The sun., 1916-12-17
RESTA CAPTURED
$51,55O IN PRIZES
Aitkcn Won $i3,75G and Rick.
enbachcr $4,000 Dur
ing 1916.
OF If STARTS RESTA WON 6
NJ JEROME r. SHAW
Of the "IlorscIess AS~,"

n,eteorio Italian English pilot earning the
distinction OF being the hrst Officially
recognized American champion through
winning six Of his eleven starts In the
stellar motor events Of the past season.
In these six victories Ees,a corrailed n
total Of 400 points In the American
Automobile Association championship
award events. by which the driving title
was determined for the FIRST time. In
addition he won total Of $5i,550 in
prize money and the ~ 900 Bosch trophy.
embiematle of the championship.
Johnny Aitken, who closely pressed
and st times led Resta in the champion
ship fight. finished the season as runner
up to tho champion with q total Of 3,44O
points to his credit. gained through seven
frsts and two seconds In thirteen starts.
During the seasons racing Aitken gar
nered $43,1J6. including the $4,000 Good
rich and the $1,000 Bosch awards. Resta
won 5000 Of the $4,000 prize offered
BY She Goodrich company. Eddie Rick
enbscher. who III 1915 made the best per-
formaEce In the speedway contests, hn-
is,,Sd Third In the standing Of the present
season. with total Of 2.910 points.
scofsd IN four frsts. two seconds and two
thirds Ia twenty starts. Through his ac-
,ivitfes on the speedways "Baron Rick"
Is just $2l,300 richer than he was last
year.
While 1915 was heralded as the advent
a The hundred mile an hour races. the
season Just ended has placed this high
tpeed performance in the commonplace.
no lees than twenty-seven OF the cars
finishing IN the thirty-seven races Of the
season recording speed above the century
mark. From the very beginning OF the
1919 campaign. aside from the early
races at Ascot Park. the past speed
way records were shattered. with the
high water mark In long distance con-
tests being reached at the darkness tro-
ply race at Sheepshead Bay on October
%. when Athens Peugeot finished across
the line with an average speed Of lo5.95
miles an hour to It's credit. The only
exception to the record breaking perform
ances was the 400 mile race ut Indiauap-
oils on. Decoration Day. when Restas
iSera2e Vas s3.9s. as compared with
the Cuurss record OF $3.50 miles an hour
made by Do Palma In Mercedes In the
6V6 niile race Of 1915.
A fair idea of the Increased speed
during tho last season may be obtained
BY 4 comparison Of tho average speeds
of Tho. contests Of the last four years
III, Tie eighteen contests OF 1918. which
with The. exception OF the Indianapolis
spccd was 5515 m. p. h.. In the seventeen
races of 1914 the average was $3.50
IN. D. H.. last years twenty-five races
were run at an average Of 14.S6 m. y. b.
In the thlrty-seven races on road and
speedway during 1916 the average speed
Of the winners was S7.3i m. .. h.. more
than twelve miles an hour better than
the average for 1915.
All Of the speedway races OF the year
brought an average Of 8S.s2 m. p. h.,
the fifteen championship award events
were run at an average speed OF ?:4s
III. p. h., and without the Vanderbilt
Cup and Grand Prize this average was
boosted 10 s3.44 m. p. h.
In the Vanderbilt Cup and Grand
Prize. the oply important road races OF
the season and probably the last OF
the vsnderbilts on the road. the pre-
vious records were broken. the aver
age speed for these contests being $685.
and S5.35 m. y. h.. respectively. In COM
menting on these races II Is fitting TO
g. remark that the decline OF road races
was further emphasized by the aban-
donment of the Elgin races. the only
road contests that have been held east
OF tho Mississippi during the past few
years. There were several road con-
tests in tho West. but they failed to at
tract the high fields that marked the
running OF road races several years
ago Eddie O'Donnell proved 10 be the
star Of the road drivers. winning the
Corona and Raisin classics. the features
in this class. excluding the Santa Monica
contests.
While tho number OF races run this
year were greater In number by fifteen
than those held in 1915. this increase
can be attributed to q great extent oy
the fact that several Of the speedways
held two and three meets and the shorter
distances Of the races permitted the run
ming Of several events at some OF these
meetA. The new speedways at Los
Angeles. Kansas City. Cincinnati and
I'niontown helped 70 swell the number
OF events. During the year there wore
and Of this number 39S completed the
required distancsa Last season 33a cars
started in the twenty-five races OF ths
season and l37 received the checkersd
nag.
IN rsviewing the seasons racing Il Il
disclosed that tho PeuGeot car wa'
started forty-seven times and scoret
fifteen firsts. six seconds and two thirds
white its nearest competitor. the Duesen
berg. won six races. finished second 81,
times and third on fve occasions out o.
s'Sty-cight starts. Thus the Peugeo
wins the car championship for 1916. re
placing the Stutz. which through Its sen
sational performances was awarded tn
title last year. Ralph De Palma. wh'
finished fourth in the drivers standing
drove his Mercedes In eleven races dur
Ing tho past season, winning four
coming second In two and third II
one. Tho Mercedes finished third. Th'
Maxwell comes fourth. with thirty-tw'
starts, Of which II won three races, wa
second IN three others and finished thir'
three times. The Stutz. which wa
handled chiefly by Earl Cooper. and die
not participate In any races as a FAC
tory entry, won two races. was secoh'
four times and third In two races on
Of sixteen starts. The Premier. whic'
was making its FIRST appearance II
speedway racing. also won two races
II was second three times and starte'
twenty-three times.
In tho list of Il3 drivers that partici
patcd In the seasons races Dave Levi
was tho most active. starting In twenty
three races. He finished second In thre
md third in three others. Eddie Ricken
bachcr comes second in the number
starts, getting the word TO 70 In -twent'
races. Pete Henderson. Rickenbacher'
team mate, started in fifteen races.
did Gorge Buxane. Ralph De Palma
Ira Vail, Wilbur D'Ailenc and tho lat
IIughie Hughes each started fourtee
tnes.
The fight for tho honor fsnd th
s. 900 that accompanied ~ Of winn'n
The first American Automobile Associa
lon driving championship resulted IN ~
in,nrostins sories of. aspesd. battle
throughout the season. Rickenbachc
wss the first to scoro IN the champion