1910 Monaco Regatta
The Monaco Motor-Boat Races
PARIS , April 4
To-day was the first day of actual racing among the motor-boats at Monaco. Owing to a deluge of rain, however, some of the races had to be postponed till to-morrow morning.
The races consisted of the qualifying heats of the Omnium race. The boats of each class were sent around the course, a distance of 6¼ kilometers, the winner of each heat qualifying for the final. The single-cylinder, or dinghy class was started at 3 o’clock, and the event resulted in an easy win for Sizaire-Naudin, whose time was 13min. 5sec.; speed, 14.6 knots. Next came the 6½-metre racing cruisers fitted with four-cylinder engines of 90mm. Bore. The start was a bad one, only the winner, a hydroplane named Gregoire VIII getting over close on gunfire. She won easily, her time being 9min. 5sec., and her speed 22.2 knots. Gregoire VII took second place—9min. 52sec.; and Mais-je-vais-Piquer third.
In the 6½ to 8 metres class there was a splendid neck-and-neck race between Gallinari Spa and Excelsior XIV. The former just won, the times being 10min. 31sec. and 10min. 34sec. The last race of the day for the restricted racer class produced seven starters, five of which were hydroplanes. The winner, Brasier Despujols, fitted with a Grans Prix Brasier engine, completed the course in 6min. 19sec.; speed, 32.2 knots Duc II, another hydroplane with a similar motor of 155 h.p., averaged 29.3 knots, her time being 6min. 45sec.
(Transcribed from the Times of London, Apr. 5, 1910, p. 12.)
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Marine Motoring
The Monaco Motor-Boat Races
(From Our Correspondent)
MONACO, April 5
No better weather favoured the second day of the racing than was experienced on the first. A heavy swell and steady downpour of rain made the conditions as unpleasant as they well could be, and in the afternoon a freshening wind put an end to all racing for the day.
The only practical result, therefore, was the conclusion of the three remaining heats of the Omnium Handicap. At 10:30 the 8 to 12 metre racing cruisers were sent off. Eleven boats started, although 12 originally left their moorings. One, however, a hydroplane, found the conditions too bad, and at once returned to harbour. Of the remainder Marga III, a German boat, made the best start, but was overhauled by an Italian boat, Spa Gallinari, and then by the French boat Mors Calypso. These three finished in the order named. The times for the total distance of 6¼km. Were as follows:--Spa Gallinari, 8min. 15sec.; Mors Calypso, 8min. 39sec.; Marga III, 9min. 20sec. Next came the 18-metre racing cruisers, in which Cocorico, Chantecler II, and Tele-Mors started over the same course, finishing in the order named. The times were 7min. 56sec., 8min. 18sec., and 8min. 25sec respectively. The Duke of Westminster’s Ursula had a walk over in the unrestricted racer class, and so the day’s racing came to an end.
The final, in which the winners of all the heats were to have taken part, has been postponed until Thursday.
(Transcribed from the Times of London, Apr. 6, 1910, p. 24)
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The Monaco Motor-Boat Races
(From Our Correspondent)
MONTE CARLO, April 6
The weather at Monaco was much better to-day, and with a smooth sea it was possible to decide both the events on the programme.
The chief of them was a contest for racers of 15 metres for the Prix de Monac of 320 sovereigns over eight rounds of the course, a total distance of 50 kilometres. No British boats were entered, and with one exception—the German-owned Lilian, belonging to Baron von Hohberb-Buchwald—all the competitors were French. The starters were Duc II, Jack, and Brasier Despujols, all fitted with Brazier engines; Ricochet XXII, with an E.N.V. motor, and Lilian. Brazier Despujols is a hydroplane with a step, while Duc is a stepless hydroplane.
Duc went off with the advantage, completing her first round in 6min. 41sec., the fastest round in the race, but soon afterwards developed engine trouble and had to retire from the contest. Brasier Despujols started well, but soon got into difficulties for a time, and Jack raced ahead and led for a couple of rounds. Brasier’s engineer got her going again, however, and began to overhaul Jack. Ricochet, which went badly at the start, now warmed up and made a good race for a time with Brasier Despujols, the boats passing and repassing each other. Towards the end of the race Brasier Despujols went ahead in grand style, overhauled Jack, and won easily in 1hr. 7min. 3sec., an average speed of 24.2 knots. Jack was second in 1hr. 14min. 5sec., an average speed of 21.9 knots; Ricochet third in 1hr. 15min. 29sec.; and Lilian fourth in 1hr. 24min. 8sec.
The second race was for cruisers having a one-cylinder motor of 100 m.m. bore over the same distance for a prize of 200 sovereigns, given by the International Sporting Club. Twelve boats entered, all of them French-designed and owned. An easy winner was found in Sizaire-et-Naudin, which completed the course in 1hr. 40min. 5sec. Excelsior V was the only other boat which for a time could get anywhere near the winner, and she was eventually hopelessly left behind.
(Transcribed from the Times of London, Apr. 7, 1910, p. 12.)
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MARINE MOTORING
The Monaco Meeting
(From Our Correspondent)
MONTE CARLO, April 7
With ideal weather conditions—bright sunshine and a smooth sea—the motor-boat races at Monaco to-day were the most successful of the present series. The terraces, particularly in the afternoon, were crowded with spectators all anxious to watch the fate of the French boats when pitted against the Duke of Westminster’s Ursula. Up to the present Ursula, which carried off the premier honours at last year’s meeting in competition with the best of the French, American, and German representatives, has not has an opportunity of showing her real powers—hitherto she has only had a walk over—but to-day the final heat of the Omnium Race gave her the chance. Under the able guidance of Mr. Noel Robins, who handled her so skillfully last year, Ursula kept her reputation unsullied and spread-eagled her opponents in the most signal fashion, her victory being a most popular one.
The Omnium Handicap
The Omnium Race was a happy thought, and the committee are to be congratulated on introducing it into the programme for the first time this year. By a series of eliminating races the best boats in each class all raced to-day in a handicap, the time allowances being based upon the winning times of each boat in her own eliminating trial. Six boats started, the time allowanced being deducted at the beginning of the race, so as to make the finishes more interesting from a spectacular point of view.
The race started at 3 o’clock, so that the limit boat was supposed to cross the line at that hour. The names and the time allowances were:--
Sizaire-et-Naudin, head of the first cruiser class, 3 o’clock; Gregoire VIII, second cruiser class, and Excelsior XIV, third cruiser class, 3h. 7min.; Spa Gallinari, fourth cruiser class, 3h. 8min.; Cocorico, fifth cruiser class, 3h. 9min.; Brasier Despujols, head of the limited racing class, and Ursula each started scratch at 3h. 12min. 30sec.
The main point at issue was whether the Brasier boat—which is a hydroplane, and in very smooth water with no turns has developed extraordinary speed—would be able to show the way to Ursula, which is modeled on boat lines. Viewed from the terrace the surface of the water seemed as smooth as a pond, but the white surf beating on the rocks of Cap Martin showed that there was a heavy swell still running, and a hydroplane dislikes a swell above everything; fast as they are in favourable conditions, they cannot stand the pounding which is inevitable when going at top speed with a heave in the water.
The Race
To the surprise of most of the onlookers the race resolved itself not into a keenly-fought duel between Ursula and Brasier, but into a grand struggle between the Duke of Westminster’s boat and the limit boat the little Sizaire-et-Naudin. The course was only two rounds, and Sizaire, getting well away after gun-fire and favoured with her start of 12½ minutes, had more than completed one round before Ursula and Brasier had started. Brasier led over the line about 80 yards ahead of Ursula, but the British boat quickly overhauled her and passed the first turning mark at the Cape Martin end with a comfortable lead. It was soon evident that the hydroplane was out of it, and all interest centred on the question whether Ursula would be able to cut down the long lead which Sizaire had established.
With such a short way to go this to many seemed impossible, but the British boat was running "all out" and at her best. One by one she passed and dropped her rivals. On the last straight run home from Cape Martin Sizaire was nearly at the half-way flag by the time that Ursula had got fairly going after making the turn. The excitement now was very great indeed. The British boat, however, seemed to leap through the water unhindered by the swell, and several hundred yards from the finish she passed Sizaire as though the latter were standing still. Loud cheers greeted Ursula as she received the winning gun. The finishing times were:--
Ursula (winner), 3h. 23min. 35sec.; Sizaire-et-Naudin (second prize), 3h. 23min. 50sec.; Spa Gallinari (third prize), 3h. 24min. 9sec.; Brasier Despujols, 3h. 24min. 31sec.; Cocorico, 3h. 24min. 54sec.; Gregoire VIII, 3h. 25min. 7sec.; Excelsior XIV, 3h. 27min. 23sec.
Other Events
Ursula had a walk over for the Prix de Monte Carlo of 6,000f. Her opponent in this race, M. Edgar’s Maple Leaf, has not been able to get her engines in running order so far.
In the morning there was a race for cruisers of less than 6.50 metres. Fourteen boats started. Gregoire VIII, the no-step hydroplane, beating Gregoire VII, last year’s boat, by 3min. 50sec., over a course of 50 kilometres.
The Winning Boat
Ursula was built at Cowes last year for the Duke of Westminster by the Wolseley Tool and Motor-Car Company (Limited), a branch of the Messrs. Vickers Sons and Maxim, and is 49ft. 6in. in length, with a beam of 6ft. 6in. Her engines consisted of two sets of 12-cylinder Wolseley motors, each developing 400 b.h.p., and this power is transmitted to the two screws by propeller shafts of special Vickers’ chrome steel, which are only 13/16in. in diameter.
The hull is built up of three separate skins of picked mahogany, sewn together with copper wire, and though extremely strong weighs less than a ton without the machinery.
(Transcribed from the Times of London, Apr. 8, 1910, p. 23)
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MARINE MOTORING
The Monaco Meeting
(From Our Correspondent)
MONTE CARLO, April 8
After the excitement of the Omnium Race on Thursday the continuation of the Monaco Motor-boat Race Meeting to-day was of a comparatively unimportant character.
The morning was devoted to the 6½-8-metres class of racing cruisers, the class to which several well-known English boats, such as Miranda, belonged last year. On the present occasion, however, no representative of Great Britain was present, and the contest was a purely Frano-Italian affair. Twelve boats started, but Labor-Picker and Lanturlu-Aster soon took a substantial lead. The former steadily drew away from all competitors, and, as Lanturlu-Aster gave up, was in no way pressed. She completed eight rounds of the course of 50 kilometres in 1h. 11min. 15sec. An Italian boat, Gallinari-Spa, was second and Excelsior XIV third. The only other boat to finish was Nautilus Aya.
In the afternoon the next larger racing cruiser class, eight to 12 metres in length, raced over the same course. Fourteen boats started, but only four finished, the winner being an old and well-known French racing boat, Mors Calypso. Again an Italian boat, Bianchi, was second, while a German competitor, Marga III, gained the third prize.
In the morning race the first prize was £140, in the afternoon £180, from which it will be seen that the Monte Carlo Meeting is very well endowed.
(Transcribed from the Times of London, Apr. 9, 1910, p. 6.)
* * *
The Motor-Boats at Monaco
(From Our Correspondent)
MONACO, April 5.
As in previous years, the motor-boat races at Monaco were preceded by the two-day exhibition on the tennis courts in the Condamine. On paper the total of 85 boats looked very formidable, but a large percentage consisted of locally-owned craft that could not be considered genuine racers at all. However, there were quite enough fast boats to make a good meeting, particularly in the small racer class restricted to boats fitted with four-cylinder engines of 155 m.m. bore or their equivalent.
Under this head is included an English boat, Mr. F. May’s Defender II, which raced in home waters last summer, and is now fitted with a 60-h.p. Green aeroplane engine. It is remarkable that so small a boat—she is only 18 ft. long—should be able to carry so much power, and shows how great are the possibilities of extra light motors. Her present engine actually weighs less than her old single-cylinder motor, and her speed has increased from about 14 knots to upwards of 24 knots.
The big racer class, in which the only restriction is the maximum length of hull (15 metres), is very poorly supported.
The Duke of Westminster’s Ursula, with 800-h.p. Wolseley engines, which so ably represented England last year, is again present. She has, however, no foreign rivals, the only other competitor in the class being Maple Leaf, Mr. Mackay Edgar’s boat, fitted with a 12-cylinder Orleans motor of 400 h.p.
The rest of the boats come into what are known as "racing cruiser" classes—that is to say, they are restricted racers, with certain limits of lengt6h and beam, also of bore of cylinders. The work in most of them is rough compar4ed with what English yards turn out. However, France may compare with ourselves in the production of cars, it is quite certain that her motor-boats are inferior as regards finish. For example, rubber-tubing was made to do duty for copper petrol pipes in more cases than one, an arrangement that would never be found on an English boat.
An open exhaust, as every one knows, is common in French cars, and the same characteristic is displayed in the French boats. All of those so-called "cruisers’ Make a noise like a battery of artillery and at the end of an hour’s run every one on board is blackened with smoke and oil, set fast by sea water. There is not, therefore, much that appeals to the man in the street about the Monaco racing cruisers. But they are excellent as racing boats, if not as the pleasure launches which the rating rule was intended to produce. One boat, Sizaire Naudin, with an engine similar to the famous motor used in the racing cars of that mark, can attain a speed of over 15 knots, yet hr engine has a single cylinder of just under four inches bore. So it is in the next class, in which the length limit is 6½ metres. The rules were framed to produce a useful, fast yacht’s launch able to take four people out in comfort. Actually the class consists of a fleet of noisy little racers. Into some of them has been packed as much as 50-horse power in spite of the small size of engine allowed. The boats do well over 20 knots, and, on account of their small size, are quite as difficult to manage at that speed as were any of the old racing boats. The rule prescribes seating accommodations to the extent of 0.45 metres in every direction. Those responsible, no doubt, had in mind the provisions of ordinary thwarts conforming to that requirement. The letter of the law, however, is satisfied if the cubic contents of the cockpit are sufficiently great to include the seats, quite irrespective of whether or not it is possible to sit in them! As a matter of fact, many of the "racing cruisers" have no seats at all.
The larger classes are not, however, so much overpowered. In the fifth series—12-18 metres in length—are three boats, all of them really able craft, capable of standing a fair amount of sea and with space available for good seating accommodation, even for a small cabin. They are capable of 20 to 24 knots, but at the same time are able to do plenty of hard work. In the Championship of the Sea, probably the most trying motor-boat race in the world, in which a distance of 200 kilometres has to be covered, they always show to advantage. The greatest attraction is the hydroplanes. These are boats intended to come to the surface of the water and skim along it instead of cutting through it as does an ordinary boat. From the time of their first appearance it was evident that they possessed great advantages as regards speed in smooth water. Up to now, however, they have been badly handicapped by their inability to face rough water. Not only do waves interfere seriously with their "skimming" propensities, but the boats, being more or less flat-bottomed, suffer severely from the pounding of the seas. In what is known as the Fauber hydroplane the difficulty has been to a great extent got over. It is to be regretted that no boat of this type is this year present at Monaco, but there are, nevertheless, several novel hull forms all designed with the same object—viz., to retain the speed of the hydroplane without sacrificing the seaworthiness. It is pleasant to be able to record that considerable success seems already to have been attained. For example, in the second race on Monday, a hydroplane, Gregoire VIII, gained a brilliant victory in a sea that would certainly have proved too much for her had she followed the conventional hydroplane lines of early days.
Finally, reference may again be made to the unrestricted racer class. Here there is no limit to engine dimensions and modern marine motor engineering has made it possible to install engines of such enormous power in a boat built to the length limit of 15 metres that the cost is prohibitive. Ursula is not a new boat; the engine of the Maple Leaf was designed for a smaller class of boat, and so it will be seen that not one new 15-metre racer has been built this year. The class has become over-developed.
The present Monaco rules expire this year automatically, and will have to be renewed or ratified. The latter alternative would certainly be preferable. When first produced they answered excellently. To-day, as with old tacht-racing rules, designers have learned to build round them. For the future let us have racing cruisers with more of the cruiser and less of the racer about them.
(Transcribed from the Times of London, April 9, 1910, p. 18.)
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Motor-Boat Racing at Monaco
(From Our Correspondent)
MONTE CARLO, April 10.
On the morning the Prix de la Riviera for cruisers of 12 to 18 metres was run in drenching rain. The course was 60 kilometres, the first prize being 5,000 francs. Three boats competed—namely, Tele-Mores, Chantecler, and Cocorico, the two latter built by Despujols and fitted with Brasier engines. Tele-Mors was driven by a Mors motor. The result was an easy win for Cocorico, who finished nearly four minutes ahead of Chanteclet, Tele-Mors losing the second place by only 22 sec. The finishing times were:--
Cocorico, 66min. 58sec., 1; Chantecler, 70min. 41sec., 2; Tele-Mors, 71min. 3sec., 3.
Six boats crossed the line in the afternoon for the only eliminating heat of the Coupes des Nations that will be decided, s there is not a sufficient number of boats representing any other nation to necessitate any further trial. Brasier-Despujols, whose previous performances at the meetings have been of a most consistent character, at once took up the running, and her lead was never endangered until the last two rounds, when Cocorico, who until then had been her nearest attendant, dropped back and was passed by Jack. The last-named, traveling in grand style in the latter stages of the long journey of 100 kilometres (62½ miles), made up he long ground towards the finish, and with another mile or so would probably have been first instead of second. As it was Jack was beaten in the end by the extremely narrow margin of 8sec, with Cocorico an excellent third, 1min. 4sec. behind. These three boats, therefore, will uphold the honor of France in the International Cup to be decided on Tuesday next, when England will be represented by Ursula, and also, it is to be hoped, by Maple Leaf II, should Mr. Mackay Edgar’s boat be ready to race, which is very doubtful. The other starters were Duc II, who completed six laps; Ricochet XXII, ten laps; and Nautilus Bayard-Clement, four laps. The finishing times were:--
Brasier-Despujols, 130min. 31sec., 1; Jack, 130min, 39sec., 2; Cocorico, 131min. 43sec., 3.
The Duke of Westminster’s Ursula went out this morning to run a round of the course under the conditions provided in this year’s programme for the first time, by which any boat engaged in the meeting can be timed over one round of the course during certain hours on giving notice to the officials. A record is kept of the times, and the boat making the best time in her own particular class receives a prize of 500 francs. Further, any boat making better time than the winning boat in a class or classes superior to it takes the prize in that class as well as in its own. The contest is names the Tour de Piste. Ursula is the first which has attempted it, but Mr. Noel Robins, who is in charge of her, considered the weather conditions this morning favourable, and accordingly started. The sea was smooth and the swell not so heavy. Ursula accomplished the magnificent time of 5min. 21sec. for the six kilometers, not quite a full round being demanded. This is a "record" for any Monaco meeting, the previous best being 5min. 24sec. Nevertheless, Mr. Robins considers that Ursula is capable of making an even better performance, and will make a further attempt to lower the "record" which the vessel has set up. This time gives a speed of 36.3 knots. The silent, smooth, and regular running of the Wolseley engines with which Ursula is fitted are the subject of general comment, and I should not be surprised if something even better is accomplished before the close of the meeting.
In the afternoon, after the termination of the races for the Championship of the Sea, Mr. Robins, in compliance with a request by the King of Sweden, who has taken a great interest in the meeting, took Ursula out for an attempt to lower her own "record." Notice had been given by the committee that the British boat would make another attempt to cover the course in the fastest known time, and the thousands of spectators who thronged the terraces waited eagerly to watch the result.
At 4:30 Ursula, with the White Ensign of the Royal Yacht Squadron flying from her counter, darted out of the harbour, and amid loud cries of admiration from the onlookers made for the starting mark "all out." Her engines were running with the regularity and smoothness of a chronometer, and she glided round the course at terrific speed. After a magnificent display it was found that she had beaten her "record" of the morning by one-fifth of a second, the time for the round being 5min. 20 4-5sec. At the conclusion of the tour she circled prettily round the outer finishing mark and returned to her moorings amid murmurs of regret that more could not be seen of the speediest and most graceful craft that has ever turned a propeller in the Bay of Monaco.
The race for the Championship of the Sea, open to all cruisers, took up the best part of the morning and afternoon. The course was 200 kilometres, the winner receiving 6,000 francs, the second, 2,500, the third 1,000 and the fourth, 500.
Ten boats started, all of them French. Cocorico first, completing the course in 4hrs. 22min. 35ec.; Tele-Mors, second in 4hrs. 47min. 46sec.; Mors Calypso, third in 4hrs. 48min. 17sec.; and Gregoire VIII fourth, in 5hrs. 5min. 45sec. The average speed of the prize winners was:--Cocorico, 24.7 knots; Tele-Mors, 22.6 knots; Mors Calypso 22.5 knots; and Gregoire VIII, 21.2 knots. Taking into consideration the size of the boat andf the small horse-power of her engines, Gregoire VIII’s performance, even though she came in fourth, was the most meritorious of the fleet.
(Transcribed from the Times of London, April 11, 1910, p. 8.)
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Marine Motoring
The Monaco Meeting
(From Our Correspondent)
MONTE CARLO, April 11.
No racing took place at Monaco to-day. The boats will race for the International Cup to-morrow.
(Transcribed from the Times of London, April 12, 1910, p. 18.)
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Motor-Boat Racing at Monaco
THE GRAND PRIX INTERNATIONAL
Victory of Ursula
(From Our Correspondent)
MONTE CARLO, April 12.
The motor-boat races were continued to-day, when the chief event of the meeting—the Grand Prix International—was decided. The course was 100 kilometres, the first prize consisting of 10,000f. and Le Coupe du Ministre de la Marine Francaise. Each country can be represented by three boats. The entries were:--
Of these the three French boats turned out, England being represented by the Duke of Westminster’s Ursula, fitted with Wolseley engines of 800-h.p., and Defender, owned by Mr. F. May, the rear-commodore of the British Motor-Boat Club. Maple Leaf, the third British entrant, was unable to start, having failed to get her engines in running order. The German, Italian and Swiss boats did not start.
The race was witnessed by thousands of spectators, but it lacked the absorbing interest of last year, when Ursula won after a strenuous struggle in the early stages with the French champion racer Panhard-Levassor. The King of Sweden and the Grand Duke of Leuchtenberg watched the race from the committee tent on the Tir aux Pigeons.
Barring accidents the prize was in Ursula’s locker before the start, and the chief point of interest was the precise round in which Ursula might reasonably be expected to overlap the hydroplane Brasier-Despujols, the fastest of the French boats. There were 16 rounds to cover, and this happened at the completion of Ursula’s 12th round. The Duke of Westminster steered his own vessel, winning easily in 1hr. 26min. 59sec.; her time over the same course last year was 1 hour 35min. 9 3-5sec.
The Race
The weather conditions were perfect when the starting gun was fired at 3 o’clock, the sea being quite smooth on the surface., with only a slight swell. Jack was first over the line, 30 yards ahead of Brasier; then came Ursula, close up, with Defender fourth and Cocorico last. Jack was quickly overtaken, first by Brasier and then by Ursula. Ursula then began to overhaul Brasier. They were racing abeam at the half distance mark, but the British boat always had the measure of her opponent and turned the first of the outer marks at Cap Martin with a lead of 50 yards. Before the completion of the first round Jack was en panne, and only started going again after ten minutes or so had elapsed. Defender developed engine trouble in the third round, and went back to harbour. Jack, although she kept going for fourth prize, was out of it, and the race settled not into a procession, Ursula
Leading Brasier and Cocorico round the course. Ursula completed the opening two rounds in 10min. 54 1-5sec., Brasier’s time being 11min 15 1-5sec., and Cocorico’s 15min. 13 3-5sec.
At the end of the eighth round—half of the distance—Ursula was 2min. 23sec. ahead of Brasier, the times being:--
Ursula, 43min. 25sec.; Brasier, 45min. 48sec.
The British boat at each succeeding round pulled out a longer lead, and in the run home down the straight in the 11th round came up into the same "street." It took another round of the course, however, before Ursula could overlap her rival. She kept creeping up on her, and at the completion of the 12th round overlapped Brasier at the turn amidst loud cheers. Nothing short of a breakdown could now rob the British boat of her victory, and with her engines running with such beautiful precision and regularity there was hardly a chance of this happening. Ursula completed the course an easy winner in the time stated above. Brasier-Despujols took second prize, completing the course in 1 hour 34min. 46 2-5sec. Cocorico was third.
(Transcribed from the Times of London, April 13, 1910, p. 12.)
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The Motor-Boat Races at Monaco
The motor-boat races at Monaco and Monte Carlo this year were noteworthy on account of the extremely high speed which was attained according to the cable dispatches. There were a score or more of boats in the races, which were favored with excellent weather that made possible the attainment of great speed, especially in the long-distance events.
The first long-distance race for the Championship of the Sea was held on Sunday, April 10th. Count de Pouriale’s Cocorico readily won this 200-kiometer (124.2-mile) race in 4 hours, 22 minutes, 35 2-5 seconds, at a speed of 28.34 miles per hour. Out of the 36 competitors in this long-distance race for cruisers the Tele-Mors, Calypso, Gregoire VIII and Spagallinari finished in the order given.
The race was an exciting one, as several of the boats were quite evenly matched. The Brasier-Despujols hydroplane, which was one of the novel craft that raced this year, did very well and showed good speed in proportion to its horse-power. In the second great international race for the Coupe des Nations, which took place on April 12th, this boat was second, finishing but 7 minutes and 47 seconds behind the Ursula, which completed the 100 kilometers (62.1 miles) in 1 hour, 26 minutes, 59 2-5 seconds. The Brasier-Despujols averaged 39.1 miles an hour, against 42.83 miles an hour of the Ursula. She was fitted with a Brasier 4-cylinder engine of 100 horse-power, while the Ursula had twin 12-cylinder motors totaling 800 horse-power. Her engines are arranged side by side, one on each side of the hull. The difference in the amount of spray thrown by these two boats is interesting; the former cuts through the water with very little disturbance, while the latter skims over it with a good deal of splashing. The great regularity with which the Ursula speeded around the course for nearly an hour and a half astonished many of the spectators, and was an excellent testimonial to the design and construction of the Wolseley-Siddeley motors that drove her. She was piloted by her owner, who steered her with great steadiness. He took the turns without slowing down, and at each turn the boat would tip dangerously. The Ursula showed herself to be one of the fastest motor boats that have ever been built; but in the mile and kilometer speed trials she did not make anything like the time she is reported to have accomplished in the long-distance races. In fact, the hydroplane beat her in the speed trials, owing to its ability to get under way quicker.
The Ursula this year is fitted with the same two 12-cylinder Wolseley-Siddeley motor that were used last year. As her speed then was about 37 miles per hour, it is fair to assume that the figures given in the cable reports are not correct, or else that the distances around the course were less than supposed. It is extremely doubtful that the Duke of Westminster’s racer averaged more than this figure in the long races, especially since she made only 40.35 miles an hour in the flying kilometer speed trial. We understand that on account of the great depth of the water where the races are held, there is often-times a shifting of the buoys owing to the inclining of the anchor lines, and that this causes a shortening of the course. The mile and kilometer tests are therefore the only ones in which any great degree of accuracy is obtained, and as experience has shown in a long-distance race a boat will make less speed, if anything, than in a short speed trial, it seems certain that the Ursula has not shown much more than 40 miles an hour so far. That she could have averaged 42 miles an hour with the same power plant as heretofore is very creditable.
(Excerpts transcribed from Scientific American, April 30, 1910, p. 360)
* * *
The Month In Yachting
The annual motor boat exhibit and races at Monaco the first two weeks in April held the interest of European power boat enthusiasts, but did not attract the attention on this side of the water that did last year’s meet, owing to the fact that no American entry of prominence had been received. There was one boat – Michigan-Faracot I – entered that had an American-built steel hull, but her performance was not noteworthy. The meet, however, was successful, and the races were run under better weather conditions than last year, though one day’s racing had to be postponed on account of the weather.
The Duke of Westminster’s 50-foot Ursula – the Wolseley Siddeley II of last year – with four motors, aggregating 800 H.P. and 24 cylinders, was the start of the fleet, and established some new records in the way of speed, in one race making a round of 3.88 miles at the phenomenal rate of 42.2 miles per hour.
Hydroplanes and displacement boats met in most of the events, and a number of the former type were very successful. In smooth water, practically the only conditions under which a hydroplane is at home, some of them made remarkable time, though it was noticeable that in racing against displacement boats the hydroplanes could not make the turns as well and lost ground, making it up on the stretches. They "planed" well, with some three-quarters of their length clear of the water, but pounded badly when there was any sea..
Brasier-Despujols, a new hydroplane, with a Brasier motor, was the best of the hydros, and pushed Ursula closely in some of the events, beating her in two. Ricochet XXII, the latest of the long line of hydroplanes of the same name, showed some novel features in construction, which seemed to eliminate the pounding common to the type, as she cut through the water as cleanly as a displacement boat.
The principal events were the Coupe des Nations of 100-kilometers (62.1) miles, unlimited power; the Championship of the Sea, 200 kilometers, for cruisers, and the standing miles and kilometer trials..
In the first of these events, and the one attracted most attention, Ursula met the hydroplane Brasier-Despujols, and the displacement boat Cocorico and, under good conditions, the former won in the wonderful time of 1 hour, 26 minutes 59 2/5 seconds, a record for the distance. Brasier-Despujols was second in 1 hour 34 minutes 46 2/5 seconds, while Cocorico took 2 hours 1 minute 31 2/5 seconds to cover the course. Last year Ursula, also the winner then, covered the same course in 1 hour 55 minutes 3/5 seconds.
In the Championship of the Seas (124.2 miles) Cocorico finished 25 minutes ahead of Tele-Mors, the second boat, the winner’s time being 4 hours 22 minutes 35 2/5 seconds. In the race for the mile and the flying kilometer, Ursula lowered her colors to Brasier-Despujols. The latter made the mile, with standing start, in 2 minutes 20 seconds, to Ursula’s 2 minutes 36 2/5 seconds, while in the kilometer event her time was 50 2/5 seconds to Ursula’s 55 2/5 seconds. This was undoubtedly due to the fact that it required a much longer time to get the great 800-horsepower engines of the British boat started and working at full speed than those of the lighter hydroplane, and the course was too short to allow her to catch her feet rival.
Some interest was attached to the 50-foot boat Mapleleaf II, owned by Mr. Mackay Edgar, which had installed the 400-horsepower Orion motor, which is to be installed later in the hull of the British Motor Boat Club’s challenger of the Harmsworth trophy to be sent to this country. The engines were not properly fitted during the early part of the meet, and she didn’t actually enter in any of the events. Every time she was taken out for a trial a cylinder head or something else started, and she had to quit. With plenty of time before the race, however, the faults in the engine may be overcome. Britishers, however, are not putting as much reliance in the entry as in the challenger which the Duke of Westminster will build, the boat being by Saunders, and the motors by the Wolseley works.
(Excerpts transcribed from Yachting, June 1910, pp. 515, 552.)
* * *
Some of the Monaco Racers
Special Correspondent to MotorBoat
The international element was too meager for the seventh annual Monaco races to have all the interest that was first expected of them. The American contingent, which was to consist of one racer in the unlimited class and three or four cruisers, vanished somewhere between Detroit and the Havre. The racers of unlimited size and power, which always form the spectacular feature of the meeting, were practically reduced to the Duke of Westminster’s craft now known as the Ursula. Its last year’s rival, the Panhard-Levassor, was not entered, and Mr. Mackay Edgar’s boat Maple Leaf II was sent down with her big motor dismounted in packing cases and never having made a revolution. Every effort has been made to be ready in time, and at the moment of writing, the boat is just about to be launched.
In the class for racers having a four-cylinder motor with a bore of not more than 6.1 inches, there are five craft which figured in an interesting manner in the races, and four of which either failed to compete or were too slow to be of any importance. In the former class are the Brasier-Despujols, Duc and Jack, all engined by Brasier; the Ricochet XXII, and the Bayard-Clement. Undoubtedly the fastest boat of the series is the Brasier-Despujols, a hydroplane with a step, having a certain general resemblance to the Duc of last year’s races, but longer, of stronger construction, and infinitely better as a sea-going craft. Except in very smooth water the Brasier-Despujols moves ahead with a pounding motion, but this is far from being as violent as that of last year’s craft, and the boat is much better to steer.
Duc II has nothing in common with its namesake of last year’s meeting. It is a new craft, being a combination of the hydroplane and the displacement boat. It has a shallow, V-section bow, no step, a flat bottom with rounded-off section, and greatest beam astern. On fairly smooth water she glides perfectly with her entire forefoot out of water, and without any tendency to pound. In broken water she would advance in long leaps, which, never really became dangerous. A very similar type of boat, equally successful in rough water, is the Gregoire VIII; also build by Despujols. The Jack is an ordinary displacement boat, the Ricochet XXII, last year’s hydroplane, and the Bayard-Clement, a new flat-bottomed hydroplane with step, produced by Deschamps-Blondeau. Brasier-Despujols has one of the new Brasier racing type of motor with a bore of 6.1 inches and a stroke of 7 4-5 inches. The Duc has last year’s motor with the same bore but a shorter stroke, and developing about 30 hp. less than the new model. It would have been interesting to see it with the same type of motor as the Brasier-Despujols, with which change it would doubtless have proved the faster craft. In addition to driving the Duc the motor had to do service in the big cruiser Chantecler II. As the two were never racing at the same time, and there was every facility in the exhibition ground for quick changing, it was possible to compete with one boat in the morning and with the other in the afternoon. Finally both were put out of commission by the breaking of the crankcase hangers, due, it is believed to the rear bolts not being screwed tightly home.
The Bayard-Clement carried one of the four-cylinder racing motors produced by this firm for the 1908 road races in France and America, and which did service in several events in both these countries. It was temporarily disabled by the failure of the water pump, and when finally got into proper racing condition was unable to make a showing by reason of its inability to make the turns at speed. On this boat the motor is carried exactly in the center, with the motor shaft running forward to a housing, where it meshes with the propeller shaft through bevel gearing, the propeller shaft, of course, passing directly under the motor. The same type of indirect drive is adopted on the Nautilus-Delahaye Hop La, in the cruiser class.
The little Soulier Volant, which, according to rumor, was capable of 50 miles an hour on smooth water, also has indirect drive, but instead of bevels employs a chain as the medium between the two shafts, the propeller being geared up one-third in relation to the motor speed. The boat, which only weighs a little more than 500 pounds, proved a failure for smooth sea work. It advanced rapidly, with a series of bounds, with its step and forward rudder entirely out of water. In order to steer the boat it was necessary to slow down until the rudder was immersed.
La Fleche, the only other radical departure, also failed to convince. Its designers had produced an absolutely flat-bottomed craft, of equal width throughout, but having a depth of one foot astern and pointed and slightly upturned at the front. The step, instead of being rigid, was hinged at its forward edge to give an up and down motion against coil springs and a series of rubber buffers. It was believed that the boat would skim over the surface of the water and that the spring mounted step would absorb all the pounding. On the top of this raft, or "plank," as it was immediately termed, was built in a narrow-beam displacement type of hull. The boat was sent down without having undergone any trials, and on the first tests in Monaco Bay was found to have a tendency to run with its noise under the water.. All the front portion was immediately reconstructed with a much sharper angle, but even with this change the boat was entirely lacking in life.
Lilian, the only foreign boat in the racer class, had nothing which distinguished her other than her slow speed, and never really figured in the racing. The English Defender, a light, shallow boat having a certain similarity with the lines of the Duc, was afraid of venturing forth in any but the calmest weather. When running alone she appeared to be speedy, but having a bore almost one inch less than that allowed under the rules, she was disadvantaged in comparison with her French rivals. The motor was a light weight Green, designed for aviation.
Undoubtedly the finest cruiser in the meeting was M. Pourtales’ Cocorico, built by Despujols and engined by Brasier, her motor being identical with that carried in the Brasier-Despujols. Chantecler II, in the same class, was a very similar type of boat, but having one of last year’s motors was unable to compete successfully with the Cocorico. The boats, which are both 60 feet on the water-line, have a very deep forefoot, a fine section forward and the greatest beam on the stern. Their lines are very similar to those of last year’s unlimited racer Panhard-Levassor, and differ from the Ursula by being fuller forward and having greater beam astern. Naturally, the Cocorico was inferior in speed to the British racer Ursula, but she was a very much better sea boat.
An additional item was added to the program in the form of record spins round the course, for which the only boat really qualified was the Ursula. On the first attempt she covered the 3 4-5 miles in 5 minutes 30 seconds; on another attempt, made on the request of the King od Sweden, the English racer went round the course in 3 minutes 20 4-5 seconds, which is at the rate of 42.64 land miles an hour. This is thought to be about the speed limit of the 50-foot, 800-hp. British boat.
(Transcribed from MotorBoat, May 10, 1910, pp. 16, 17.)
* * *
The Monaco Motorboat Meeting
For two weeks Monaco has been the center upon which the eyes of all motorboat enthusiasts of Europe have been focused, for the motorboat exhibition and races held there under the auspices of the International Sporting Club of Monaco is the foremost annual event of its kind across the sea.
The Exhibition opened on April 1st and was exceptionally well patronized; it has become an event of great im- portance and tourists from all over the globe time their visits so that they may be at Monaco, or rather at Monte Carlo, as the city is known, while the races are going on. There is a week of the exhibition, and the races follow that event.
This year the weather conditions were more favorable than was the case last year, and small boats were able to do better than in 1909, when several days of heavy wind and sea played havoc with some of the contestants. Greater speed this year was a natural result of the more suitable conditions of wind and water.
The gathering of boats was fairly representative, although America was represented only by one boat, the Michigan-Farcot I, described as being similar in model to Dixie II, but with more power. She was built by the Michigan Steel Boat Company. Early reports do not indicate that she accomplished anything of importance. Great Britain was represented by the famous Ursula—the Wolseley-Siddeley II of last year, same in hull and 800-hp. motor. She is a 50-footer, built by Saunders. Another British boat was Maple Leaf II. She is owned by Mackay Edgar, and has a 400-hp. Orleans motor of twelve cylinders. The motor is to be installed in Mr. Edgar’s challenger for the B.I.T. race in America, but it was installed in a 50-foot hull, temporarily, the owner’s object being to try out the motor and to give his crew some racing experience, rather than to win a prize at Monaco. The hull was built by Burgoine, who has also built the 12-meter challenger, Marga III, owned by Fritz Cohn, equipped with a Dixie motor, representing Germany, while France presented a fleet which included such flyers as Brasier-Despujols, Duc II, Jack, Soulier-Volant, Ricochet XXII and several others.
There were three principal events in which boats of all nations participated, besides other races open to craft of restricted classes. The big events were the Championship of the Sea race of 200 kilometers, held on April 10th; the Cup of Nations races, held on the 12th, and the standing mile and kilometer trials.
The Championship of the Seas is a race for boats of the so-called "cruiser" class, irrespective of size and power. Thirty-six boats started in this race, and the event was one of the most spectacular of all the brilliant races ever held in these picturesque waters. The fleet crossed the starting line in one long, straight row, but this formation soon broke into strings and groups, and later into a long straggling procession, as the speedier craft pulled away from their slower competitors. The fastest boats, on their second round, caught up with some of those which were finishing their first round, so that from the shore the race looked like a merry-go-round of boats.
Cocorico, owned by M., Pourtales, a Brasier-Despujols cruiser, led at the start, and maintained her position to the finish, coming in twenty-five minutes ahead of the second boat, Tele-Mors. The winner’s time was 4 hours, 22 minutes, 35 2-5 seconds. This is 23 minutes under the time made by last year’s winner, Chantecler. The third boat to finish was Calypso; fourth, Gregoire VIII; fifth, Bianci; sixth, Spa-Gallinari.
In the race for the Cup of Nations, held on April 12th, Ursula easily out-ran all of her rivals, and she covered the 100-kilometer course (virtually 62 miles) in 1 hour, 26 minutes and 59 2-5 seconds. Brasier-Despujols was second; time, 1 hour, 34 minutes, 46 2-5. The third boat was Cocorico, time 2 hours, 1 minute, 31 2-5 seconds.
Although the sky was overcast, water conditions were ideal for high-speed work, and the Ursula completed round after round with clocklike regularity. She was heartily cheered when she finished amid a cloud of foam and spray, which at times hid her hull from the view of onlookers.
The race held on April 15th, for the standing start mile and flying kilometer, was one of the important events of the meeting, and Brasier-Despujols came off victor. She beat the mighty Ursula because her smaller motor was more easily started than the huge engines of the British marvel, showing sometimes the race does not go to the most powerful. It required several moments for the crew of Ursula to get her going at full speed, and in the meantime the sprightly Brasier-Despujols had gained a lead of fifty or a hundred yards before the Ursula was fairly under way. Brasier-Despujols made the mile in 2 minutes 20 seconds, and the kilometer in 50 2-5 seconds. Ursula’s time was 2 minutes, 36 2-5 seconds for the mile, and 55 2-5 seconds for the kilometer.
(Transcribed from MotorBoat, April 25, 1910, p. 43.)
[Thanks to Greg Calkins for help in preparing this page --LF]
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