The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-10-07
LEAD THROUGHOUT THE RACE

Winner Went Over One Mile a
Minute.
Crowd Of 100000 Persons saw the
Race for Vanderbilt Cup-Few
Accidents Mar Motorists'
Pleasure.
New York, Oct. 6.-France today
won the third international automo-
bile road race for the lillian K.
Vanderbilt Jr. cup. completing a rec
ord of three straight victories In this
event. which is run over the turnpike
Of Long Island. The center of the
course being about twenty miles from
New York city, Italy was second in
the race: France filled third and fourth
positions. while Germany furnished
the fifth car.
Only these five machines completed
the tenth and last lap of the course.
which was 29.7l miles in length. The
total distance of the race was 20. II
miles and Louis Wagner, driver Of
the winnig car, made the distance in
200 minutes, 10 20 seconds. a speed
of more than a mile a minute for the
entire distance. One of the more than
100000 spectators who lined the course
paid with his life the penalty Of a
too great curiosity He was too near
the line at what Is known as Krugs
Corner. Two cars flashed by when tho
80 khA 90 rot
q better view of the others coming.
With the rush and roar of throbbing
engines, the French car driven by Eli
liott e. Shepard. an American, dashed
into the man, who in the view OF
thousands, was hurled high in the
air. when picked up many yards
from the scene of the accident, the
man was dead. His skull had been
fractured, both legs broken and he
was frightfully crushed. After few
minutes he was Identified as Karl
Gruner Of Passaic. N. J. Shepard
plunged ahead at ninety miles an
hour along the straight stretch leading
to the judges stand. He was COM
pletely unnerved, however. and did not
finish his seventh lap. 1t was given
out that he had broken a crank shaft.
Shepard was running sixth and was
In a contending position whe the &C
cident occurred.
Joseph Tracy, In his American car,
crashed into q crowd Of men and boys
and seriously injured Sylvester Bald
win, boy OF Norwalk. Conn. Several
others were slightly injured. Tracy
held TO his. course. DR.. Well Schottl.
an amateur driver Of an italian car.
lost control of his big 100 horsepower
machine on the first round. He ran
down two boys on a bicycle, then
plunged down thirty foot embank-
ment Both the driver and Colombo,
his machinist. were picked up uncon-
scious, but were quickly revived. Sew
eral persons were run down by tour
ing cars in the crush going to and re-
turning from tho race. 1t was i'm
possible to keep the immense throng off
the course The blare of the bugle ami
the cry of car coming" had no effect
On the crowd. They held their pos
sitions on the course until the oncom-
ing car was within 100 yards. Then like
the opening of an interverted wedge.
the crowd gave way with reluctance.
leaving barely room for the rushing
car with its powerful engines splitting
fire and flame. and roaring like bat
terry of small calibre artillery, to dash
through. One false motion of the hand
Clutching the steering gear and an &C
cident like that of an express train
crashing into 100 people would have re-
quilted.
The Vanderbilt cup again goes into
the possession of France. and the next
time probably will be raced for in that
country. The race was held in Ameri-
ca this year through the courtesy Of
last years winner. Wagner, who won
TIE cup drove the same make of car
that carried Hemory to victory last
yeGe. Wagner was ahead in every lap.
Tracy of the American team. winner
Is
was or TIE ninth round when stopped
He had the satisfaction of driving the
fastest lap OF the day, thereby estab-
fishing new record for the course
He made his fifth circuit Of the 2971
mile path in twenty-six minutes and
twenty-nne seconds
Wagner. who held the lead from the
very first. came very near losing the
race when twenty miles from the finish.
ore Of his tires exploded. He had
lead of some seven minutes time. He
changed tires and managed to win by
approximately three minutes.
Indictment weather had no effect
whatever on the crowd 1t is esti-
mated that fully 100000 persons lined
the course.
or tho seventeen cars that started.
the first to come to grief was the Ital-
ian racer driven by DR. Weilscott. His
steering gear broke and the car went
over an cmbankment, The rlachinist
Colombo. was severely hurt.
Wagner of the French team, had
the lead of the race ut completion OF
the first round. having made the 29.7l
IN 2S:"6: Jenatzv. German. second in
80 %. Jenatzy led on second round.
Lancia was second Wagner. third, bus
leading in elapsed time; Shepard.
fourth; Nazarro. NTH. Lu'ygen. sixth.
Tracy WIS the twelfth to complete