I recently posted the video from the 200-Mile International Road Championship held in Marion, Indiana September 1st, 1919, but lately I have seen portions of the lineup photo making the rounds. After some digital fiddling I stitched together the full panorama and figured I would share it. Thanks to the bottomless knowledge and generosity of Mr. Don Emde I can post the names here as well for thoseinterested.
Left to Right:
Indian
1 Percy Coleman
5 Gene Walker
6 Baxter Potter
14 Teddy Caroll
4 Roy Artley
3 Don Marks
Harley-Davidson
13 Albert "Shrimp" Burns
8 Leslie "Red" Parkhurst
10 Ralph Hepburn
15 Ray Weishaar
9 Otto Walker
11 Maldwyn Jones
Excelsior
12 Floyd Clymer
16 Joe Wolters
2 Warren Cropp
7 Bob Perry
17 Wells Bennett
18 Ray Creviston
By 1919 the world was attempting to pick up what remained of itself after the first World War and in America, motorcycle racing experienced an energized rebirth. Though the once countless manufacturers of American motorcycles had atrophied to a small handful, those who had faired well on the track before the war were now the dominant brands. Indian and Excelsior were early powerhouses in the arena of racing, but they were now joined by a sturdy and hungry Harley-Davidson. The machines became engineered for speed, Big Valve Excelsiors, Keystone framed Harleys and Indians, and new power plants like Indian's Powerplus and Harley's 8-valves made the spectacle of racing even more intoxicating. The exhilarating circular motordrome board tracks had almost all been abandoned before the war and races now took place on dirt road courses, or the handful of large board track speedways. The FAM (Federation of American Motorcyclists) who had helped give birth to organized motorcycle racing in this country had diminished and was replaced by a new sanctioning body, the M&ATA (Motorcycle & Allied Trade Association) who would eventually turn into the modern AMA (American Motorcycle Association). A lot of early board track stars who had transitioned from cycle racing had sadly either died or retired, but a new breed of professional had been mentored and took to the sport just as vigorously. Factory teams busted at the seams with talent and they all came out for the September race in Marion. Otto Walker, Joe Wolters, Shrimp Burns, Bob Perry, Leslie Parkhurst, Teddy Carroll, Ray Weishaar, and Maldwyn Jones were just a few of the now legendary men who took to the 5.17 mile Indiana road course that day. Leslie "Red" Parkhurst, a longtime key player on the Harley team took the checkered flag in Marion, followed by his teammates Ralph Hepburn and Otto Walker to close out the podium for the Milwaukee factory.
