The Washington times., 1911-12-27
AUTOMOBILE RACING
ON TOIBOGGAN, SAYS
ARMY OF MAKERS
others.Declare Sport Is Nee
essary for Development
of Machines.
BY HARRY wARD.

automobile racing on the toboggan?
An army OF motor car Manufacturers
answer in the affirmative, while n Geo.
ohd ana equally as large a body OF au-
.omooile makers insist that racing is
Imperative to the development of the
industry. Alfred Reeves, former mem-
Der of the Vanderbilt Cup Commission.
and who was a member of the contest
board Of the American Automobile As
ISOLATION for q number of wears. IL
among the latest recruits TO the ranks
or the opponents to the speed contest, +
waning public interest, the useiessnes.
or demonstrating how fast cars can
travel, and the needless waste of human
life are, In fact, putting automobile rae
Ing In the discard declares Reeves.
For three years" he continued, ..at-
tendance at the big races has steadily
decreased. The recent running of the
vanderbilt Cup race at Savannah, de-
spite the fact that phenomenal speed
was attained by the cars. was not an
unqualihed success. and the prediction
is made that about one more running
will end that classic.
1t ls not to be denied that the Van
derbilt trophy did lot for the auton,o.
bile Industry. 1t has accompiished ali
that William x. Vanderbilt. ir 40,
out to do when he offered the tronhv
proving that America can produce TIC
world. VI tne
when the running of this rac. ha
the foreign drivers, notably those ~
France, were leading the earth in sneed
For the last four years American cars
and American drivers have been in
front, and 1t is Just this that Mr.. Van.
derbilt wanted to prove This accom-
piished, the usefulness of the race In
past, and / am convinced that there
VIII not be more than one more running
OF 1t-aithough l know of no official at
| tempt to end 1t.
| when companies like the Locomo-
pile and Alec. which have been con-
| being the first American maker to win
the event, and the latter having built
the car that won II two times in sue
cession-get sick of the game there
one thinks of races between locomo-
tives. Races between automobiles are
| Just as illogical. for we all know now
that you can manufacture automobiles
| that will go as fast as anyone can
drive them.
Furthermore, the buyers of automo-
biles-to whom races are supposed to
What they want is n reIiability, ana Spseii Il
/ is a fact that 30 per cent Of all cars
are OF moderate speed"
! lndt tHe Helu IOT tne OU-mlle lnterna-
tional sweepstakes race to be run on
the Indianapolis speedway next Mem
orial Day will be by far the best which
has ever started in any event is assured
| by the fact that $50 900 Is to be divided
| among the twelve first cars to finish !;
the winner Of the race to receive $4,000
This is the richest purse that ever has
been hung up for any contest of this
kind, and probably Is far greater than
| any other race course can afford to Of
| fer. Several Of the best foreign drivers
have become interested because of the
rich reward and are planning to come to
| America as contestants. This will he
| the first great American track race in
which the foreign race drivers have ap-
| peared in any number.
| From the standpoint of the motor en-
| thusiast the race Is certain to be doubly
interesting because OF the speed re-
| quirements. Every car must show q
| speed of seventy-five miles per hour for
the distance of one lap Of two and one
half miles. After this severe test, II
there are more than thirty cars ready to
start, only the thirty fastest in conn
petitive trial will be allowed to take the
word in the long grind.