ATHLETIC NOTES.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20584, 6 December 1928, Page 4

ATHLETIC NOTES.

By Amateur!

EVENING SPORTS MEETING

As usual,’ good entries have been received for: the’ sports meeting to be held’ by the Otago Centre on the Caledonian Ground this evening, and if the conditions remain favourable there should be 'keen competition and fairly good times. The number of competitors handicapped in the 100 Yards, the Shot Putt, and the Onemile Open Cycle-Race is very large,- while good fields may be expected in the 440 Yards, 100 Yards for ladies, and th 6 Halfmile Cycle Race. A Half-mile Walk is : included in-. the programme, and has at- 1 tracted five entries,. ' OTAGO v. CANTERBURY. When a prominent - member of the Otago Centre of the New Zealand Amateur Athletic Association was in, Christ-. ’ church recently he-discussed with a member of the Sun staff a proposal.to hold a Canterbury v. Otago relay, jrace oyer the. mile .standard ’ distances, .and undertook’ to bring the proposal, .which, is for the 1 provinces, to send teams away on alternate years, before /the Otago' Centre. . The question-has been mentioned ait a meeting of ’ the Canterbury Centre, but has not .been placed before' the"' centre/ officially. • The proposal •is a' good one,’ for nof only would, it provide interest-' ing racing and a good try-out for the two provincial teams .before 'the New Zealand championships,, but it would also give one province the- additional attraction -at .one of tits meetings, of-.four stars from the other ; proyince. Somer’years ago a Canterbury quartet, G. .Tapley, C. .H. Taylor, jun., , Garrick, and C. M. Walden, went- to Dunedin and rah a great, race. -■ T. ," ./’■ CYCLING NOTES. • . The Mile ani. a-half. A Grade/Race , onThursday, evening resulted in .a long overdue win for P. Traill off "90 yards.. He. used sound judgment all'through, arid, won .quite conffqr.tafbly.t, /'.'A Farmer, ’on a-;strange • machine,i.Y6d6. into.second place after :/a gopd-.race../■ He.’ is improving with every .appearance,’ -and.should be seen winning from back marksshortly. ; ’ . ", 7:7 -- • 77 (fooper/managed "to land third plate,■ but- he is showing nothing like; his • formof list year, <■ He 7 appears to’waht :; shar- : pening, up .in_ training; ’Most riders' will train'readily enough at distance -work-i and leave sprinting alone, but this ; is a’ serious mistake. If £ cyclist has no’ sprint at .the end of a race, he might as 1 well throw his machine aside, so- all riders with no exceptions should devote a. considerable amount of time to sprinting.

*l. Eaeklcy, off ;210 yards, shoived the: other limit'riders just what they should do m the One mile anda-half B Grade > Race. He made good' use of his handicap, and fully deserved; his win for the way he rode. . He is a'solidly built rider, and only needs more confidence to repeat his performance. . P. Fraser again came to light with a strong sprint in the One Mile and a-half-' and. The Saif-mile, in botli o£ which he secured-second place. •Heis a rider who would be wise to train hard in sprinting, for he shows great promise. ■ J. Simon rode .with, a rather small, gean for the race, and could do no better : than ..secure, third place'. He is a powerful .rider, and is always .willing to - make the pace when, other riders .will not come out. Lap stewards should watch this point, as there ,are triomany' riders at the present time who' are not doing 'their' .share. ' , . , ; . The Half-mile Paul Cup Race resulted in, a popular win for , W.’ Isaacs off 65. girds. He put in a good, sprint to* beat p. traser by about a quarter of a wheel. S. Hodge was father , unfortunate in 'getting blocked at the'far, corner, and he could fimsh no further up than third. S.. Bremford made his first appearance on the' track'since last year, but lack of training told a. tale, and he could not see 'the distance out. At times he showed bursts of his old speed, and when properly fit he will be seen to advantage. P. Healy baa just been under an operation, and will not be seen on the track again for. some time.

It is_ reported that A. L. Rosenbrbck has retired from the track for the season. If this is true his absence will be severely felt, amongst the local backmarkers.-. ■' J. C. Fogarty- has commenced, training again, and will be riding to-night after a month’s spell from, the track. Cyclists are. always indebted to Mr A. MTndoe together with his fellow raarksmen. He is always quick on the job, arid' does his utmost to prevent the .public interest from hanging fire. It is pleasing to. see that a meeting is to be held in Oamafu shortly with the object of starting amateur cycling,' They have a good track up there, arid it will be only a matter of- time wlien Dunedin cyclists will have quite a circuit of country meetings to fide at, as well as the North Otago Centre; which I hope will go ahead by . leaps and bounds,. Cyclists are reminded that they must register their colours with the Otago Amateur Cycling Club before the sports meeting on December 15.

The Otago Amateur-Cycling Club has received, another Scott Cup to be held by the . registered member who, • gains most points in -, the Otago cycling championships.

It is to be hoped that'the Otago Centre will add a Half-tpilo Championship to its championship meeting in February, as this is a usual fixture at' the New Zealand championships. Last week in a cycle handicap at Tirriaru, J. 'L. Ewing gained third place froiu 10 yards-behind scratch.

■ Entries for the Cycling-Club’s sports meeting on the 15th inst., will close on Saturday,

NOTES, D. ,S. Nicholson, who won the Half-mile Walk at . the Otago Boys’ High School sports in record time this year, will be a competitor in the Half-mile Walk at the Otago. Centre’s sports-meeting to-night The Christchurch Sun states that Lead-' better has been out at Lancaster Park recently for the-purpose of- training B Drumm. who ran second in a furlong race a week or two ago at English Park Drumm, a Dunedin runner, has returned to the south, but he-may be' residing permanently in Ghristohurch after Christmas. Leadbetter thinks he will develop* into a good-class sprinter. i A n*hich has been general of late, _ that M. Leadbetter is returning to ttie i track has been denied by the Now deal and sprint • champion, who told

Sprinter,-* of the Christchurch Sun, last •week that he was prepared to turn'-out ma relay team for the University Club if-needed, but r he has -no' intention of turning out otherwise/ 0. Stuart, New .South; Wales quartermile track runner, who wag one of.the' Australian athletes at ; the Olympic Games, accused by manager L, Duff of not having trained carefully enough, has forsaken "the running track for the swimming pool.- He was well-known in swimming before, and just missed selection as a swimming representative- of Australia at the- 1924 Olympic Gan\es, A'silver tup, valued-at 11 guineas, fpr competition among cyclists on the Petone track, has' been presented by Messrs Laykpld, Ltd., who laid down the track. The cup will be competed for.annually in a five-mile handicap race, ridden at Petone, nut open to .any cyclist .in the. Dominion. The winner each year gains a.miniature, and with three successive wins the clip itself. ."■ . ' ...'...-.- '.-,. George Sutherland, famous as one of New Zealand's best cyclists, is organise e: for a company which is putting down a dirt track at Wellington. -The track will have seating accommodation for 20,000 people. ' Sutherland was the first, manager of English. Park - Stadium and- the first manager of Blandfprd.,, Park, Stadium, Auckland. He is earning the- title of ■ pioneer promoter for New, Zealand* . .<.'■ Motor paced cycling is an innovation (as far as Wellington is concerned) .tobe. placed before the public shortly by >. the Petone Amateur Athletic and Cycling Club (says the Wellington Post).. At -. a recent trial on the banked track on .thV. Petone Oval a,rider, sojpaccd by a motor, cycle, attained a speed of 50 mile* per hour. This speed would not -allow..of motor-paced cyclists passing one another on the track, which is only- 21ft wide, so that it is. probable that only two cyclists will be' permitted on the track nt the same time, one behind the other._There are few'..better sportsmen than Frank Grose, the Now Zealand track champion cyclist, who has given the Otag.i" Centre a practical demonstration of his desire to-help the sport along. He competed at Dunediu recently; despite £ho fact ihat he had had little time for. training on the track after a hard road season, and now comes word that.he has notified the Otago Centre that he docs! not' desire the trophy order he won on that occasion. This is.typical of Grose, who is always out to help the sport along, and is probably the most popular amateur rider in New Zealand at the present time. . Officials of the newly-formed' club 'at Wairoa seem thoroughly convinced that in Miss Peggy Stewart they have a worldbeating hidy runner, says a Napier writer.. So satisfied are they of her ability that they have challenged on her behalf for a straight-out match with the New Zealand champion, Miss Norma Wilson, of Gisbornc. It is stated, however, that the heads of the Gisborn Club are unwilling that the match should eventuate before Christmas,' on the grounds that Miss Wilson is not yet fit enough.