The Vanderbilt Cup Races

The 1906 Finish

Crowds Storms Lancia After His Finish

Courtesy of The Henry Ford

With the first two places decided, the battle for third place was heated between Lancia’s F.I.A.T. and Tracy’s Locomobile. After Hemery completed his winning run, spectators packed the road near the grandstand. Lancia was forced to bring the F.I.A.T to a crawl before he crossed the finish line. He was stormed by a horde of admirers for his amazing race in what the New York Times called a “hurricane of cheers.”

First Use of Checkered Flag to Finish a Race

Courtesy of Brown Brothers

As Wagner was about to win the contest, starter Fred Wagner waved what is believed to be the first checkered flag used to signify the finish of an auto race. Standing on the railing above the flag, Willie K saluted the victor. The winning Darracq averaged 62.7 mph over the 297.1-mile race. Lancia’s F.I.AT. finished second, only three minutes and 18 seconds behind, followed 16 seconds later by Arthur Duray’s Lorraine-Dietrich.

Crowd Swarms on to Jericho Turnpike

Courtesy of The National Automotive History Collection at the Detroit Public Library

More than 200,000 spectators attended the race, breaking the attendance record set at the 1905 race. After the race was called, the crowd once again filled Jericho Turnpike around the grandstand.

Louis Wagner Wins Again for France

Courtesy of The Helck Family Collection

The victory of driver Louis Wagner (left) and his riding mechanician Louis Vivet was the third consecutive win for France. Wagner called the race “certainly the most nerve-wrenching contest in motoring history,” and later wrote a magazine article about the horror of racing through roads crowded with people.

Brooklyn Daily Eagle Cover

While the press praised the entertainment value of the race, the death to a spectator also fueled editorials crying for crowd control reform. The bone of contention was the continued use of public roads. Two days after the race, AAA President John Farson appointed a special committee to look into developing a privately owned speedway. At an October 18, 1906, meeting William K. Vanderbilt Jr. was named president of a newly formed “Automobile Highway Association.” The company would later become Long Island Motor Parkway, Inc., responsible for developing the first road built specifically for the automobile.

1906 Race Statistics -->

1906

Years

Feature

The 128-page book by Howard Kroplick, a researcher and lecturer on the races, contains rare images of the races from the archives of major museums, libraries and private collectors. The book Vanderbilt Cup Races of Long Island will be available from Arcadia Publishing in March 2008.

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