The St. Lawrence Motor Boat Events [1906]
by Lloyd E. Brown

The first annual races of the newly organized American Motor Boat Association were held at Thousand Islands over the triangular course of the Frontenac Yacht Club on Aug. 17-18.

The first races were held on the afternoon of Aug. 17 and consisted of time trials for the Glasgow Handicap Trophy, presented by Commodore J. G. Robertson Glasgow, of Buffalo. The races were divided into two classes, one for boats of 30 feet water line and over; and the other for launches of less than 30 feet water line. Distance 14 miles, or twice around the triangle. A silver cup was awarded the winner in each class. The handicaps for the following day were based on the time made in this race. Class A was won by the Vingt-Trois, owned by B. Gillespie, of Pittsburgh, formerly the Teal II, property of Capt. H. S. Johnson, of Clayton. What-Next, owned by Harry Crouse, of Utica, came second with Viper third. This last named boat is the property of P. A. and J. G. Glasgow, Buffalo. Hasbrouck's So-Long II and Peacock's Pirate entered but broke down on the course, Pirate finally finishing in one hour eight minutes 47 seconds.

Class B, for boats under 30 feet, was won by Navajoe, owner, W. G. Beers, Alexandria Bay, with Lancet second, owner, Dr. Ross, Clayton. These were the only boats entered in this race.

On Saturday, Aug. 18, the big race for the $1,000 cup, emblematic of the speed championship of America, was run. Preceding this, at 3 P.M., the finals of the Glasgow Handicap Trophy were held over a 14-mile course, with the Glasgow Trophy as first prize and a silver cup for second. This event was won in a close finish by Pirate, only ten seconds ahead of Vingt-Trois. The free-for-all race for the valuable A.M.B.A. Cup was also won by Pirate, who showed her superiority over all comers. The course was three times around, or 21 miles. The winner will hold the trophy for one year and have his name inscribed thereon and will also receive a small replica of same. A silver cup was awarded for second place. Pirate's time for the course was 48 minutes 21 seconds, behind her came Triton, with Got-to-Go third, these being the only boats to finish, Arab II, owned by Ralph Sidway and representing the Motor Boat Club of Buffalo, and Vingt-et-Un II breaking down soon after the start, and withdrawing from the race. Triton, that was the favorite for first position, is owned by A. T. Brown, of Syracuse, and Got-to-Go id the property of W. B. Hayden, of New York. Triton's time was 50 minutes three seconds and Got-to-Go finished in 56 minutes 20 seconds.

The first series of races held by the American Motor Boat Association, in which handicaps were based on the actual performance of a boat, instead of upon measurements, and by results showed the accuracy of this style of handicapping, was considered by all to be most successful in its operation and next season the Association plans to hold a week's racing at Frontenac, several other events being added to the championship program.

The officers and the national board for the present year are as follows: Commodore, Major J. G. Robertson Glasgow, commodore of the Motor Boat Club of Buffalo, N.Y.; vice commodore, John P. Welker, commodore Corinthian Yacht Club, Washington, D.C.; rear commodore, Dr. Louis Neumann, Columbia Yacht Club, New York city; National Board, Vince H. Faben, commodore Motor Boat Club of Seattle, Seattle, Wash.; Walter Parker, president Louisiana Boat Owners' Association, New Orleans, La.; M. M. Whitaker, Motor Boat Club of America, New York city; A. L. Chapeau, commodore Motor Boat Club of savannah, Ga.; S. A. Sylvester, commodore Toronto Motor Boat Club, Toronto, Ont.; Frank E. Taft, commodore Portland Motor Boat Association, Portland, Me.; Hon. A. P. Pierce, Red Wing, Minn.; secretary-treasurer, W. L. Dudley, St. James building, New York city.

The judges and timers for the August races at Frontenac consisted of J. G. R. Glasgow, W. L. Dudley and Lloyd E. Brown, Chippewa Yacht Club.

Official Time Sheet, American Motor Boat Association, Frontenac Races, Aug. 17-18

Event No. 1 -- 14-Mile Race for Boats of 30 feet Waterline or Over, Afternoon of Aug. 17

Boat

Start

1st round

Finish

Time

So-Long II

2:45:37

     

Viper

2:45:53

3:13:07

3:42:12

56:19

What-Next

2:45:30

3:11:30

3:37:20

51:50

Pirate

2:45:33

3:02:21

3:54:20

1:08:07

Vingt-Trois

2:45:04

3:06:52

3:26:30

41:26

Event No. 2--14-Mile Race for Boats Under 30 feet Waterline, Aug. 17

Lancet

2:50:32

3:29:08

4:07:32

1:17:00

Navajoe

2:50:30

3:17:50

3:45:12

54:42

Event No. 3 The Glasgow Handicap, 14 Miles, Aug. 18

 

Scheduled

Actual

     
 

Start

Start

1st Round

Finish

Time

Viper

3:00:00

3:00:25

3:29:14

4:01:35

1:01:10

Navajoe

3:05:00

3:05:54

3:40:43

4:08:10

1:02:16

What-Next

3:07:00

3:07:48

3:34:12

4:00:29

52:41

Vingt-Trois

3:12:00

3:12:05

3:32:46

3:53:35

41:30

Pirate

3:20:00

3:20:36

3:36:49

3:53:25

32:49

Event No. 4 Free-for-All For $1,000 Cup, 21 Miles, Aug. 18

 

Start

1st Round

2nd Round

Finish

Time

Pirate

4:30:34

4:46:50

5:02:52

5:18:55

48:21

Triton

4:30:42

4:47:32

5:04:20

5:20:45

50:03

Got-to-Go

4:30:05

4:49:00

5:07:37

5:26:25

56:20

*  *  *

The Gold Challenge Cup Races

The Gold Cup
Chip May Lose Gold Cup
Chip II Keeps Power Boat Cup
An Echo of the Gold Challenge Cup Races
Gold Challenge Cup Races of the American Power Boat Association
The Gold Challenge Cup Races
Editorial
Another Editorial
Even More Editorials

The American Power Boat Association held its annual championship races at Chippewa Bay, Thousand Islands, on Aug. 20-23, and the most successful meet since the organization of the association has now passed into the annals of power boating. Ideal racing weather prevailed the first two days of the regatta and the attendance was all that could be desired. All of the local St. Lawrence clubs were represented with their speediest boat as the official entry and more than the usual number of outside yacht clubs responded to the call to wrest the Gold Challenge Cup from the sturdy defender of the Chippewa Yacht Club, Chip II, owned by J. Wainwright, of Philadelphia, whose Chip I won the cup last season.

The list of entries. with their respective clubs and owners, follows:

Chip II, Chippewa Yacht Club, J. Wainwright
Sparrow, Riverton Y.C., C. J. Swain
Guess Again, Crescent Y.C., H. N. Denny
Jewel, Thousand Islands Y.C., Mrs. E. S. Burke
Vingt-Trois, Clayton Y.C., J. P. Gillespie
Tornado, Motor Boat Club of Buffalo, Ray W. Koerner
Panhard II, Manhasset Bay Y.C., A. D. McGuire
Vingt-et-Un II, Frontenac Y.C., W. S. Kilmer
So-Long II, St. Lawrence River Y.C., Geo. S. Hasbrouck
Dixie, N.Y. Athletic Club, E. J. Schroeder
Triton, Syracuse Y.C., A. T. Brown
Eureka, Gananoque Y.C., J. B. Reed
Arab II, Buffalo Launch Club, Ralph Sidway
Blue Peter, Hartford Y.C.
Vesuvius, Tarrytown Y.C.

The course was twice around the triangle, or 30 miles (26.05 knots). Three heats were run, one on each afternoon of the series.

On the first afternoon the local clubs received a serious setback by the victory of Sparrow, of the Riverton Y.C. Sparrow started nine minutes and twenty seconds later than the defender, Chip II, and came in but a few seconds ahead of the Wainwright entry, causing dismay in the hearts of the Chippewa people. Jewel was third, followed by Dixie, Vingt-Trois, Vingt-et-Un II, So-Long II, and Guess Again, in the order named. Panhard II suffered an accident at the start and withdrew, and Tornado came in after the first round. Triton was disqualified for starting six seconds too early. Several of the other entries did not show up on the first day, among them the Herreshoff Den, which prior to the last Hudson carnival was heralded in press dispatches as a record breaker close to 40 miles an hour, but whose performance did not reach expectations. Eureka, which was looked upon with favor on the part of Canadian yachtsmen, broke her shaft the day before the race and did not appear.

Sparrow was built this spring at Philadelphia by the E. H. Godshalk Co. and is equipped with a 24-hp. Packard engine. She is 30 feet long with a four-foot six-inch beam.

The second day's race resulted in a victory for Chip II, which took the race from the Sparrow by three minutes 46 seconds, with Jewel third, followed by Dixie, Vingt-Trois, Vingt-et-Un II, So-Long II and Guess Again. The winner's time was one hour twenty-seven minutes one second for the course. Triton, of Syracuse, was withdrawn and Panhard II again experienced trouble with her machinery and withdrew. Half a hundred yachts encircled the judges' boat and the vicinity of the yacht club presented a gala appearance, festoons of color and gay yacht decorations adding to the picturesqueness of the scene. Dixie, of the New York Athletic Club, came over the last fifteen miles of the course at the rate of 28 3-10 miles per hour, and at one time was almost overturned by the heavy swells of So-Long II. H. J. Leighton, of Brewerton, ran the Chip's engines in this event.

Chip II again carried the colors of the local club to a glorious finish on the third day of the meet, winning the Gold Challenge Cup with time to spare. Early in the afternoon a heavy storm broke over the entire Thousand Islands region and at Chippewa Bay the boat s raced against extremely adverse weather conditions, which many thought would result in a victory for Kilmer's Vingt-et-Un II, as this boat's forte is bad seas and wind. Trailed by only three others, Chip II gallantly fought her way to the finish buoy, leaving several competitors baffled by the elements. The Dixie short-circuited before the start owing to her bow becoming submerged, and Vingt-Trois and So-Long II had to withdraw on account of shipping too much water. Vingt-et-Un II did not compete on account of a split cylinder.

With Chip II over twenty-three minutes ahead of Sparrow, her first day's conqueror, followed in turn by Jewel and Guess Again, the plucky Ogdensburg craft retains the cup won a year ago and will probably defend it again next summer over the same course. The silver cup for the boat making the best average time during the meet was awarded to Chip II.

A sequel to the Gold Challenge Cup races at Chippewa Bay was the free-for-all over the club's thirty-mile course in which the only entries were the renowned Standard and the Dixie. This race was run off on Aug. 24, having been postponed from the previous day on account of rough seas. Practically the same weather or worse prevailed on the second day, but had the water been smoother there are those who had predicted a victory for the speedy Dixie. The boats were apparently unevenly matched from a structural standpoint, Standard, having engines of 300 hp., and Dixie 150 hp. The latter craft won the international championship races on the Hudson last year and also holds the world's record for 15 miles. She is owned by E. J. Schroeder, of the New York Athletic Club. The Standard was steered by her owner, Price McKinney, of Cleveland, assisted by Carl Rio, the designer and builder of her engines. Capt. S. B. Pearce ran the Dixie and has never experienced a breakdown with her engine.

The heavy swells made running very difficult for the forty-foot Dixie but she managed to hand on in good shape to her fifty-six-foot rival and at the finish was but 36 seconds in her wake. This is the first defeat ever experienced by the New York boat and her friend think that in smoother water she would have won out handily.

The summaries follow:

 

Start

1st Round

Finish

Time

Standard

2:30

3:04:36

3:39:30

1:09:30

Dixie

2:30

3:05:41

3:40:06

1:10:06

Dixie more than retrieved her lost honors by cleaning up all her opponents in the free-for- all and handicap races under the auspices of the Thousand Islands Yacht Club on Aug. 25, at Alexandria Bay. Nearly a dozen boats trailed her in the handicap event, the So-Long II and Got-to-Go being disqualified for exceeding the time made in trials. The course was three times around Whiskey Island or 21 miles. The P.D.Q., owned by Geo. C. Boldt Jr., of New York, was also disqualified in this race. Jewel actually finished third, but both she and the Jack were penalized for exceeding trial time between 2 1/2 and five per cent. A silver cup was awarded the Dixie in the handicap and free-for-all races. The So-Long II was Dixie's only competitor in the latter named race over the Dark Island course, 19 1/2 miles. Dixie, that started at 2:30 o'clock crossed the line at 3:11:20, and So-Long II came over five minutes later.

The last races of the season were held on Aug. 27-29 by the Frontenac Yacht Club over the club's 28-mile course. The events consisted of a handicap race for boats of not less than 30 feet water line and a grand free-for-all. Silver cups were awarded as prizes. The first heat of the handicap was won by the Vingt-Trois, with What-Next second. Summary:

 

Start

Finish

Vingt-Trois

2:44:58

3:32:27

What-Next

2:41:06

3:32:42

Pirate

3:02:00

3:37:22

On Aug. 28, the Pirate, owned by C. N. Peacock, of Pittsburgh, took the free-for-all race from three starters, leaving the post at 4:05:10 and returning at 4:58:66. So-Long II took second prize.

The finals on the last day of the series were won by Pirate and Vingt-Trois, both Pittsburgh boats and owned by millionaires. Pirate suffered an accident to her rudder and was steered to victory with an oar by one of her crew. This boat also won the cup for best average time. Summary:

Distance 14 miles

Start

Finish

Vingt-Trois

2:43:28

3:19:12

Pirate

2:52:41

3:29:58

(Transcribed from Boating, October 1906, pp. 322-329. )

[Thanks to Greg Calkins for help in preparing this page. —LF]


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