Latest News
Contact:
National Automobile Museum
(The Harrah Collection)
Phone: (775) 333-9300
Fax: (775) 333-9309
Email: info@automuseum.org
New Exhibit Features America’s Most Historic Car – The
Around-The-World Race Winner
Reno, NV – Oct 4, 2007 – Starting Nov. 8, 2007 a centennial celebration of the Thomas Flyer’s historic 1908 victory in the New York-to-Paris Automobile Race will be featured at the National Automobile Museum, the Harrah Collection. No other automobile has ever run or won an Around-The-World Race.
Exhibit Features
The 1907 Thomas Flyer will be the centerpiece of the exhibit at the Museum, on the corner of Lake and Mill Streets, in downtown Reno and will feature:
- Interactive displays
- A race timeline
- 12 oil paintings commissioned exclusively for the exhibit
- Human-interest stories and displays describing what life was like 100 years ago.
“The exhibit will tell the fascinating story of the race plus compare and contrast common items of today with those of yesterday,” explains National Automobile Museum Executive Director, Jackie Frady.
Oil paintings by Reno artist Bob Cinkel, commissioned specifically for the exhibit, will be on display. The 5’ x 4’ paintings depict scenes of the Thomas Flyer’s adventures throughout the race, from river crossings, blizzards and sand storms to remarkable scenery.
Newspaper stories captured the excitement of the race. Coverage documenting the race along with race photos will be on display.
The Thomas Flyer Centennial Celebration Exhibit, funded in part by a grant from Nevada Humanities, will remain at the National Automobile Museum through January 5, 2009. Special events are planned throughout the yearlong exhibit, with themes relating to around-the-world race events.
“Some of these events will provide audience participation opportunities. Some will encourage costumes,” says Frady. “Other programs are educational so there’s something for everyone.”
The Incredible Story
The amazing race won by the Flyer featured teams from the superpowers of the day; the United States, Germany, France and Italy. Embedded reporters traveled with each car, reporting race progress to their own country’s newspapers.
The race captured global attention because the newly invented automobile was a novelty in 1908. Many considered the race “madness.”
- No race before or since has approached this contest of man and machine.
- The six racers from France, Germany, Italy and the lone American entry, the Thomas Flyer, embarked on a 22,000-mile odyssey around the world and traveled the wildest stretches of the world’s uncharted realms.
- Race teams crossed the United States from New York to San Francisco in winter, a feat never before accomplished by automobile.
- They traversed the island of Japan, the first car ever seen in that country, and slogged across Siberia, Manchuria, Russia, Germany and France.
- The race was a skidding, shoveling, sleet-stinging, snow-clogging war against winter and it was a rain-drenching, mud-sinking battle against spring.
- Race teams drove relentlessly without rest, worked late into the night making repairs, changed tires all too often, and tested the limits of their endurance, health and sanity.
- For the winning entry, victory was claimed after 169 days of fierce competition on July 30, 1908.
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Early Motorcycles On Display In
Masterpiece Exhibit
Reno, NV – Oct. 12, 2007 -- It didn’t take long for inventive individuals to think about adding the new-fangled internal combustion engine to the novel bicycle at the turn of the century. You can see some early examples of the modern day motorcycle in a Masterpiece Exhibit at the National Automobile Museum, the Harrah Collection, in downtown Reno starting Nov. 8.
This Masterpiece Exhibit called “Kickstand Korner, Cruising on Two Wheels,” features early motorcycles from 1902 through the teens, owned by individuals.
“It’s wonderful that people have these collections they are willing to share with the Museum,” says National Automobile Museum Executive Director Jackie Frady. “These Masterpiece Exhibits add an extra element of enjoyment for visitors to our collection.”
At the turn of the century, a lot of different creative individuals all around the world were experimenting with two and three wheel bicycles and engines. Men in England, Germany, France and America were testing their inventions at the same time.
The Birth of “Indian” Motorcycles
George Hendee, of Springfield, MA was 16-years-old when he took his first ride on an 1882 bicycle. By 1886 the Hendee Manufacturing Company was building Silver King Bicycles. In 1896 Hendee met Henri Fournier of France and saw Fournier’s motor-powered tandem bicycle. The two teamed up and produced the first Indian motorcycle.
Charlie Stewart of Reno, NV said he wasn’t looking for an antique motorcycle when he was thumbing through a magazine and noticed one for sale with an area code that was close by.
“I decided to go look at it,” Stewart explains, “and I bought it. It’s a 1914 Indian. A Two Speed-Regular built by the Hendee Manufacturing Company. It’s a seven horsepower, twin cylinder, two-speed chain drive and it cost $275 when it was new.”
Right after Stewart made his purchase, he took the motorcycle to a friend’s house. He says they didn’t have to do much to it to get it going. It fired right up.
Stewart has ridden his Indian in 16 different tours.
“Riding it is a challenge in modern traffic though,” he explains. “It’s a 60 mile-per-hour motorcycle with 20 mile-per-hour brakes.”
A Marvel, A Mitchell And A Curtis
Wes Allen of Yuba City, CA has three of his motorcycles on display in the Masterpiece Exhibit; a 1902 Mitchell, a 1907 Curtis and a 1911 Marvel.
Allen says he’s attracted to the more obscure antique motorcycle models. He found his 1902 Mitchell at a swap meet.
“It’s basically a powered bicycle and very original,” Allen explains. “It wasn’t very powerful. You’d have to give it a light peddle assist going uphill.”
His 1907 Curtis was restored from an engine and a chassis found in different locations. Allen did a lot of research on the Curtis and says his first exposure to antique motorcycles was a Curtis frame, so he’s very partial to this particular bike in his collection of 13.
Allen’s 1911 Marvel has an interesting story. He bought it from a man in Washington State who got the bike in 1951. A widow originally visited the motorcycle club to which the Washington man belonged. The woman said she had a motorcycle and if someone wanted it they could have it. The man took it, but it remained in pieces. Allen bought it in 1993. He restored it in 1997.
You can check out these amazing early motorcycles and six others at the National Automobile Museum through April 14, 2008.
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For more information please contact the Museum at
(775) 333-9300 or e-mail
The National Automobile Museum (The Harrah Collection) is located on the corner
of Mill and Lake streets in downtown Reno, and is within easy walking distance
from hotels and casinos. Home of more than 200 cars, the Museum covers more than
100,000 square feet featuring changing exhibits, four period street scenes and
a specialty Museum Store.
