THE HEROIC DAYS

[Music] oh [Applause] [Music] motor cars wind to provide a new form of personal transport but before long they were used for other 100 others took part in one of the early motorists run between the great cities of europe the paris vienna 1902 and the new cinematograph is there to record its dusty progress [Music] most of these cars are standard turning models and are driven by gentlemen who are only too pleased to show off their new machines but there are also many specially built racing cars made to an internationally accepted weight limit of one ton manufacturers build faster and faster cars by putting larger and larger engines in light chassis these cars capable of speeds of up to 90 miles an hour give some of the most exciting and dangerous racing ever known [Music] france at this time is supreme and here comes one of her greatest drivers the chevalier journey denis on his panhard but the great denis fails to finish the paris vienna race and an englishman sf edge takes the coveted gordon bennett trophy to britain [Music] the irish gordon bennett is a real international competition with teams from germany the united states britain and france [Applause] [Applause] the race is over seven laps of a closed circuit only a few weeks ago the city to city races has come to a terrible halt after a disastrous attempt to run a race from paris to madrid [Applause] the race is to be run over a total distance of 327 miles and the panhard driven by denise is confidently expected to take the trophy back to france however the unexpected is happening once more and a german mercedes driven by janazi is faster commonly called the red devil janazi is better known for courage than success but at last his day has come french cars are second third and fourth [Music] but the gordon bennett trophy goes on to germany jeanette says erratic brilliance does much to make mercedes the card of the year next year special trials are needed to select gordon bennett teams as more and more manufacturers realize that racing is a shortcut to fame british hopes are centered on ages napier tyres are a great problem and have to be cooled whenever possible britain also has new streamlined woolseys the german team is to be led by gennetsy the undoubted favorite while the italians have kanyo their queen's personal chauffeur the germans have chosen the toners building fantastic stands to look like a medieval castle and even translating the inscriptions in the post office into latin on this grand occasion the kaiser himself is up at six in the morning for the start janetsy leads off for germany edge follows janazi is determined to win he has been practicing every day for two months the circuit is 80 miles with towns that are neutralized and are then paced through by cyclists it is noted that the french braziers move more smoothly and hold the road better than the mercedes with their undamped springs it's not easy to appreciate the drama of seeing the giants for the first time to liken a locomotive to a car says one account is sheer bathos it is as the gambling of an elephant to the flight of a swallow it's a shock to the germans when teres brazier is found to be fastest of all and steadily drawing away from genetse britain is close behind italy is also coming into the picture with kanye's fiat number 17. it is reported that when other drivers wave kanye the chauffeur salutes respect [Music] lamp after left for nearly six hours terry keeps up his magnificent drive jeanetti cannot match the fantastic regularity of the french car at long last the gordon bennett trophy goes back to france from now onwards terry is to be known as the chronometer the following year he wins again and now france exploits her supremacy by organizing a new race on her own terms the french grand prix is to be a two-day affair of 800 miles the finest possible test of men and machines [Music] there are new fiats from italy and mercedes from germany designers still concentrate on large engines in light chassis the 14 and a half liter mercedes engine is just about twice as big as that of a london bus have gone so far as to fit light wire wheels there isn't even a cushion for the driver of this car as it is officially weighed the didi tricks are probably near the ton weight limit with their 18 liter engines [Music] clermont's son albert is having his first big race on 13 a a clermont bayer numbers are allocated to makes 5a is abrasia so are 5b [Music] and 5c there are no less than 23 french cars among the starters [Music] gabrielle leads off the bronx landscape of italy is unappeared that's a new renault [Music] [Music] [Music] [Applause] to make this race a test of men as well as machines all work must now be done by the crew this is just the start of a two-day race [Applause] [Music] the circuit is made up of three very long flat out straights it is above all a test of sustained high speed although there are the connecting corners [Music] [Music] organization is on the grand scale with 40 miles of palisading alone as the first results come through abrasion is again in the lead with barra driving while the leading hotchkiss has broken a wheel on the first lap lancia the hope of italy comes in a keen singer he is said to detect a false note in an engine as easily as in one of his favorite wagnerian scores the entire radiator seems to be out of harmony today the italians are also off tuned [Applause] and it is who takes the lead for france with a fennel are second and third the heat is becoming subtropical but already the french lead is overwhelming the first day's racing is more than halfway through when leblanc finishes rebuilding his wheel with spokes borrowed it he said not only from his wheels but even from other competitors this is becoming a real test of physical endurance the fine particles of dust combined with the dust laying liquid to hurt the driver's eyes so severely that several can hardly see the road and have to retire just before midday the waiting crowd see the leader come in [Music] [Applause] in first place sits the x mechanic and second the youngest competitor albert next morning the race is continued [Applause] sits leads comfortably but the complete french victory crumbles as the italian driver felicia nazaro takes second place young albert is in trouble he has to change tires on fixed wheels whereas the pierce and rhinos have detachable rims [Music] [Applause] [Music] sits his car is not only fast but he can change a tire in two minutes compared with up to 15 minutes of this [Music] poor albert is dropping further and further behind the italian field [Music] the wooden road specially built to skirt the town of saint cali is tricky [Music] shepard an american amateur was fought [Music] albert's back trying to catch the fear while abrasion is now fourth the american is out another wire wheel has collapsed and there just don't seem to be enough spokes left on any of the others [Music] today no one can catch the reynold and sits waves to the crowd as he drives on with a lead of over 30 minutes on nazaro [Applause] the first grand prix is in everywhere success for france the renault wins while nazaro's second place for italy in the fiat gives a pleasant international flavor [Music] [Applause] [Music] there is a new racing star an ex-racing mechanic the professionals are moving in germany counters the successful french grand prix by putting all her imperial splendor behind a race of her own the kaiser price [Music] a large number of people still have little apparent idea of the danger involved which is a big problem on these long circuits many who should know better still turn their back on the motor cars rapid progress this time germany has drawn up regulations on her terms excluding the large french and italian grand prix cars all the same there is a strong competition from abroad and for half the 300 mile race of belgian peat leaves then on the very last lap felicia nizado comes through to win on his red italian fiat the unlucky belgian finds that he is now nearly five minutes behind germany can do no better than third the race is not repeated the kaiser presents the prizes not only to the drivers and to the designers but also to the directors of the companies involved right on top of this comes the french grand prix at the app the weight limit was dangerous and the organizers have hit on a depressingly sensible formula a limit on fuel consumption it's all done most carefully but motor racing is spectacular particularly with flamboyant characters in the german and italian teams with the hard driving lancer and that most brilliant new start of all for lichi merchant who is said to handle a car like a violin [Music] to economize the limited fuel cars are started at the last moment and several are in trouble [Music] [Applause] [Applause] as soon as the race is on all thoughts of careful economical driving are forgotten the new formula hasn't had much effect two drivers have been killed in practice on these giant lightweights one of them young albert klemmel [Music] many drivers are finding the new circuit difficult racing encourages new and experimental cars but this veteran cobrambie is in her fifth season it is not a mercedes year and the braziers now seem to be outclassed italy has taken the lead it's wagner on a field and he's overdone it his lead was less than seven seconds over duress french lorraine dietrich [Applause] [Music] pablo and abrasion is trying hard renault is touched by the brazier pablo has bent the front axle but the car is drivable it's a lorraine dietrich leading for france but lancia's fiat is only seconds behind [Music] felicia nazarro where the gentlemanly salute is third the speed of this car is understandable like several others they're finding the detachable rims too detachable [Music] racing has become tougher and more professional but it's still usually friendly it's traditional to try and finish even after losing two and a half hours with a fabulous drive on the lorraine dietrich dures still leads for france but the pace is now telling on lancia's fear french cars are second and third [Applause] with only two laps to go dura is out and first place has been taken for italy by felicity nazaro on his fears the winner of the kaiser price wins the french grand prix the next grand prix is again a dm and starts with a bang salzer immediately takes the lead for germany and loses it but it's depressingly clear to the french crowd that this year the white german cars are very fast and abends now leaves there's no fuel limit this year but a minimum weight limit of just over one ton the idea of the minimum weight is that heavier cars will be safer unfortunately heavy cars have a strong tendency to keep moving in a straight line [Music] the german cars are overwhelmingly successful although even large and stronger on the leading mercedes makes his mistake [Music] lautenschlager still has a lead of eight minutes when he goes on to win [Music] german cars are first second and third the race is a complete german victory and the defeat of france is hard to take this might well be the end of the french grand prix but motor racing is not dead [Applause] brooklyn's opened in 1907 gives a great impetus to british manufacturers with its opportunities for sustained high speed percy lambert's talbot is the first car to do 100 miles in the hour track racing is also popular in the states where trotting tracks are used for regular meetings one british writer refers to this as a most unsafe procedure in europe it's more gentlemanly even if it's not quite the thing to put your passenger nearest to the accident amateur sport is always popular in britain at chelsea walsh almost anyone can have a go but it isn't just fun and many useful lessons are learnt the hard way observe the stability of this car [Music] [Applause] [Music] now compare leon peugeot a fast car with a high engine and center of gravity [Music] [Applause] [Music] these small cars called watchurettes are being highly developed at first people looked down on them saying they should be kept for shopping and local touring [Music] it is an air of the more cheerful british amateur racing of the day as one of the crew dives beneath a seat produces a magneto and looks as if he doesn't know quite what to do next this way of spending your time demands real enthusiasm [Music] the sheer guts of these men is realized when we see how they try to go on racing whenever possible [Music] [Applause] surprisingly few people are seriously hurt however one accident at encore bridge has become legend [Music] the crew are lifted from the wreck to be taken for the mortuary when the driver was placed on the cold slab he is said to have risen up and indignantly demanded his motorcar [Music] by 1908 this butcherette is winning a 300-mile race in under six hours non-stop louis de large appears to have bashed by his sudden fame to thank geo [Applause] less happy is the grand prix story the death of one of the great pioneers maurice fournier mars a gallant attempt to revive grand prix racing at le mans in 1911. unluckily only number 13 a fiat completes the full distance [Music] however grand prix racing is to return the following year with new giant fiats from italy french peugeots with engines of only half their size and valuable experience from their watchuarette racing the british sunbeams are much smaller still [Music] it's quite like old times as a giant fiat goes into the lead round the old df circuit that is drama to gain a ton called bridge [Music] the racing however is different the smaller peugeots are setting a new standard in road holding while the three liter sunbeams come in third fourth and fifth louis vargas field is second but it and all the other giants have been decisively defeated by a blue peugeot [Music] the driver george boiler becomes overnight one of the legendary figures of motor racing in 1913 the peugeot engine is reduced further in size and boiler is the star driver moreover on the new short 20 mile circuit at damian the road holding of the peugeot and the skill of wallow are at a premium the challenge comes from delage one of these new round-nosed cars laps at over 76 the british sunbeams are again well up and one finishes third it is the peugeot road holding that defeats all others [Music] another brilliant drive by george wallow brings a second victory to france french confidence grows as a race for grand prix cars at le mans gives the delage a chance to prove themselves to the excitement of everyone the mercedes are back but the white german cars cannot catch the french pablo wins this time louis de lage isn't so bashful the french industry is right back on top as the stage is set for the last act of our story the 1914 french grand prix this is to be one of the greatest motor races of all time with cars from nearly every motor manufacturing company in the world sits the x mechanic is back so is kanyo the royal chauffeur felicia nazaro with the sensitive hands and most exciting of all lautenschlager on a new mercedes is meeting the great george wallow on his persia the new circuit is near lyon and for additional spectacle the cars are to start in pairs see how tyler's white mercedes walks away from kanyo [Music] [Applause] [Music] at the end of the first lap it is george boiler of france who leads the pack then to the dismay of the crowd a white german mercedes is fastest of all seiler leads wallow is second on that dramatic day in the summer of 1914 a crowd lined the short twisting 23-mile circuit this is a real test of a racing car and of the engineering skill of the nations involved [Music] [Applause] [Music] the german car leads but french cars are close behind wallow is second and number thirty five gerais de large is third [Music] the british and italian cars are behind battling among themselves when suddenly after only six of the 25 laps cyler and the second mercedes are out wallow leads and another peugeot 19 is full [Music] the blue peugeots with their tails cocked high seem to gain yards on every corner [Music] even pablo's delage number nine cannot match the peugeots [Music] then the three remaining mercedes start coming through the field and the race is nearly halfway through when lautenschlager comes into second place [Music] wallow has never tried harder to win only ten laps to go and he leads by nearly two and a half minutes [Music] then in the last laps tension grows the crowd realized that the mercedes are steadily gaining ground [Music] the final lap and as the cars stream home the blue car is missing wallows out dartenschlager wins with mercedes first second and third the german victory is complete the heroic days of the pioneers are over racing cars will never be forgotten the frail but powerful cars that demanded so much strength physical endurance and courage as men raced with them over hundreds of miles of dusty roads half a century ago [Music] right [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] so [Music] you