Arizona republican., 1914-10-18
DEVILS
 0N THE TRACK
Second Track Program of Five Fast Races to be Presented Today by the Phoenix Motorcycle Club; Some Rivalry.

Whether or not todays motorcycle brilliant two wheeler cancellations, is an open question, but when it comes | to riding the track, there is going to be | pretty rivalry between a pair of the | contestants. They are Curley Thomas | and Joe O'Connell. O'Connell's short | coupled Excelsior is conceded to be the | fastest thing on two wheels, and L. E. | Weyand, the team manager for the Ex 1 branch here, declares the man will ride the machine for all there is in both of them.
 But right around the corner, there | works tall fuzzy headed youth, who can straddle motorcycle faster than any human person in Phoenix and pro- vided his mount, an Indian regular, stays with him, he will push the other fellow hard in every place. It is a sort of a professional teal- ousy between these two. O'Connell has been quoted as saying that his ma chine will do a certain speed. and Thomas says that Joe will not ride it that fast Natural result: Bitterness. They have been saying lot of sen tences beginning with 'Aw, he ain't-". Nothing in the above must be con- strued to mean that O'Connell and Thomas are the only cOntenders There is young Boido on the close hung In- dian and Ben Rudderow on the regu | lar model Excelsior. Of the Merkel l team. consisting of Harry Crandall and Frank Sellner little is known, except that Crandall is fast, reckless rider, and that Sellner is a cool, heady, dang erous opponent for any man.
 Neither of the Dorset brothers will be able to ride in today's races, unless they mount something beside their Hendersons. A ruling by the American Motorcycle Manufacturers three days ago, outlaws machines of more than 61 cubic inches piston displacement, even from closed club competitions. The 1 Dorsets came from Dougles specially to enter the races, and were voted into | the Phoenix club so they could take part under the old elastic F. A. M.
 ruling. They are very much cast down by their inability to take part.
 There is little to choose among the
 machines. Trouble is liable to put any
 of them out of the running. Both the Excelsior and Indian people have had things go wrong with them, at critical times, while the Merkels are practic- lally unkown quantities. Only one Merk has ever performed here. and that was
 Sellners machine in the 100 mile race
 the race in which the deadly front
 valve came near losing for Dan Johns,
 and leaving the cement man in first
 place.
 There is no race today in which a sustained high speed will be necessary
 The twenty-five miller is the longest
 one of the program, and that is what
 experienced trackists call duck soup"
 The oval is not in it's best condition.
 At noon yesterday. when practice was
 to have started, the super had a drag
 going merrily, and the cushion was the
 most noticeable thing both on the sur
 face and in the air of the immediate vicinity. A good sprinkling last night,
 and some more drag this morning will help great deal. but will not make the track as fast as it will be for auto , day at the fair.
 While it will detract from the speed
 the condition of the track will add to
 the danger of the contests. Anent this subject, Thomas was heard to say yes
 terday, 'I can stick with the rest of
 them. They will have to take just as many chances as I will before they pass me-"