MOTOR-CYCLING

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXX, Issue 21506, 1 June 1933, Page 16

MOTOR-CYCLING

WAITEMATA CLUB'S RUN RESULTS OF COMPETITIONS An enjoyable cruise in company over a distance of about 50 miles was rnaclo by members of the Waitemata MotorCycle Club last Sunday. There was a fair muster of riders, and, although conditions were threatening, occasional showers did not mar the day's sport. The riders, a number of whom were using small machines, assembled at the junction of Great South and Manukau Roads at 10.15 and followed the concrete highway to Papakura. Club members encountered fairly rough conditions on the Great South Road between Papakur.a and Runciman, the looso metal being extremelv thick in places. It was found advantageous to maintain a fair cruising speed, as the machines tended to slide if riders slowed abruptly when thick layers of metal were encountered.

At Runciman permission was obtained to use a paddock near the road for sports. Riders enjoyed a stroll in native bush before lunch, and later took part in a scries of competitions. A feature of the various contests was the largo measure of success enjoyed by riders of small two-strokes, who found their littlo models simple to handle on the grass. Following are details of the results:— Bending Competition.—M. Buchanan (Dot), 1; R. Bryant (Sun), 2; A. JJvcrs (Royal Enfield), ;3. Bending Circle Contest.—R. Bryant, 1; A. Myers, 2; K. Parnell (Roval Enfield), 3. Peg Race.—First heat: K. Parnell, 1; R. Hutchings (Wolf), 2. Second heat: M. Buchanan, 1; N. P. Person (Velocette), 2. Final: K. Parnell, 1; M. Buchanan, 2. Club members will take part in the Whangarei trial on June 10 and 11. THE AUCKLAND CLUB Members of the Auckland MotorCycle Club will take part in a half-day trial on Saturday afternoon. The ..course will be through the Hunua district, and the distance will be about 70 miles. WOMAN DRIVER'S SUCCESS The coveted E Class (2-litre) mile record broken recently at Montlhery by G. M. Stewart with a 1660 c.c. Derby Special. Her time for the mile was 26 11-100s, a speed of 137.854 miles an hour. Mrs. Stewart had made four previous attempts on the record since January, and on each occasion some trivial mishap spoilt things at the last moment. The old record, held by E. A. D. Eldridge and made on the Arpajon road, had stood since 1926, Eldridge's speed being 136.27 miles an hour. The Derby Special with which the record was obtained is an interesting car. Although its design is founded upon that of the front-wheel drive Miller, both engine and chassis have been considerably modified. It is worthy of note that very many British components have been employed in the construction of the car.

PETROL CONSUMPTION Miles to the gallon of fuel seem to represent a tangible indication of running costs, but it is doubtful, however, if this is the most important detail in motoring expenses and any figure given is almost necessarily misleading, says the Motor. A car may do 30 miles per gallon in the hands of an experienced tester, but on a long run the figure may be improved in the hands of the ordinary user. For short distances it may be very much poorer. Many stops and gear-changing in traffic, long periods of idling, wastage through evaporation, rapid acceleration which pumps liquid petrol on the road by way of the overflow pipe or wastes it in the form of unburnt petrol through the exhaust, worn tappets, dirty plugs or pitted points in the Contact breaker —all these factors completely upset calculations. So in estimating the cost of running a car do not attach too much importance to petrol consumption, which is a detail more or less variable by conditions and skill in driving. More important items are depreciation, tax and insurance, garaging and various incidental expenses of maintenance. TRADE ITEM An illustrated booklet of interest to the majority of New Zealanders, the "Book of the Maori Chiefs," has been written by Mr. James Cowan, the wellknown authority, for the Texas Company (Australasia), Limited. A limited edition has been published, and copies may be obtained from the Wellington office of the company. The booklet contains likenesses and condensed accounts of the careers of six prominent Maori chiefs, To Rauparaha. Hone Heke. Tamati Wake None, Tawhiao, Rcwi Maniapoto and To Heuheu Tukino. The publication is well finished, and has a coloured picture of a Maori chief on the cover. NOTES W. L. Handloy " ill be mounted on a Swedish Husqvarna machine, a 500 c.c. twin, in the senior T.T. this year. IU the course of a test of the driving strain caused on long journeys by different designs of bodies, an American body-building firm is stated to have found that the diets of the drivers affected the result. An entirely new line in car salesmanship lias been adopted by a London concern, The idea is that the prospective purchaser shall have the services of two demonstrators—one for his own car and one for the new model he is trying. He can change over* and drive whichever ho likes as often as he desires and is thus able to form a comparison between his old car and the new model.