had fou
rs minutes handicap. The time prize was woi
to by Happy Holloway CT Plattsmouth, VIII
a. covered the ten miles in thirty-two minute
Oh and thirteen seconds Lincoln held pl
meet on this day at which Tessier of Suttol
n won the majority of the events. Following
II this came the x-day amateur race held II
su tho Coliseum at Omaha. This was the rae
Sc in which Harry Edghill, the messenger boy
N did his wonderful riding, winning the rae
u easily by nearly half a mile FOLLOWING
- this race came the sixth annual meet OF tn
e Nebraska Division League OF American
III Wheelmen, which was again held at Kearne
IA on July 4 and g. In "Class A" Gadke
q Omaha, won the one-mile state championsni
ID in 2:2O 1-5 Pixley of Omaha, the half-mil
"a and two-mile state championships In 10
ID and 4:56 1-5, while in "Class b. Fran
al Rigby of Toledo, o., won everything In sigh'
r Other good meets were held during the yea
rs at Lincoln, Grand Island, Blair YORK
A. Geneva. Sutton, Humboldt. Fairfield Mead
lg Ashland ElkhorA, Plattsmouth, wayne an
Ir many other smaller towns. The dineren
2, meets of the past season are too fresh u
e. the minds of wheeling enthusiasts to meri
I'd a review of them. The state meet held a
er Lincoln on July 8 and 4, was, from racin
at standpoint one of the most successful diviso
It. meets ever held in the state but hnanciall
lie It was a failure. The amateur champion
lie ships of the state were all won by Gadke Q
Il. Omaha while Mockett OF Lncoln won IN
al half mile professional and Pixley OF oman
re the one-mile professional 10 championship