Lytle Announces Retirement

This attachment contains an article which orginally appeared in the May 29, 1910 Indianapolis Star. The article documents that long-time race driver Herb Lytle announced his retirement from the sport after suffering an accident during a free-for-all handicap contest the previous day at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The race was part of the track's May 1910 race meet. 
 
The May 1910 race meet weekend included "national championships," a newly-announced distinction by the American Automobile Association (AAA) for select race meets. Car manufacturers were keen to make a great showing. Check out other articles that provide additional summaries on the results of the races staged May 27 and May 28 elsewhere on First Super Speedway.
 
It was during the handicap contest that Herb Lytle suffered the only injury of the entire weekend. He was thrown from his American racer on the last lap and suffered a broken leg. His riding mechanic William Clifton was also tossed from the car and suffered what was reported as a "sprained" shoulder. 
 
The article mentions - erroneously - that Lytle was severely injured in the previous year's Vanderbilt Cup. The reality is that Lytle missed that race because he was injured just weeks prior at the nearby Long Island Automobile Derby after his car struck a tree. The Speedway wreck, coming so soon after the Long Island incident, had to have weighed heavily on Lytle's mind. Lytle reported having a premonition the night before that he would endure some kind of accident. He told the Star the following:
 
"It's all over. I am through with the motor racing game. Never again will I take a seat behind the wheel of a racing car in a contest. The game is all right for those who are lucky, but I seem to be out of luck every season."
 
Lytle's son was reportedly in the grandstands at the time of the incident. The boy wanted to come to his father in the Speedway hospital but the injured driver sent strict instructions for him to stay put until the racing for the day was complete and it was safe to cross the track.
 
As for Lytle, he did return to racing but only briefly. The allure of first Indianapolis 500 proved irresistable and he entered that race - his only "500."