MANUKAU CLUB

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 167, 16 July 1936, Page 24

MANUKAU CLUB

There was a general revival of interest last Saturday, when three races .were held and 45 riders started. The reappearance of Johnnie Brown and Allan Robinson lent interest to the racing. Brown was riding as brilliantly as lie always has, but Robinson distinctly displayed lack of training. A few weeks' solid road work and Allan will be his own speedy self again.

The Continental race over six laps, 15 miles, was a real good race, competitively and as a spectacle. The time, 43.5, indicates a slow race, but each lap sprint provided thrills. Brown won four sprints, while Lionel Nicholson was second in four. Gordon Cunningham won the final flutter to the surprise of many. A little lad with a big heart. Ron Wilson monopolised the senior 15miler because all the "aces" were reserved for the Continental event. He rode frpm .virtual scratch and caught Jock Stewart on the fifth lap of the six-lap affair. He is the first scratch man to do the first and fastest trick this year. Reg. Boston, old-timer, nearly outsprinted Wilson to finish second. So close was he that several thought the pair dead-heated. They didn't. y Three-speed gears are definitely playing an important part in road racing this year, and Bill Smith was the fastest junior with a time of 13.7 for the five miles. He used a three-speed gear. Noel Aulick forced the pace from the start, and won fairly easily by 40yds. Great interest is being taken in the championship of the clubs, and the junior unpaced championship to be decided next Saturday by the centre. The teams' race promises many surprises, and practically every one of the seven teams entered are optimistic enough to expect to win. And rightly so, for last year the teams finished thus: Manukau No. 1, 58.28; Lynnilale, 58.35; Papatoetoe No. 1, 58.40; Manukau No. 2, 59.12; Auckland (now Northern), 59.53; Papatoetoe No. 2, 60.34; Beach Haven, 60.38; and Takapuna 64.2. The Manukau A team next Saturday will be Brown, Riddell, Nicholson and Triner, with Keith Clark as reserve. Last year Brown, Hall. Patrick and Robinson were the riders. The second team, Jack Clark, Cronk,. Baird and Lawson, with Cunningham as reserve, appear to be well balanced and reliable stayers. The event is over 25 miles this year, against 21% last. The junior event is most open this year, as the distance has been almost doubled to 25 miles. Each rider has to travel it unpaced, and the one doing the distance in the shortest time will be the junior champion for 1936. A moderate sustained pace is essential in such races, so do not forget it, juniors.