When, where and why was the checkered flag first used in motor sports?

Dear lorioster-ga,
I cannot find the answer - plenty of speculation  - but not the
answer. Perhaps another researcher may be more successful.

"The checkered flag is believed to have come from late 19th century
bicycle racing. The official would wear a black & white checkered
outfit, similar to football officials wearing black & white stripes
these days, so they would be easily seen. Eventually, the practice of
simply using a black & white checkered flag was introduced."
http://www.geocities.com/johnsonindy500/speedway/nostalgia.html

Its origin is discussed in this article which traces it back to at
least 1904. The author contacted several possible sources in the
motoring world for the answer? but still without success.
http://www.toolmandesign.com/flagspot.htm

Bottom of the page
Bicycle races in France at the turn of the century
http://flagspot.net/flags/flagauto.html

The New York Times first refers to the checkered flag in an article
dated 1909 about a meeting for Western stock chassis races.
http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/nytimes/results.html?st=advanced&QryTxt=%22checkered+flag%22&By=&Title=&datetype=0&frommonth=09&fromday=01&fromyear=1851&tomonth=12&today=31&toyear=1995&restrict=articles&sortby=CHRON&x=21&y=14


answerfinder-ga
Google Answers Researcher