The Salt Lake herald-Republican. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1909-1918, 1910-04-24
LYLE WILL DRIVE
AMERICAN MOTORS
Famous Chauffeur Will Be at
Wheel in Famous Events
in Coming Season.
HOW SPEED WAS ATTAINED
EXPERT TUNED UP CAR FOR
ORIGINAL FAST TRIALS.

simultaneously from Indianapolis comes
the interesting news that the American
Motor Car company has engaged Herbert
II. Lyle to drive its cars in the more
prominent racing events OF the 1910 sea-
son; and that Lyle. in a try-out Of the
stock roadster speed model on the In
dianapOlis speedway, April II. registered
the terrific speed of Sc miles an hour.
Lyle was engaged in tuning up this
particular car, which he viii drive In the
seasons races, when the amazing speed
burst was made.
The car has a 6o-horsepower engine and
is equipped with the undressing frame,
which has been a notable characteristic
of certain American models in the past,
and which Is applied to four of the regu-
lar stock GLASSES this year.
Racing enthusiasts viii see in the com-
bination of Lyle and the American Tor
the coming season a great many posst-
bilities.
Lytie Pioneer.
Lyle is one of the pioneer racing driv-
ers Of the country, having been at the
game since away back in 1903. he has
driven more cars or various makes IN
more races OF prominence possibly than
any other driver living.
In the past he has participated IN the
Vanderbilt cup events and the road races
at Savannah. And in the years when Eu-
rope was teaching America the line points
of the racing game he was factor TO
be reckcned with in the big continental
events.
LytIes own reasons for his selection of
the American for the coming racing sea-
son are interesting.
when 1 began to look ABOUT Tor
a Connection for the 1910 season., says
I,ytle, 81 had decided that the car
would drive would be the American II
satisfactory arrangements could De
made. In arriving at this decision l
was governed by two things. one OF
these is the fact that I have never en-
countered a car which 1 would con
slider the mechanical superior or the
American. The other is the American
underslung frame. In this L oelleve
that the American builders have elm
mated the most dangerous factor of
racing-the tendency of car 10 SKID
and upset at the turns.
Weight Preserves Balance.
mo one ever heard of an American
turning turtle simply because the un-
ierslung frame swings the weight OF
the car beneath the aXles and SO much
closer TO the ground than IS round IN
any other type of construction Al
Savannah several years ago the Amert-
can threw one of the tires clean or
the wheel-but nothing happened. In
the Paramount park races last year
the American driver attempted TO take
a sharp turn at speed a little too high,
with the result Lndt DOth tlreS WSio
blown, Again, nothing happened, save
that the mechanic was rolled about
twenty feet over the ground and was
somewhat bruised.
Successful racing does not depend
upon speed alone, for If the car comes
to grief, whatever speed records 1t
may have made before the break are
lost utterly. And If this is true. the
building of a car which can success
fully compete in races does not mean
81. IT,TT afv,a r.lxr Of
cred engine, but as many safeguards as
possible for the car itself and Its oc-
Cupants.
1t goes as a matter of course that If
a car equipped with the undressing
frame is enabled to make sharp turns
almost at maximum speed in road and
track races, the factor of safety in
the ordinary users hands is raised to
the maximum by this type of construc-
tion.