Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1901-10-03

LOSES
Columbia Takes First i'm
New Races for
the Cup
But Contest Was an
Exciting One
Indeed
Defender Has Minute and
Twenty-Five Seconds
to Spare

| New York, Sept. 29.-In the clos
sailed for Americas cup the Columbia
yesterday beat the British challenger
by the narrow margin of 80 seconds.
AS Liptons aspirant for cup honors
must allow the defender 43 seconds on
| account of extra canvas in her sail
area, the official record under the rules
gives the Columbia the victory by one
minute and twenty-five seconds. When
the Columbia went over the line she
was fully 200 yards ahead of the chai-
| lenger.
Light wind or gale, it is all one to
the gallant old defender which carried
the hopes of Americans to victory.
Running home in an eighteen-knot
| breeze in the din of a hundred whls-
| ties, the two-year-old wonder of the
wizard Herreshoff showed a clean quar-
| ter to the Shamrock II from the round
| ing of the outer mark to her triumph
ant squirt across the line, winner in
| the re-sailed first race for the Ameri
cas- cup, winner without the aid OF
| time allowances.
Beating out to the seward mark or
running home before the wind, the
| Yankee marvel took the measure OF
| Sir Thomas Lipton's boat at almost
every stage of the race. There were
| ha ORIG Of
host which packed the excursion fleet
to the gangways sank deep as the lead
bulb on the Columbia's keel, but the
stanch craft which taught the English
men how to drift last Thursday over
hauled the Upton boat in the nick of
the hour each time, and sent the blood
back to the cheeks of the following
host and set their hearts singing with
hope and joy again.
| 1t was as much triumph of Amer
lean sailor men as of American ship
builders. Captain Charlie Bars iron
nerve failed him at no crisis of the
battle. and no chance which would
give his darling boat advantage of
second over her rival went untaken.
| Captain Sycamore may be the peer OF
any British skipper, but Barr is his
master, as the Columbia, with her
handicap of age and hurried prepare
| ton, is mistress of the Watson boat,
en- which Sir Thomas Upton spent his
gold without stint and set his hopes Of
lifting that stubborn, priceless cup
that declines to part it's mornings.
Beating to windward Columbia had
the better of the game, but in the long
run home before the wind the Sham
rock showed her lee rail under and
overhauled the Yankee craft with the
speed of a flying cloud. The wind was
blowing twelve knots out Of the east
and hauling to the south when the
yachts went over the line at the start
ing gun and the fifteen miles to the
outward mark was a straight beat to
vindward. In the windward work the
Columbia showed all her old superior
/ ity, but with the rounding of the
stakeboat and the breaking out of spin
makers and topsails for the run home
before the wind Shamrocks superior
ity soon became evident. Foot by foot
she crept up on her Yankee rival UNI
til Columbia's lead was cut to moth
ing, and then Watson's boat forged
ahead, though Barr was screwing ey
cry inch of pace out of his gallant
craft. That was the story of the race.
The Columb bias lead at the outer mark
gained by her wizard windward work,
was not great enough to balance the
driving power of Shamrock's great
spread of canvas. squared away for
the run to the finish and grip on the
Americas coveted cup.
The thousands who went down to
the sea to watch the race saw a con-
test nerve-tearing in its mildest mo-
ments. From the moment when the
| stately rivals beat down to the line and
went over with the smoke-signal of the
starting gun until the gun spoke it's
message of victory and defeat, the Dat
tie was of thrills and inspirations
Despite the brisk wind that romped
out of the east with the mid-Atlantic
tang to it the sea outside Sandy Hook
was almost fiat and the craziest craft
in the New York excursion fleet
dared the gentle swells in complete
safety. Behind the first row of clean
built private yachts, flying the private
signals Of the richest men in America
a motley squadron of passenger boats
ocean tramps and harbor derelicts
churned in the wake of the racers. The
greatest crowd, the most enthusiastic
crowd which ever watched an Ameri-
cas- cup race cheered and sorrowed,
roared its delight and grumbled its de-
spair outside Sandy Hook. And the
spectacle was worthy of the throngs
which witnessed it.