James Easton and his common-law 'wife' Flossie set many speed records in the lesser known 'Tandem Bicycle w/Sidecar" class, though most were struck from the record books upon discovery that the "passenger" was actually a hollow paper-mache ventriloquist dummy with springloaded limbs and cable operated mouth. The ruse was discovered when organizers noted the 'passenger' refused to answer questions unless Flossie was nearby. Chastised, James and Flossie returned with a genuine human passenger but had not left their cheating ways behind: this time the passenger was found to be not a retired racehorse jockey (the common practice at the time) but instead was their own six year old daughter claiming to be twenty-two years of age and "on holiday from her job at the Higgins Shirtwaist Factory". The entire family, including the seemingly innocent daughter Irvina were barred for life from further Royal Automobile Club events.
James Easton and his common-law 'wife' Flossie set many speed records in the lesser known 'Tandem Bicycle w/Sidecar" class, though most were struck from the record books upon discovery that the "passenger" was actually a hollow paper-mache ventriloquist dummy with springloaded limbs and cable operated mouth. The ruse was discovered when organizers noted the 'passenger' refused to answer questions unless Flossie was nearby. Chastised, James and Flossie returned with a genuine human passenger but had not left their cheating ways behind: this time the passenger was found to be not a retired racehorse jockey (the common practice at the time) but instead was their own six year old daughter claiming to be twenty-two years of age and "on holiday from her job at the Higgins Shirtwaist Factory". The entire family, including the seemingly innocent daughter Irvina were barred for life from further Royal Automobile Club events.
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