Michael Gabriele to Discuss "Golden Age of Cycling"
• Nutley Velodrom Marks 75th Anniversary Wednesday, June 4
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Michael Gabriele
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Enlarge This Photo | Photo by Michael Gabriele |
Image of vintage Nutley Velodrome program features cyclist Franco Georgetti--a popular champions from the golden era of cycling. The Nutley Velodrome opened Sunday, June 4, 1933 and attracted top professional bike riders from Australia, Europe, Canada, South America and throughout the United States.
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Velodrome was located on north side of Park Aveue on site now occupied by the Parks and Recreation Dept. near River Road.
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Enlarge This Photo | Photo by NJHometown |
Mayor Joanne Cocchiola with author Michael Gabriele holding commemorative framed plaques of a resolution adopted to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Nutley Velodrome which was celebrated June 4, 2008, at the Nutley Museum. Others seen (l-r) are Commissioner Al Petracco, Town Historian John Demmer, Nutley Historical Society President Dom Tibaldo, Commissioners Tom Evans and Mauro Tucci, Historical Society Board member Nancy Greulich and Commissioner Joe Scarpelli.
May 24, 2008 – Journalist Michael C. Gabriele will present a history of the legendary Nutley Velodrome Wednesday, June 4, 7:30 p.m. at the Nutley Museum, 65 Church St. The program, sponsored and hosted by the Nutley Historical Society, is free and the public is invited to attend.
The date of the program marks the actual 75th anniversary of the old cycling "saucer," which opened on June 4, 1933. The track, which was located on the north side of Park Avenue near the current township Parks and Public Properties building, is a historically significant site in the annals American sports as it represents the end of the golden era of professional cycling-when outdoor velodrome bicycle racing was a major spectator sport.
A former editor of The Nutley Sun (1983-85), Gabriele has researched and written about the old velodrome for more than 25 years. Four years ago he presented a program on the velodrome at the Nutley Museum. He is currently working on a new book to mark the diamond anniversary of the track, which is slated to be published in the fall.
In its day, the Nutley Velodrome attracted top professional cyclists from around the world, including Alf Letourner, Franco Georgetti, Gerard Debates, Torchy Peden and Tino Reboli. Bicycle races were held on Sunday afternoons and Wednesday evenings, attracting crowds of more than 10,000 fans.
Successful in its first two years of operation, the cycling game began to fade and the velodrome staged several boxing matches to boost attendance. Midget auto races were held at the track in 1938 and 1939 and three racers were killed in accidents. Citizen protests put a halt to the car races.
There were ill-fated attempts to revive the cycling game in 1939 and 1940. The track was torn down in the early 1940s and eventually became the site of Father Glotzbach Park, named after a popular priest from nearby Saint Mary's Parish.
A 1971 graduate of Nutley High School and a 1975 graduate of Montclair State University, Gabriele currently resides in Clifton and is the editor and associate publisher of The Catholic Advocate, the award-winning newspaper of the Archdiocese of Newark.
June 4 program at Nutley Museum
to celebrate 75th anniversary of the old Nutley Velodrome
By Michael C. Gabriele
Seventy-five years ago the world came to the Nutley Velodrome as a premier venue for the grand sport of international bicycle racing. The greatest bike riders from around the world traveled to Nutley during the 1930s to compete at the wooden "saucer" built by businessman and cycling enthusiast Joseph Miele.
The velodrome represents a colorful, turbulent period in Nutley's history. It also carries the sad distinction as being the final chapter in the golden age of velodrome racing-a lost era when professional cycling was a major spectator sport in the United States. The Nutley track was hoping to rekindle interest in the bike game, following the closing of the Newark Velodrome three years earlier.
On Tuesday, April 18, 1933, the Nutley Town Commission, led by Mayor Walter F. Reinheimer, granted Miele permission to build a cycling track on a 12-acre lot along the northern side of Park Avenue near River Road; a site known as the Joyce Quarry. Today the property is the site of Little League fields and Nutley's Department of Parks and Public Property building. Ground-breaking ceremonies for the Nutley Velodrome were held on April 19, 1933. Grandstand seating for the velodrome was built to accommodate 12,000 spectators. The oval saucer was built to a dimension one-seventh of a mile.
The Nutley Velodrome opened Sunday, June 4, 1933 before a standing-room-only crowd. Racing at the Nutley Velodrome was slated for Sunday afternoons and Wednesday evenings. The first night race was held June 7, 1933, drawing 7,500 fans.
The first two seasons-1933 and 1934-were successful as the saucer appeared to fill the void left by the old Newark Velodrome. World-class cycling stars like Cecil Walker, Alf Letourner, Gerard Debates, Tino Reboli, Torchy Peden and Franco Georgetti drew a steady stream of fans.
But while all seemed well, trouble was brewing. The partnership of Miele and Mendel broke up prior to the start of the 1935 season. Thought they made peace midway through that season, there were clear signs the cycling game was losing its loyal fan base-a trend similar to the decline seen during the final years at the Newark Velodrome.
On July 16, 1936, Miele removed himself from the cycling game and leased the velodrome's operations to sports promoter Edward J. Malone and legendary Australian cycling champion Alf Goullet. However, two months later there were serious financial problems at the Nutley track.
Attendance declined, prize money began to dry up and investors became scarce. Near the end of the season there was a confrontation between the riders and management. The riders walked out, refusing to compete at the track as prize money could not be guaranteed.
The Nutley Velodrome suspended operations on Oct. 26, 1936. Goullet and Malone made another attempt to hold races in the 1937 season, but by Aug. 5 of that year operations again were halted due to lackluster fan support.
There were four boxing matches held at the Nutley Velodrome in an attempt to attract fans. The first bout was held on June 10, 1935.
On Dec. 17, 1937, town commissioners granted Jack Kochman of Eastern Speedway Inc. a license to run "Midget" auto races at the wooden saucer. Midget auto racing evolved in California and New York during the early 1930s. Called "doodlebugs" due to their compact, beetle-like shape, these cars were designed with powerful, eight-cylinder engines.
The Nutley Velodrome would be one stop for Midget car racing on the eastern circuit. Races on the banked, wooden saucer would be unique, as most Midget car races were held on flat dirt tracks.
The American Automobile Association (AAA) sanctioned the Midget car races, which debuted at the Nutley Velodrome on Sunday, April 3, 1938.
Over 8,000 fans filled the grandstands. Immediately there were numerous complaints over Midget racing regarding the noise the cars created as well as concerns over track safety. Near the end of the first season, the worst fears were realized when Charlie Helliker, a racer from Long Branch, N.J., was killed on Oct. 9, 1938. Helliker hit another car and crashed into the track's guard rail. His vehicle burst into flames, flipped over and crushed him.
Despite the fatality, Midget car races were a financial success that first season, attracting an estimated nearly 300,000 fans. Even thought there was growing public opposition to the high-octane spectacle, Midget car racing opened for its second season Sunday, March 19, 1939.
Henry Guerand, considered a big-name driver on the East Coast circuit, was competing at the saucer on April 2, 1939. Guerand, while driving in the 21st lap of the 35-lap main event that Sunday afternoon, struck the guard rail and his car began to fishtail out of control. He hit the guard rail a second time and the impact bumped him out of his car. While in this exposed position, he struck an overhanging steel fence support, which decapitated him.
Tragedy struck again on Aug. 26, 1939 as Karl Hattel crashed into the upper railing of the track's east bank during the final heat of a five-mile race, which fractured his skull. He died hours later in the emergency room of St. Mary's Hospital in Passaic.
Essex County suspended Midget races following the death of Hattel.
Nutley commissioners, on Sept. 8, 1939, announced that a town referendum would be held to let citizens decide the fate of Midget car races at the velodrome. Nutley voters struck down Midget auto racing at the velodrome on Nov. 10, 1939.
There were two ill-fated attempts to reinstall bike races at the velodrome. Carmine Bilotti organized several races late in 1939 and 1940, but those efforts failed. The track was torn down in 1942 and eventually Nutley established a public park on the site: Father Glotzbach Park, named after a popular priest from nearby Saint Mary's Parish.
All but forgotten, the legacy of the Nutley Velodrome was rediscovered in a three-part series of page-one articles that appeared in the Jan.
22, 29 and Feb. 5, 1981 editions of The Nutley Sun. June 4 marks the 75th anniversary of the track.
(Gabriele was the editor of The Nutley Sun from 1983-85 and has researched the Nutley Velodrome's history for more than 25 years. He currently serves as the editor and associate publisher of The Catholic Advocate, the newspaper of the Archdiocese of Newark.)
PHOTO CAPTION (FOR THE TWO VELODROME PROGRAMS):
Images of two vintage Nutley Velodrome programs feature cyclists Cecil Walker and Franco Georgetti--two popular champions from the golden era of cycling. The Nutley Velodrome opened Sunday, June 4, 1933 and attracted top professional bike riders from Australia, Europe, Canada, South America and throughout the United States. The Nutley Historical Society will sponsor a presentation by Gabriele June 4, 7:30 p.m. at the Nutley Museum, 65 Church St., celebrating the actual 75th anniversary of the old track's opening. The program is free and open to the public.
PHOTO TAG:
Michael C. Gabriele
Visit the Nutley Historical Society's Web site
(www.nutleyhistoricalsociety.org) or call the organization at (973)
667-1528 for further details on the program.
