CYCLING.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 7924, 1 February 1904, Page 3

CYCLING.

■ , '» : XfHEEL TALK. (By RQVEII.) B. Campion, who showed such splendid •form at the December meetings in Christchurch, won a couple of races at the Wangantii Caledonian sports on January 22 Unless Chalmers, the ex-Wellington rider, can get his disqualification removed by the Victorian League, he will be unable to race at the Christchurck Easter nieetingS, as ne had intended.. The League/ secretary is making strong endeavours to' get all the principal Centres in the colony represented by one rider eatm at the New* Zealand championships, to be held in Christchurch just before Easter. ' At its last meeting the League Council (j • : decided to strike out ttie motor championships for machines ov<Sr 2£ horse-power, owing to the Lancaster Park track having been proved incapable of taking fast speeds. , Mr Barnes, a well-known sportsman from j Napier, was in Christchurch last week. I ■ -\vas glad to hear from him that the WanI derers' /Bicycle Club, wlich was recently i reorganised, has every prospect of a suc- '.' cessful year. I There is likely to be a very successful 1 meeting at Nelson on Monday. I hear • that G. Sutherland, R. Connell and the two ■> Arngte, Randmp, Huston and Holland all : intend competing. Only fine weather is ' necessary to ensure a very successful gath- ■,, ering. i I hay* to acknowledge the receipt from Mr E. Nordo», secretary of the League, of a copy of the New Zealand" Championship programme. - The meeting is to be held on , March 26, at Lancaster Park. The pro- | gramme provides for the usual cash and ! amateur championships, a Five-mile Motor ' Championship of New Zealand, and several handicap eventsThe Sydney "Referee" considers that Major Taylor will prove superior to Laweon and Mucfarland when he strikes his best form. At Wangaratta (Victoria) bicycle sports .on New Year's Day, in the one mile (says the Sydney "Bulletin"), the leader of a bunch of nine skidded on the wet grass and fell, bringing down seven others. A broken wrist, a torn shoulder, gashes on heads, arms and legs, and innumerable bruises resulted ; but the track was no sooner cleared than, eleven riders came out in the heavy rain to contest the five-mjle event. Before the winning-post was reached every one of the eleven had skidded and fallen two or three times, and when the- jnud-covered winner finally battled home he found that j the stewards "had declared it " no. race " and gone home. The annual six days race at Madison Square, New York, was concluded on December 12, in the presence of 20,000 spectators. The attendance throughout the contest was very large. In this race two riders constitute a team, only one from each team allowed on the track at the same time. The race resulted as follow :— R. Walthour and B. MunTc- 1, Leander. and N. Butler 2,, |>F. Kreb% and Petereen 3,' Fischer and Bowler 4, and Jaeobson 5, Contenet arid Breton 6. The first six prizes were £300, £200, £150, £100, £70 and £50. The winners covered 2318 miles in the six days. That it makes a difference what a man will do when he gets his price (says a New York paper of recent date) was shown py Major Taylor's action in making a hasty departure for Australia, accompanied by his wife and father. '. Taylor had decided .to Tetir^T arid- was in earnest about it, His house at Worcester was being renovated and all Ms arrangements were- complete for settling flown, The Australia!) promoters wanted him to come; there to race this winter, and had cabled him several offers^ all of which he ref used. He put a high, price oh his going t and thought it would be prp- , hibitive. He had no idea the promoters . would pay his price of £1000 in hand, with expenses 'guaranteed' and all hie winnings clear. It is evident, though, that Taylor Is $jij attrftctjon ia th© land of. the kangaroo, for on* Thursday he got a letter ac- . oepting his terms, with- a draft pf £500 enclosed, a guarantee of the balance on landing, a signed contract and instructions ■ to catch the next steamer from San Francisco, „ ■ \ ■ - [ i