Henry Ford Resumes Racing

Below are three attachments, each containing articles about the Ford Motor Company's racing activites in 1909. The first is from the June 27, 1909 Indianapolis Star, the second from a day earlier in the Indianapolis News and then another from the News from June 24, 1909 which provided one of the first reports on the race where, at the time, everyone believed the Ford team had prevailed.
 
Schebler 12-Cylinder Engine

This brief article with an image was first published in the July 3, 1909 Indianapolis Star and reported on the development of a 12-cylinder engine by George Schebler, one of the two founders of the Wheeler-Schebler Carburetor Company.
Pardington's Game

Arthur Rayner Pardington was one of the powerful pioneers who shaped the sport of auto racing in the early 1900's. He was William K. Vanderbilt Jr.'s right hand man in most of the millionaire's race organizing ventures as well as the Long Island Motor Parkway.
Salzman on Freak Racers

The attached article was published in the June 20, 1909 Indianapolis Star. It is another example of the ongoing debate of the day concerning the value of competition between purpose-built "freak" racing cars versus stock cars that were allegedly identical to what the consumer could acquire off the showroom floor.
Lytle on IMS

The attached article originally appeared in the June 27, 1909 Indianapolis Star. It provides insight to the views of Herb Lytle, one of the most experienced drivers of the day, concerning the Indianapolis Motor Speedway that was still under construction at the time.

This folder has numerous articles on the inaugural auto races at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. These races occurred only days after the Speedway hosted the Federation of American Motorcycles (FAM) race meet. The auto races were a blend of success and tragedy. Most of the major American drivers entered – Barney Oldfield, Ray Harroun, Bob Burman, Tom Kincaid, Lewis Strang, Louis Chevrolet, Jap Clemens, Charlie Merz, Eddie Hearne, Ralph De Palma and Tobin DeHymel among them. With the exception of a Fiat and a Benz, the entries were American, including: Marmon, Marion, Stearns, National, Jackson, Stoddard-Dayton, Buick and Apperson. Tragedy came in the loss of several lives, including Willfred Bourque, who became the first driver to die in a racing accident at the Speedway.

Big Plans for First IMS Auto Races - 1909

The article in attachment IMSprizes062609 was first published in the June 26, 1909 Indianapolis Star and does a great job promoting the new Indianapolis Motor Speedway which was under construction at the time. It esepcially focused on the upcoming auto races and made the following points:
 
Speedway: Paradigm Shift

Published June 23, 1909 this Indianapolis Star article discusses plans for the first auto race meet at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway which was still under construction at the time.

This is a wonderful collection of Indianapolis News, Indianapolis Sun and Indianapolis Star newspaper articles covering the August 14, 1909 Federation of American Motorcyclists (FAM) national championship race meet at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. This was the first motorized competition at the Speedway and delivered mixed results at best. The track was simply not ready, its rough macadam and tar surface broke up during the events. Further, the nature of the surface and length of the giant track was such that the riders could attain speeds in excess of 70 miles per hour but the lightweight bikes bounced dangerously over the loose stones. Many observers called a fiasco as numerous planned events were canceled when riders refused to take any more risks. Champion rider Jake DeRosier suffered serious injuries in a spectacular fall in a match race conceived on the fly. Also see my story of this event from the 2008 Moto GP Program.

Note: I will update this section with a synopsis of each article as time permits.

Police to Race Motorcycles

This brief article was published in the June 27, 1909 Indianapolis Star and was part of the paper's coverage leading up to the first motorcycle race meet at the new Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The Speedway was finishing its construction work at the time this article was originally published.
 
First Day: Cleveland-to-Indianapolis

The article in attachment cyclists091109 was published August 11, 1909, in the Indianapolis Star. It reports on the first day of the 388-mile endurance ride from Cleveland-to-Indianapolis that kicked off the big motorcycle events that week in the Hoosier capital.
Finish in Indy From Cleveland

Attachment cyclists091209 contains an article that was originally published in the August 12, 1909, Indianapolis Star.