Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1912-09-14

to improve the manufacture Of cars
on this side of the Atlantic. The race
was spectacular, and the public went
wild I'VE it.
An elimination Race.
When the second Vanderbilt was
run, the next autumn, an elimination
race was necessary in order to select
an American team, Bert Dingley
being the winner of the trial. When
the final was reeled off five cars each
represented America, France and
Italy, while Germany had but foul
A second triumph was recorded for
France by Hemery, in a Darracq,
when he drove in a winner at an
average speed of ~sixty-one n one
half miles an hour, materially better
than the time of Heath of the year
before In this contest Heath was
second and Tracy, in the Locomobile,
third. Upon this occasion, Lancia,
the famous italian driver, piloted one
of the greatest races in history,
prior to his unfortunate smash-up
with Christie.
France scored its third triumph in
the Vanderbilt race In 1906. ON DC
tober 10 an American team OF five
cars (picked after an elimination
trial / N which Tracy was first, one
of the best of the cup races took
place. The exciting finish, with Its
battle between Lancia, in the Fiat,
and Wagner, in a Darracq, will
be forgotten. These two drivers, TO-
gether with Duray and Jenatzy, had
been going with but a few SECONDS
difference in their elapsed times for.
some laps. In the tenth and last
Wagner took. the lead, only to meet
with tire troubles a couple OF min
utes later. There was a frenzy OF
excitement. Down the stretch came
Iancia snorting across the tape, the
first to finish the distance. Wagner,
however, was going again, and as
he had started several minutes be-
hind Lancia still had a chance to
win in elapsed time. Everyone Won
dered IL he would cross the tape be-
fore it was too late. He did IN a
whirlwind finish. Wagner's speed
was about 63 miles an hour for the
297 miles.
There a no cup race In l9Vf, tne
fourth taking place on october "a,
1908. with drivers competing as IN
dividuals and not as cams. n Dig
memorable feature of this contest Is
that for the first time the famous
trophy was brought back to Amer
ica, and it was George Robertson,
in the 90-horsepower Locomobile, VINO
turned the trick. Robertson's duel
with LytA, in the Isotta, toward the
finish was q thriller"
Grant Wins In Alec.
In October, 1909, the Vanderbilt cup
race and two small a races, the
Wheatly Hills and the Massapequa
Sweepstakes, took place simultane-
ously. Harry F. Grant won the VAN
derbilt trophy in a six-dolinder Alec
in a field of fifteen starters. He COW
cred 278 miles at an average of 62.S
miles an hour. Harroun, driving a
Marmon, won the Wheatly Hills
trophy and Matson, in a Chalmers,
the Massapequa event.
In a race that broke four records
Harry +. Grant, in an Alec, won the
sixth running of the Vanderbilt on
October /, 1910, over a course 27S.OS
miles in length. 1t was the fastest,
closest, largest in point of entries
and by far the hardest that had
been run for the cup. A Marmon,
driven by Joe Dawson, was second,
and Johnny Aitken, driving a Ma
aionaI, was third. There were thirty
one starters. Ten finished the con-
test of twenty-five laps over a 1854
miles circuit and five were running
when the race was called off. Grants
time was 255.58 minutes and that OF
Dawson was 25523 minutes.
Last year the race was carried
away from Long Island for the first
time, Savannah, Ca, landing the
plum. 1t was the fastest Vanderbilt
ever run and indeed one of the fast
est automobile races in history.
Ralph X. milford, in a Lozier car,
was the winner, his average for the
291.3S being H.N miles per hour.
Ralph De Palma, in the same Mer-
cedes ear which he is to drive at
Milwaukee and with which he re-
Gently won at Elgin, scored second
place in the last Vanderbilt, and
Spencer Wishart, in another Mer-
cedes, was third.
History of the Grand Prix.
On Thanksgiving Day, 1908, the first
international Grand Prix road race
for the Automobile Club of Americas
gold cup was run over n course in
Chatham county, near Savannah, Ga
The contest was then run and has