Indianapolis Motorcycle Races - 1909

This is a wonderful collection of Indianapolis News, Indianapolis Sun and Indianapolis Star newspaper articles covering the August 14, 1909 Federation of American Motorcyclists (FAM) national championship race meet at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. This was the first motorized competition at the Speedway and delivered mixed results at best. The track was simply not ready, its rough macadam and tar surface broke up during the events. Further, the nature of the surface and length of the giant track was such that the riders could attain speeds in excess of 70 miles per hour but the lightweight bikes bounced dangerously over the loose stones. Many observers called a fiasco as numerous planned events were canceled when riders refused to take any more risks. Champion rider Jake DeRosier suffered serious injuries in a spectacular fall in a match race conceived on the fly. Also see my story of this event from the 2008 Moto GP Program.

Note: I will update this section with a synopsis of each article as time permits.

Rain Postpones First Races at Indy Speedway

This content was originally published in the August 13, 1909, Indianapolis News. The first item is a nice article that not only reports that the first day of racing (August 13) at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway was postponed due to rain (imagine that, rain interfering with racing!), but also and more importantly discusses the preparation of the track, with some vivid descriptions of the grounds and architecture.
Officer Gibney Injured; Men Enjoy "Smoker"

This content was originally published in the August 14, 1909 Indianapolis News. The package contains three very brief items. The first is a report on injuries to police officer Albert C. Gibney, an Indianapolis motorcycle patrolman who entered the first races at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
The First Races at the Indy Speedway

These articles were originally published in the August 14, 1909 Indianapolis News. This package contains one article of one newspaper column in length and another very brief item of two paragraphs. The longer article provides a nice description of the new Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Because this was the city's evening paper, it went to press prior to the races actually starting, so no results are covered.
Summary of 1909 Motorcycle Races

The first attachment (news81609) contains articles that were originally published in the August 16, 1909, Indianapolis News. This collection of brief articles and an image provide a nice summary of the activities during the 1909 motorcycle week in Indianapolis and at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
The American Brooklands?

This article was originally published in the August 1, 1909 Indianapolis Star. This is a promotional piece that touted what a great event the upcoming motorcycle race meet at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway would be.
The Marvelous "Flying Merkels"

This exceptionally brief item was originally published in the August 3, 1909 Indianapolis Star. This article focuses on the Merkel Team of motorcycle racers and their star rider - champion amateur rider Stanley Kellogg.
Rider John Sink

This item was originally published in the August 4, 1909 Indianapolis Star. This is an image of rider John Sink, who was entered in the first motorcylce races at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on August 14.
Riders and Drivers Arrive in Indy

This article was originally published August 9, 1909 in the Indianapolis Star. This article is a unique blend of news. It leads with a report of how Californian stars Ed Lingenfelder, Charles "Fearless" Balke and 17-year-old sensation Ray Seymour arrived in Indianapolis.
Cars & Bikes & Indy

These two articles were originally published on August 10, 1909 in the Indianapolis Star. The first article discusses the arrival of several auto racing teams preparing for the upcoming first car races at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Farmers Cheer Riders From Roadside

This content was originally published in the August 11, 1909 Indianapolis Star. There are two items, one is an image of Indianapolis rider John McCarber, who was entered in the Cleveland-to-Indianapolis endurance run on his Excelsior motorcycle. This was the eighth edition of this annual event, which is pretty impressive when you consider that puts its origin back to 1901.