Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-08-01
GOOD SPORT FOR THE
POTOMAC 0ARSMEN
Clubs Annual Regatta Crowd
ed With Excitement
and Interest.

behind the palisades of the Potomac the
twilight had drifted into darkness and
the lights from the Aqueduct bridge alone
were left to guide them to the finishing
line, dozens of husky young athletes,
members of. the Potomac Boat Club.
rowed themselves limp and dizzy yester-
day evening in the annual club regatta
When the last race-the struggle between
the senior and junior Fights, by far the
prettiest contest of the lot-was over
darkness had come down upon the wa
ter. and it would have been impossible
to row another race with anything like
fairness to the contestants
But while the races were on they were
all good ones. from the single canoes.
in which one of the entries was put out
of business when his treacherous craft
upset just as he was nearing the finish,
to the half-mile dash between the seniors
and the juniors. In most instances the
contenders were we'll matched and there
were few runaway races.
1t was strictly club affair, this re-
gatta. No time was taken on any of the
races but that made no difference to the
club members who thronged the upper
gallery, the floats and the club windows
or lined up In canoes along the finish
+ i1Ile IL the Miuuie STATES
had depended upon the results the crowd
of observers could not have cheered more.
Nearly every man who entered a boat
had an admirer in the crowd. Each was
cheered whether he won or not. and that
helped great deal.
A Late Start.
It was a little after O'Clock when
John Hadley Doyle who had control on
the water, sent four canoes off for the
1OO-yard singles. The start was good, but
1t soon became apparent that the race
lay between Frank Smith and Arthur Biz
ney. The former finally won out, with
Birney. second, and H. NJ. Clagett. third.
The single scull race. which was looked
upon as a feature of the regatta, was
somewhat of a disappointment. There
were three entries. Tom German, for the
seniors: Joe DAILY, for the Intermediates.
and Carl Mueller, for the juniors. Owing
to the fact that DAILY misunderstood the
course he fouled Mueller several times,
and was disqualified. Under orders from
the referee, Mr.. Doyle. the boats stopped
when they had gone over two-thirds OF
the course. DAILY was declared out. and
Mueller and German finished from the
point where they had been halted, Cor
man winning.
After the decision had been rendered. d.
German, showing a thoroughly sports
manlike spirit. declined to accept. He
presented by Mr.. Doyle but announced
that II his two competitors were willing
the race would be rowed of three weeks
from yesterday. the sculling oars to be the
prize. The club officials and Mueller and
DAILY accepted Germans sportsmanlike
offer.
Great Race Here.
A great race was that between three
club Fights. composed OF members of the
club drawn without regard to their quail
ty as oarsmen. They were known as the
Reds, the Whites and the Blues, distin-
guished not by their costumes, which
were motley, but by the blades of their
oars.
on to good start, the Reds looked
like sure winners until the last hundred
yards, when the Blues came up with a
squirt to win handily. The Reds held a
long lead over the Whites and finished
an easy second.
The first wild excitement noticeable in
the crowd OF spectators was when the
unexpected happened in the four-oared
outriggers- There were three entries in
this race-Randolph and Morse Mueller
and Thrall and W. Miller and F. Miller
They got on well. and it soon became
apparent by the manner in which they
caught the water that close race was
on.
Surprised the Experts.
To the surprise of everybody Morse and
Randolph were soon seen to have little
on their adversaries Their stroke was
smoother and more even. and both were
catching the water perfectly, Morse driv-
ing like a piston rod and Randolph, in
the bow, swinging behind his stroke and
losing nothing. Steadily they forged to
the front. When the crowd at the finish
that thew had tho
up.
The fun Of this race was that Morse
who stroked the junior eight last wear,
never pulled double oar before Ran
doiph youngster. who was coxswain of
last years junior, begged Morse to enter
the race with him. He said he would
teach Morse. And he did. For the past
three days he had been putting the stroke
oar through the PAGES, and the two work
ed together like veterans
Inc mai event on the program was the
one that stirred everybody up. Those
old rivals. the senior and junior Fights
half mile. 1t was nearly dark and
the lights from the Aqueduct bridge cast
their shimmery glow across the finish
line, which was just below the bridge
The seniors drew the Maryland side of
the river and the juniors had the rest
Of it.
Seniors Too Strong.
Inc start was bit uneven, with the
juniors about half length to the good.
They took the water ahead of their rivals
and were under head even before the
seniors caught their swing. But as soon
as the older boys settled down to 1t
1t became apparent that there was no
doubt as to the outcome. Slowly but
surely the seniors cut down the juniors
lead and long before the finish was reach
ed they were holding them absolutely
safe. If the race had been for a mile
the juniors would have been outclassed
AS IT was the seniors won by a quarter
or boat length. with the juniors fight
ing hard to the last.
The regatta committee. which had
charge of affairs, was composed of Capt
Joseph Richardson and Messrs Walter
Ihrall. Harry Ellis. Joseph T. DAILY, Carl
Mueller. Thomas German and Joseph
Sprancy.
The officials. except Pat Dempsey. the
patrol judge. officiated from the gasoline
launch Auto. kindly loaned for the oc-
casion by Yorke Burgess, its owner. who
ran the launch himself. After the re-
gatta was over dance was given at
the clubhouse.