New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1903-09-04
STIRRING FINISH IN FOG.
Defender Wins Easily-Chaltenger
Does Not Reach Line.

Never has there been such sensational nm
ish IN the history of races for the Americas
Cup as that Of yesterday. when the Reliance
her lee rail buried in s smother Of foam. came
suddenly out Of a bank Of fog and dashed across
the finish line the winner OF the mai race OF the
series and the successful defender OF the cup
for 1908.
By Just how much time she defeated sham
rock III viii never be known, for both yachts
sailed for an hour prior to the finish in fog.
Captsin Barr. of the Reliance. steered the
stra lighter course Of the two. and found the
finish line but Captain wringe sailed the chal-
lenger too far 70 the eastward. and missing IT,
sailed on for some minutes before discovering
his error Then he hove his yacht 20 and waited
for the fog TO lift
WHERE THE RELIANCE GAINED.
In heating =, windwsrd over the first half Of
the course-about twenty miles-the victory OF
the Reliance was most decisive. She fairly out
sailed the challenger IL minutes and SECONDS
When they began their fifteen mile run for the
home mark the Reliance was IL minutes and
seconds in the lead II is admitted that sham
rock III made q slight gain during the forty
two minutes they in sight. before the log
shut them from view. but IL is agreed that she
could not by any possible chance have closed
the gan between them in the fifty-four minutes
which elapsed before the Reliance crossed the
finish line. The most conservative estimate
makes the Reliance a winner by eight minutes
exclusive of the time allowance Of minute and
81 seconds. which would perhaps cut II DOWN 10
q minutes and 3 seconds.
Pacing ,-scbtsu,en who saw the finish agree
that as soon as the fog lifted Captain Wringe
should have sailed Shamrock III back TO the
liehtship and crossed the finish line so that the
regatta committee might have taken her time
and of5ciaUv concluded the race Due allow
anoe would doubtless have been made for
the time lost in returning 70 the lire
At one minute before the gun both yachts be
gan to shape their courses for the bow OF tne
committee boat intending to make her the wind
ward end Of the line. Barr had the best posi-
ton. He was banking the Reliance on the wino
m, the stsrboard tack at gunfre. with the sham
rocks bowsprit Just overlapping the lee quar-
ter of the Herreshoff boat In his effort TO place
the Shamrock on the weather quarter OF the
Reliance. Wringe had killed the Roadway Of his
yacht.
START OF THE RACE.
Barr kept the Reliance going for the line on
the starboard tack He crossed II diagonaly,
close TO the lee end four seconds before the
handicap gun was fired. Wringe put the Sham-
rock about midway between the committee boat
and the lightship and crossed the line with
ends after crossing Barr put the Reliance about
for her first tack. She was then pointing TO
,vindusrd Of the wake Of the Shamrock. The
official time Of the start was:
HMs
,s.lisno. Iol 80
lV-''
Three seconds handicap is not much. hut as
these races are often won by seconds it was
ritv that wringe was not able to save that
sine. Ten minutes after the start shamrock
his position vas about three lengths of the lee
how Of the Reliance The latter plainly
pointed higher than the challenger The wind
during the first half nour was extremely light
SO much so that the crews of both yachts were
kept TO leeward.
The course took them down along the Jersey
shore. and as soon as they passed the High
lands they began TO feel" the breeze. BY cou-
ules the men crawled UP 20 windward each
Yacht began TO heel TO the stronger wind
Shamrock III seemed 10 do better when the wind
freshened. and 10 foot as fast as the other al
though she did not point as high.
For / hour. minutes and 70 seconds the
Shamrock held the port tack She had passed
close 20 the bell buoy marking Shrewsbury
Rocks at 2.05 and at 207.50 when she had the
hshermen's net stakes off Galilee close under
her lee. she tackled TO starboard- Barr swung
the Reliance to the same tack twenty seconds
boat was fully quarter of mile dead to wind
ward Of the other
Tweuty-three minutes they remained on this
tack and then came about. the challenger first,
at . 81 %. the Reliance ten seconds later. Barr
had changed his jib topsail for smaller one an
hour before. but wringe held to his big one
until 2:44 O'Clock. when he set baby jb top
sail
Barr now made couple Of quick tacks-one
at 3,01 o'clock TO starboard and one TO port
three minutes and fifty seconds later. Then he
made one Of nine minutes starboard. This
nut the Reliance more than mile to windward
Of her rival wringe held his starboard tack for
thirty-one minutes. while Barr made three tacks
in thirty-fve minutes. He made the last one
with the Reliance to fetch the weather mark at
3 .3e. Wringe made his last at S:44. Three
minutes before reaching the outer mark down
came the baby jib topsail on the Reliance and
UP went a ballooner in stops on the stay. ready
to break out the moment she rounded the mark
Barr kept the big sloop of around the flashing
cone at 1888. gybng a moment later. Sheets
were quickly eased TO port, the balloon jibtop-
sail vas broken out and the spinnaker boom
launched out TO stsrboard. Everything was done
Ike clockwork on board the defender. Two min
utes six seconds after rounding the spnnaker
blosson1ed out 10 starboard the jib and stay
san were hauled down. and with a light but
steady breeze. she began her final run Of fifteen
miles to leeward. The time taken at the outer
Elspsed
Reliance :-.--..........--.-...----. 800
BY this it will be seen that the Reliance had