The Topeka state journal., 1905-02-17
Auto Shows Great Speed on the
Roadway in Cuba.
II. ". FIetcher's Mile Takes a
Record Away From France.
THREEKINDS OFMARKS
Special Provisions to Be Made
for OrmOnd Sands.
BOwden Owns Eight Motors
Which Cost Him $4,000.

Chicago, Feb. 17.-H W. Fletcher, the
American motor-car driver who was
the hero at Ormond, yesterday broke
the worlds one-mile road record, doing
AS fat over the Cuban roads and beat
ing by one second the worlds best,
made over the Anglers road in France
in 1902. This feat of F1etcher's brings
to light the fact that the American
Automobile association. Will be forced to
recognize three branches of the one
mile record because of the discovery of
the sand beach at Ormond, Florida,
which has been proved to be the fastest
in the world for motor-car driving.
Experts declare that it will be neces-
sary to put the Ormond marks in a
distinct class, labelling them straight
away records for they think the sand
course can hardly be called a road any
more than it can be classed as track.
| If this is done the books will show the
following: One-mile strafghtaway, H.
L. Bowden, 30 AS, at Ormond, Fla
one-mile road, H. w. Fletcher. As. at
Havana Cuba; one-rni1e track, Barney
Oldheld. :53, at Los Angeles, Cal
1t is held that even the ;52 As is not
safe over the Ormond course and that
80 will be beaten another season. In
driving mile on what might be called
legitimate road in AS Fletcher has
performed a feat out of the ordinary,
for seldom it is that a stretch perfectly
SLAdASlll anu long enough SuCn II1dlS
can be found. Even the Cuban road
yesterday had a bend in it that made
it necessary for Fletcher to slow in his
first trial. Travelling at a speed of
eighty miles an hour. like Fletcher did,
1t is necessary to have road long
enough to allow working up speed and
also to slow down after the tape has
been passed.
Track drivers claim. that they have
not reached their limit of, speed and
that Oldheld's :53 will not stand long.
Indeed, the champion himself thinks
that so is possible, and he has in mind
car Of his own design, highly power
ed and peculiarly built, in which he
that he can get inside Of so on a cir
cular track
Before the American success of the
past three months France held nearly
all the worlds marks. Since Ormond
it is said that the Frenchmen despair of
ever regaining the mile and for that
reason have changed their rules gov
upon standing start trials for the mile,
although the flying kilometer is still on
their books
Bowden, owner of the car which did
the % As at Ormond, has decided to
dismantIe the record breaker and retire
it from commission. Reports from the
east say that the 20-horse-power eight
cylinder engine will be placed in a boat
which is expected to class as high as
the motor car did in its sport. The
frame Of the auto will be shortened and
a new four-cylinder engine will make
it the same sort of a car as those own
ed by E r. Thomas, S. B. Stevens and
w. K. Vanderbilt, Jr.
Bowden now owns eight motor cars, |
besides a couple of motor boats, and |
his pastime costs him about $4,000 a
year. Bowden does not believe that two
miles in a minute is possible with pres
ent-day machines. He thinks such |
speed can be supplied only by a motor
car weighing more than the limit pre-
scribed by the racing rules of 2,2O4 |
pounds. He thinks 160 to 200 horse !
power is necessary to bring out a mile |
at the rate of 120 miles an hour.
Henry Fournier, the automobilist, has |
sailed for Havre. but will return on |
the same steamship, bringing his motor
boat.
MY boat has never been beaten he
said, 'and it is my intention to race
her on this side When return I will |
stay on this side three months. I will |
also bring back two automobiles. Auto
MODELLING in this country has greatly i'm
proved but France still leads the world.
This is owing to the fact that we have
such excellent roads and because we
were first in the fieId.''