ATHLETICS.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 615, 18 September 1909, Page 12

ATHLETICS.

: * .... .. — . • (By Meecdiit.l •" ' ; I'IXTUKES. To-day.—Wellington Harriers' 5-mile championship (Sliramar). October 9.—Teams' Itoad Raco (To. Aro Baths 1 to Patent Slip and back). : Novomber 9.eW.AiA.C. Spring Carnival and ' Wellington Centre Marathon (llnngaroa to 1 • Basin Keserve). . • ... --:.'■' ; The New Zealand cross-country champion- ' ship, decided at Timaru last week, reopened a chapter that:has been closed for some time in the annuls of New Zealand athletics. Some years ago this event was set down - as- an annual fixture on the New Zealand A.A.A. roster, but owing to lack of attention interest in the serial waned auß died, and it was left in a "to-be-continued-in-our-next" • condi-: tion from season to season.'.'lt was in this moribund state when the present Now Zealand A.A.A. Council assumed control, and the preoccasion is tbo outcome of a determination'to revive the affair, and was the first instalment, "under entirely now management, of what should in future be something good. Tho result has justified the association in its experiment, so far ,as the South Island is conenrhed. The . regrettable feature, howevor,' is that only one North Island club—Wellington Harriers—was represented.- This would seem to indicate that to ensure tho ovent being equally successful when its turn comes round to :be held in this section of tho Dominion, vigorous action. is necessary to placo crosscountry running in the position which it shouW occupy in North Island athlotic circles. In these days of "Marathonitis," surelv someone can be found to preach the gospel of harrierism to the people of the north. . ; The contest under. review comprises three preraierships in one race—;the centre, interclub, 1 and. mdividnal championships. The lastnamed goes, of course, to the first man home, while the first four representatives of any. cen-tre-are accounted winners of the major teams' event, (each centre being, permitted to start five'men), and the first six club men to finish (out of the eight nllowedfrom an individual , club) appropriate the minor title.' ■ So much for introduction, and now for tho race. Three centres were .represented in the big championship—Otaijo, Wellington, and Canterbury—six teams battled, for honours in tho •inter-club fixtpre, and a total of 49 starters were dispatohed over the journey. The course lay over rather moro than'five miles of true "cross-country," plentifully dotted with standing water and mud, as a result of recent,heavy rains, while any monotony-in the "going" wns amply counteracted by three miles of ploughed field, with a liberal allowance of creeks, fences and (rates to be negotiated, according to indivijlual taste. It is -' related that'the winner l - 1 that sprightly ancient, W. ;T. Simpson—took all his obstacles at. α-loap; "' / v . - The finish-is described thus in a southern pxchonqe:—"lt wns thought that the distance would be covered in 30 minutes, but the goim? wa? too. Heavy for fast times, .and at-the end of half an hour there was no sign of the men 'returning. A minute Inter, lirtwevpr, one of the'runners amieared:half a mile off. and.the" cry went iid 'it's good old-"Simmv." the veteran, and the father of 'em. nil. . This was repeated with variations os thn mnuer drew nearer and nearer,; and'when finally he landed homo first with a pnod hundred yards to spare, Simpson was heartily apnlauded, and he rewaived the warm congratulations of his-friends, his win beinpr conpirterod specially meritorious on account of his being by a substantial margin 'the oldest man in tho burch. , Tho others came in, occasionally in twos, bnt for the.mnst part singly, all who .had started breasting tho tane." ' ,''■■' ~,-., 1. The' big r event wa«won, .'somewhat easily,'by the Otnco Centre, Wellington and .Canterbury rvin?. : for second place, the points and individual positions being as under:— ' ; New Zealand Cross Country Championship. '. ..;■ Name.';..■-'■ ■ ... Position. Fifst-Otago, .18 points.- .- .'. -,-.; '~:. ■' -.- ~.. Beatson, ;......,...... ,2 ; , ; ;;i West ;......;;.... ..,...'...,.........;;...,; '3;..;/: -..'•' Thompson -, ; :......;...:..:.....».;...:»..•. 5.-- ■*: ."': Frew ..'.....,..............»».-••■■.. »•■i B'' <'• Second—Wellington , , 1 55 points." s ■ ■: '- ■ Rowbarry ..;......;..'........; .';..,..;.. Iβ :-■ Press;' ...;.......;..;.'.:..:..:i.i......;.:...... 12 /wiitoti ..;.:..;..;;u..;i.: ..» w • :' Bennett:.....;.. ......; ; ..:.;...i..J... 14- ■■'. , Second—Canterbury, 55; points.■";■_' '■':'' ,-, Jmpson'. !....... :...,, 1 . >Uiric-«,-A.j»:!i(.«jteil-i:;:.":"r»" ' jj bymon ......,......-.i...i... £0 '. Hodgson y ••••■. ..'...........»• 25. . 5 'i.'- ■' ■•; Inter-Club 1 'Ghampioneliip., , "' ■','>■•■■' ; First— Cayershani, 65 points.;•;;■)'..■.,■, ; ';•' • .;" ■."■■■'''■-.Beatsoh ;..;...'.......;.'..., 2 ■■ , ,-■ . '■ -'Frew: : ..:. .......;.....:'...... 8 M'Langhlan 9 ■ Jl'Knight ......'.......;.;.'........ 10 M. Frye '...... i.;..'-15 '' •: ,;■-',. F. ;Frye ....;......;....,;..:.v....-,.;._.. 21 ■ Second—Wellington, 79 points. '~,':■ .'■■',■ Curry -....; ..;.......;.....;....;„ v 7 ' ,' Press "V.............'.-.'..........;........ 12 .. - Wilton .......1.;.............: .:.:...... 13 - -. Bennett ........;...........-..,..;.;.. ;...;14 ' ■' ■, ; Rowberry ......;;:....;............... .; ■Iβ-' :-,•.,:Hodson -.'...;...'...y..i....;.;.'. ~,..v.,..,17v,.., ,'W.. I , / I 'Simpson.takes :'the' gold medal '■ for first man '-home' in thb. New' Zealand Champion* ship, and first prize .of 'JBI-. Is. -for first home in the inter-club'e shield race. The times of the first three men were as follow: — . Simpson' «„.,...„.. 3-lmin. 2 2^sEec Beatsoh- ./ 34min.19 2-ssec. . '~-' West :..; ■..,;;...■ JJimin. 21 2-ssec. The showing of the Wellington men, especially'in the club event, must-be regarded as isatisfactory. Although competing ns a centre team, the combination was purely, a club one, there.-being: only.one club at present extant in the : city. :: Moreover, tho men 'ran under serious disadvantages from the-exigencies of travel. They -left" Wellington < with what seemed ample time before them; but their steamer ran into heavy weather. Consequently, after an exceedingly bad. trip, the team missed both southern expresses, and only arrived'on the scene of action two or three hours before the time of starting the race.. ■~_■' ■.'■<'. ' It will be .'noticed thqit Curry,- the first of the local men to finish, was not .included in ;he team , ,representing the-Wellington Centre. Hβ finished seventh, whilo the firet centre representative; home,. Rowberry, was sixteenth. Curiy has a theory td. account for this. He is/a recent arrival from England, and found a course provided eminently, to his ,taste, and quite what he had been accustomed w at 2ome/ The soft. "going," ihe large area of "plough," the hedges and ditches,' though terra incognita ,to his.clubmates, were as- his native heath to' Curry, and he profited accordingly.' After ' the cross-country, championship, the Wellington touring. party, ■ with the exception of- Lambj Bust, and Rowberry, set out for Duriedin, , with an acquisitive eye on tho Scotch city's Civil. Service! Harriers' Teh-mile handicap. The handicaps for this event-had been framed before , the result of. the Timaru race was available; consequently the Welling-"" ton men found themselves, in some instances, giving awny starts to U3ir who had beaten them, two days earlier; Kach one of the six men, however, went to the post, and completed the .'course,' finishing fourth, fifth, eighth, thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth, in a field of twenty-five. Tho men wore somewhat mislead as to the nature of the course, and all turned out in spiked shoes, only to find that about four miles of road had been included. In spite of this, Bennett was able ;o make second fastest time to Beatson, but the hard going orippled Mm, as, indeed, it did; the rest of the team, all of whom finished up. with badly-blistered feet. ■'■'.". .All, the Wellington men speak highly of ;he treatment accorded them by tho .officials, both at Tiraaru and Dnnedin, especially that of .Messrs. D.'Hodgson and G. Glue, secretaries of the South Canterbury Club. The :eam was excellently managed by Mr. W. K Jennett, and one and all aro looking forward 0 nekt year's,event, with, pleasurable anticipation. ■ ' ■ ■""■'',• ■' '•' • Now that we have learnt that R.' E. Walker ig not to visit us in tho coming season,' re. ports of his doings in England havo a melancholy interest, but they go to show us what ■ a A'\ n « ■ fa -?i.i. (0 . r .- ls l ) the South Africa o A.A.A.?) is withholding'from us. On August 2 the much-mourned absentee competed in und won, an open 100 yards'handicap in 10 l-lOsec- This is a return to his true form, which seemed to bo.rather on the wano in the previous month, when ho was twice beaten by N. J, 'Cartmell, the American sprinter. The a 120 yards' scratch.invitation on July 24, in , which he was beaten a yard in 12 J-ssec, and a 220 yards invitation, in which he could only get third in 22 2-ssec ' • '■■ W. J. Cartmell, referred tp in the previous paragraph, was in a winning vein in July. In addition to the wins noted above, ho was responsible for two good - performances' at Belfasf 2™ Juy , 31 : . Th 'e were 100 yards and 220-yards invitation handicap races, tho latter of which fell to the'speedy American in 22 1-SS6C, and the former, in even time. Tho shorter-race wns responsible for a dead-heat in lOseo. between Cavtmcll and an Irish runner named Wilson off four yards, but, in tho run off, Hie Irishman went under,, the timo again being evens." . ■ W.-A. jWoodger, Australasian sprint champion, returned irom. Sydney, por s.s. Ulimaroi, during the week, and brought with him the six standard certificates, won by the New Zealand team at Brisbane. ' 5..-. G. Bharpc. lateAuetralaalan and Now Zeakml tlueoioilo champion, wu in town last, 7' ./ •' .

woek. He is roturning shortly to his homo in ' Hobart, and intends taking up the sport seriously again, in hopes of Tjeing over to New Zealand in the Tasmanian team for the next Australasian championships in February, 1911. "Bobby" Kerr, now in England, is apparently not the only sprinter Canada can produce. Ono L. J. Sebert, of Toronto, who ran ~ unsuccessfully at Inst year's Olympic Gnnifs distinguished himself, at ' Winnipeg at the Canadian A.A.A. Championships in July, by winning both the 100 yards and 220 yards, in even time. "■ In addition to tho excellent sprint times 0 mentioned in tho foregoing paragraph, the Canadian championships meeting was productive of an extraordinary walking performance 1- by a one-time opponent of Harry Kcrr's, named a G. Goulding, who finished fourth to Larner, n Webb, and our walker at the Olympic Games, e In the mile ovent Goulding is reported to have 1- lowered the world's; record (held by G. E. !• Larner) by 2-5 second, covering the distance iu f- 6min. 25 l-ssec, 2 l-ssec. better than F. H. s Creamer's 1897 Australasian record of G. 27 \r 2-5.'. This, is walking indeed—if it was s walking. Goulding also "outed" the Austrad lasian figures for the three miles, badly doing >- the journey in 21min. ssec., or 31 l-ssec. bet- -- ter than Victorian A. 0. Barrett's record. 1- (The'world's best for the threo miles is Lar- " ner's 20min. 25sec, established in 1905.) The passing, or otherwiso, of the mile time by the 3 English Amateur Union will be awaited with 1- interest./ , ■ s The harriers formal programme for the seaD. son closes to-day with tne club five mile chama pionships at Miramar, for which over 20 eng tries have been received. Two informal runs. 1 however, are to be held on September 25, and 1, the' week following, in which _ competitors in i- the road race are invited to join.