Evening star., 1902-08-30
AUTOMOBILE RACING
Shutting Off the Highways
Cross a Whole Country.
ARDEN MES CUP RACE
HOSTILITY SHOWN BY THE PEA
SANTRY OF BELGIUM.
Will the Great Britain and Ireland
Club Be Allowed to Take Part
in Next International.
Special Correspondence of The Evening Star


Attention, here comes another
Move back, it is dangerous
Quick! Do you want to be extermi-
nated?"
In the center of the Belgian highway,
dotted by long lines of shade trees, there
gesticulated a guard of the fields in
blouse and cooked hat, crying out, .Atten-
tlon! to crowd of peasants. A red-faced,
herce-mustached Solder-policeman of the
countryside gendarmere, ffourishing his
sword, danced from one side of the road to
the other, in a fever of responsibility.
Throughout the whole length of that high
way, straight across the land of Belgium,
patrols of his brethren, assisted by the
standing army, were engaged in warning
ordinary traffic off it. Throughout its whole
length groups of sightseers waited joking,
While another portion of the population
| cursed and murmured. 1t was the day of
the Ardennes cup automobile race
Here where the rural guard geSticu-
lated to the crowd of peasants an impro-
vised bar had been set up in the shade of a
great tree beside the tent of one of the race
tfmekeepers. A photographer stood ready.
A tramp peddler showed pictorial post cards
to the yokels, craning their necks to see a
small white cloud far up the road where
1t touched the blue horizon.
The white cloud grew into a whirlwind.
IL
grew into an .ear-splitting rattle, then
great roar mixed with spittings, as the
devil engine dashed upon them and pulled
itself up with vicious snort. Now it stood
palptating in the midst of Its dust and it's
noxous gases.
An outlandish figure with a goggled face
that peered above a sweat-grimed duster
handed small book to the tmekeeper, who
had fastened from his tent. Quickly he
marked it, The photographer took a snap
shot on speculation. The goggle-faced one,
glancing at his watch, consulted a black
imp who sat behind him, and, without a
nod of recognition to the cheering peasants,
waved his arm and pulled his lever
The mud-celored racing automobile leaped
away from the crowd like a greyhound
bounded on IN a new cloud of dust and
then grew smaller, smaller, until 1t dis
appeared1fl tiny speck IN the far distance
before theexcited peasants had ceased Won
dering. Y sN-
And sosit was In a straight line from
Bastognel to Habay-la-Neuve, by way Of
Longlier, .ands back to Bastogne again by
two straight roads that met a Martelange,
making axgreat triangle of highways shut
Belgium called the Ardennes. Nothing Ike
it has been seen in the United States where
farmers and small townsfolks would not
have the patience to permit such interfer
ence with their everyday rights.
Nothing like it-on a large scaIe-has been
seen in England yet. And this is just the
difficulty fhat now stares the Automobile
Club of Great Britain and Ireland in the
face, after its enthusiastically accepted in
vitatiOn to the automobists of Europe to
run the next international road race on the
highways of a free and Independent Eng
lish, Scotch or Irish country population.
In the centralized governments of Europe
such a violent taking possession of the
countryside seems the simplest thing mag
Unable. Are such races good developers of
the great automobile industry? Do the
manufacturers and the influential clubs de-
sire them? VIII they serve to advertise
French, Belgium German automobiles?
The answer TO these questions being yes"
the central government calmly asks to see
the program and makes out the necessary
ukase.
Thus it was before the breakneck circuit
OF the Ardennes race. A week before the
great event came off the highways to be
occupied were posted with innumerable no.
tees that tod the peasantry and townsmen
that such and such a day all usual
traffic must cease on them. To insure re-
Spect for the command, when the day came
the gendarmerfe and standing army was
set to patrolling the whole route.
Regularly there are limits even to high
handed continental methods. Paris Bor-
deaux-and-return, in 1895, was won at an
average speed of 15la miles an hour; in 1886
Paris -Marseilles-and-return was accom-
plished at the rate of 10 miles hour; in
1898 it was Paris-Amsterdam-an return,
with an average speed of % miles an hour.
Then with the Tour de France in 1899 and
Paris-L Lyons and Paris-Toulouse-a e-and-return
in 1900, the great speeds and horse power
capacities began to be reached, Paris
Bordeaux in 1901 was done at an average
speed of 90 miles an hour; Paris-Berlin, in
the same year, brought up the average
speed to 80 miles an hour; while Paris
Vienna, in the present summer could not
better it. None of these terrific speeds
however, were made through the larger
towns upon the routes.
Neutralized Towns.
The larger towns are regularly neutral
lied" In this way each of the great races
mentioned was in reality made up of a Sc
res of short consecutive races of from 25
to 80 miles each between the "neutralized
towns. at the end of which the contestants
had leisure to breathe, to tighten up their
boulons and to look to their greasing and
oiling.
No time is made going through a "neu-
tralized'' town. Each contestant is allowed
many minutes in which to traverse it.
If he gets through in less time he has mere
ly gained so many MINUTES extra rest. The
result is that, making minute calculations
each contestant arranges that these pre-
cous minutes shall yield their fullest value
in the three RS of automobile racng-re-
pose, repairs and refreshment.
Thus it may be guessed that a great race
without any "neutraliZations' makes ter
ribe event.
Such was the present race around the
Circuit of the Ardenres"-a Iong-drawn-
measuring fifty-three miles of broad, level
highways in afperfect state of repair Six
times AROUND ihis great triangle dashed
the most Bowefful automobiles of all Eu-
rope, practicalb without stop-thus cover
ing 31S miles in one terrific dash!
In such ia race ''all counts" When a
racer stops to take up Oil or essence it is
at the expense,1of his time. When he slows
up to coof his almost red-hot engine take
a drink or get cinder from his eye, he
loses just so many precious seconds. For
this reason the few timing stations were
arranged. SO that but two of them on each
Of the sixsrlaps' must be reported at-their
only object being to keep tab on all COM
petitors and make sure against suspicion
Of cross-chts in triangular course.
Will England stand such mad racing?
What they mean may be imagined from
the breaKdowns. Baron de Crawhez
scorching at sthe rate of 12o kilometers
l741a mileQ per hour tore off his right
front wheel-and "sledded' on for another
eighth of mile before he stopped! Jen-
atty. tearing along an unusually rough
piece ofroad at the rate of ITO kilometers (Gs
miles, per hour. struck boulder jumped
into gutter and Spilled laying his me-