Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-09-29
Lyle Auto 0verturns in Long
Island Derby.
DRIVER is SERIOUSLY HURT
Joe Bates, His Mechanician, /
Killed.
BUT THE RACE DOESN'T STOP
See, Chevrolet. de Palma and Les
cault Each Wins in
His Class.
Special Dispatch to The Star.

Special Dispatch to The Star
RIVERHEAD, L. l.. September 29.-A
serious accident, which may result in the
death of Herbert Lyle, the we'll known
automobile road race driver, and which
killed his mechanician. Joe Bates, marred
the running of the Long Island stock car
derby here this morning. The accident
which occurred near Worthwhile. on the
north side of the 22.5-mile circuit. was
due to the skidding of the Apperson car,
No. 4, while travelling at terrific speed.
Lyle, who was the fourth contestant te
leave the grandstand in the feature race
of the day. safely negotiated the bad
turns near Riverhead. Jamesport and
Mattituck. and was running on the al.
most straightaway course between Yves,
Mattituck and Centreville. when for some
unknown reason the car skidded and
turned over, after crashing through a
fence alongside the road. complete
wreck.
Spectators near the scene of the accl-
dent rushed to the assistance of the men
pinned under the car and with difficulty
extricated them from the mass of twisted
steel and iron.
Bates injuries, which caused his death.
consisted of a fractured skull broken
arm, broken leg and fractured ribs. With
Lyle he was carried to a nearby farm
house. where four physicians were in
constant attendance on the men.
A later examination of Lytle's injuries
caused the physicians to hold out hope OF
his ultimate recovery. His injuries were
announced as a fractured skull. internal
injuries and severe bruises of the entire
body.
Race Not Stopped.
Despite the accident which had caused
the death of one race participant and the
serious injury Of another. the other COM
peting cars swept around the course at
terrific speed. Several Of the, drivers
hour during the early laps, and from a
speed standpoint the race surpassed any
thing ever held in this country.
In class five for cars selling at 1851 to
81 $50. distance four laps or ninety-one
miles. Arthur See. in Maxwell, was the
hour Al minutes % seconds, at an aver
age speed of sixty-four miles an hour.
Thomas Costello, driving a Maxwell. was
second. 1 hour A minutes Is As seconds.
In class 4. for cars selling from S1.251
to $1,000, to cover five laps or 1870 miles
the winner was Louis Chevrolet, at the
wheel of Buick, who made the distance
in 1 hour 81 minutes 30 seconds, an aver
age speed of a trifle over seventy miles
an hour, which, it was announced, Is a
new American record. Robert Burman.
his team mate, was second in 1 hour At
minutes 2 1-5 seconds.
The Fiat car driven by de Palma, won
the class 3 race, making 2275 miles
in 21S minutes and 35 seconds. This was
an average of 62.35 miles an hour. Dis
brow, In the Painter. was second when the
race was declared off.
Lescaut in a Palmer-Singer won the
race for cars in class 9 He made 1S2
miles in 10 minutes and 4 seconds.
Bates Leaves Wife and Child.
TOLEDO, Ohio, September 29-James
Bates, the dead mechanician, leaves a
wife and one child, living in Kokomo,
Ind, where he went with Lytle last July
when the latter began driving the APP
person car He was twenty-seven years
old and has been with Lyle two years
Previously both men lived in Toledo.
Lyle has been in many serious acct
dents, but perhaps his closest call to
death was from an attack of typhoid
fever which confined him in a hospital
here for weeks last winter. His life
was despaired of, and during his de
lirium he raved Of the big races in
which he had participated. On his re-
covery he went almost direct from the
hospital to enter the Vanderbilt cup
races