CYCLING.

Auckland Star, Volume LVII, Issue 206, 31 August 1926, Page 10

CYCLING.

By "SPEEDY.")

COMING EVENTS. September 4.—1, 2, and 5 miles Track Races at Alexandra Park. I September 11.—22-Mile Amateur Road Race, ' Mange re. I October 2.—50-Mile Amateur Road Race, Mercer-Auckland. October 2.—100--Mlle Professional Road Race, Hamilton-Auckland. JUNIOR RACE. This event attracted an entry of 13 and was held over one circuit of the ; Mangere course, 5£ miles. An excepj tionally close finish was witnessed and I all the competitors completed the die- ] tance. A epan of 300 yards would have covered the whole field at the finish. S. Fountain (2m) won, but was hard pressed by R. Stokes (2m 15s). Fastest ' time was registered by H. McElroy off scratch in 16m ss. For a lad of 15 years his time is exceedingly fast, and with such an early entry into competitive cycling, provided he does not overdo it, he has a very rosy future on the road. He also annexed third place whilst rapidly overhauling the two mentioned above. SENIOR RACE. Boisterous weather prevailed for the 23 starters who competed in this 11-mile race. M. P. Byrnes (lm 10s) provided quite a sensation, for he not only won j the event comfortably —thanks to his j wonderful sprinting powers —tout was only 5 seconds slower than the actual fastest time rider —W. T. Bray. Byrne's j successes on the track are almost univeri sal knowledge with cycling enthusiasts, I and to those not acquainted with the I amateurs I might mention that a record of his wins would fill a column of the "Star" —in small type at that. He finished quite fresh, showing no signs of I fatigue, as was the case last week in the ! 17-mile go, having caught the limit man, JW. McCallum (2m 455) at three miles jto go. C. G- Galbraith (lm 10s) is gradually coming into the winning sphere, for he 1 gained third place the previous week. iHe and Byrnes worked remarkably well 1 together. As they caught each of their i front markers they would "jump" the ' pace and so drop them, and in this way accounted for the opposition. Naturally I Galbraith will come back on his handicap for this ride and will then have a better opportunity of proving his worth ■ amongst the select few. Both these j riders do a fair amount of their training ! together and are a familiar sight in this j city mounted on a tandem—the only such machine at present in active service in ! Auckland. The third man home, K. Rome (lm 555), 1 has at last been partly rewarded for his persistency. Every rce he is improving and can be expected to account for a place in the 22-mile race next Saturday : week. He, like many another, lacks that j final sprint which is so essential in road 1 races run such as these. In England— I the home of amateur road racing—each I competitor rides the distance alone, and, !as no pacing is allowed, is not called upon to put in a dashing sprint. A , race will be run under these rules at an j early date and should suit the above cyclist. The premier honour of the race— fastest time —was won by W. T- Bray (scr.) He thus proved that his win from F. J. Casey of last week was no fluke, for on this occasion he won by a clear length. He started his sprint very early and Casey had a hard struggle ito tinish so close on him. On perform- | ances, he should now be giving the latter j a start and several are of the opinion I that lie could do so with success and are J therefore awaiting with interest the i handicaps for the 22-mile event. I Perhaps Cusey (scr.) has been over- ! doing his road work, and if he is wise Ihe will give himself an opportunity to recuperate. He must be reminded that there is a limit to the strain to which an athlete can put hi 3 body. That Casey was out to reverse his defeat in the 17-mile was quite obvious from the fact that he had equipped his cycle with the fastest tubular tyres that are made for road racing—Constrictors. The vibration set up by these tyres, which have to be pumped as tight as boards, evidently affected his riding, for Bray drew away from him in the closing stages of the I sprint. All this, however, must not b? allowed to conceal the merit of the latter'a brilliant finish. Last Sunday 15 cyclists journeyed over portions of the Mercer-Auckland roadOnly four —the early birds—who left on the stroke of 7 a.m., did the return trip to Mercer, the others only managing to reach Tuakau, having then to return as time did not permit of their travelling further. The few who went the full distance spent a most enjoyable day nnd were back again by 4 p.m. after covering a fraction over 01 mile 3. The grea.sv clay of the Pokeno hills provided some amusing incidents for the latter pair-y, one of whom, while avoiding a cow on ' this section, had the misfortune to skid and fall right in her tracks but luckily

was not trampled upon. The clay left a great impression upon his Wearing apparel, though. Dinner at Pukekohe as per schedule and then an uneventful run into Auckland. The larger party took a wrong turning at Pukekolie. and unfortunately, just missed meetin« the through riders. Next Kun.ilay C \ve S ic another run will be made over the'course and perhaps all will roll up at the specified hour—7 a.m.—and .-o avoid taking the wrong roads. Residents all along the route are evidently keenly awaiting the day of the two" amateur and professional—on October 2. Many cyclists are under the impression that the 00-oiile amateur championship road race will not be a handicap event. This is not so. The race will be run under ordinary handicap condition? and the championship "blue riband" will be awarded the competitor registering the fastest time irrespective of his mark! L'nder these rules a middle marker or even a limit man is able to gain the above honour, but this is very unlikely unless the scratch men meet "with accidents.

No road race will be held by the Manukau Amateur Cycle Club" next Saturday, for most of the members will be competing at the track races to be held on Alexandra Park, Epsom. How they will perform is open to discussion but that they will find the going, after coming off the fast Mangere roads, very heavy is only natural. Nevertheless conditions will be the same for all.

Advice has just been received from the club's president, Mr. E. W. Cotter that his cup is to hand. The committee will meet next week and decide the date of the road race for this valued trophy which, to become th sole property of a member, must 'be won for two years in succession or three times at intervals. Races for it will be held annually. Members are to be reminded that the general meeting will be held next weekend at Otahuhu.