EAST FAREWELL
NEWS
Thursday, June 16,
1960 Vol. C781
LOCAL
NEWS
BIKE RACE AROUND THE LAKE IS AN EARLY SUMMER
HIT
East Farewell – The 9th annual “Race Around the
Lake” was held on Saturday and was once again a great success with
both the racers and the fans. The race was the unusual mix of bona-fide bike
race and wacky, outrageous strangeness that has come to define the race. While
the “real” race has a start and finish, a list of entrants and a winner, the
“Race Around the Lake” has sporadic entries and exits, no particular winner due
to the lack of race parameters and an acceptance of almost any type bicycle as
long as it had wheels and no motor of any type. The “real” race started at
9:00AM from the Lakefront Plaza with 79 racers. Last year’s winner and strong
favorite, Franz Zimmerman took an early lead and was able to set a fairly good
pace. He was challenged by Regional High graduate, track star and last year’s
third place finisher, Gracie Wilson. She is currently enrolled as a student at
Penn State University. She caught Zimmerman on the final lap and rode neck and
neck until the final sprint down Main Street when Zimmerman exploded with a
blast of speed and crossed the finish line only two lengths ahead of Wilson.
Coming in third was Bedford’s own David Doyle who won the race in 1958. He rode
his imported Raleigh ten speed racing bike. Zimmerman was able to cut 10
seconds of his last year time coming at 1 hour 37 minutes but was still short
of Doyle’s 1958 win at 1 hour 30 minutes. After Zimmerman and Wilson crossed
the finish lines they were hustled over the temporary winner’s stand where they
enjoyed some water and waited for Doyle.
The oddball
section of the race has almost over shadowed the “official” race. While the
“official” race had a total of 79 racers the oddball section had about 25. It
was hard to total the number of entries because there is no sign up or entry
list. People just entered when they felt fit and “raced” for as long as they
wanted or however long their contraption held up. As a rule, it seemed the more
outlandish the contraption the shorter its lifespan. This year there were
several three wheeled vehicles and while not bicycles they were allowed. The
trikes fared well over the course, some even completed the race but since they
did not start at the beginning and weren’t registered they did not get counted.
Of course there were the unusual entries that really spice up the race. Walter
Winchell who is locally famous for his attempts at a “butterfly” bike tried a
different approach this year with a sail bike. He attached a mast to the front
fork of a bike and tried to “catch a breeze” as he said afterwards. The bike
went about a lap and a half before the front fork broke and the bike collapsed.
Local invertor, Dr. Quantry, had more luck with his improved “lounge chair”
bike. He took a standard lawn lounge chair, one of the ones with the wide woven
strips, and mounted it on a small framed bicycle. He then rearranged the pedals
and chain drive so he could pedal it while lying on the chair. The contraption
had a rough start because the bike was a little top heavy and needed someone to
give him a push to send him on his way. Once moving though he was able to
navigate the course and complete four laps, cross the finish line and fittingly
falling apart on the Lakefront Plaza.
Things wrapped
up on the Lakefront Plaza about 5:00PM. There was a brief awards ceremony where
metals were awarded to the first three finishers. The rest of the entrants
filled the plaza and many of the restaurants set up tables and served lite
fare. The oddball group had their own ceremony off to the side of the plaza
where they awarded Dr. Quantry a prize for being the one contraption that had
the most laps and actually crossed the finish line. The award was a rubber
bicycle handle cover that had some gold tassels stuck on the end of it. It
could have come off a child’s bike but no one was saying where it came from.
“It really means very little to me,” laughed Quantry after receiving it, “I
just wish my bike had held together a little longer but, maybe next year.”
That seems to
have become to closing refrain for the bike race. “Maybe next year” should
probably be “See you next year”
Walter Winchell’s Sail-bike
right before its collapse
SPORTS
‘HOWLIN’ FRANK SILENCES THE TRAVELERS
Bear Creek – The Traveler’s four game winning
streak came to a screeching halt on Saturday when the Bear Creek Cubs, powered
by a slippery curve ball and a verbal assault supplied by “Howlin” Frank
Fowler, crushed the Travelers 6-0. Fowler was perfect for the first three innings
and only allowed 2 hits the entire game. The Cubs, on the other hand, got at
least one hit in every inning. Things went bad for the Travelers right at the
start. Fowler struck out the first three batters each followed by his trademark
and by the end of the first inning, annoying howl. After each strike out he
would let out a long wolf-type howl that would end with “yip-yip-yip”, annoying
indeed. The Travelers were unable to silence him though and had to put up with
it for the entire game.
The
Cubs got to Travelers pitcher, Billy Green, and they got to him often. They
scored two runs in the second, one run in both the fourth and fifth and sealed
the win with two runs in the seventh. The Cubs had men on base every inning and
their bats did most of their talking, Green only walked four all day. “I was
really off today, there is no excuse. I couldn’t get my fastball across and my
curve wasn’t working. I let the team down today and I am not going to let that
happen again,” said Green after the game.
“Greeny
did not have his stuff today but the rest of the team didn’t help him at all.
We couldn’t do anything against that loudmouth. That howl of his just added
insult to injury. We are going to get him next time. I promise you that,” said
Johnny Cloos in the locker room after the game.
The
Travelers stay on the road next week but their challenges don’t get any easier.
They will be taking on the Corning Glass Works and Bill “Smoke” Black. He is
currently leading the league with the lowest ERA of 2.7. The evening game
begins at 7:15PM in the CGW Park.
NATIONAL NEWS
CONGRESS BANS PAYOLA – IKE GREETED WARMLY IN
MANILA – KHRUSHCHEV TURNS DOWN POWER’S FATHER REQUEST FOR RELEASE OF SON – BIG
FIRE IN LONDON, ENGLAND DEPARTMENT STORE, AT LEAST 5 DEAD
Congress
votes to ban payola, approving a bill providing a criminal penalty of up to one
year in prison and $10,000 fine for anyone convicted of being involved in
payola or TV-radio contest fixing.
President
Eisenhower gets a rousing welcome from nearly two million Filipinos in Manila.
After the reception, the President plunged into business talks with President
Carlos P. Garcia.
A
Soviet announcement says that Premier Khrushchev has turned down Oliver Powers’
appeal for the release of his son - U-2 pilot Francis Gary Powers. The Premier
did say he would help him see his son, should he visit the Soviet
Union. “Law is law and I cannot interfere in a matter which is exclusively
within the competence of the judicial authorities.” Oliver Powers is a shoe
repair operator in Virginia. His son was shot-down by the Soviets on May 1.
In
Liverpool, England, a blaze sweeps through the crowded
five-story Henderson Department Store in mid-afternoon. At least 11 are
dead and a dozen or so are injured, but that toll is expected to rise.
Many, many
thanks to www.mrpopculture.com for
contributing to this section of the East Farewell News.
