Obscure Early American Road Races

Occasionally I run across obscure American road races that occurred before WW-I. This category is designed to capture and preserve such races.

Portola Road Race - 1909

This article is the story of the 250 mile Portola Road Race held October 23, 1909 near Oakland, California. Little known in auto racing history, it was won by Jack Fleming in a Pope-Hartford. This race was conducted on public roads and was criticized for inadequate crowd control as spectators were injured. The great thing about this article is that it includes a complete starting field with the names of cars, drivers and riding mechanics - very rare in such reports.
Riverhead 1909

The attached articles concern an auto race that ocurred on Long Island little more than a month prior to the 1909 Vanderbilt Cup Race, the more established classic that took place in the same general vicinity.