MOTOR-CYCLING

Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22478, 12 August 1938, Page 16

MOTOR-CYCLING

PIONEER MOTOR CLUB Fixtures Saturday, August 27—Social trial. Saturday, Sept, 3—Social run. Saturday, Sept. 24—Scramble. October—Beach races. October—Opening run. Saturday, October 29—Road hill climb. November s—Social run. November 13 —Twelve-hour trial. December 18—Social run to Rakaia gorge. At a meeting of the Sports committee held last evening the programme for the ensuing year was drawn up. The dates are subject to addition, and the definite days for the club’s opening run and beach races, to be held in October, will be announced in the next few days. On Saturday, August 27, the dub will commence its sporting activities for the season with a social sporting trial, and competitors will be taken via Motukarara. Gebbie’s Pass. Kennedy’s Bush, the Summit road, and Evans Pass back to Christchurch. Afternoon tea will be provided at a stop at the Sign of the Bellbird. Kennedy’s Bush. Light-car events will be run in conjunction with many of the fixtures, and inquiries are invited from car-owners who would like to participate in the club’s activities.

Motor-cyclists! A little forethought will save much afterthought.—C ombined Clubs Safety First Campaign,

CANTERBURY AUTOCYCLE CLUB

The first event after the winter recess will be a social trial to-morrow week. The course will be easy with several novel tests, including b “courtesy section.” This test, which is entirely new to New Zeaiand, has proved very successful in Australia. The scheme is that several observers are stationed along the route to watch the competitors’ observance of by-laws, etc. All breaches and lack of courtesy to other road users will entail a penalty. The trial is open to solo, pillion and side-car classes, and will leave from Victoria square at 2 p.m. Post entries will be received up to the time of starting. Numerous inquiries have been received' about the proposed old-timers’ trial, and the committee wishes to state that this event will not be run until the latter end of next season, and will probably be open to motor-cars. All machines must be of an earlier vintage than 1914. CORSAIR MOTOR CLUB A general meeting will be held in the Railway Hall on Tuesday. August Iff, at 7.30 p.m. As the election of officers will take place at this meeting members are asked to make a point of attending.

What is the oldest highway in the world? That would be a very difficult point to determine, but in the British Isles, the Ridgeway and Icknield Way, in Berkshire, must be amongst the oldest still existing, their use by vehicles dating from 5000 B.C. An attempt has recently been made by the Berkshire County Council to close those ancient highways to wheeled traffic, but motoring organisations are resisting this with some vehemence. mainly because they would soon be overgrown and disappear into the neighbouring fields. The surfaces of these roads are atrocious, but still negotiable by traffic, which uses them considerably for their sheer historical interest. KEEP SPARE TYRE INFLATED Motor-car owners, who have become used to the rather rapid loss of pressure which is a feature of the modern large balloon tyre, are apt to consider this a phenomenon due solely to the pounding which the tyres receive in normal service. While this, no doubt, is partly true, it is not completely so. There seems to be! some porosity in the large areas of rubber necessarily used in the big inner tubes, together, perhaps, with a slight leakage from the valves, which would make them lose pressure in any case.

That these factors are not generally realised is shown by the number of motorists who are caught, when a tyre is punctured, with a sadly deflated spare, which they have fondly imagined would retain its pressure so long as it remained out of service. The moral is to test and inflate the spare every time the road tyres are brought to their correct pressure, which, these days, should be at least once a week. ROAD SURFACES The British Standards Association has made an important move towards the achievement of uniform road surfaces throughout Great Britain by publishing a standard specification for tarmacadam. This is the result of some intensive work which has been carried out on the basis of proposals originally prepared by the British Road Tar Association some months ago. The new specification, which covers every aspect of material, its use. preparation. testing, and analysis, will, it is said, enable surveyors to construct £nn.aViH. tarmacadam roads: