Los Angeles herald., 1910-11-20
AUTO RACING REQUIRES
MUSCLE, BRAINS AND NERVE
SideIights on Physical Ability of
Some Noted Drivers

When Wagner came tearing down
the homestretch of the Savannah road
course in his dashing red Fiat one
sunny November afternoon in 1908 and
captlred the Savannah grand prize
contest reporters and photographers
crowded around the new speed king
After few casual questions q report
er asked him:
Wagner, what do you consider are
the qualities that make great road
driver?"
Wagner sank a little further down
against the oily back of his tubby little
seat, considered a minute and replied:
Brains ana nerve-mostly nerve
Last fall in Atlanta the same Ques
tion was put to Barney Olfield just be-
fore he took the next to the most i'm
memorial trouncing of his life at the
hands of Lewis Strang.
Barney licked his black cigar still
further into the corner of his capacious
mouth and gave this verdict
ITO be a good racing driver man
should not have too much sense and a
lot of strength"
Discounting the first part of Bar
! ney's utterance, for it can be proved
that few drivers without brains have
ever won consistently, you get to the
real truth Of the problem.
Brute strength"
That's the answer.
There is not a really first-class road
or track driver in the business in
America today who is handling big
cars and who is not at the same time
sturdy man with worlds of muscles
in forearm and with enough weight to
keep him anchored in his seat, despite
any ordinary jouncing.
What made Barney Oldfeld a great
dri-er?
Brute strength.
Odfield brags that there was never a
steering wheel made that he wouldn't
carry away with him when he was
thrown out of car. After three of his
most sensational fence bustings" he
was found stretched on the ground
with the rim of his steering wheel
gras sped in his hands. His muscles had
been stronger than the material of
which the wheel was made. And this
tremendous MUSCLE equipment made 1t
possible for him to drive at top speed
around corners and down the straight
ways.
There was an example this summer
OH the Atlanta speedway. In the early
| practice for a local meet +. H McGin
and Asa Gambler ir. did all the tuning
up of Mr.. Gamblers giant Fiat 90. This
is a car which is particularly vicious
at steering. 1t yanks and bucks and
In every practice spin Mr.. Gambler
could get two or three seconds better
time for a round than his driver. Both
men are equally fearless and equally
skillful. The secret lay in weight and
strength. The amateur had forty or
fifty pounds advantage in weight and
proportionately more strength.
Beef is what is needed. Men pick
their race drivers today as they picked
football material in the old days.
IF they have the weight and strength
we will teach 'em how to drive the
manufacturers say.
Look over the famous drivers of to-
day. Take these, for instance, who
have raced on the Atlanta speedway
Oldfeld, as has been mentioned, is an
elephant George Robertson. who has
done perhaps the most brilliant driv~
| ing, all things considered, that was
ever done on the Atlanta track, is
huge He isn't so tremendously tall,
! but he is a solid piece Of humanity
and strong as a rhino. Jack Aitken,
who drove National so brilliantly in
both Atlanta race meets, is not chunky,
but is a tall, rangy man, with tremen-
dous strength. Harding, who drove
the Apperson cars last fall, is another
of the same stamp. Chevrolet, win
ner of the Coca Cola trophy last fall.