BICYCLE RACES.

Lyttelton Times, Volume LIII, Issue 5953, 25 March 1880, Page 2 (Supplement)

BICYCLE RACES.

On Saturday afternoon the Pioneer Bicycle Club held its first competitive gathering, tho‘ meeting taking place in Hagley Park, on the ground laid. out by the - Popular Amusement Association, In the’, programme of the last Anniversary Sports, it _ will bci ‘ remembered,‘ a bicycle race was intrpdttoedj and-the item 1 proved to bo. thomost popular in the day’s proceedings. Conseqnently it was very naturally anticipated that, a series of snob races would prove Attractive to the public. ‘ The attendance on SaturdayAftomboh folly’ justified the^ expectation which had been formed, andthe keenest interest was manifested in the various events. The track being in good order, andtnere being a Jight breeze to counteract the heat, the competitors were : thus far favourably circurn; stfthped. Unfortunately,however,'the Com--mittee hftd not 1 roped' in : any portion of thb track, trusting’ that the ■ good sense’ of the public would ensure a clear oourto; 'ln this they were lamentably mistaken, ’for during the third event a large seotibn of the, spoota-. f tors crowded in, Tendering the preeeedmgs invisible even to many of themselves.’ " Suhse-' .’ quently- order was to 1 some "extent hilt there were many who persistently -request oA remoUßtranoe, [and ih the; 10 mile handicap the chance’ of one bf tbe oqmpeti-J tors, E. 0. Farr, Aas completely destroyed by a big v idiot jumping ; in fitont- of the machine, the rider being • 'thrown heavily; .Unfortiniirtdy,' ■■lihe■’•ll^^o;■whi(^-'«o• , stupidly caused’ the ; mishap’escaped without’ a Scratch. The r performances of- the meeting yrire' characterised 1 ! by two 'notable 1 features, ■ one of these being’ the graceful ridibg ’of Cbtten, a Dnnedin represeUtatiyei : ini fact, : so finished a bicyclist l that he might fairly claim the rank of A professor'-in the' arjt,’ and. he certainly demonstrated' that the mbmbers of the Pioneer Olah have yet very miich.> tb praoticallyhad* no opponent, and in the race' “ without handles” he Was immensely superior to: all others. But in the 4eh mile handicap,’ Ciitteh, who had not iso ■ ■ long a race, had to : give way to the "greater : stamina of G. B. Dalton, whose riding in this' event formed the second special" feature Of interest. It is somewhat curioUs that Dalton should have carried • off the honours, ■ for although ho has had English practice; he had not—until a fortnight ago—used-a bicvcle for four years, and he had never Oompeted in any race. -More thari this; he 1: wli» ! unfortunato 1 enough to get an ! Ugly fall while -doing' the siith mUe, ; and he went tb ; the ! -ground l -SO ’■ heavily that no one thought he had 4 ohande/; left. The appearance of his face as he remounted, led a spectator to remark* that he must be nearly related ; to: Cutten.: Those of I the bystanders who were Johnsonian students atj once looked to:’their, pockets. Thee starting was. admirably managed by Mp S. P, Andrews, and. Mr Hebden; acted ■as' timekeeper. .The recording :. of the laps, a task which required unremitting.atteUtion, was done by members of: the Pioneer Bicycle Club; and if in the Ten-Mile Handicap there were one or two inaccuracies, as. some asserted, the -fault rests inot with jfche scorers, , but with - those, persons,-whOj BO’ crowded even over theledgos'of the.tracky fts attunes to render, it almost impossible,.toAeO; the bicyclists coming : up<! The events were as follows:-?- : v : : .Ai-lfc't <:

ONE MIIiB CEPE HANDICAP, W. Cattea (Dunedin); 50in, scratch ; ... 1. F. W. Gough, 50in, 100yds >• • ... ... 2 T. Sea,reU, 50in, 125yds ..4 , ... , .i. S'. H. Clarke, 54in, 100yds, also competed; DJ Robertson (Dunedin), 50in, 60yds,. not having, been able .to leave Dunedin, was scratched both for this race Mile Handicap.a f j Time—Fkst, lap, jdOisec j limn dOsec ; third, ' 2min 41seo; fourth, 3mih 47;1-sthsee. 1 " '• M '"“ “ H On the signal to go, Cutten started at an immense pace,”oyerhanivng Clarke in the first; •lap, and closing up to: Gough in the second. Half: way round “the tKrd iap, map" passe'djboth Gough and Searpll, riding heauti-.: fully, and eliciting, genuine applause; • He then eased off, winning as he liked, , ISnterin§ r on the last lap, Gough parsed Searell;‘Clarke’ being nowhere. The winner rode , a “ Ohal-. lenge ” machine. ' ' . - , I POPE MIX.E OPEN HANDICAP. E. W--Fox, 52in, 300yds ... . ...1 L. B-Hubbard, 54in, 200yds ; .... 2 E; O. Farr, 54in, scratch s“..- :... ...,3 .. The following also competedT. Allison, 54m, 210yds; A.F. James, 52in, 360yds ;F.. W.' Gough, 50in, 450yds j T. Searell, 50in, 500yds. i'— : > V. Time, one mile, Smin sseov two miles; 7 min, 13seo; three miles, llmin 16 see; four * miles, 15min 15bC0.; 1 ei.ft <-! .Vrf.vd.i < Scratch man went 1 away at a 1 lively pace;" displaying a very neat and taking style/ blit not seeming, as he went on, to : get os ! mnofa ‘ out of his machine as had been anticipated; In the second lap, a short spurt between Farr and Searell caused some fun, the latter, how* ever, soon ceasing his effort, and falling out i at the end of the fourth lap; Gough; retiring" with hini. Fox, who ! was ■ riding a f ' Very straight course, was now leading* While Hubbard was labouring considerably. Fair; om completing his second 'mile, put-on a fine spurt, and passed James and’Allison in 'rapid succession, The latter regained his position; but had again to-fall back in 'a few. moments.? In the tenth lap, James dropped, out, 1 andthe third mile was "Completed: in the following .Order : —Fox, Hubbard, Farr, Allison, t ; :Fot; was now gaining an lead, whilst by slow degrees, Farr was creeping up to Hubbard, Allison being a long way in the roar.In finishing, Fox had three-quarters of a lap to the good, the second and third in being separated by an interval of 50 yards. ... .

SLOW HAOE, ICO TA883., W. Outten (Dunedin) ... > ! . , ... F. W. Gough, A. F. James, and T. Searell also competed. 1 The object in.viewwas, tv occupy the longest poaaiblo timo in doing the 100yds, a fall being 1 a disqualification. Best time, 3min 19 2-sta see, , n-i , i, •, J In the first try, bet ween Cutten and Gough, the .latter, fell after going a, few yards. The course being then-rushed, nothing more, could be seen. James and Searell had the next fry, the latter falling, la the final try, between; Outten and Jame&ftho latter fell.after cover-, ing a few yards, and Cutten then rode quioklv over the remainder of the distance. , It may, be suggested that the interest in,a contest pf this kind might be sustained, by imposifig.d; deduction penalty— say two, yards—for, eaoja .fall, , Under existing circumstances, the' moment a man falls he is entirely,.out of the race,-, and bis' opponent, may rush homo i as quickly as he pleases. .. . . r , ftUAETBE-JIXLB EACE, WITHOUT HANDLES."Outten (Dunedin) «i ... - •il; i i The other competitors wore H. Clarke,'!. Searell, Booth, L. B. Hubbard, and P. W. < Gough. Best- time, 6& ■ secs;; ■winning.time, l :65 one-fifth secs. ,iUu-. i Thb competitors had'tb Tide feheif machines abreast to the start, and, ‘OH.’ thesignai l beingEgiven, td let gb the handles.’ The arms never, afterwards : to be brought below the horizontal > 1 posliioh, i i or they- mightICJW 1 C JW folded, gufa Jbet first heat, Cutten, Searell, and Clarke competed,the first-mentioned man giving ji

iTutifol hAtouohftd tho handleflTW J t h o Aho?t of the lap, he S a f‘ s 5 ftn earlier stage. GIB; Dalton, •" i)U '*g :W.-Q«ttop,;#oratofe..L, • ’i «»• *«": 8 T Alßton,*aofeds. ».. ( f,, - y TArr. -whb 'Kad heen Tegarded Us probable being added, l ln the-column under, tie head /‘leadings man”, tbaj^P? tie l.»d Wfam »S§ ‘V?E(IsSU AAplegato;‘wlth tmoe-qudrteM of a , It is worthy if note that Dalfotto tTOofor^o, 'he continued’tohold the lead, was remarkab y ’pod;-' f r - ;

;!Oie,. of Aha men at the Applegato 'StoOd Credlted' vrith one, ’ two and ithna.alanAisaspehtinlyodXhd lissue Of this •Cvent being to a large extent dependent uppn, the staying powers, of •the.oompetitcir.e, Onttep •uAddubtoffly ’made A mistakg by:forpmg ft etouggle with *Fafr At aU early J .Had’ •hi 'kept; Mmself; in • reserve he .wolud, in all e’ ’ ipiht!y,;hftve eftsily piokednp.thftwmner’B, icapi of, 200 /yaras.;,, Aa it was,,Dritipp beat. Outte'n on his 'own merits’; ’by running the gfokter part Af A after pompleting'his ton-miles, notwithstanding’ the Severe shaking •jteceiveiiL inUrisfaJl, At ’ofotbft tiikd imile,; when.ihe: men.had get. well down to thenf work/ Applegato, and Goon,, still "tet^hidd 1 ’ the : ' lekd* give¥ thbm. hffme handibap;’ felleri'qtiiteforearyand Dalton had’; gone ■ (into hiaplapOjbf passing, Allison,:! Outten was. a ftd;, .vance, of pretty dope, to: one another until 'the" 'eighth mueThftdr been' entered- milADalteti 1 went up inftoiAeeoAd plato; Goughchafing l jtoppept. hftri? to , keep % countenance. . On tHeAompletion-pf the'sixth' •.mile jl DAlfon'’became Abe ’leadei/ztodAUWe•quehtly fetaiUe’di that’ pOritien;'*'Although ih? doingthe.7th ioile he. got hisfoll/ shftkinghim--BBlf.verymn9h,;ftnd suftajuing (rngpr^wp^glyg scratohes-op ,me' /ace f -., (fhft dfcadvanteae to him could'not bh oStftiiateSAt ihAn half a lap/ And- th'O 1 plucky’ *way‘ ih ! - which 1 bfe J resumed andifiept up tkecOnteafcfor tho honour of iM? .Gipb/ideswEeSiy fpp ti¥jB v -siftstic cheers. In the seventh" mile Allison got a fall, but was quickly, in his seat again; , !fhe ’drifty/ hbweyeiv As df ‘ 'gfAdfaiuiago tojOutten/WhO indthA.eighth (mile<. 6oqkvnpl i second place, Applegate being ;, third/ apd[ Alliapn.fqurfcii. . Farr..wa8 I: |!h|ip|vp Heavily, on: ntoount of abmo man jumping put just in frddt lA Of Aha ps fobe'‘6f"(bw ,J -riibaldgfo pauied ’Mhi ,; •bo Elected 1 to; retire,' jin. the•;ninth(;«iile edUlmmulMßeA. the zemfi&qta' of thejgftee wfttj Aun ip the,. wihning„ordere the.'rest* of (be field! Aito|ether for. 1; 'Mb a thofougMy populaf OW; tlfough Outfon’ feemyed ft good-snarenf applauses; Jjau-s.-.p, *i

■ a .'■IOONSOIJiLirIOH' BACB,-,HAI® llttS jIJOC f'S.iQ, jfioknoaß-jwoa «.novf«M rr be. Sr £SIMB a^oomv ■■ at me Wiffihiwttl 1 , theorizes > were, present eh hy.thoßregideiftjiMrl B; D. di Stlvpiiß. y»riop tronhifs, Kftft o^.^ioh; ; had. been supplied ; by, T iewe}J?F* Colombo street, formed quite an imposing [display;', 1 f Ini ‘maksh|f 1 Aidfcffeoiiad 'eiercisedf, gbod'Stote, i tho ..articles': addMefuhi; L ;. i i J>; j Oil; v/i t fcHuJ.' !'.n.‘ c 'i. <>[’,} f,

■ v/ .-. ■ v -.* | Ji —IJ- y, .£,ljj.;o -q jx/.u '•* ■' At*' seven ; £.&i‘ v 6nfMat^h'-Bj‘"'the 1 ' offloiaV--inapectioii of theltmßiway;/liiiO'-r£rdm.Gathe?r : drol square to, the, railway,station yrtpokplagp.; Those present ,were f Mr Augm t O»P .District ■Engineer), bh beHilf of the' GfOV'erhthenfc j 'Mr JOt, i Th’orhtob, 'Engineer; to tfie ; Ttamvtdy Com-* pany j, Mr. Ji Byans Browny;Chairman of the! Board of BheptqysT S7%P»[^bPW} The.first trip 'waa.stai-te'd preeweV “one oar beihg list'd, v7 htd n mth^only’*4Blbs'of .steam the run tothe ■ etatidn rwas (done infsiL , minutes,' fche:retpm jp,drppy f .pcpdpying apput, ' the same timq.;,On, tJje jjeyt • trip,,; the .second. engine' w® s used, and with "a greater swarA pressure. i: 'At 4he £6(i!elerat4d' J sj(e'ed, J .Ss as( with iatbiit>f u 'ptogeeibr/:-the smoothness <jo£. the ; n»tfonjwß«, a; imost .agree?, able jpppipejisgn with, the TibraV ■tiqnpf p-redway parnage, and 'ip Tohhdmg -the curves 'tht'fe " ws : bhii ; littl r o‘ ;a,iffe*6Wce‘' perceptible.’ 'Oh SOvehthdOOasiOhs thehrSkeAi wire applied* and it was demonstrated'■that,, the r ebgine' and < par could h® ,brought s<? a i dead stand, alpittefeat.a moment’e .inqtipe. ~ip, was also,- seen that* by thAAdtioh' 1 automatic brake, : the BpoAd'liinit of y ten itiilfes’ l pdr-honi? could hot/'be'lbxeee&edi;. I Mahy.* bdreea werepassfedii.h;th« A?B?se ; pf ) thO: trials, ; apd.m np caee,djdtl)e anim^,appear j to be at*. alffrightenearThero is very little n’Oisei ahdap' •littk steam, tjie immense length of puffiice* condensing pipes EOting perfectly^' iTtvO trips were then run,.in!crder thatiadoad; might be carnedi and tbe rpnnipg tested under, ,SU%cqnditiopy; j ilbere wpp. no dSfhoulty'm , passengers',‘ fbr;o%'M4 bf children hid Assembled’,' hna Moth ''thktf VlhuhSred'yOhhgt foroiohtiip, muchtitpi their delight. ; Thd trpto-cayS ajre.powvTHnojlg doily and |uMher.,.pxtenßiqns ofihe line,wifi'be put hi hand at qpce., _ ' u .. .

;■ j Mile'/ ■>*» ' Oiitteii.' ’• Farr.''’ ■t 1 ft min.eec. min;' feeo.' . mini': mo* 6. . 5 30 . ,4 01-6 8 ' 2 1-6 4 ,5 lf5 6 8 2-6 W h ■'5 ■■■;■ •■'v.i 10 32-5 12 1 *' 12 12-5 14 28 J;: 18 65 16 9 2-5 20 IS 16 101-3 20 13 8-8 $ ::: ■23 :23;: ,24:;25ni t -24 271-5 7 ,?7; 60 , .28 41 28,.532-5 i;8 31 54 82 63 ,, 9 1 . KP"' ••• 86' lb 2-5 37 16' Mt t ; 4» 28 8-5 41 80 2-6