Arizona republican., 1909-10-30
COLUMBIA MAKES TRIAL TRIP OVER THE DESERT TAKES FOUR DAYS T oMAKE THE
 TRIP. It Is the Sixth Car to Make a PreIim- mary Journey Over the Los An
 eeles- Phoenix Course.

After a successful run across the
 Los Angeles Phoenix race course the
 Columbia, driven by Hal Stone and c. | P Illingsworth, reached Phoenix yes ! terday afternoon. The Columbia, which is entered in the great race for ! The Republican cup by Bireley and Young. coast agents for the car. was the object of great curiosity as it | drove up Center street and stopped in | front of the Hotel Adams. It is con 1 sidered to be one of the fastest cars
 in the race and now holds the Los An geles- San Diego record, which it took September from a field of ten cars. The Columbia men came over the
 course in leisurely fashion. They made
 no attempt to make a recoGd or try roads Their sole intention was to become familiar with the course. Stone said that he learned one thing on the trip that he didn't know be- fore. We were told in Los Angeles
 by every one he said, that tho roads
 through California were vile. and We
 were not disappointed in them. But
 every one told us that the roads in Arizona were simply boulevards. The only fair stretch of road in Arizona is between the river and Vicksburg. From Vicksburg in the roads are very poor.
 The men experienced intense heat on the Colorado desert. The ther- mometer went up to 120 and the heat was so great that they were forced to stop in the middle of the day at Indio- They met sheep herder with bunch of 2.S00 sheep He said he lost 800 of the sheep by the heat, and as the Columbia men drove along they found the road strewn with bodies of the animals.
 Illingsworth and Stone started from Los Angeles Monday night at 10 o'clock They made San Bernardino in two hours and ten minutes. and stayed there over night. About noon Tuesday they reached Indio and ran into the heat wave. They camped there in the desert to escape the heat until Wednesday morning. At Mecca they met some of the men connected with the White Steamer and the Franklin. These cars went on to the river. and it was currently reported at Mecca that the Franklin tore off a driving wheel against the stump of a tree Any way, the cars were shipped back to Los Angtles for repairs and will make a fresh start, possibly com ing through to Phoenix before the race.
 The hardest part of the route was reported to be between Mecca and Dos Palmos, a distance of fifteen miles. which requires at least two hours to negotiate. The Columbia men were stuck in the sand a number of times and tried to get around Dos Palmos by a different route. but could find none At Dos Palmos they ran out of drinking water. There are springs at this place. but the water is favored with arsenic and comes hot out of the ground. Illingsworth placed bottle of beer in the water to cool it and was surprised a few minutes later to find that it was al- most boiling
 They reached Ehrenberg Thursday night and were ferried across the river without delay. They stopped long enough to tinker up the gasoline engine for the man who runs the launch for towing the ferry. and then drove into Vicksburg. where they passed the night.
 The Columbia is one of the fast cars in the race. and at the same time shows great durability. On the Santa Monica track it made S7 miles an hour. X short time ago Stone made the record of 320 miles in ten hours. twenty minutes. on the course from Los Angeles to San Diego and return. In this race such excellent cars as the Apperson "Jackrabbit." the Chad wick. the Franklin Greyhound" the Doris and the Matthewson were de- feated. There is now in the present race a fine chance for the old rivalry between the Pennsylvania and the Columbia to crop out. The two cars will. however be separated by about an hour on the road.
 The Columbia is a strong favorite on account of it's known speed and durability. Harold Stone is a driver who has exhibited courage and perse- verance in the face of obstacles Un- less retarded by serious accident he will probably be among the first to arrive in Phoenix.