Racing at Playa Del Rey - 1910

Dave Lewis in the Stutz number 10 and Charlie Merz in the number 7 National run wheel-to-wheel at the world's first board track designed for automobiles, the Playa Del Ray Motordrome near Los Angeles. This photo was taken at first race meet at the Motordrome after it opened for a week of racing beginning on April 8, 1910. The big shocker of the meet was Caleb Bragg's defeat of Barney Oldfield in a match race. Fiat driver Bragg, a newcomer, was matched against Oldfield in his world record setting Blitzen Benz as a replacement for Ralph De Palma, whose Fiat suffered mechanical failure.