New-York tribune., 1909-10-31
TIE RACE IN DETAIL
One Contestant Iffcr 1n0thcr
an Trouble.

Willie Eaupt. in the American roadster.
vas the only absentee at the start of the
Vanderbilt Cup race. His car had suffered
d broken axle on Friday, and couldn't be
repaired in time for the start That left
i1teen cars TO fight it out, and Strang
went away at 9:03 o'clock with Mitchell
IN u Simplex. fifteen seconds later
Not 4 hitch marred the start, and every
thing went like clockwork until Mat
son, first around in the race of the smaller
cars swept by, having left Brown and
Ainslee behind him in his own class
Brown WAS in the race as an afterthought.
having been drafted to drive in place Of
knipper. who got into the Vanderbilt list
owing to the injury to Bert Dingley on
Thursday
Strans was the first man in trouble hav-
ing narrow escape from death on the
first lap, when a rock went through his
radiator near Westbury. He patched things
up as best he could, made temporary re-
pairs again at his pit.sand limped through
part OF the second round. That ended the
part in the race Of the man who was the
real favorite before the struggle began.
Mitchell, in the Simplex, was the first to
Hash by the stand in the Vanderbilt race.
and was timed for his first lap in 12:3I 1-5,
better than a mile q minute
1t wasn't possible 10 tell what was han
pening for time after that Cars were
going by in punches, so to speak and the
man who pretended he knew which was
which was being scoffed at. The official
timers gave out announcements that had to
be corrected almost before they were posted
and who led in the first few laps was IN
known 10 those who were looking on. II
was some time before the tangle as TO the
times was Strengthened out. and then If
was made plain that Harry Knipper. in thA
Chalmers-Detroit, was ahead on the first
lap. his time being II :36l-; Mitchell WAS
second and Grant was third.
TROUBLE PILED on TROUBLE
Trouble was piled On trouble i'm tbo rext
Few laps. Mitchell held his place for the
second lap. and went out of the race ON
his third, by which time Strang too vas
seen TO be hopelessly out of if NTi,oho11
broke his crank shaft Just after getting
away from the srandstand OF his third Ian
ana was out of the race Instantly +
heaIhe and Aitken, in Fiat and National
cars were eliminated on the fffth Isn
Altheh losing a wheel, while 1earna.e
engine got beyond his control
~ouls 'heErolet. in the Buick after -.
terlng along in the first three Ian. -,
back by one small thing after another 49,
out torrlb g pace in the fourth ian "a
lairly new around the course. He broLs
every speed record for such races. on An,or
ican soil, and completed the Ian i'm tho ot
most incredible time of 9:57. a rate of sraed
OF 800 miles an hour. He met disaster or,
MS next round, however. and WAS out 20
"le race at Meadow Brook with a blown
out cylinder head. He was almost frap,to
with disappointment and his wife Wiz
heard at the srandstand, when lie failed
TO appear, that he had been in a fatal .c-
cident, was beside herself
The lsotta, driven by Joe Seynour ,.bo
was regarded by many AS a probable win
ner after the elimination of Stranc and
Chevrolet, was put out of the contest an
the sixth lap after completing five round
In time close TO that Of the leaders
broken steering knuckle accounted for tbtI
Thus, with less than six laps completed .i,
cars OF the fifteen were already ont ~ ,ha
race. and from the chaos some sort oP on
idea of the condition of the race couId no
evolved