The Morning standard. [volume] (Ogden, Utah) 1910-191?, 1910-10-23
RACING OF
AER()PL ANES

New York, oct. 22.-Thc opening
day ol the international aviation meet
at Belmont Park daWncd clear, bright
and cold. although the weather mans
outlook was pcsslmistic, promising
showers before sundown. Thirty ayi-
ators and about forty arcoplanes were
out for the beginning of what prom
ises to be the most important aero
nautic event ever held anywhere In
the world
The setting at Belmont Park. l.. l.,
for what today and the eight succeed
ing days will be an international bat
Tic for the supremacy of the air, was
disappointing
A green field OF cropped grass, set
in a saucer, rimmcJ at the horizon
with faint blue fields, bounded by the
familiar oval of the Belmont race
trace and marked at the turns with
tall red and white pylons, huge steel
grandstand. painted 10 tone with the
landscape, gay with the flags of all
nations and banked 10 the roof with
tier on tier of close ranged benches;
beside II the white colonial facade
OF the Westchcster racing association 5
club house opposite It the broken
outline of the twenty hangers In which
the aeroplanes OF three nations are
housed; 10 the east low clump OF
trees and near them the trim brown
tents OF the United States signar
corps-such was tho picture that
greeted the eye OF the observer at
daybrcak.
America, France and Great Brit
ain are the competitors Neither Cur
tiss nor the Wright Brothers. the best
known American ayiators, are entered
In person. They are represented by
lloNsey. John6tonc and Brookins for
the WrlghtS and McCurdy. Ely, Mars
and Willard for Curuss.
Curtlss won the James Gordon Ben
nett international cup last year. but
he declined 20 defend IL in person this
year. Instead both he and the Wrights
nave built special racing machines,
not yet seen In public with which
they hope 10 retain 1t for America,
but they Will meet opposition in the
latest 100-horsepower Bleriot. brought
here by the French team.
Hamilton has n new 1lO-horsc power
blplanc, but it has never been tried
out TO the limit and even its owner
does not know just what II will do
under pressure. He believes it very
fast. John b. Molssant smashed his
Bleriot racer last Monday. but Is busy
rebuilding T. j. Armstrong DrexeI
viii also fly American machines
France sends Leon Morane. who now
holds all speed records for one kilo-
meter up TO rs miles; Hubert Latham.
with his beautiful, crrntic. dragon.fly
Antolnette mouoplane. Alfred lie
Blanc. the champion cross-country
llyer' Emil Auburn, his pupil. Count
jacques de Lcsseps, the second aviator
10 cross the English channel, and such
lesser celebrities as Barrier. Garros.
Audcmars and Simon. some of whom
fly the tiny "domolsselles." tho hum.
ming birds among aeroplanes.
England sends Claude Graham
White. who took first honOrs at Bos-
ton In the recent Harvard meet.
James Radley Oglyllle and McArdIc.
all representing the Royal Aero Club
OF the United Kingdom
Tho definite arrival Of the mono.
plane As one OF the most noticeable
features of the meet
The failure of tho Condor TO make
a longer flight Is ascrlbed by NJ. Fauro
10 the condition OF his balloon. which
was weakened he saws. by cxposuro
10 wind and weather on the deck OF
tho steamship which brought II from
Europe.
The most thrilling feature OF the
CondorS flight was d sensational dron
from a height Of nearly two miles TO
a point less than fifty feet above the
surface Of Lake Michigan. NJ Sch
molck told OF this experience as fol
lows:
IT was late on Monday night We
were al height Of something near
10000 feet when suddenly We struck
zone OF air whore the temperature
was close 20 zero. The gas In the
balloon began 10 condcnse rapidly and
We started falling. We shot down
and down. Wc strove frantlcallv 10
check our descent After a sheer
drop OF 5000 feet. there came n brief
halt and we thought we were safe.
hut the rcllef only for a moment
Again tho balloon began 10 drop BAGS
of ballast wore hurled overheard and
splashcd in the black waters beneath
Then We sacrificed tho oxygen tanks
and everything that We could lay our
hands on, but stlll we dropped.
we were within a hundred feet
OF the surface OF the great lake when
we discarded our shoes and coats and
clasped our life presoryors 10 our
bodies. believing that IN au infant We
would be plunged into the water
Then, just when We thought ourselves
lost. the balloon was halted on It's
downward flight We wcrc only forty.
five feet above tho surface Of tho wat.
ct. We breathed a sigh OF relief as
the wind carried us over the water
and we sighted land.
"Our attempt Ia descend was
fraught with new pcrils. Tho balloon
sailed three miles over tho rough
country at express tram speed. drag.
ging the basket In its wake. Tho
basket was dashed against fences
tarmhouses and three chimncys dur
ing tho onslaught Fences werc bowl.
ed over and small trees knocked down.
Finally, a stout barbed-wiUe fence
caught US and held long enough to
throw NJ. Faurc and mysclf hcadlong
into marsh fllled with muddy water.
We holt-swam and hnlf-wadcd to terra
firma and found We were In Two
Rivers, Wis"
Ayialors were early astir on the
ground here, preparing Tor the open.
ing OF the International aviation meet.
Work was proceeding In tho ma
chine tents, grooming the machines
for the days flights There was
breeze blowing out OF tho northwest,
but one aviator dared the cond tions
of the early morning and yenmred a
flight This was Captain Thomas