New Britain Herald Newspaper, April 8, 1919, Page 5

By Jack Hughes Who witnessed all of De Palma’s preliminaries as well as the official racing on Daytona Beach HISN a new page is written intgp history it is as important to know about the man who made it as it is interesting to know how he made it; and where science, dariig; sports anship and skill comprise the ba clements of the achievement, the ta perusal is readily transformed into flavored with American car and a privilege virtue and light. An aring automobile driver have played the leading vole in the latest chapter of world il For ne Burman me records of the measur “Wild" Bob flying start 1 kilo- tomobile. speed- a mile meter distances nz. and the the mile a Kilo. 10 seconds chal thit wider the nder sinee vedoubtibi crowned him ef with tovies on Daytona nz on A ge removed have been usands upon gone in ing In a ng events hostilities be- and Gerrrany Hour pid Ital pated in tho put staking, 1d reputation world of automobiie sports in his day, with a racing accident out ft the world behind. But arave with tha G met colors name lived cing of time. Ralph De Palma Wwhen romediately upon & new iine of me chanical ideas, and within a few months he had crowned himself with these victories over the same course where Burman established his: One mile, flying start....24.92 seconds Kilometer, flying start..15.86 seconds Ihus the news was Hashed through the world of a new speed king having ascended the last round of the ladder of all speeddom on Daytona Beach on February 12, 1919 The intensifying speed at which De Palma was traveling when hé made these records approximated 150 miles This meant that for every second consumed while covering that mile the driver was actually going over 215.65 feet of ground. At the end of the hair-raising dashes De Palma was overcome by emotion as his friends jammed around his car 1o olfer congratulations. The bullet- had heaved to {he sand. owing to jts ma contoured stem of design, and there never was anything like the jumping and skipping experienced by Burman while making his record in the Blitzen Benz., Tribute to car was the first thing that De Palma uttered, then to the memory of the famous rival who cet up the record he was taking down an hour. like ra velously A il i S (J IV nlo) Dy Butlic Te opyrisht zer Co America triumiphs again over Ger. When Ralph De Palma in an all-American car establizhed a new many ! speed record in Florida las month he overtopped the “Bob™ record was record 1911. made in a “Blitzen Benz,” a car that bore the made-in-Germany stamp made by Burman in Burman's fleeting sceond, and to the with whom he had with every veteran associates grown to fame in many a hard-fought race on every kind of course in Amer- ica. These were uppermost in Ralph De Palma’s imme- diately after the record-breaking run on the sands of Daytona Beach. “I went to the starting point with all confidence,” he said, “because in previous tests T was satisfied that the airplane motored car would do at least 150 miles an hour. The beach was soft, but still fair enough for fast traveling; the timing device was work- ing like a charm; Fred Wagner was wielding the flag—this was the hour for a new world's record. “In my mind at the moment was an account of Bob Burman’s experience in the Blitzen Benz, when he set the world’s record that had lasted for cight years and lived after poor Bob had gone himself. He was quoted as saying that he bumped and leaped and Jumped and along the sands in a veally perience. mind during and battered his hair- way aising ex- of Race “Well, to go immediately to the fin ish. 1 rode 4s if in a limousine on a boulevard. Here and there, for a fraction of a second, would he an in terval of side swaying that probably looked terrible to the spectators, but it wasn’t so bad from the inside of the car. In front of me and around me was the high, tenuous, humhming sound of the beautiful working twelve cylinders. Behind me was the ma chine-gun roar of the exhaust. Down the glittering beach the ycllowing course leaped toward the front wheels i Sensatior alongside e ture and disappeared something of motion-p in its disappeavance. with unreality “The ease with which the car rod performance of power plant, reminded me the unfailing mighty the development gineering that has eight yeurs zince Burmun sands to fame, The more recent ye with their stress of warv, have qu that development. Two of products of tion of riding quality and higher were in my tor working for me tion of streamlinc about by perience of the war. automotive within come ened L oare be weight, insuring favor. was the design was cut to the the great retarding factor, drag at the back of the car, was duced to the minimum. “Burman didn’t 1ive day of these perfections flected on his wonderful ind race and as I mark 141.72 miles per hour, and thought of 1911, the wonder of his achievement grew re- lot of the race and during it. too, to ‘Wild Bob’ intimate friends, often pitted against each other remember But to the fact that Boh made the record in a product the the wheel of the time it was made, April 23, on me. It was recally a most triumph. T immediately zave a before markable my thought Burman. He and I were and T with affection and estecm. some thought, too on the him speedways, 1 gave ‘Made in I was at that wa Blitzen Benz a thoroughly American car, ered with a thoroughiy motor—and it was to be day on the world’s finest s 1 didn’t forget any of that either Germany, preparing for the spurt or as I came down the course.” When I asked De AT R T e of en the rode these the distribu- more even peei. These Another great fac. perfec- brought the airplane engineering ex- Head resistance vanishing point, and vacuum re in the re- of enpow- American American raightaway. in Palma as he A RALPH DE the dash thoughts stopped his car at the end o what were hi while actually making the mile, he re plied as coolly as if just out of the uppermost surf: “Oh, a thou lated,” he said. laughingly there is something faster 1win Thought travels and things, mostly unre- “You know, than the after all especially thought other the flecting much than any kind of elec- ide it even 215 faster wricity, and be! feet a is laggard space. So if T say such and such or second I was thinking of don't think because it takes while to tell it and you it, I couldn’t have so0 and so, me a little some time to hear thought of them all in twenty-four sec- onds. My mind went this: something like A New Record Pick zoing heels! We have to b hour even this far, two miles from the starting line. That's good. That's hetter. Now we're going. ‘Aha! Beach not so hard and dry as it might be. Well and good. right. We erve to take us over tt “‘Nice day we Clear course. That black line off there is the grandstand; the blue out there is Pere Neptune. We must keep away from him Tick-tock. A little sway there. Thats right. Keep the finely shaped head down the fair- way, and we're going fine. Oh, beau- tiul! “‘You're in And such a delightful color- with sunshine playing on it look lovely, if you. up your 100 miles an » enough res . well under the record. have, Mademoiselle. straight perfect tune. my dear. all cream. You must they have time to see ch? Well, we beauty will There's A German record shall sce. An replace that no doubt. There's no doubt “ Flag black beach; wire—the rting line. Now for it! Just as steady and sweet-run- ning as ever will do the trick nicely. Bob had no this. He bumped. Now Why there’s no wind past us: we can light cross That's what the aircraft done for us This is just like flying around in the clear sky—only fz “‘Another he Kkilo- meter. perfect poise. If we had 2 little better beach! No com- plaining. It's all right. We're getting there. Wish now I had not spun you up and down the beach so often this American eagle. scratchy thick spots up the such car now no swaving. tremendous rush of even feel the urrent breeze designers have wire—start of Fine balance, il i e A e . PALMA morning. care of you, cherie. All right. (oomed unless little tachometer bing with the r He tells the though. Here we come — ass of people of black against the sand vene people would- dot. Minneapolis. twelve years ago Barney got mad at Wag for telling me how to beat Kid then we took it black Wag. for speed ness, those old race-track affairs hearts. They all Wag— charac of good taught me isn't he oW Now! La! La! more back there ord, they dred and fifty in the world But it's a trifle slow for us, car now? o' mine, there isn't off that enough. An American record. right. De Palma moved toward hi dashed for He there's a him in five deal—but precious Captain down. thought so. It's all right. Tt has to be all After this must take better But it's all right. German record ags — another long holding out Grand straight aces. How seriously alongside t for our timer! bit, now a hit Mhey'i'c timer. A new red fine. One hun an hour, inside and see clip four-fifths Good Races for Love of Tt Ralph chanic artist of qualities the De daredevil mind. De superstitious about in radiates gentleman: explainin hazardous easily speeding titude of i i i Palma, the and possesses e not is not the sportsman an he connected name is il man, the daring distinguish him from knowing the picture in the often of a independence with heard. his own ac- i i . i ‘& !li‘H‘;”’HUM f lL it MI |! il i ,‘" i i 0 is fib- resents that. See him nod his head—more up than down to ihat nod thin Wish man this, rough Lots cheering Tastest German s car and me- speed sonal nervous. told career, but a man from whose general countenance polished cquilibrium selected the of automobile vocation, and guided in his racing exploits by commendable in every transaction a contest where He buys his own tires, cessories and his own racing cars and pays his way He speaks French, Italian and Eng- an at. ind has mastered another anguage now dead, and one of his characteristics is an of >tation in any respect. Working around his car, wher- Palma converses most ple Dleasing While ever it may be, Dy magnates with the same ease and with no more interest than he chats with the meekest em- ploye about the garage. If you ask le racing answer that he did €0 because he never looked upon it ardous pursuit, and that had he viewed it thus he would have re- mained in the factory as a mechanie. 1f you engage him in a review of the series of accldents which have so dramatically cheated him of some of the most spectacular races ever staged, he will smilingly tell you that it might have been worse, and points to the fact that he has come out from under the harrowing smash- unscathed. has stopped his burning car wi ashing through record pace and left it un- harmed himself. Never did he take any stock In the widely talked of “De Palma luck,” which so many, de- clared had so long followed him. One recalled led a field of racers over a 500-mile course, and at the 495th mile was twenty miles ahead of the nearest contender, with $30,000 at stake. As 1e whirled by the grandstands along admirers had turned the air into a ®hunderous roar, and the betting was a hundred to one in his favor. The track was good and the weather clear, his racer was running as smoothly as if on a concrete floor; but the whole affair collapsed at the 5th mile. The car stopped and the driver jumped from his machine. A quick survey proved that an ofl pump had blown up, and De Palma’s first thought was to get his car to the goal before overtaken. To replace the pump was a physical impossibility if the race was to be won, and he attempted to push the giant racer over the rematn- This method failed, however, and he left the field. with automot him why he chos as a life vo autom ation he will as a ha wreckage of many ups virtuall space at instance is where he the course 1 ing five miles Never Lost His Nerve an timer and father of the speeding game,” related s in while talking to the oldtimers the evening after the great Ralph De Palma at Daytona. “I felt to the bot- tom of my heart for Ralph,” said Wag, “and I mentioned then that it was one of the most dramatic defeats of its kind I suffer. Fred Wagner, the vete! dent vividly accomplishment of had ever seen a driver The Italian had set the great throngs at the Indianapolls speedway driving, almost every spec booster. Palma’s il through the Iong sudden coi lapse of the hilarity into a spirit of utter into a frenzy by his daring and it seemed tator was his friend and news of De flashed streteh of When the onlooke the gloom was something no one who saw it will ever forget. “I have seen Ralph in great haie looked like ‘& tragic smash was inevitable, but by skill and luck he seemed to engineer his way through the perils without place until the course was v another driver falling back or another shooting ahead. Some- times it would be De Palma to make the forward dash, and again he would be left in the rear, only to rebound as if a resilient ball. He never seems to lose raising jams, where it losing h treed 1 his head, and through many dan- gerous accidents I have watched his level-headed methods with rilling admiration. The tragic end of Frank Croker, who coming forward as a the racing game, and the of Bruce others who down in the great skill and was leader fn fatal race Brown, as well as many > gone of automobile speeding, business made a nerve; survived accidents more artling in their general aspects than many of the fine hoys who met their doom single inroad on De Palma's and he has and it has been next to a mar- vel to watch him come out from under them literally without a scratch. His work here on Daytona Beach has es- tablished him where it by the very hand of desti ally had to land.” seemed as it he eventu- No Serious Accidents Wagner then told of defeats De Palma had suffered during the Grand Prix races at Savannah, another at Cincinnati and several still further back, and declared that if there ever was such a thing as “tough luck” on De Palma's trail he felt proudly cer- tain it had vanished now. During the whole of De P: liminaries and his official Daytona Beach he never accident of about the “jinx” end collision the alma’s pre. trials at suffered an notable consequence, ana only thing to mongers shouting start the was a rear- 905" had with a crane on the beach soon after he reached Daytona. It was said that the bird had become chagrined at severa army aviators who hadl falled to make any showing while attempting to race ®bove the driver and had come ot itself to defend the rights of tr It flew De Palma approached : e a close to the ground, ang 50 much faster going was than the confident ola #ea fowl that the bird was thrown 300 yards ahead and picked up dead from a eand dune, e