EMPIRE GAMES TRIAL

Press, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22229, 21 October 1937, Page 15

EMPIRE GAMES TRIAL

NATIONAL CYCLING HONOURS F. J. GROSE TRIUMPHS FORTY MILES ON A BUCKLED WHEEL

Seventeen of New Zealand's best cyclists contested a 100-kilometre Empire Games trial from Papanui to Amberley and back yesterday afternoon. Emerging from the dust and grime of a 62-mile ride after travelling 40 miles with a buckled front wheel, the Canterbury veteran, F. J. Grose, carried off the principal honours. He was prominent all the way, setting a fast pace whenever he took the lead, and demonstrating bis clear superiority in the final sprint. His time was 2hr 40min 54 2-ssec, the fastest recorded locally over this distance. It was a spectacular race. Thirteen of the 17 starters fell, punctured, or were left by the wayside before half the journey had been completed. Treacherous shingle surfaces on parts of the journey brought disaster to some of the brightest hopes, and with 33 miles covered, only four riders were left to fight for the places. These men rode the whole of the remainder of the journey together, and finished in order as follows:—Grose 1, R. S. Triner (Auckland) 2, J. Brown (Auckland) 3, and H. R. Dutton (Wellington) 4.

The whole field started from scratch, beginning at the Papanui Hotel and travelling along the North road to Amberley, then turning to Balcairn, Sefton, Rangiora, and home to Papanui. The roads were paved for the greater part of the journey, but on the outward journey the fresh northeast wind made the ride a hard one.

Setting a fast pace, Grose, Tnner, and E. L. G. Hughes (Auckland), and I J Taylor (Canterbury) were prominent earlv. Hughes, who recorded fastest time in the Round the Gorges race last Saturday, and was one of the principal contestants in this race, was unlucky to puncture on the rough new shingle approach to the Ashley bridge, where two other riders fell spectacularly. . _ Trouble for Grose

Not long after crossing the bridge the front wheel of Grose's machine struck the back of another, and he was very nearly unseated. From then on he rode with a buckled wheel, which appeared likely to break at any moment as he pedalled on at a steady 20 to 25 miles an hour. Examined after the race, the wheel was found to be scraping against the forks, with a spoke loose. , Taylor, whose chances weie favoured, punctured soon after the turn for home, about the half-way mark. M. Harris (Otago), who rode with great promise for many miles, fell at the same stage, and from then on the final four rode on together, remaining bunched for the remainder of the iourney. In a late sprint, about 100 yards from the finish, Triner led out, out Grose easily overtook him, and was in charge with a length to spare "Tte ftew e zSland selectors followed the race through, but will not complete their selection until after the Palmerston North-Wellington race next Saturday. Yesterday's starters were. F J Grose, I. J. Taylor, A. J. Lancaster W. H. McCausland (Canterbury), J. Brown, R. S. Triner, E. L. G. HuEhes L. M. Nicholson (Auckland), H R: button, G. Amey O. Disley (Wellington), K. Jones, M. Harris, A. Tate, A? Calder (Otago), W. Williams

(Hawke's Bay), E. M. Green (West Coast, North Island). Detailed Results The times for the first four men were:— ,„ . F. J. Grose (Canterbury), 2hr 40min 54 2-ssec .. • • .. 1 R. S. Triner (Auckland), 2hr 40min 54 3-ssec .. .... 2 J. Brown (Auckland), 2hr 40min 54 4-ssec . • ■• •■ 3 H. R. Button (Wellington), 2hr 40min 55sec .. .. •■ 4 Grose's time compares favourably with the Australian trial time, which was 2hr 53min 43sec. The last Olympic championship was won at Berlin in 1936 in 2hr 33min ssec.