The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-10-02
PICKLE WIND
 FOOLED BOATS < - Contest Between Yachts
 Declared Of. WAS A DRIFTING MATCH
WAS A DRIFTING MATCH
Shamrock Was Ahead 01
 Columbia at the Close.
The Trial Race Yesterday Demon strated That the Lipton Boat is . Dangerous Competitor
 in Light Airs.

New York, Oct 1.-Today's attempt to
 sail the second of the present series of international yacht races for the blue ribbon of the sea proved dismal failure. Between 25,0Oo and 5000 people who l crowded the pleasure fleet off Sandy Hook | iightship in the hope of seeing repetition | of the thrilling sport of Saturday last, match than a race. The wind was ex- ceedingly light and variable. at times | falling so low that the gossaemer wind pennants, which are as light as thistle down, hung limp against the masts of \ the big single stickers. The wind with crews lined up on the lee rails was not sufficient at any time to make the racing
 machines heel to their lines. At the end of four and half hours the yachts had covered less than one half of the pres cribed course of thirty miles and as there
 was no possibility of their tinlshing within
 the time limit the regatta committee de- clared the race off.
 When the gun was fired announcing this decision the challenger was about half
 mile ahead of the defender and to that
 extent todays trial was a victory for
 Shamrock II. But the fiuke today demon-
 strated little as to the question of
 supremacy between the two yachts, ex-
 cept perhaps that Sir Thomas,s new
 champion is more dangerous in light airs
 than was supposed after her two former
 meetings with the white flyer to which
 the patriots are pinning their faith. In
 fiukey winds ot variable strength. shift
 ing as they did today through six points of the compass luck cuts almost as much
 figure as model seamanship and today
 fortune was unmistakably with the for- eigner. q
 Columbia Got Good Start. --
 The course was an eauilateral triangle,
 ten miles to the leg, the first leg being
 a beat due east into the wind The
 Yankee skipper at the start outgeneraled
 his adversary in a splendid piece of
 jockeying, crossing the line in the wind-
 ward berth twelve seconds ahead of the
 Britisher. This advantage the Columbia held for two hours while both yachts steered off their course to the south and
 were looking for a streak Of wind that would profit them. Finally. Barr de- clined to continue the vain quest. He put his helm down and headed in shore on the bIdEOOdTu LdCk. nC OHdfhIOCk at this time. after both had been sailing in the same airs. was a beaten boat and her skipper could afford to take a chance with fortune. He held doggedly on and fortune smiled on him. Within i've minutes he got a breeze out of the south which ruffled the crestless seas and wait ed him like a ghost through the Colum- bias weather. But this was not his best piece of good fortune. After this reverse the Columbia, slipping through the sea at an astonishing pace considering the lightness of the breeze had worked out ahead of the Shamrock.Sbut to leeward.
 When the two yachts were in this posi-
 ton about two miles from the first turn.
 cant of the wind threatened to
 blanket Columbia and to avoid such a
 possibility Barr went under Shamrocks
 stern. Just as he did so the wind
 hauled around more to the south. knock ing the Columbia's head off until, to the
 astonished spectators, she seemed headed
 almost back for the lightship at the start ing line. The golden boat favored by the same breeze was headed in exactly the opposite direction. Then the shifting wind backed again and Barr got the Columbia strengthened out as he was a third of a mile astern. In this position the two boats rounded the first mark, the Shamrock three minutes and eight seconds before Columbia, or a gain for Shamrock in the beat to windward, ad- ding the 12 seconds which Columbia beat her over the line, of three minutes and twenty seconds.
 -. Had to Abandon Race.
 During the next hour, in a close reach for the second mark. the yachts were able to cover about four or four and a l half miles of the remaining twenty, and | as only fifty minutes then remained be- | fore the expiration of the time limit the | race was declared off.
 Tonight both the Yankees and the | foreigners are praying for a good stif | breeze on Thursday, when today's race | will be resailed.
 Always optimistic, Sir Thomas Lipton today after the race was in the best | spirits. He said: "I really don't see any | thing yet on which to base a definite opin- | ion regarding the two boats. While the | Shamrock was leading when the race was | called off, there is nothing to brag about | Today while the winds were very light, | there was little fiuking. therein differing | from last Thursdays breezes. which in | spots failed utterly, each boat in turn | striking dead calms. After the showing l made thus far by both boats. I should | not hesitate if were a betting man to ] lay even money on the Shamrock Both l boats were handled today to the best | ability of the best men each country | could produce. I do not think there is a | better skipper in America than Captain | Berr of the Columbia"
 Sir Thomas expressed himself as per- | sonally in favor of racing every day, | provided any suggestion looking to that | end should be made.
 The official time of the start today was: 11:00:1O; Shamrock, 11:O0;22.
 Luck was with the American boat at | first for fortunate, catspaw struck her and enabled her to head up a couple of ! points higher than her opponent This | gave her commanding lead. the Sham rock meanwhile scarcely moving through the water and appearing dull and loggy. | The Shamrock went on the port tack fif- | teen minutes after the start. the Columbia | immediately. At 1:30 both yachts were nearly becaImed, the Co., | lumbia having a lead of about a quarter of mile. At Il 35 the Shamrock went | on the starboard tack, the Columbia fol- | lowing, and then luff streak filled the | sails ed save hAg an anpre- I