WHEEL TALK.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 7889, 19 December 1903, Page 6

WHEEL TALK.

(By •ROVER.) The Canterbury Railway Athletic dub is applying for affiliation, to the League. The League secretary, Mr E. Nordon, leaves n-ext -week for a three weeks' trip to the West Coast. Several road racea are being organised in Reefton just now, and are attracting a great deal of interest. At the Paffo des Princes track, Paris, on October 29, T. Hall, the English pace follower, rode 54 miles 545 yds in tho hour, creating a new world's record. The previous best stood at 52 miles 1017 yds, to the credit o* D. Dangla. Cycle events under League rules are to take place at the Axemen's Carnival, to be held at Eltham in February. The Waimate Club has recently spent £150 on its cycling track, and should therefore attract a. large entry for its sports on January 1. The reinstatement of T. Kirkwood to League privileges will be welcomed by all who have come in contact with the genial " Tommy " on and off the track. The Temuka Club made a donation of £1 Is to E. H. Clark besides paying the hospital and doctor's expenses in connection with his accident at the club's recent sports. A very enthusiastic meeting held in Wan-

ganui last week resulted in the formation of "The Wanganui Motor and Bicycle Touring Club." Mr Remington was appointed secretary. The 'Association of Caledonian Societies, like the League, has withdrawn its permit for sports at Porirua. The report forwarded to the League was to the effect that the meeting was being organised solely for the benefit of the local pubiioan. Plenty of interest is being evinced in the coming sports meeting of the Dunedin Cycling Club on Boxing- Day at the Caledonian Grounds. The secretary has received inquiries for programmes from as far soutihi as Ota.i*u z and record entries are expected. I have to acknowledge receipt from' Mr J. Tamblyn, secretary of the Roxburgh C.C., of that club's New Year's Day programme. £24 is given in prize money for cycle events — not including a gold medal for points — the principal race being the Roxburgh Wheel Race, for which the prizes are £7, £2 and £1. The League Council took a very wise step last week in agreeing to assist the Palmersfcon North meeting. In this connection it is somewhat of a ° coincidence thaib tne now defunct Manawatu C.C. for years entertained the opinion that it was entitled to some assistance from the head fcody because of the loss it had sustained: — through League mismanagement — over a championship meeting nine or ten years ago. It seems almost as if the Taieri will be the jgToundl upon which we will have to look for the coming first grade load and track riders (writes "Demon" in the "Otago Witness.") At tie present time there are fully a dozen good road riders in the Taieri district, and as it has already furnished some good riders in the three Ralston brothers, there is no reason why in the future we may not have a champion, j from the district. A Wellington motorist was recently brought before the magistrate on a charge of heaving rocks at a." cabby." He stated that the "cabby" had blocked the road and refused to let him pass with his motor. He tiw^refore got out of his car, picked up a quantity of ammunition, in the shape of road metal, and at once set out to overtake the enemy. When -he got within range he immediately commenced to bombard the cabby and the occupants of the vehicle > and by a skilfully-executed flaaik movement got safely past, and set out at "top" for the city — hence the charge. Defendant was fined 5s and costs £1 19 a. The League of Victorian Wheelmen is advertising for a secretary at a salary of £200 a year. At Onnondl Daytona^ in Florida, Natuffe has provided on the seashore an ideal mo-tor-racing track. It. is twenty miles long, practically straight, and at low tide has a width, of 100 yds. The sand is perfectly, smooth, and so hard that a heavy, omnibus leaves scarcely a trace bn its surface. Ormond Daytona is a favourite resort of motorists, and the Florida East Coast Automobile Association has been formed. Under its auspices a race meeting is being arrangedl to take place in January on .the seashore traok, on which lp^st year Mr Alexander Winton covered a. mile in 52 l-ssec. With the faster cars of to-day this time will probably be greatly reduced. I hear that Mr Lovejoy, the enthusiastic sportsman of Palmerston North, who ig in charge of the League's interests in the Manawatu distiiot, is now a warm supporter of the attitude adopted by the Council ' in regard to the dispute between the Association of Caledonian Societies and the Feilding dub. Mr Lovejoy was too good a sportsman to allow his own personal feelings to affect hia loyalty to the governing body of cycling, but for a time he held the opinion that the Feilding Olub was in the right. In the light of fresh facts, he has changed his views, and it is in every way more satisfactory that his energies should be supported by honest conviction.