Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1916-07-16
BY FRED S. HUNTER.


Dario Resta, the famous italian
pilot, driving his French Peugeot,
added another victory to his long
string yesterday afternoon by winning
the annual Omaha championship 49,
mile automobile derby on the East
Omaha oval in the wonderful time of
one hour, thirty-one minutes and
twenty-seven and ninety-one hun
dredths seconds, an average of $685.
miles an hour.
Ralph De Palma, another of sunny
Italy's great drivers, captured the
fifty-mile free-for-all, which followed
the main event, in his German Mer-
cedes car in thirty minutes and thirty
six and twenty-one hundredths sec
onds, an average Of 9s.o6. miles an
hour.
MILTON is SECOND.
Tommy Milton, in an American
Duesenberg, finished second in the
150-mile championship event in
l:32:03.75, a clip of 97.27 miles an
hour. Smiling Ralph Milford, in a
Peugeot, was third in 1:32:3s.90, 97.12
miles an hour and Baby Pete Hender-
son, in a Maxwell, was fourth in
l:3e:19.So. e0.65 miles an hour, while
Mel Stringer, in a stock Mercer, was
fifth at an average Of 1892 miles an
hour.
Eddie Rickenbacher, Omaha's IA
vorite, won second place in the free
for-all in 81 :5o.12.. Baby Pete Hender-
son was third and Dave Lewis fourth.
One Death is Recorded.
Two accidents, one Of which proved
fatal, occurred during the course of
the race. On the seventeenth lap Aldo
Franchi, driving Pusun, went
through the fence on the home stretch
and plunged into the underpinning Of
the grandstand Franchi was thrown
free from the car when it was sent
hurting through the air, but Dan
Colombo, Franchls mechanician, sui
fered internal injuries which resulted
in his death at the Lister hospital a
few hours later.
On the SEVENTEEN lap Jack Gable
fell onto the safety apron when a tire
exploded and his car turned over.
Both Gable and his mechanician, how
evar eccaoed min i,ired
Car Skids Through Fence.
The accident which resulted in the
death of Mechanician Columbo oc-
Cured on the home stretch in full
view of the entire grandstand. Just
after Franchi passed the starting wire
at clip we'll over 100 miles an hour,
his car suddenly turned at right an
giles and began to skid broadside up
the track. It skidded perhaps for 100
feet and then suddenly crashed into
the fence at the top of the track and
Icaped over the safety zone and up
against the underpinning of the grand
stand
Driver Escapes; Assistant Dead.
Franchi was hurled out of his seat
after the machine hit the rail. His
only injury was a mere scratch on
,ne arm. The car itself wrapped it
self around a post and was almost
demolished. Coumbo was pinned un-
derneath and his chest crushed so
that he suffered internal hemorrhages
He was hurried to the Lister hospital,
where Drs. Schleier and Tamlslea
performed an operation in an effort
to stop the blood flow. The oper-
alton proved futile, however, and Co.
Jumbo died shrtoly after 7 o'clock last
4 broken steering knuckle is be-
lieyed to have caused the accident:
This made it impossible tor Frranchi
20 control the car.
Spectators Get Thrills.
When the machine plunged through
the. fence timbers flew in every direc"
ton, Several boards were hurled into
the grandstand, where number OF
spectators were hit, but none was
hurt q,
Other bits OF the flying timbers tell
onto the track directly in the path OF
the speeding machines, But the dar-
ing drivers never stopped, they barely
slowed up, but ploughed their Wy
through, apparently needless OF their
own safety. Every driver on the track
smashed through the boards in their
path. Only the most skillful driving
and presence of mind enabled the
speed demons to hold the track when
flashing through the loose boards.
Cables Escape Miraculous.
lack Cables escape from death was
a miracle, Jack was turning the east
curve at a fast clip when he came
down low to let car pass him. Just
as.he did so a tire blew out and car
ricd the machine all the way INTO the
dirt safety apron where it turned over
three times. Gable and Harry Nc
Graft, his mechanician, both ducked
under the cowr and escaped with a
Jew scratches about the face.
Cables mishap was a real misfor-
tune. He was riding in second place
at the time and Hoing better every lap
Desperate from Very Start.
That the race was one of the most
gruelling and desperately fought ever
heid in the limited States was the YER