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Description
The first “board track” for motor racing was the circular Los Angeles Motordrome, built in 1910 in the area that would later become the city's Playa del Rey district. Based on the same technology as European velodromes used for bicycle racing, these wooden tracks were constructed with turns banked at up to 45 degrees. In some cases, such as the track at Culver City, banking was 50 degrees or more. Longer wooden tracks were later built – some up to 2 miles long by 1915 - and lap speeds exceeding 100 miles per hour became commonplace. Fans were often treated to chills, thrills, and sometimes deadly spills, prompting the New York Times to dub them “Murderdromes”.

Indian motorcycles were some of the first to race these wooden “board tracks”, and were also competing against rival manufacturers (like Harley Davidson) on other circuits. One of the most famous is the Isle of Man Tourist Trophy event. Indian performed a clean sweep on July 3rd 1911 in the Senior TT race with Oliver Godfrey taking 1st, Charles Franklin in 2nd & Arthur Moorehouse finishing 3rd. A new lap record of 53 min 24 sec at the average speed of 50 mph was also set by Frank Philipp on a Scott Motorcycle.

Set-up and prep for this scene took about a week. Modeling and staging approx. 4 days. Final renders took just over 8 hours to complete.

NOTE: In 1912 Indian still called their invention the “Motocycle”. This rendering of a 1912 Indian is by no means complete or totally accurate. It is a “romanticized” depiction of an iconic & historical treasure.

Description
The first “board track” for motor racing was the circular Los Angeles Motordrome, built in 1910 in the area that would later become the city's Playa del Rey district. Based on the same technology as European velodromes used for bicycle racing, these wooden tracks were constructed with turns banked at up to 45 degrees. In some cases, such as the track at Culver City, banking was 50 degrees or more. Longer wooden tracks were later built – some up to 2 miles long by 1915 - and lap speeds exceeding 100 miles per hour became commonplace. Fans were often treated to chills, thrills, and sometimes deadly spills, prompting the New York Times to dub them “Murderdromes”.

Indian motorcycles were some of the first to race these wooden “board tracks”, and were also competing against rival manufacturers (like Harley Davidson) on other circuits. One of the most famous is the Isle of Man Tourist Trophy event. Indian performed a clean sweep on July 3rd 1911 in the Senior TT race with Oliver Godfrey taking 1st, Charles Franklin in 2nd & Arthur Moorehouse finishing 3rd. A new lap record of 53 min 24 sec at the average speed of 50 mph was also set by Frank Philipp on a Scott Motorcycle.

Set-up and prep for this scene took about a week. Modeling and staging approx. 4 days. Final renders took just over 8 hours to complete.

NOTE: In 1912 Indian still called their invention the “Motocycle”. This rendering of a 1912 Indian is by no means complete or totally accurate. It is a “romanticized” depiction of an iconic & historical treasure.