New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-10-12
SAN ANTONIO WANTS
TO RUN VANDERBILT RACE
Big Fund Subscribed to Bring
Classic Contest to Texas
Late This Year.
SAVANNAH OUT OF SPORT
Club Is Advertising Big Grand
stand for Sale and Will
Never Again Offer
Course.

With the abandonment Of road racing
in Savannah and the virtual impossibiIity
Of holding the classic contests in the
East, Texas has stepped into the breach
and may be instrumental In continuing
the great contests for few years longer.
San Antonio is a bidder, and has gone
about the task in convincing way.
According to John l.. Darlington, secre-
tary Of the San Antonio Automobile Club,
the organization is prepared TO run the
Vanderbilt Cup race this year. Already
$500 has been subscribed. and several
courses are available. DR.. w. a. Henring
is now in New York in the interest Of
the project.
Piqued at the alleged commercialism
that surrounds latter day automobile rae
ing Savannah has abandoned the promo
ton Of the sport not only for this year
but for good and all. After holding its
grandstand idle but intact for two years
the Savannah Automobile Club will sell
Il TO the highest bidder to pay for OBJ
legations incurred IN the effort TO bring
about races this fall for the Grand Prize
and Vanderbilt Cup.
That Savannah will never again stage
q big automobile classic has been made
certain by the action of the club in de-
Gliding 10 sell the grandstand to the Nigh
est bidder. Advertisements will be run
for ten days announcing the sale. Ihe
nrocceds will 20 toward satisfying the
claim which the advertising fund com
mittee holds against the club. THIS com
nittee loaned the club 5000 with whlch
70 get ready for the races. About sl.2o
OF this amount has been spent The
grandstand cost about $1,000.
petition from the Savannah Motor
cvcle cub 10 be allowed to use the grand
stand for its Christmas Day races has
heen denied. the club deciding IT would
he unwise TO wait that long before ols-
noe,ne of the property. The insurance on
the stand will expire shortly ana the
club will station d Waterman there undl
the property is sold.
Thus does automobile racing at SaVah-
nah pass into history. The course DIT
Savannah is the most satisfactory IN the
world The military protection of1ered
has always been of the best. The roaos
have always been in the best OF conditloh'
accidents on il have been remarkably re"
ord practically none has occurred lot
which the condition Of the roads or the
protection afforded could be held re-
sponsible.
Members Of the Savannah club put the
necessity for abandoning the races en-
tirely up TO the manufacturers II Is
claimed that they have taken the faclhs
game out of the world of sports anu
attempted to commercialize it. The pre-
D,ious races have been run at Savannah
as purely sporting propositions
President Granger reviewed the nego-
tiations from the time they were begun
He showed in a letter that w. X. Van
derbilt. donor Of the vanderbilt Cup
thoroughly agreed with his position in the
matter and suggested it would be good
idea to call the races of. MI Granger
said he believed the donors OF the ro-
phies offered in the Grand Prize and van
derbht Cup races would withdraw then
offers now that the plan OF holding the
races at Savannah had fallen through.