Los Angeles herald., 1910-03-08
REAL CHAMPION
NOT ADVERTISED
RACE PROMOTER FAILS TO IN
FORM PUBLIC
Patrons of Auto Contests Lett 10
Guess Who "Other Noted
Drivers" Are-Title
Held Locally

Proudly Haunting on the sides OF the
electric cars of Los Angeles last week
were large and flaring signs readlhg'
"Rav Harroun, Worlds Champion, at
Ascot Park, March and o. IneIe
were not very many persons IN inns
section of the country who had ever
heard Of the worlds champion VINO
appeared on those dates. The records
of championship drivers, so far as
this department Is advised, contain
the name of Harroun in but one
eVent-When he made six m1les IN
Marmon "32" in 5:40:S3, and the thirty,
forty, fifty. sixty, seventy and elghty
to 120 miles at an average speed OF
sixty miles an hour on the Atlanta
speedway
Harroun came to Los Angeles and
found a western boy and a<50 per cent
smaller powered car awaiting him, ana
what that westerler and his little red
wagon did to Harroun is now a matter
of history. The further discussion OF
that event is passed over as matter
of general courtesy to stranger IN
our midst.
This week, bright and early on Mon
day morning, the electric cars again
made their appearance with new and
glittering signs tied to the same spot
as those of last week, but this time
the signs read differently. There are
two of them this week. One reads
"$1.00 mile at Ascot" and the other
and most important reads, "Matson,
Harroun and other noted drivers at
Ascot park Saturday and Sunday"
The Herald bows humbly and begs
to state that 1t finds no information
i'm the book of records concerning any
of Matsons achievements save one
when he drove a Chalmers go ten
miles ON the Atlanta speedway in
9:49:46 and another of four miles in
4:05:05. We do know that Matson is
quiet and unassuming gentleman,
looking more like a Blackstonian
student than an automobile speed
fiend, and this week Matson is given
the place of honor first upon the Ascot
advertising banners.
That is the business of the manage
ment of the automobile promotion as
sociation. but the public is left to
guess who the other noted drivers
are, when they should be properly ad-
vised so that when they step to the
window to purchase their admission
tickets at 81 per they may know whom
they are to see driving on the park.
No information of this kind is given,
and the public is now fully advised
that there is no world champion"
advertised for next Sunday, because
llidl tue was Adh6H away lIOiH I1dI-
roun. who appears as a headliner, by
an inferior car for speed. but a superior
driver at the helm. So who is going
out to see who they know not will be
there? Al Livingstone is the cham
pion of the world for fifty miles, the
right to which ownership until Sunday
afternoon belonged to Bobby Bur
man, all old pal of Livingstone's when
they were eating doughnuts and drink
ing Of rOffaa tnOpf bpr { ri t1f
feurs on the east side in Chicago--when
they had the price
Supposing a theater was to adver-
tise Hamlet" or king Lear or any
of the Shakespearean plays without
the name of the actor who was to play
the part, how many would be in their
seats when the curtain raised? No
expert could ever figure the number.
There is but one worlds champion
in Los Angeles racing today and it is
Livingstone. Harris Hanshue, the
owner of the Santa Monica record, is
another, but Harris is on the shelf for
reasons best known to Leon T. Shet-
tier. This makes the advertising of
the coming events of Saturday and
Sunday a joke. If the announcement
We're made that two or three or half
a dozen or more eastern cracks" were
going to give an exhibition it would
be all right, but the public will be IN
terested in knowing who the "other
noted drivers" are.
Los Angeles is noted for "other not
ed drivers" We have Roger Stearns,
who can make more severe turns with
his favorite little Fords than any man
living and come nearer to making the
fastest speed in the world with these
same cars. which would make the
"cracks" of the east palsied with fear.
We have Lew Denker. who is a Won
der with the wheel. Then there is w.
d. Newerf, who can dodge those ca
gle-eyed motorcyclists Coe and Gard
ner better than any person on the
road while making twelve miles an
hour. And Walter Seeley in his big
red Pope is a whirlwind as a pilot.
The woods are full of 'other noted
drivers" OF course the names of Frank
Free, Frank Seifert, Nick Nikrent,
Lou Nikrent, his brother, Morris o.
Donnell, Bruno Zeibel Billy Baudette,
Harvey Herrick and dozen or more
NOTED drivers have not been men,
toned.
In the interest of fair play to the
public these names should be changed
to read as they should, placing the
real champions at the head with the
comment that two or three eastern
Cracks" would try to keep up with
these western greenhorns at racing,
provided they would agree to carry
sprinkling cans to dampen the track
as they trailed behind. so that their
faces might not be spoiled in the ef-
fort to catch up with the "other not
ed drivers" of effete Los Angeles.