PROFESSIONAL SCULLING.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 627, 2 October 1909, Page 13

PROFESSIONAL SCULLING.

HANDICAP TO BE ROWED AT FOXTON. I ."■Rowing men and all those interestediri oaismanship.will bo' pleased ■' to Uarn ' that-pre-' ,l -paratlpns-'ara well forward for the:single sculling handioap to eventuate on the;Manawatu River on December 2 and 3 nest.' lln'.order to place.tho. meeting on a -eolid. basis, Messrs." 1 S; Messena, F. S. Easton, B. G.. Gower, B. R. Gardener, \V. E. Barker, W. J. White,: J. G.' Wilson; , :and Gco ; Cooley have been- appointed a working 'committee, with Mr. W.'.Bock as secretary; :"'\ ■;"■•■.- -. :>- ..-■'-. '):■'■ .■-: : .-: ■<.. ■According. •'■■ to advice ■■ received . -Mri' W.: Blackinan - (of Sydney) -will act , as' handioapper,"Mr.- Wm. Bench .(ex-champion sculler of tho world) will be judge,- and Mr, O'Connor, .of Auckland, will. act as starter.' '•' .-; The- handicap will bo rowed over a 2J niile course (on the Manawatu River) in'heats, all the-heats , .to-be' rowed'on Thursday, December 2, and,tho final : the following day, ' The.'first prizo will be v jCl5O, and a cup valued at £25; the second; £itt;; and the third,'; ■ Entries will; be : received,by the secretary, Foxton, or Mr.'. Richard- Coombes, Sydney, on , dr-befp'ro October '21.-' ~: : •..''■, •- ■:.• ■ :■;.■.■:•,': ..:■'■; -, : The,: entries. of,' several •Australian v -oarsmin of .standing,.are- expected,' Champion Arrist has already, notified his intention ;of competing.' ' ;.v : - -..- '..-,• ■-..' .-.- ■>'■.: :,--. The Fdxton;committe« express the hope that: tho. open 'handicap, will b* made an annual ; fixture.. ;Tjiis might easily be done, bnt it must H remembered that New Zealand,' although it.'has of Jato produced a couple-of champions,''does: not produce many professional, 'oarsmen; 'that i 3 to say, all th« rowinf; clubs of tho Dominion ' are affiliated tothe Now Zealand Rowing Association, anil before a memberi can enter for a handicap, such ns,th« one. to bo rowed on tho-Manawafu in December, ho must be prepared to resign from his civil). and quit the shed, whioh few would bo inolined'to do on tht off-chance of winning, a-stake.,; What Foxton might propose, If .they felt so disposed, would'bb to get the aßsoolatlon's approval to run an: amateur single- Fcullirig nandican in■- connection withtho; meeting, so giving- α-roal live interest in tho event to clubs. Some fillip of th« kind is considered'to be needed pretty - badly, as amntenr single soulling in Wellinston - is hot. nearly what it was in tho days of'M'Khy, Biidson, M'Grath, .Newton, Bondall, and others that could be named, . :. -.; ... .