A GIRL’S ENDURANCE

Waipa Post, Volume 52, Issue 3705, 10 January 1936, Page 7

A GIRL’S ENDURANCE

NEW AUCKLAND-WELLINGTON CYCLE RECORD. Breaking her own record for the journey set up in 1932, Miss V. Baird, the young Auckland cyclist, arrived at Wellington on Wednesday morning 50 hours 33 mins, after leaving Auckland. Miss Baird left at 6.15 a.m. on Monday, and with only four hours’ rest on the way, at Mokau, arrived at Wellington at 8.48 a.m. yesterday, says Thursday’s Dominion. Her previous journey, which was in March, 1932, took 79 hours 40 minutes, so that she reduced the time by over 29 hours. She did not find it necessary to go to bed after her 470 miles journey, and yesterday was quite fresh. Miss Baird had planned to do the journey in 50 hours, and would have done so had she not had to make an unexpected detour after leaving Bulls. Accompanied by two brothers, Mr D Baird, who rode a motor cycle, and carried provisions for the party, and Mr S. J. Baird, who rode by cycle the whole distance, she travelled without rest until they arrived at Mokau at midnight, wiiere they had four hours sleep by the side of the road. The journey was continued via Waitara, Inglewood and Stratford, all going well and the schedule for arriving in Wellington in 50 hours being maintained until, after leaving Bulls on Thursday night, the deviation from the usual main route was necessary. The deviation is heavily metalled and was the worst surface that she had to traverse, the darkness adding to the difficulty. After getting back on to the dustless surface north of Himatangi better time was made, although the wind was against the riders. Having a machine with gears, Miss Baird was able to ride up the hills, including the Paekakariki Hill. The weather during the days was sunny, but in southern Taranaki showers of rain fell. These, however, were welcome after the hot riding. The unsurfaced parts of the road were in a worse state than had been expected, apparently as a result of the holiday traffic. Miss Baird said yesterday that she did not intend to attempt to lower the woman cyclists’ time for the Auck-land-Wellington journey again, but she hoped others would attempt to do so. Eight months of training, in which she had ridden a total of 2000 miles, had preceded the journey. A week previously she attempted unsuccessfully to make the trip. Leaving Auckland on Tuesday, the party had the misfortune to have to ride -through rain for seven hours. Her brother’s motor cycle broke down and then the journey was finally cut short by a mishap to her other brother’s machine. Miss Baird, who is 25 years of age, is a machinist by occupation. She is secretary of the Auckland Ladies’ Amateur Cycling Club, an organisation formed five years ago which races weekly and competes in the events for women cyclists which are on the programmes of athletic meetings in Auckland. Other young women in Auckland, she said, were contemplating improving her time.