Tom Cooper (cyclist)
Tom Cooper ( born December 1, 1874 in New York City; † November 20, 1906 ) was an American cycling and racing driver.
Cycling
Tom Cooper began his cycling career in Detroit, where he was the star of the Detroit Athletic Club. In 1898, he won the championship of the Association League of American Wheelmen about half a mile on the Newby Velodrome in Indianapolis, 1899 U.S. Championship. Legendary was his rivalry with Major Taylor. Cooper was in his time than the bestverdienende cyclist in the world.
The Cooper - Ford car
How many cyclists around the turn of the 19th to the 20th century, Cooper turned to the end of his cycling career to the automobile. In 1902 he entered into a partnership with Henry Ford in order to build two high-speed racing car, a year before his company Ford, the Ford Motor Company founded. Result of this project were two race cars with wooden frame, four cylinders and approximately 17 liters ( 1080 cubic inches) of displacement. The vehicles were initially susceptible, and Ford sold its share of Cooper in October 1902.
A few days later, Cooper returned the car at the Manufacturer 's Challenge Cup in Grosse Pointe, Michigan, at the start. Cooper agreed that the race driver Barney Oldfield the car 999 (named after a New York railway line ) should control. Oldfield beat surprisingly the millionaire and renowned racer Alexander Winton, founder of the Winton Motor Carriage Company in this race. Oldfield drove over the next ten months still successful race for Cooper, thus ensuring the reputation of Ford's as good carmaker. With the 999 he drove on the track of the Indiana State Fairgrounds was the first a mile in a minute (60 mph).
Cooper and Oldfield on Tour
Although Barney Oldfield in August 1903 joined the team of Alexander Winton, he stayed and Tom Cooper in various ways partners. The two men tingelten with their race car through the Midwest and drove race for $ 1,000. One of the highlights was Cooper's victory over Oldfield and his Winton race car, again in Grosse Pointe, on 9 September 1903.
Cooper and Oldfield always developed new ideas to make money. So they created a special effects scene with two racing cars for the play The Vanderbilt Cup with the popular spectacles clean Elsie Janis in the lead role, which simulated a car race on the stage. The two went for three months every night on it.
Since 1903, Cooper was even recognized as a top racer and was now on only occasionally with Oldfield on tour. On 5 September 1906, he set a strange mile record: A Matheson, set with seven passengers, he drove this route on the beach of Atlantic City in 50.2 seconds.
Vanderbilt Cup
Even Tom Cooper drove never the Vanderbilt Cup, but he worked in 1905 and 1906 for the launching there Matheson team. On September 22, 1905, he went to the American Elimination Trials, but during training, his car had a defect. 1906 Cooper was Team Manager at Matheson. The institutions participating in the Cup drivers, Ralph Mongini, drove in the first round against a telegraph pole.
Fatal Accident
Tom Cooper died in a car accident on November 16, 1906 in New York. He was fired with friends in the car at midnight at top speed through Central Park and collided with his car to another stationary vehicle. He suffered a broken neck.