El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1912-09-07
WILL DEFY DEATH
IN TEST OF SPEED
Americas Third Interna-
tional Aviation Meet
May Be Sensational

! third international aviation meet
! which opens Monday, VIII establish a
| new mark for America in the number
! of aviators of international fame en-
! tered. Chief of these are. the pilots of
! the foreign and American racers who
| compete in the Gordon Bennett worlds
! championship aeropIane race, the first
! event of the meet
! The meeting embraces daily mono
! plane and biplane handicap races, a
| Scratch biplane and monoplane race
! which is designed to give further dem
! onstration of the skill OF the Gordon
/ Bennett drivers. and 40 kilometer
| race for all types handicapped. Other
/ contests are bomb and mail throwing
I accuracy landing contests from
/ heights of 1000 feet without motor
and similar events in which skill Of
! the operator is tested
| This is the fourth time aeroplanes
have been matched for the worlds
| championship, as typified by the $40
/ coo silver trophy given by James Cor
| don Bennett in 1908 to be contended
| for annually by licensed pilots of the
Federation AerOnautique Internation-
ale.
Americans Win Twice.
Twice before single American en-
I. trant has driven his aerOplane ahead
of his competitors and brought the
I silver trophy to America. Glenn H
Curtiss was the first winner, at
Rheims, France, August 2S, 1903. His
DlDla0e
Is minutes 30 seconds, or five seconds
ahead Of the looked for winner, Louis
Bleriot's monoplane. There were five
starters but only four of the flyers
were able to cover the distance, which
then was considered an almost impoS
sible journey for an aeroplne.
In New York, on the Belmont Park
aerdOme, the second contest was held.
The course had been heightened to
100 kilometers. (62.14 miles( and
aeE
known airman, won in Il minutes four
seconds in the first 100 horse power
BleriOt monOplane built. Alfred La
blame, Of France, led in the race in
the field, when he ran out of gasoline
and in landing, crashed into tele-
graph pole and smashed his aeroplane.
Grahame Whites victory took the
trophy to England, where it was con-
tested for 1911 on the Isle of Sheppy
at East-church, July l. Charles TeeEes
Weyman, sole American entrant again,
went up in a 100 horse power Nieu-
port monoplane and captured the
trophy. His time for the $50 kilome-
tiers was 81 minutes So seconds,
speed Of rs miles an hour, then
worlds record. Lablane, again after
the world championship had to con-
tent himself with second, being two
minutes slower than Weymann-
Speed Alone Wins.
Speed alone determines the winner,
there being no restriction on the con-
structiOn of the aeroplane. Because of
the high speeds attained. few aviatorS
have cared to enter, and in the three
events held previously, a total of Is
entrants only appear on the lists.
This year the race has been length
ened to zoe kuOmeters- OLA miles),
and the course was laid out as an
elipse Of 4.14 miles, requiring 80 laps
to complete the races. In the French
elimination trials JgIes Vedrines made
a speed OF 106 miles an hour which
established expectance as to what
speed would. be made by the choice ma
chimes OF the six nations competing
America, England, France, Holland,
Belgium and Switzerland.
The Pilots Selected.
France designated Jules Nedrines
and Maurice Provost, pilots of Deper-
dussin mOnOplanes, and Andre Frey,
who drives an Hanriot monoplane, as
its representatives England had
named Claude Grahame White, Gus
tave Hamel and George Dyott, but 1t
was not certain until the last minute
just who would make the actual
flights.
Belgium's representative, Charles
Morok, died of typhoid fever a few
days before the race. and John Wyn-
malen who was to represent Holland,
was so disappointed in the showing
of his Oertz monOplane he withdrew.
Edmund Audemara, SwitZerland's rep
resentative was not certain of enter
ing, and as for America. the choice of
pilot viii not be definitely settled
till the day before the race. An
American defender prepared to carry
a 80 horse power motor, the largest |
aero motor ever designed.
The hydroaeroplane, or airboat avia-
ton contests are the first ever held, !
outside of the military competitions
held in France for selection of govern
ment machines. The contests must
continue five days during which races
and contests are evolved to demon |
strate how the multi-use machine may |
be guided on the water, be raised into |
the air and flown as a flying craft
In addition efficiency prizes have !
been offered, the contest being the !
number of passengers carried, the |
length of time one, two and three ex- !
ira persons may remain aloft, and /
other similar competitions.