The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-08-07
NEWS OF THE wHEELMEN.
MICHAEL DEFEATS M'DUFFEE IN a
SLOW-RUN MATCH RACE

~ NShNdih Moot NJ willow NToNos NohF
Philadelphia, and Waste Much Time in
JockeyinE-Origin of the Il. a. w. Ma
tional acknowledgements Row the Mecca
PHILADELPHIA, Aug. 0.-About $4,000 per-
sons were In attendance at Willow Grove this
afternoon TO ace Michael and McDufe ride
twenty-five miles. It was a good days
sport, and barring tho delays caused by
the argument as to the distance to
be ridden, the crowd was we'll salts
fed. The preliminaries were up to tho usual
standard. the only thing to mar the proceed
ings being the decision in the final OF the mile
professional handicap. in which Fred Titus
clearly won out from scratch. but only received
second place, in spite OF the cry OF the vast
audience. who didn't see II that way.
When the short races OF the day were COM
pleted there was a delay OF half an hour while
the promoters argued as to whether the big
race should be for twenty-five or fifteen miles.
Quicker. McDuffees manager wanted the match
at fifteen miles. with limited pace. as his con-
tract called for. while Brady wanted twenty
five miles with unlimited pace. The Willow
Grove people said twenty-five or nothing.
McDufee's manager finally gave way despite
the TACT that he had only prepared pace for
a 1fteen-mile race and agreed. under protest.
to 60 twenty-five miles with pace limited to
thirty-two men. At 5 :3O O'Clock Michael made
hho olSo dLlu mCDuho0 lOlrOWcu y low
minutes later. McDuffee won the toss and the
pistol cracked at $3.50 o'clock. For the 1rst
hundred yards there was a grand play for posi-
tion. McDufee finally forcing Michael to take
tho lead. and the Welshman finished the first
mile, In tho slow time OF 2 minutes 8 2-5 Sec
onds. some yards ahead. He increased this
lead to 100 yards at four miles. McDufee
closed up about half that distance in the
next five miles. The time was not fast
and the men jockeyed continually. At the
tenth mile Michael made a jump and ran
away for q good hundred yards. McDuffee
cut down the lead and on the second
lap OF the twelfth mile he passed the midget.
For two miles there was hard riding. then the
jockeying began again and the men were only a
few yards apart for the next three miles. The
time for the fifteenth mile was only 2 minutes
1e 3-5 seconds, and forthe sixteenth 2 minutes.
while the seventeenth and eighteenth were
little better.
At the first lap Of the nineteenth mile Mo-
Duffee swung out and allowed Michael to take
the lead. For the balance OIL the distance 1t
was q hot race. with Michael leading. At the
twenty-third mile he jumped away for fifty
yards and was never headed, McDufHee being
unable to decrease the lead. Summary:
One.third of a Mile, Open. Amateur-won By Ed.
ward Lioyellyn, J. ?. Rogers second. Leon Defer.
one:Miie Hsndicap. ProfeSsional-won By J. b.
An %'T;ss 81 d2S yards; +: =, TITUS, sSEHtch. second: j.
fourth; Time, 2 minutes 20 is seeondS. 'o'AFo''
Five Mile Handicap. Amateur-won by P. Rogers.
Kusel, so yards. third. Time. IL minutes 10 IS SEQ.
TWenty:hve Mile Match Race-Michael Va. Nc.
Duaee,-Won by Michael. Time, IS minutes 85 Is
seconds.
A national meet Of the League Of American
Wheelmen Is an affair the Significance Of which
Is nota whit appreciSted by many members
get for it, aside from good roads agitation and
keeping the racing end of cycling clean; There
these two things are worth the contribution OF
81 u year. even if that was the beginning and
rates 1ne sp at CO int Ef Rdisis s snd The T free r di1tfibSej6 of
ofguide books. worth fullythe retail price OF So,
attract others to membership. but for the old
thing OF the year and easily is worth all the
money hat It costs to be a member and q
a jubilee. The annual meet was originated By
the nnr : who attended tt 3 Mna the eal birth Of the
Lf zee sa an Ss spipfs e Fl fra atey ia aSS0 which lad to
annual reunion. fifty called a meet. The meet
affair" in which tho riders Of New York vera to
was supposed to be one between the he G%itEixee1 Ds
BBIIcycIIs G GIMP f q N UeGa, York r. and the Boston
out inviting the wheelmen Of every city
to Join In, the assembly and organize a national
uted to Kirk Munroe and to Charles Pratt. To
whichever the credit belongs. the L. A. W. was
There we're no races at that time because the;
enough to make it worth while. There we're
no tracks distinctively for cycling contents, and
such races as were held now and then were
either on the road or on trotting-horse courses.
vehicle. 1t was neither n locomotive. a buggy,
nor a baby, carriage. Peculiarly consIdered. it
E TsS the " "outiandi sRd tR SfH quad had go aaOS Tea %oo
In those days r ittS kneW each other all
order was small. and as Anarchists do at pres
ent. The first move was naturally one in favor
city and another, wanted sympathetic ears into
which to pour the tale OF their troubles. In
another theyy Would not H% per d on the he
walks. but had to jolt over the cobblestones
between certain hours. The men who, met at
sboSt Or read aboutt tie others present nnu Wien Wien
shs @sHtl hoped SfS 70 G Meet t again sh0 %wh hsR mot n Snd
year, We might as well meet every sum
m : fm:e 81 Sn fba man mag remask 0f srf hhst rsmaT x was
tional meets Of the League OF American Wheel
men had their beginning;
those who had organized the League the year
prevailed. After that a national meet was held
every year. 1t was simply n reunion and jollih-
cation. Parades, were the chief feature. OF the
occasions, The biggest meet OF the early days
was IN 1882. in Brooklyn, when the KinGsCoqnty
Wheelmen. headed BY Frank Smith. turnsed, out
washington. bicycle races were held, The
organization had grown to such proportions by
that time that 1t was necessary to have some
kind of attraction at which admission could be
charged in order to pay expenses. At all these
meets heavy recruiting work was done. They
were Interesting not only because OF the friend
to the League as yearly occasions at which the
| membership was. greatly increased. That Is
what the national meet Of the l.. A. W. means
to-day.
AS tho League grew great and strong and it
was found that riders OF all ages. all classes.
and from all parts Of the country like 70 at
pioneers. the League members Of different
| where the affair should be held. The League
grew bigger. and merchants and city o%fhGlals
6SeegTSWR6 TO 6er ee infie IN a city Of for q we ees T mssS ot
the INTRODUCTION and circulation OF a lot
posed Of bicycle mannlaeturers. prominent