BURMAN THE RACE WINNER

Landed First Money in the 100 Mile Contest at Tri-State Fair Grounds.

Proving Race Is Not Always to the Swift -- O'Donell, Easy Leader, Has Hard Luck With His Car.

BY "BUDDY"

Bob Burman, in his Peugeot, won the first 100-mile race on the Burlington half-mile track yesterday in one of the most sensational speed contests ever staged. The Duesenberg driven by Billy Chandler was second; Eddie O'donnell, in a Duesenberg, third, and Alley, in the third Duesenberg, followed him across the finish just 15 seconds later. Brown in the Du Chesneau, was fifth.

Cooper's Sebring went through the infield fence on his 91st lap and was out. The car was going at a fast clip, and with ordinary luck would easily have been in the money. He was taking the east turn, and just as he was straightening out the car to come out of the curve something went wrong and the car smasshed through the infield fence and into the lake. Cooper and Louis Peio, his mechanician, were thrown free from the car and fell into the water, neither of them being hurt.

Ball, in his Buick Special, was last, and he was running fourteen miles behind the leader at the time of the finish. The Michigan driver was persistent, and would have finished the race had the officials allowed. He was far out of the money, however, and Starter Lowry flagged him down on his 190th lap.

Eddie O'Donnell, in the Duesenberg, was the hard luck drover of the day. During the first part of the race his car was working like a charm, and he bested every driver on the track in some speed brushes that brought every one of the spectators to his feet. The car was showing some speed that was phenomenal for a two-lap course, and it looked like the smiling Eddie would be the first to cross the tape.

Got The Stake Money.

He grabbed the three $100 purses for being first at the twenty-five, fifty and seventy-five miles, and was going after the big money for winning. Burman was following him two laps in the rear, when suddenly the Duesenberg stopped at the pits. He had gone 172 laps and seemed to have the race in his grasp. The car had suffered from the many hard twists given it on the turns, and when Eddie stopped at the pit it was found that the hubshell on the right rear wheel had become cracked and the bearings around the axle broken.

Burman took advantage of his rival's misfortune and gained seven laps before the Duesenberg was ready to again enter. "Wild Bob" would have gained even a larger lead had he not been forced to stop at the pits with carburetor trouble. He was in only a short time and managed to get away without relinquishing the lead to any of the other drivers.

Both at the Pits.

One of the remarkable things about the contest was the presence of the two leading cars at the pits at the same time. This is a coincidence that seldom happens and the crowd went half mad when Burman pulled in to have his carburetor adjusted.

The race would have been finished in time much faster than the total for the race. O'Donnell was clipping off the laps regularly in 35 seconds and had he not had trouble the contest would have seemed more interesting to people who were not present. His accident really made the race more exciting on account of the contests his temporary retirement necessitated.

Alley, the favorite on account of having been in this city frequently and having a large aquaintance here, started out ahead and held the lead for several miles. He was forced to take second place by O'Donnell after that and had his car not given so much trouble he would have finished either ahead of, or close behind Burman. Tom was forced to stop at the pits often, and one of the times he was there while the cars he was competing against was for a place went twelve laps.

Alley's Last Race.

Yesterday was Alley's last race as a member of the Duesenberg team. He resigned before the race, to take effect immediately after, and Pete Henderson, O'Donnell's mechanician, was named as the third member of the Duesenberg team. Henderson drove the last twenty-five miles of the race yesterday in Eddie's car to accustom him to the work, and the other drivers stated he will make one of the best drivers in the business.

Brown in his Du Chesneau had considerable trouble and once was forced to stop on the opposite side of the track from the pits. He was out for some time and when he returned to the race had lost all chance for any place except the one he got. He drove a persistent race, however, and had a large following on account of the smallness of his car.

Buick Out From First.

The Buick had no chance from the very first unless something happened to the other cars. Ball was forced to the pits twice early and in the contest but after that stayed on the track until he was flagged down by the starter. The car did not have the speed of the other contestants and in addition to that appeard to be built too high off the ground and was naturally, on that account, more dangerous to handle than the others.

Great Work at the Pits.

There was almost as much interest shown by the spectators in the work of the drivers and mechanicians at the pits as on the race course. The men changed tires in time that seemed almost incredible. Burman made the record for the day by staying at the pits only 26 seconds to make a wheel change. The crowds cheered him when he left almost as much as they did when he made a spurt and passed some of the other cars in front of the stands.

Cooper made some fast time at the pits, being forced out early with two tire changes, both being on the right rear wheel. He was not quite as swift as Burman, however.

Billy Chandler drove a great race. He had trouble for the first twenty-five or thirty miles, but after that had his Duesenberg running like a top. He stuck close behind the leaders, and when his two teammates were forced out for a time started driving in a manner that brought the spectators to their feet. His red car flashed around the course in time and he was only seven minutes behind Burman at the finish.

There was a huge crowd present, and all of the people there seemed to enjoy the races. The bleachers and stands were comfortably filled, and the financial success of the races was assured before the event had started. The day will long be remembered in this city as one of the biggest in its history.

The street car company furnished excellent service to and from the grounds, and handled the people in a manner that was almost entirely devoid of congestion.

Race Officials.

Honorary Referee -- Richard Kennerdell, of New York, chairman of the contest board of the A.A.A.

Referee -- Clifford Ireland, of Peoria, western representative of the A.A.A.

A.A.A. Representative -- G. Decker French, of Davenport.

Starter -- Frank Lowry, of Los Angeles, Cal.

Chief Announcer -- Fred Powellson, of Davenport.

Clerk of Course -- R.J. Detlein, of Burlington.

Technical Commitee.

F.E. Edwards, of Chicago, chairman; Joseph Cook, Joseph B. Sutter and Ray Sheagren.

Surgeons.

Dr. Geo. B. Crow, of Burlington. Dr. Thornber, of Burlington. Dr. C.E. Cook, of Burlington. Dr. H.F. Steinle, of Burlington.

Timers.

Chas. G. Earnest, of Bulington. Edw. A. Tate, of Galesburg. Dr. G.E. Thode, of Burlington. Warren Beckwith, of Burlington. Chas. Kaletsch, of Burlington. H.A. Mathes, of Burlington. Thos. Hume, of Burlington.

Judges.

Geo. B. Stewart, of Fort Madison. E.C. Could, of Burlington. M.U. Bridwell, of Mediapolis. Ex-Mayor Brown, of Monmouth. A.B. Chittenden, of Burlington. Orville Beckwith, of Mt. Pleasant. Walter Chase, of Galesburg. Dr. R.V. Yant, of Burlington.

Scorers.

Will Kurle, of Burlington. Chas. Coenenberg, of Burlington. J.L. Carison, of Burlington.

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