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Otago Witness, Issue 2429, 3 October 1900, Page 49

CYCLING NOTES.

A cyclist had a narrow escape from, being seriously injured, if, indeed, not killed outfight, in Princes street .shortly after 5 o'clock on the 25th ult. He mounted his machine from the footpath a little above jVEgssrp Q, arid _T. Young's, jewellery establishment. A car was swinging do.v/n the hill, and another was going up at a good pace. The cyclist evidently intended to cross the street before the two met, but ju&l as he mounted one of the pedal* came off. The machine moving down the hill became momentarily unmanageable, and an accident seemed ine\itoble. Just as the two cars met, however, the man seemed to throw himself off, and rolled along the ground in front of tho down car into the opposite gutter, while the bicycle went under the up-car. A great shout from the crowd- on the footpaths went up a= the incident occurred, and had it not been for the promptitude of both drivers m coining to a standstill more serioiu results would have assuredly ensued. The machine was apparently irretrievably ruined.

As the outcome of an unpleasant experience of a puncture, end no repair outfit bandy, that happened to a member of the Dunedin Ftaft" oi the lui^ey-Harris Cycle Company recently at St. Claii;, cyclists ai-c to be provided wit'i a pump and .repair outfit at this favqurable suburb. The company have placed at the Si Clair hotel these necessary adjunct* to tae' cycle, and an inquiry at the hotel will enable any wnfortunate cyclist who meet- wllh a puncture in the vicinity to efteci a repair and go on hi? way rejoicing, and blessing the forethought of the Ma&sey-Hari ib Company. A letter has been sent by the Canterbury Athletic and Cycling- Club, Christchurch. to the j ecre' aries ot the Dunedin and Otago Cyclii'g Clubs, and also the other cycling clubs in the Otaj^o centre conveying thie following resolution, unanimous'y passed by the commutes: — "That all members of affiliated clubs who may be visiting Christclvreh during the Jubilee Exhibition season be made honorary members, having all the privileges of membership extended to them.'* What ihis generous treatment means is shown by the fact that the clubhouse is situated within one bundled yards of the exhibition, and is provided with two first-class billiard tables, reading room, etc. At the annual meeting; of the N.Z. Cycle Touring Club the action of the council in protesting against the Cycle Boards Bill was approved ; as also wa* the decision to cea&e the publication of the Gazette. A deptitation was appointed to wail on the Wellington City Council to urge that something be doiio in the direction of laying down cycle tracks in the city.

A" cyclist coming into Albert street from the direction of the Town Belt had a uai-row escape from accident la^t Tuesday. Ho apparently lost control of his machine, and in order to a\oid bolting down the hill r?.n into a brick wall at a corner house. By good fortune he escaped with only a severe Braking, but his e s cape may not always be met with by runaway cyclist?, and it is as well to use caution in rounding dangerous corners. There i° nothing like a good shaking up to make a man cautiout — it makes avi impression on the nerves that takes a lot of getting over, but I trust that a word of warning and a knowledge of the experience of other riders will have tr.e desired effect of promoting; a, greater care among cyclists. A litter ha., been .sent, by the Canterbury Ath'leiic aiid Cycling Club, of Cliristchurch, to the secretaries of the Dunedin and Olago Cycling Clubs and also the othsr cycling clubs in the Otago centre conveying Ihe following resolution, uranimously passed by ti:p comnittee: — "Tlial all members of affiliated clubs who may be visiting Christchurch during the Jubilee Exhibition season bo made honorary members, having all the privileges of membership extended to them." What this generous treatment means is shown by, the fael that the clubhoiise is situated within iOOytk of Vac exhibition, and is provided with two fiivt-cla=« billiard tables, reading room s . etc.

Br 13- B. Turner, v. ho examined Edward Rale, particular oi whose feat of riding 100 miles every day; (excepting Sundays) iva-, S'hen in my note* of last Aveek,, ti>'o days before the completion^ or his task was perfectly aetouiided at lialea's condition, and v. rites: "He >rune to me when on that day he had already ridden 77 mile?. He looked healthy and well, but wa-, thin, though no. too fine drawn. There was no anxious expression or drawn appearance on ln o face: hi*- eye was bright and clear. He was bronzed and healthy, if oier developed, and che muscle of his trunk were «mooth and fhrn, There were no indications who .ever that he was in any way ' mii'cle-boand.' He hn« J he build of a distance man, with long liesl boas'. His legs and arms r'".? rather long for his height, Lis ll'igh-bono in particular being greatly developed. Hi? nervous system was in perfect order, and there wa<- nothing in any way to show that Le Lad pa.'Ped through any exceptional f tress. Hii pulse was steadj* and quiet. His arteries were »oft, silky, and elastic, and ihe heart Found? perfect. The heart itself was enlarged, the npex being displaced about .at iu<\i and a,-hali downwards, and an inch to the left,. There were no signs of circulatory disturbances. This condition of the heart is what niu^t be expected in anybody vho has led an active athJpiii' pxi c tcnco, tLc heart muscles in such a person becoming enI'irgc l ."

■ ■ The popular idea of cycle manufacture I Hkcs in such things as mechanical skill and j finance, but raiely admit? science. It Las boon customary to rocogr.ii-c all perfected arts from pugilism tip as scientific. i3ut when the term science is i^ec' in connection with ey< 1q :r.aui}factiue it is uncer-tcod ;u ie-^ fcri'i'l,3 to one cr ir.oro of the" abstiv.ct (•o>i^e. j . The f-rienre of ohe;iii t-d".'t -d".' outcs largely into the juak'.np 1 of ;> bicycle, and no fac'ory of any repute is without its laboratory of a ir.ove or k- s prelanwouf e"'KiiTc'.cr. The refining of iron ore and the conversion of iron into steel are che- j

liiical processes. Nickel is obtained from, the combinations in which it only exists in nature by complicated chemical work. The basis of all enamels is a fusible, colourless silicate, and before it finds its way on to the frame of the cycle in all its pristine glossiness, the silicate must go through several intricate contacts with abstract science. Now, a tube may mysteriously crack in manipulation, or the nickel evince signs of Hairiness, or perhaps tho enamel will fail to adhere or produce the requisite finish. There is a fault somewhere. The workman — the machemist, the nickeller, and the enameiler — can only guess, and their surmises can be proven right or wrong by a tedious course of experiments. The faulty specimen is sent to the laboratory, and the story of the fault is soon told by chemistry, and sometimes by the microscope, or both. Science, which deals with, the properties of substances and the changes which they undergo, in combination or decomposition, locates an error by some near or remote process, and if the subsequent directions from the laboratory are iaitbiully folIcwed. tlifijai^nc tr6ubl» J5 hot likely, to occur again. phase of feciehce is not, oi course, confined to ntotais and other fcubstanee'a used in the coiiptructioii of the bicycle only, bui h it well to remember thot the science of cycle-making is only properly understood by rhe masters of the art, and, necessarily, we have merely the faintest smattering of this science, and but iir perfectly understand the art. — It seems an extraordinary thing, says a correspondent in a Home paper, that the whole bicycle-riding world, which Is now almost co-exten?ivc with civilisation, has apparently gone mad o%er the free-wheel notion, •-imply beenu-e it is a novelty and without any regard to ie, actual merits. It certainly looks very delightful to be able to stop pedalling and xvlvl on. v, ithout the troiible* ot putting ones feet on the rests, but it is as well to stop ior a moment-to consider at what price thib advantage is purchased. The' obvious advantage which ptiike3 everyone is the inability to batik-pedal, which has been to a great extent counteracted by the invention of an infinite variety of new brakes, some of which are brought into action by back pressure on the pedals. But the mo3t obvious and elementary objection, which 'does not seem to have struck the biking public at all, is thair while the whole aim and object of bicycle-makers for years pasi - has been to diminish friction, hero is a deliberate introduction of the /'ratchet" principle, which must always and inevitably involve a considerable amount of this very friction which we arc all trying so hard to avoid. If anyone doubt a the truth' of this let him take almost any free-wheel machine and try fhe experiment of spinning the "free" wheel, and see whether it does not ha\e the effect of making the chain and cranks revolve. If it does not, let him proceed further to investigate whether this is due to the perfection of the adjustment of the "clutch," or whether it is not simply that the crank-axle bearings have been unduly tightened up for this very purpo&e. The free-wheel is a mere fad, and is not based on sound scientific principles at all. "

The lightest wheel is not always the fastest. Lack of rigidity will often tend to decrease the speed of a machine far more than the addition of a few pounds to its weight. Only machines of the highest grade can be made very light, and even then a very light wheel is only to Toe recommended to a careful and expert rider, who will nurse it over rough and bumpy roads. Light machines, even though they may not break down in one season's riding, will not last so long a.s heavier one-, of the same quality, while they are more eit-ilv da^a^e'-i V>v fp.'K Th» minimum which can be safely ridden depends; upon the character of the roads upon which it is to be used, as well as upon the weight and skill of the man who is to ride.