CYCLING.

Auckland Star, Volume LXI, Issue 227, 25 September 1930, Page 18

CYCLING.

WITH THE AMATEURS.

MANUKAU CLUB EVENTS., COMING CHAMPIONSHIP RACE. FIXTURES. Saturday Next, September 27—"Around the Harbour" Championship Itncc. Saturday, October 4—lo Miles Junior, 15 Miles Cotter Cup Race. Saturday, October 11 —Palnierston North to Wellington, 102 Miles. There was wind in abundance on Saturday last, when the Manukau Amateur Cycling Club decided a junior and a. senior event over the five miles circuit, , at Mount Roskill. A gale of'Vhighj velocity swept the course during theafternoon, and on the exposed sections' of the "toproad" just after the "mountain" stretch this westerly resembled a young hurricane. Being a circularshaped course, the riders reaped the benefit of the wind over other sections, with the ultimate result that fairly good lap times were returned. ■ : The junior five-mile race drew an; entry of 13. H. V. Gordon, who rode ; off 15s, virtual scratch, gave the limit rider, J. R. Bpwen, a start of 3m 30s. The race resulted.in a win for Bowen. He rode alone off limit and went hard from the "go" signal. Over the last half-mile it looked as if he would fail, to "make the grade," for Len Oxton and S. D. Budge were in hot pursuit and fast decreasing Bowen's not too comfortable lead. The finish resembled a hare and hounds chase. Over the last 100 yards "midget" Bowen rode in grim earnest. He had to. He reached his "den" just a couple of yards ahead of Oxton, and the relieved expression on his face as he eased up after crossing the line told its own tale. It was his first victory after competing in seven junior races. It is quite evident that he is fast improving, for his previous success was a second oft" 4m, whereas his win last week he achieved from off the 3m 30s mark. His win will naturally offer him fresh encouragement. Oxton's Double Success. Len Oxtcn, lm, who gave Bo wen many anxious moments over the last wind assisted stretch, and finished such an uncomfortably close second to the winner, gave his best exhibition of the season. Oxton rides in from Avondale every Saturday to race. During the past season he rarely missed a race. He reaped a double success last week for, besides finishing second, he recorded fastest time in 14m 3Gs. He was second in the first junior race of five miles over (the Mount Roskill course when starting off lm 50s. Saturday was the first time he had ever scored time honours. • S. D. Budge, lm, paced out the journey with Oxton, but failed to hold his partner in the final dash. Budge is the only junior with two wins to his credit this season. He Avon the first event over the present circuit from the three-minute ■mark, and during that particular race he dismounted on the hill section and ran to the top on the- last stiff pinch to win ivith ease. • <\ •'■'■ H. V. Gordon, 15s, virtual scratch, had the bad luck to. puncture early in the race.. He had ..-only gone. 400. odd yards Avhen he found something amiss with his back tyre. Undaunted, he kept bumping along on the rim for close on two miles, when one of the juniors who had dropped; quickly, offered to loan his cycle to Gordon. Despite the delay in the change over and the handicap of riding on a deflated tyre, Gordon clocked J4m 545, just 17s slower than. Oxton. It Avas a game effort. Is Change of Cycle Permissible? Had Gordon been placed on Saturday there would most likely have been aprotest lodged for' his changing cycles during the event. ■ This is an important question and one upon which opinions differ drastically. Some of the Dominion's leading amateur clubs have a clause in their road race'-rulings■ making it an offence punishable by disqualification from the race to change over to another machine. Speaking against the rigidness of this ruling it must be stated that it is the man and not the machine that Avins a cycle road race. If it. was a reliability trial of the machines and the equipment of same, all well and good. But a road race is not a machine trial in the sense that most reliability trials are. If the change over to another cycle Avas a prearranged affair, then disqualification Avould be justified. It is a ruling that should be governed by the circumstances leading up to the transfer of machines. In England, where there are more'road racing clubs than in any other country, a change of machine is permissible in cases of accidents,-and on many occasions riders have finished and- won an event mounted on a roadster bicycle which they have been loaned and ridden in the excitement of the race. In many respects the disqualification ruling: is absurd, and it is sincerely hoped that.the officials for the big race next Saturday Avill not enforce-, such to the letter. For instance, imagirie a rider puncturing a mile from home next , Saturday when leading by a fair margin, and being prevented, owing to such a ruling, from accepting any . cycle offered to him to continue on to the finish. It would be the height of folly to penalise that rider under the circumstances if he did accept a proffered machine. The Senior Race of 30 Miles. It is doubtful if many of the senior members appreciated the change of programme made in respect to the race for fast Saturday. An 11-miler was scheduled originally, but at the. last general meeting several advocated stro'ngly_ for a 30-miler, so that riders would b"e given an opportunity to get in some longdistance work before the "champ," which Avill be over about a distance of 44 miles. . ~ ■ Angus Mackie, lm 30s, has been dogged by bad luck through this road season, and has had more than his share of falls and punctures, but last Aveek he hfad; a no trouble run, and came through victorious after a sterling ride fully deserving of the premier place he gained. He easily outsprinted his co-marker, Cleaver, in the final burst. He paced out the 30 miles Avith Cleaver, and at the beginning of the sixth and final lap the pahhad a break of 25 seconds on the next rider. Mackie's previous best effort on the road in Auckland was when he ran Dwight very close for championship honours in the "fifty" last year to only be beaten by lengths in the sprint. His riding of last Saturday will-make him eligible for the scratch mark in the championship race next week, when he will be given an opportunity of reversing the tables on Dwight, and of trying conclusions with Whitten and Foubister, who will also share the mark of honour. He is in splendid form at present, and, knowing the "around the harbour" course :ts he does, he should figure prominently among the early finishers. -. '

Cleaver Cramps in Sprint. The spell he took from competition the previous week must have had a beneficial effect upon Eric A. Cleaver, lm 30s, for he rode strongly along with Mackie, and only felt the ft'ects of his hard ride when it came to the final all-out effort. It was his first success over a, distance. He lapped in 13m 345, 13m 51s, 13m 445, 13m 525, 14in 11s, 14m 20s, and took 83m 32s for the trip, which time was inside the previous record for the 30 miles. Through an injury to his hand Ron. G. Foubister took a rest for three weeks. That he lost none of his speed during his enforced absence was quite evident from his brilliant exhibition last Saturday. ' For a perfect combination of speed and stamina he was the outstanding rider of the race. H. E. Dwight and J. Whittcn started off scratch with him. Dwight fell on the first bend, just 400 yards after starting. He remounted, but had little hope of catching up to such fleet pedallers as .Foubister . and Whittcn. However, on" the , second lap Foubister disposed of Whitten, .and from then on gave'a splendid impression of his capabilities as an unpaced rider. One word sums up • Fobister as far' as the Mount Roskill course is .concerned, 'and that word is "unapproachable." In gaining third place on Saturday he also recorded fastest time in S2ni,46s. He. clipped 3m 43s oft" H. R. D wight's time, in the last 30-miler, in which he was unable to compete. Foubister now- holds every course record from' 15 to 30 .miles for the circuit. He lapped on Saturday in 13m 255, 13m 38s, 13m 275,. 13m 475, 13m 45s and 14m 445. C. Harris, 6m, fourth, rode the last lap with determination to finish 12s after Foubister, whom he did his best to hold. Claude is a solid rider, who can be relied upon to do well in a distance race. M. R. Carter, 7m, rode astonishingly well for three laps, then seemed to close like a book to retire on la]) four. He had over a minute lead on the rest at 15 miles, which he rode in 42m 55s against Foubister's 40m 40s.