MOTOR CAR TRIAL.

Auckland Star, Volume LXII, Issue 57, 9 March 1931, Page 8

MOTOR CAR TRIAL.

NEW TIMING SYSTEM,

EXPERIMENT ON SPEEDWAY.

Henning's Speedway, Mangere, on Saturday was used for two purposes— one for establishing a record in a Riley nine car over a 100 miles course, and the other for testing out a new time recording machine, which happens to be one of the only four of its kind thUt have so far been made. It is practically an all-British patent and valued at a figure somewhere between £450 and £500. The time put up for 100 miles (82 laps and 274 yards) was 84m 48.495, and the driver was Mr. George Smith. The owner of the car is Mr. H. J. Butcher, who brought it out from England last November.

The average speed for the whole race was 70} m.p.h., and each lap (someover a mile) varied between 61 l-os and 645, these being his best and worst times for a lap. The average for a lap consisted of about 625. The time was a little better thaa expected for the average had been calculated at about 635. The track was for the most part in fair order, with the exception of that at the near bend on the tight. Dust was a trying feature of the test, being so bad in parts that it was recorded on the timing apparatus. At tha conclusion of the race Mr. Smith was heartily congratulated by most of the forty or fifty spectators present, and is to be congratulated on his good time. The patent timing machine is a very interesting one, for the time is recorded by the car cutting a beam of light, which operates a photo-electric device and is received by a track switch, which in. turn actuates recording pens that tick off every half-second. It is easily capable of registering a one hundredth of a second. The time record is kept by another pen actuated by a master chronometer. So sensitive is the apparatus that the shadow of a seagull or anything at all passing it, is recorded.

The time recording was done by Messrs. Cuff and Thompson, who are officially recognised by the oversea authorities for the taking of speed times.