Vanderbilt Cup Races

Jan 06 2009
The Dangerous Role of the Mechanician

Every race car that participated in the Vanderbilt Cup Races of 1904 to 1910 carried two men, the driver and a riding mechanic called a mechanician. The mechanician assisted with repairs, helped navigate the course, and worked a hand pump to maintain fuel pressure. (5 comments)

Jan 04 2009
Electric Timing of the Vanderbilt Cup Races

As described in my December 30, 2008 post , the early Vanderbilt Cup Races were timed by scorers using stop-watches. This manual timing of the races was replaced by an electric timing system developed by Arthur and Charles Warner of Beloit, two brothers from Beloit, Wisconsin. (0 comments)

Jan 03 2009
VanderbiltCupRaces.com 2008 Year in Review

Thanks for a great first year! VanderbiltCupRaces.com ended up with the #1 Google ranking among the 178,000 websites that appear for a search on "Vanderbilt Cup Races". The 2008 stats and year in review are below: (0 comments)

Jan 01 2009
The Buick Team at the 1909 Lowell Races

Andrew, my best guess is the photo shows your relative Joe Grenon standing with drivers Bob Burman, Louis Disbrow, and Jack Tower at the Merrimack Valley Course near Lowell, Massachusetts in September 1909. Grenon, Burman and Disbrow all drove Buicks in these races. (2 comments)

Jan 01 2009
The Four-Lane Motor Parkway and an Aerial View of Queens in 1924

For the second VanderbiltCupRaces.com post of 2009, I have improved the format of my December 31st post and added a rare 1924 aerial view. The post includes amazing images from the Queens Borough President's Collection that shows two Long Island Motor Parkway bridges over Winchester Boulevard in Queens. Yes, in November 1932, there were two bridges at this location and the Motor Parkway looked like a four-lane parkway. Alas, it was just a temporary illusion. Here's the story (click on the… (6 comments)

Dec 31 2008
The Two Bridges Over Winchester Boulevard in Queens

For the last VanderbiltCupRaces.com post of 2008, I have selected amazing images from the Queens Borough President's Collection that show two Long Island Motor Parkway bridges over Winchester Boulevard in Queens. Yes, in November 1932, there were two bridges at this location and the Motor Parkway looked like a four-lane parkway. Alas, it was just a temporary illusion. Here's the story: (0 comments)

Dec 29 2008
Timing the 1904 Vanderbilt Cup Race

Rich, the timing for the Vanderbilt Cup Races was surprisingly accurate. The system for timing the races changed during the period that the races were held on Long Island. Below is a description of how the cars were timed for the 1904 Vanderbilt Cup Race. (0 comments)

Dec 27 2008
The Complete 44-Mile LIMP Tour: Maps, Images and Videos

To assist those LIMP fans who wish to walk sections of the 44-mile Long Island Motor Parkway, I have highlighted the right-of-way using a 1940 map. In the final of the three-part series, click here for a PDF of the Suffolk County Map. (1 comments)

Dec 26 2008
When Gasoline was 14 Cents a Gallon

Several people have requested an unedited version of the image posted this Wednesday of the corner of the Hillside Avenue and Springfield Boulevard on January 22, 1931. (2 comments)