Fred Huyck - 1909

This image of star motorcycle racer Fred Huyck (I believe his name was pronounced, "Hike") appeared in the August 9, 1909, Indianapolis News. It was part of the promotional coverage leading up to the first motorized competition at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on August 14. Huyck was not the best known of riders in the day but came away from this meet as the event's star performer - if that was possible given that it truly was an unmitigated fiasco. He ended up the victor in three of seven contests. The caption that ran with the original photograph read as follows: 
 
"A topnotcher in motorcycledom who will race in all speedway events Friday and Saturday is Freddie Huyck. He is an amateur and will use a 3.5 and 7-horsepower Indian in the coming meet. On a three-lap track at Springfield, Mass, recently, he broke the world's mile record. He negotiated the distance on his 5-horsepower Indian in 42 3/5 seconds. This is at the rate of 84 1/2 miles an hour. He expects to cut several seconds off his own record here this week. He also broke the world's five-mile record on the Springfield track. His time was 3 minutes 40 1/5 seconds. Huyck's home is in Chicago. He is a quiet young fellow, twenty years old. He has a world of confidence in himself."
 
Check out these other entries about or relevant to Huyck elsewhere on First Super Speedway:

• FAM One-Mile Go.
• Summary of 1909 motorcycle races.
• Indiana State Fairgrounds.
• Lowell Trophy.