California Cycle Racing Circuit Confederation
Considerable interest is manifested in the performances of Walter Foster, the Olympic Club racer, and Allan Jones, the pride of the Garden City Cyclers of San Jose, who are now racing against the cracks of Southern California in the "California Cycle Racing Circuit Confederation". In that word "confederation" I see the pet scheme of Charles Fuller Gates at last realized, and indeed I am told that it was Gates, assisted by T. H. B. Varney, who arranged this circuit of races, Mr. Varney is always doing something like that to assist the sport, and deserves great credit for his willingness to always foster anything tending to add interest to cycling.
This southern circuit as now arranged is as follows: Races were held at Santa Barbara on May 15 and at Ventura yesterday, and will be held at Pasadena May 20, San Bernardino May 22, Riverside May 23, Santa Ana May 25, Los Angeles May 30 and June 1, San Diego June 8, Bakersfield June 12, and Fresno June 15, thus making a full month's circuit of racing, ten meetings in all, with intermediate days for resting. Last Wednesday the first races of the circuit were ran at Santa Barbara, and as already reported, Burke and Castleman from Southern California carried off all the honors in the class B events. Foster and Jones each won a third place. It is safe to say, however, that Trainer Aylward will have the Rambler team in splendid shape very shortly, and then the positions at the finish may be different. Burke and Castleman each won a first and second prize at the Fabiola Mayday fete races last Saturday, and are in about the best condition of any of the coast class B men at present.
The bicycle scheme known by the name of the California Cycle Racing Circuit Confederation is a flat failure. It was managed by Charles F. Gates, representing a bicycle house. The whole business seems to have been of a very rambling character, a sort of go-as-you-please concern that went as it pleased and, naturally, went all to pieces. Whether it was that Southern California does not offer a sufficiently large field for Mr. Gates' large ideas, or whether Mr. Gates' large ideas are altogether too large for this or any other locality, has not yet been definitely determined; but there is one fact about which there remains no doubt — that the circuit scheme with the big name is a fiasco. The Rambler men here say that the circuit was not paying expenses, and as there was no one in sight to keep on putting up the deficiencies, the thing just naturally dropped out of sight.
