Los Angeles herald., 1909-10-10
FROM 2 WHEELS
TO 4 IS DESIRE
OF DARE DEVIL
STARTED ON A VEL0CIPEDE
AT AGE OF NINE
BROKE ALL WORLDS MoToRcY-
GLE RECORDS WHICH STAND
Took All Sorts of Chances, but Always
Came Out Safe, and undoubt-
edly win Succeed
on Auto
By PAUL J. c. DEBKUNI

me; How did you get into the racing
The answer is simple. Apparently l
was born with an ambition to go raster
through space than any other person
and / have never outgrown it. AS 1ar
hack as can remember I have al
zvavs been a contender where getting
there first was the main consideration.
When I was a small kid in kits l
owned a velocipede In front OF our
home was the old cable line, and l
kept my mother busy rescuing me from
in front of the cars as l hustIeu uoWn
the middle of the track trying 10 see
how fast 1 could turn the front wnsSl ,sSI
over without falling into the caole
slot. -
AS grew older, I began to race
with the larger boys of the neighbor-
hood. They with their more poWertul
limbs and larger wheeled vehicles
UotlId take the street on the sldeS OF
the track l, as usual, would rlde lne
guard plates in the center. And now
would pedal my head off to WIN tile
bunch of grapes, the apple or the
banana which the young men "ouiu
hang UP as a prize.
At 9 years I really entered the rae
ing game. My parents moved TO
pIace near the old Athletic park-the
site of the first bicycle saucer IN Los
Angeles. My father, yielding to my
persistent entreaties, bought me pl-
cvcle. That was in $780, Since tneh
nothing has kept me away from the
track when races were on. At every
opportunity 1 was on the track to try
nv speed with the other small boys
In 1894 my parents and the track man
agement Welded to my request to let
me race and from then on L came IN
for my share Of the prizes. followed
the bicycle racing game with more
than ordinary success until 1907, when
racing in this vicinity began to wane.
with the speed bug still buzzing
within me, 1 turned my attention TO
railroading as the most likely place
to find qualification. With an eye TO
the front end, secured place on the
Southern Pacific as a locomotive fire.
man. The work was fascinating. Ihe
swing of the engine as we hit the low
Joints and the bark of the exhaust
when we struck the hard spots on the
hills. set my blood to boiling. Then
came the motorcycle. I bought one to
ride to and from my work. 1t was a
little one and three-quarter horsepower
gun and I thought it could go some.
On it I learned to take the corners
and I learned 1t, too. through sheer
necessity. I found that with the mo-
torbike 1 could sleep half an hour
longer L
old push machine. Then / stretched
the half hour into three-quarters and
left myself barely time to catch my
engine If I let the motor out to its
limit A slow-up for a wagon or
pedestrian meant more speed around
the corners-or tardiness at work.
1 slid around the turns until 1 be-
came so adept that turns and straight
stretches looked all alike to me. Then
7 L., 7
of the single cylinder was not enough.
Others had faster machines and Just
had to have. one, too. I got five
horse power machine. And II was on
this machine that I did my first track
racing"
Early in 1907 the Los Angeles Motor
cycle club gave a race meet on Agri-
cultural park track. Walter Collins,
riding a five horsepower French ma
chine established new worlds records
for all distances between five and ten
miles. In September of the same year
September to be exact-the same
club gave another race meet. I pos
sessed a machine of equal power and
believed I could beat Collins record
and I shudder today, when I think of
the risk we both took on that occasion.
We removed the steel rims and heavy
motor tires and replaced them with
light wooden rims and the lightest
bicycle racing tires we could buy. The
net result was that both Of us turned
the mile track in better than mile q.
minute. I made a clean sweep and
such a good showing that the factory
sent me a special racing machine with
which to enter the next event.
My next ride was in November 29,
1907, and was one which the 1900 per-
sons present have not forgotten. 1t
was at the Riverside Hill climb, over
the Box Springs grade. This climb is
over a crooked course with three dou-
bic IS" and seven other turns-ten in
all-in a total distance of three and
eight-tenths miles. My average speed
for the whole course was So miles an
hour and the time from start to finish
four minutes and twenty-one seconds
a record which has never been ap-
preached closer than a minute even by
the most powerful automobiles.
This was the third trial event Of my
life. 1 knew 1 had Walter Collins as
an opponent. He was riding the same
make of machine as myself and his
racer had been on the ground and he
had been running it over the course for
four days. My racing machine was in
transit and did not arrive until thl
night before the race. At daybreak or
course. My brother was with me with
a stop watch. I made two trips UP and
they were satisfactory. We put the
machine away and then I went back
and walked the course. I studied the
angles, the bitches, the banks at the
turns. 1t was win or go over the
mountainside in the attempt.
At u o'clock we We're called to the
tape. My brother was there to push
my machine off. Get there, Paul, II
1t is the last thing you do" were his
words as the starter said Ready" ]
did. I established records that have
stood for three years and are alikely
to stand for many more. Collins start
ed first, one minute ahead of me. ]
finished first at the tape ten feet in
front, beating him by just one minute
At that his record, although second tc
mine, has never been beaten.
Following the Box Springs stunt, ]
returned to work as a fireman anc
stayed there until February, 1908, wher
the Los Angeles Motorcycle club gave 6
race meet on Washington's Birthday
This was the best race meet ever helC
in Los Angeles. More than 1000 persons
were in attendance, and 1000 personi
went home satisfied in having seer
fourteen worlds records broken in ONT
day. All of these records were added
to my own string of victories.
This was the one time in my lif'
when / made a clean sweep Of every
thing, and as memento possess tn
best cup ever presented to a motorcy
Gle rider 1t was given my by Leon I
Shelter, Mr.. Shelter became so ex
cited during the ten-mile exhibition