Omaha daily bee., 1909-08-20
PERMIT FOR RACE REFUSED
Omaha Automobile Club Holds Con.
test in Spite of A. A. As Action,
NO DEALERS IN RELIABILITY RUN
Race Great Success, hut winner Will
Not he Known Until Judges Meet
Today aud Figure out Dif-
fercnt Penalties.

The Omaha Automobile club pulled Off
a most successful reliability contest We'd
nesday and Thursday in spite of the op-
position Of the A. A. a. or American Auto
mobile association. This association Of
manufacturers did not wish the race to
be held for some reason ana refused 10
grant a sanction. The Omaha Automobile
club decided to hold the race anyway Gnd
several leading merchants had given good
and valuable prizes, the course had been
mapped out and a large NUMBER Of snG!es
had been received.
The sanction was refused by Chairman
Hover, the same chairman who had ths
recent trouble with the Glidden tour.
trouble which probably Will eliminate in
the tour being run by the manufacturers
next year without the aid aad consent OF
the A.. A. A. This trou BE was brewing
as the racers reached Omaha about a
month ago, but an extreme effort to keep
the trouble a secret was partially success
full until the run was nearly finished when
war broke out.
Mr.. Hover refused t. grant a sanction
to the Omaha Automobile club, hut the
club decided to run the race anyway. The
refusal OF a sanction would make hltte
difference to an owno" of a EAR AS he
has a right to do It's he pleases with his
car, but the refusal made Il impossible
for dealers to enter, at least those dC2'ers
handling cars manuf Isturci by the mer,-
bers Of the a. y. 4. This refusal kel I
all the Omaha dealers from entering cars
except Dick Stewart, wn) ent-'ed a Rom
bier and drove 1t himsslf. Other dealers
including Deright and Fredrickson re.
ceived word from the factories whose cars
they handle that II they entered the "ace
their agencies would be taken away from
them.
winner CUR Ont Today.
The race was a great success. but who
the winner is will not be determined Until
today when the board of Judges meet to
figure up the different penalties. The
rules governing the race nre somewhat
similar to those of the Glidden tour and
also the reliability race whicn the club
gave a couple of months ago. Perform
ance on the road counts so Irucn, and the
condition of the cars at the end Of the
run is also taken into consideration
Thirty-three cars started in tho race ano
twenty-six finished. The course was about
400 miles and the drive was made from
Omaha to Grand Island to Hastings on the
first day and from Hastings to OMAHA
yesterday.
As the various cars rolled up to Guy
ClilNH > garage yesterday dlltlllOOn AA'
occupants looked more like monkeys than
human beings. All wore goggles and out
side of these the dust was smeared until
the skin was invisible. All reported a
splendid trip with little trouble and plenty
of dust.
L. c. Nash, a director of the Omaha
Automobile club, who had charge of the
run, made the record run of the day. In
his big Packard he left Hastings after the
last of the contestants had left and was
the first into Omaha except Captain Bu-
chan in the pilot car and o. p. Nestman
in a Stevens-Duryea Big 6. Mr. Nash car
ried six passengers, including Mrs. Nash
and her sister, Miss ROBBERS, Mrs. e. H.
Sprague and Miss Woodward. u
Jack Shea Is second.
Jack Shea was the second of the racers
10 reach Omaha. He was driving M. G.
Colpetzer's Pierce Arrow and his trip was
all the more remarkable from the fact
that he made an extra run of thirty miles
b. losing the road.
Captain Buchan in the pilot car left Has
tings at 6:15 yesterday morning, stopping
three-quarters of an hour at Fairmont for
breakfast and for dinner at Lincoln and
arrived in Omaha at 3:45. He left Lincoln