Capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1919-1980, 1920-02-17
franklin SCORES
VICTORY over BAD
N|D-WINTER ROADS

,a,ling long distance road run
,aod of winter! Where shall 1t
IL v" ~ The reader naturally PIC
be s'Sss > HE minds eye the fine mac
lures - naods and sunny skies of SOUTH
aaaln ,usornia-but this road run, uni
sDs s'a in motoring annals was maae e,'a, un-
que .Sa - most adverse Of climatic conol-
DER 'iit Ths s72 miles of rocky, rutty'
n0ns' noyered roads stretching from
s,,S. S"s,on to Fort Kent Name anu re- re,
D0s'' we're selected for the route the
Turn running time over which was
ac'ss' nithin practically "a hours. Fort
TsDt p by the way, is one OF tne mos nios'
s.tSsrly nth points in the United states
nol'n' ,ocated in the northeastern part
anu ,,a,ne almost at the border line.
ol mo ma date-Dec. $3.50, 1919.
r"s,,oinants-P. r"s E. Frost, Portland
.,,naw NJ C. Sawyer and Haven
Samyer of Bangor, Maine.
''r, Csr-stock Franklin Touring.
weather conditions-Typical New
England weather ,,
poad Observation-Disclosures.
Let it be noted at the outset that ev-
IN the summer months the orads
rom Portland through to Fort Ken
aso hv no means the acme of perfec-
ian and that by September l5 all gen
avail tourist travel is by common con
ssnt abandoned. And Maine roads II
necember-there's real test for botf
car and driver
At three minutes past nine on th'
evening of Friday December 26, T. e
Frost seated himself in his FranKlIf
touring car in the city of Boston ant
accompanied by the Sawyer brothers
started out with the grim determine
ton to get that car through to For
Kent in record time. And he did!
Each man agreed to take his turi
Al the whel for third Of the distance
and the process of clipping off tn
miles had begun. Portland was reache,
al 1l:45; Augusta, at lis; Bangor a
313: Houlton, at 6:2S; Presque ISL
at 7.44; and when Fort Kent how
in sight at 9;4O a m. the car and dri
yers were still going strong, 4S6 mile
of Icy and snow covered roads, includ
ing very known variety of road an
near-rOad (seyeral times it was neces
sary to cut across fields where tn
roads were impasslble) covered in I
hours and 81 minutes elapsed time
an average of 1882 miles an hour.
Such trip made without mishap o
an adjustment of any kind would
seemingly have satisfied the ambitio
Of most motorists, however, enthusias
tic But not so Frost and his com
panions! Only five minutes for a res
and the faithful old Franklin had he
nose pointed for Boston.
The return journey was not des,Yne
to be as happy as the first leg of tn
'rlp' Tor Just outside of Bangor tear
OF horses swung across the road i
lroht OF the car, which was travellin
at high speed. The driver, to avoid
collision, took the ditch and hit
granite culvert None of the occupant
were injured, but the engine was push
"a back and the car put out of com
mission. This happened about 4:33 o
saturday afternoon, December 27tl
me car was returned to Bangor, re
pared and started on the last lap {
~ journey on Tuesday afternoon Dec
s'noer 80, at 4.23 p. m. 1t reache
augusta at 6;l9 p. M, Portland
p.fo p m' and the Hotel Lenox /
DOSoh at l1:2S p. m. On the retur
Iip 10 Boston in many places not II
''gh'est sign was to be seen of ii
uacks made by the car as it heade
northward.