Cycled 6000 Miles At 90 Years

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 16, Issue 34, 18 December 1950, Page 3

Cycled 6000 Miles At 90 Years

A Nonagenarian of Palmerston North has cycled nearly 6,000 miles in the last few years and shows no signs of putting his cycle away for good. One may well ask what is the prime of life and the answer seems to be that there is no such definite stage., Some great-grandfathers are more active than their grandsons, maybe because the old fellows have never accepted this mechanised age 100 per cent. Mr Anthony McKinley, of Ballycastle, used to walk 20 miles a day at the age of 83 and could perform astonishing feats of weightlifting. He used to raise a 201 b, weight 312 times with his left hand in three minutes and 370’times with his right hand in two minutes 46 seconds. At the age of 81 Mrs Abdy Collins won the president’s trophy and a handicap competition at Ealing Golf Club with a net score of 69. As a result she got her handicap cut four strokes. At the age of 74 Mrs Jones, of Cheshire, won first prize in her local tennis tournament after playing a total of 40 games. She went home and played badminton the same day. The Rev, J. M. Sheal, at 72 rode a cycle in one day from North Wales to London, covering 1-98 miles in 19 hours. These examples were taken from quite normal people. Surely there must be many old folk in New Zealand hiding their physique under a bushel. For some reason one rarely hears what our. own old folk are doing. As for mental activity, it would seem that its prime may often be dayed to a considerable old age. Goethe completed the second part of “Faust” when he was 80. Tennyson wrote “Crossing the Bar” at 81. Leonardo da Vinci was working at his masterpiece when in his sixties. .Titian was painting when nearly 100. At the age of 82 Kelvin produced his improved marine compass.

In contrast, there is argument that the best work in a man’s life is done at 47 years of age. Anyway George Washington was America’s first President at that age. Nelson Won the Battle of Trafalgar at 47. But Churchill did not reach his full stature until he was 67 years old. William Pitt was 24 when he became Prime Minister. Shakespeare, moreover, is said to have retired at 47. So what?