1919 Cornfield Classic, Marion, IN.

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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.

Origins

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Let's go back to the very beginning, back to our origin. High-Wheeler, Penny Farthing, and Ordinary, all names for an iconic machine, the first to bear the name bicycle and one which sparked a revolution in recreation, transportation, and sport. Originally developed in France and England as the new United States was just picking up the pieces from the Civil War, the high-wheel bicycle didn't make its American debut until 1876 at an exhibition in Philadelphia. 

By that time the more affluent of imperial Europe had nurtured an expansive bicycle culture, at the center of which was racing. Though the new machines debuted to a frenzy of interest in United States the high-wheel bicycle was already on its way out. Innovations like pneumatic tires, chain-drives, and symmetrical wheel sizes would rapidly evolve the bicycle industry as it took hold in America, eventually making a perfect platform to pair with the developing gasoline engine. 

However, it is from this early era of high-wheel racing that emerged perhaps two of American motorcycle history's most important people. One, a British champion by the name of John Shilignton Prince who came to America and pioneered the development, construction, and promotion of the notorious wooden tracks known as Motordromes. The other, an American champion turned manufacturer named George M. Hendee who, with his partner Carl Oscar Hedstrom introduced the first Indian motorcycle on May 10, 1901. 

This photo comes from September of 1910 during a nostalgic exhibition of the old "Ordinaries," a veteran rider H.W. Bartleet clearly at home on the cumbersome contraption in the lead.

Goerke and Chapple, NYMC 1909

Two of Indians first and finest team members Walter Goerke and A.G. Chapple on the road during the New York Motorcycle Club's Spring Run in 1909.

Team Yale, 1911 FAM Eastern Tour

Arguably the most beloved pastime for motorcycling enthusiasts is when we are able to gear up with our friends, head out into wind, and experience the world together one mile at a time. Rides, runs, tours, and for a lucky few maybe even a cannonball or two, whatever the name or destination motorcyclists have been collectively enjoying each other's company and machines since the very beginning. Here, George Reitchey, P.W. Stevens, Harold Nichols, and H.G. Truppner, four friends from from Newark, NJ stop for a snapshot with their Yale 7HP twin's during the 1911 FAM Eastern Tour.