The Topeka state journal., 1908-10-24
ROBERTSON WINS
Daring American Captures the
Vanderbilt Cup
In the Automobile Contest on
Long Island Parkway.
IL CARS IN THE RACE.
First Few Laps Reeled Off at 81
Miles Hourly.
Matheson's Car Caught on Fire
at the Grand Stand.
Crowd Of 100000 Persons Along
fh4
IL CARS IN THE RACE.
Crowd of 100000 Persons Along
the Course at Daylight.

0HO OOuIcO at LAY yllSnG.
Long Island Motor Parkway, Oct. "a.
Following are the entries for the Van
derbilt cup automobile race:
No. l, James Florida, driver; Locomo-
| bile, American.
No. 2, Alfred Dennison, Knox, Amer
lean.
No. 3, Emile Stricken, Mercedes. Ger
man.
| No. 4, William Haupt, Chadwick.
American.
No. 5. W. c. Luttgen, Mercedes, Ger
man.
No. 6, Herbert Lyttle, Isotta, Italian
| No. Z. James B. RyalL Mattewson,
American.
No. s, ]. NJ Seymour, Thomas, Amer
! lean.
No. 9, H. J. Fitzpatrick, Hotchkiss,
French.
No. IL. Cyrus Patschke, Acme, Amer
lean.
No. 12. George salzman, Thomas,
American.
No. 13, (number not drawn.)
No. IA, (withdrawn.)
No. Is. Lewis Chevrolet, Matteson.
| No 16. George Robertson. Locomoblle
| American.
No. II, Lewis strang, Renault,
| French.
| No. IS, Foxhall Keene, Mercedes. Ger
| man.
No. 10, H. w Gill; Thomas, Ameri-
can.
No. 20. William Bourke, Knox, Amer
| lean.
No. 10. Harry Payne whitney's Bra
| zier broke a steering gear and was
prevented from starting
Driver, Robertson; car, Locomobile; !;
started. 6:45:OO; finished. 10:45; time.
400
Driver. Llytle; car. Isotta; started.
6:35:o0; finished. 10:37:36 2-5; time.
4:O2:36 2-5.
Distance, 25s.o6 miles.
/ Winners average speed "a 3-5 miles
| per hour.
! Weather overcast with rain during
night and in early morning. Course
wet and treacherous.
George Robertson in a 120 horse pow
! er Locomobile, an American machine,
won the fourth Vanderbilt automobile
| cup race on the new motor parkway on
| Long Island today. and at the same
| time created a new American record
| for long distance automobile contests.
| Herbert Lytle, driving an Italian Isot-
| ia. a 80 horse power car, was second,
| less than two minutes behind the win
ner. These cars were the only ones
! officially to finish the race, the great
| crowd of not less than a quarter of a
million crowding on the track after the
| HTSL lmO cars lletu udSHSQ dCTOSS lUc
| line. To avoid serious accidents it be-
came necessary to stop the race. At
| the time of the finish. William K. Van
| derbilt, Jr.'s 40 horsepower German
Mercedes, driven by w G. Luttgen, was
running third with a safe lead, SO that
| to it must be accorded third place.
Motor Parkway, L. l., Oct. pa
James Florida with his LocomobiIe,
crossing the starting line at $3.50 a.
m. today. started the Vanderbilt cup
automobile race, in the presence of a
crowd which counting the people all
along the course was estimated as ap-
proximately 100000 persons.
| No. 2, Knox, 40 horsepower, driven
| by Dennison, followed one minute
German Mercedes, and they were fol-
! lowed a minute apart until all were off
except the French Renault No. II,
which did not get off until 7:14.
| Florida, No. 1, was the first to COM
| plete the course his time being given
| officially as 23 minutes 10 seconds, but
the best time on the first lap was made
! by Robertson, No. '16. His time was
| 20 minutes 54 seconds. His radiator
was leaking badly and he lost nearly a
minute in replenishing it in full view
| of the grandstand. The delay in get
ting off put Strang under a handicap
| of 2S minutes and it seemed forlorn
| hope, but he threw in his clutch and
| set out to overtake the field.
Reports of trouble began to arrive
| at the grand stand. Foxhall Keene
was reported with his car ablaze at
| Locust Grove. In a few minutes.
however, he was again in the race and
| as he passed, completing the circuit,
| there was a futter of handkerchiefs
and a clapping of hands from the
| grand stand. Patschke. in No. IL,
Acme however, was out for all time,
having broken a cam shaft after COM
pleting two rounds.
The third car came to grief.
| Chevrolets Matteson. when it cracked
a cylinder at Jericho and was prac-
tically out of the race after going a lap
and a half. Robertson was proving
! the hero of the race, reeling over the
first three rounds at an average of
| &c 40 miles per hour.
| Completing the third lap No. 16. Lo-
| comobile driven by Robertson. led fol-
| lowed by No. 4 Chadwick driven by
! Stricken, and No. s Isotta, driven by
Lyttle Robertson made the third lap
| in 90 minutes II seconds. which is the
! fastest time so far.
Robertson relinquished the lead on
| the fourth lap Haupt, in Mercedes No.
| A. was leading, closely followed by Lyt-
| tie and Stricken.
On the sixth lap No. 8. Mercedes, was
| delayed about one minute, account of
| engine trouble.
a. m.-No. 8. Mercedes. was held up
| at the pit about minutes to replensih
gasoline and water supply.
9:O5 a. m.-No. z, Matheson car caught
| on fire in front of grandstand. The fire
was readily extinguished.
/ e.26 a. m.-Car No. 4, Chadwick
which was in the lead up to the seventh
lap, was compelled to put into the con-
| troll at Locust Grove on account of
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