Aitken & Hughes Harvest Classic Finish

The 50 mile race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway's September 9, 1916, Harvest Classic race meet produced a photo finish between Johnny Aitken (Peugeot) and Hughie Hughes (Hoskins). Close even by today's standards, only 0.27 seconds separated the first and second place cars. Note the flagman's suspension bridge over the start-finish line. Aitken and Hughes are pictured in the inset. In addition to the 50-mile race, a 20-miler and a 100-mile feature were also conducted. Amazingly, Aitken and his Peugeot won all three despite stiff competition from Eddie Rickenbacker (Maxwell) as well as Peugeot drivers Hughes and Howdy Wilcox.