From the archives of Bob Montgomery, motoring historian
HIGH PRICES!: It's probably true to say that nothing is ever completely new. In the world of motoring one is constantly surprised to learn that what seemed to be an innovation was actually first introduced in the early days of cars and motoring.
Likewise, the recent fuss about possible over-charging in connection with the forthcoming Ryder Cup brought to mind a situation that happened here just over 103 years ago, when Ireland staged the Gordon Bennett Race in 1903, up to then by far the biggest sporting event ever to be held here. In the lead-up to the great race there was widespread concern at the prices being charged for accommodation in particular. The authorities were keen to exploit the race's potential to develop Ireland's faltering economy by expanding its tourist potential, and as a result put pressure on the hoteliers to charge only fair prices.
Not surprisingly, feeling ran strong on this subject and lists of reasonably priced hotels were widely published. It was felt that the Dublin hotels were, by and large, charging fairly, but in the neighbourhood of the course things were somewhat out of hand!
While it was possible to obtain accommodation in Athy - around which town the course was based - for between 15 shillings and £1, another hotel on the course was charging £10 for rooms of a similar standard.
Not surprisingly, the English newspapers got hold of the story and painted a sorry picture of greedy opportunism. As a result, although many reputable Irish hotels did their best to counter the impression thus created by offering such attractions as free garaging of motorists' cars, still the widespread belief that "gold rush" prices were being charged could not be shaken and was to dog the whole event, so successful in all other respects.
And it wasn't just the hotel trade that sought to cash in on the race. All sorts of products sought an association with the race and its drivers. None of these links were "official" or authorised - a good example being the advertisement for Kinahan's LL Whisky shown here. And no issues about drinking and driving either!
The large influx of visitors for the race wasn't expected to create an accommodation shortage during the event, as it was anticipated that once the hotels and inns were full, there would be a ready market of cottages renting out rooms for the occasion. In a 1974 RTÉ radio programme about the Race, Mary Wright, from near Kilcullen, recalled the experience of an acquaintance of hers, a Father O'Farrell: "The good father was on a visit to his home and took a walk with some friends. As they walked along the race course on the night before the race, a loud commotion could be heard coming from a nearby cottage. Thinking that somebody might be killed, Father O'Farrell knocked on the door of the cottage.
"Upon the door being opened by the woman of the house, the priest enquired: 'My good woman, are you in trouble?' 'Well', she replied, 'It's like this, Father; I'm keeping a bit of a lodging house for this motor race, and I've one penny and one-and-a-half-penny beds, and in the one-and-a-half-penny beds they can lie on their back but on the one penny beds they have to lie on their side. So here's a fella and he only paid one penny and he's lying on his back, and by God, I'll make him lie on his side!'"
While some things may not have changed, some, thankfully, have.