Atlanta Announces 1910 Spring Races

Originally published in the Sunday, March 20, 1910 Indianapolis Star, attachment Atlanta032010 contains an article that was part of  a special supplemental section about the upcoming March 28 Indianapolis Automobile Show presented by the Indianapolis Automobile Trade Association (IATA). Key features of the auto show were the Floral Parade, contests at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and concluding banquet (sometimes called the "Gasoline Banquet") at the Denison Hotel.
 
This article reports on the announcement by the Atlanta Speedway of details for the spring race meet of its upcoming 1910 racing season. What is not apparent in taking the article at face value is the underlying rivalry between this venue and the Brickyard. One of the best examples is the suggestion that Atlanta was considering aviation shows a topic long discussed by the Indianapolis track which had already hosted the 1909 National Balloon Racing Championship. IMS President Carl Fisher had promoted the notion that his track was a multi-purpose facility. The reality was that later that year Indianapolis would host an impressive aviation meet, one of the first in America.
 
The meat of the article focuses on the addition of two marquee trophies to join two that were awarded at the Atlanta track's inaugural meet in November 1909 - the Coca-Cola Trophy and the City of Atlanta Cup. Coca-Cola President Asa Candler was also the president of the Atlanta track. The new trophies announced were the Atlanta Speedway Trophy and the Atlanta Automobile Association Trophy.
 
The Atlanta Speedway Trophy was valued at $10,000 and required a team to win its race three times before obtaining permanent ownership. Race winners received $600 in gold. The contest was for 200 miles. Also 200 miles the Atlanta Automobile Association Trophy was again valued at $10,000 and also required teams to win the associated race three times before being awarded its deed. The first place award for an individual race victory was slightly larger than the sister event at $1,000 in gold.
 
The track announced that the spring race meet would offer a total of 20 events, most of them short distances of less than 20 miles. The Atlanta Automobile Association Trophy was for stock chassis cars with engines of 451 to 600 cubic inches. The Atlanta Speedway Trophy was for stock chassis cars with smaller engines, 301 to 450. Also highlighted was an Australian Pursuit Race planned to involve four cars. These contests involved starting four cars at equidistant points on the track with the winner being the one to pass the other cars. Once passed, a car was eliminated from the event.
 
The article includes an exhaustive list of the descriptive details for each event, complete with the 1910 American Automobile Association (AAA) rulebook car classifications. Interestingly there is no reference to this spring event being part of the AAA's recently announced National Championship.
 
A follow-up to the March 20 article is contained in attachment AAAatlanta042810 (published in the March 28, 1910 Indianapolis Star) and describes plans for "straightaway races" on a stretch of road beyond the speedway. It also again notes the track's intentions of staging aviation events of Monday and Tuesday of the upcoming show the following week.
 
The stretch of road for the time trials was College Park-Hapeville Road and officials said they believed it would be a faster section than the famous Daytona-Ormond course in Florida. Ralph DePalma and the famous Fiat of the day are specifically mentioned as likely entrants. The local organizers had wired the AAA to request sanction.