CYCLING CONTROL

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 933, 28 March 1930, Page 7

CYCLING CONTROL

RECOMMENDATIONS OF N.Z. CONFERENCE NO SUPPORT FOR BREAKAWAYS Special to TIIE SUX WELLINGTON, Thursday. As a result of the conference of New Zealand cyclists held at Wanganui recently, certain suggestions have been put forward to overcome the present difficulties which have arisen between the New Zealand Amateur Athletic Association and its affiliated cyclists. The conference started in the morning and lasted practically right through the day. the subject being exhaustively debated. Finally, the following three clauses to a resolution were adopted: 1. That the name of the N.Z.A.A A bo altered to read X.Z.A.A.A. and Cycling Union. 2. That the N.Z.A.A. A. form a special cycling committee, one member to be appointed by each centre, and that the chairman of the N.Z A A A take the chair. 3. That each centre form a cycling sub-committee on the line.u of Canterbury and Wellington, embracing the following additional rules:— “That a cycling sub-committee be set up to control all cycling track races, road races and championships, the committee to consist of delegates from the various affiilated clubs in the proportion of one representative to every 12 active members or part thereof, together with the president, vice-presi-dent. secretary, and one elected member of the centre: no club to have representation unless it has at least four active cycling members; the committee to meet once a fornight and report to the centre.” N.Z.A.A.A. RETAINS CONTROL The pasisng of this motion seems to end, for the time being at least, the suggested breakaway of cyclists from the parent athletic body in New Zealand. The fact that practically all the delegates—and they were representative of cycling in Otago, Canterbury. Wellington. and Wanganui—were in sympathy with the motion and helped to carry it. indicates that either cycling in New Zealand is not yet sufficiently well organised to deprive the N.Z.A.A.A. of its control, or else there is no widespread desire to break away from constituted control. Auckland was represented by Mr. Stewart, the organiser and secretary of the New Zealand Union of Cyclists, so that Auckland wrS? able to place its opinions before delegates, and the fact that, the motion was carried indicates Thai the northern province was not

able to convince the conference that | any good purpose could be served by i Placing the cyclists under the control j of ;i separate organisation. There is, however, one good thing about the discussion which has arisen, j and that is that the X.Z.A.A.A. will, in I future, be compelled to treat the cycli*ts as an integral part of the ama- ! tour athletic scheme of things and not as a subsidiary sport, which some of the centres have been inclined to do. The public wants cycling, for it likes its pace, while that little element of danger which always exists in cycle racing gives the final touch in the creation of its popularity.

ALTHOUGH only in its second season in Wellington and Christchurch and a new sport to Auckland and Dunedin, cinder-track racing lias attained a wonderful popularitv throughout the Dominion. It is estimated that more than 40,000 spectators weekly attend the various meetings.

The thrilling broadside which makes cinder track racing a sport apart for excitement, is said to have been discovered by accident in Australia. Race j meetings had been held in several j countries on half-ifiile tracks with a ! j dirt surface somewhat similar to that I of Henning’s Speedway, Mangere, but j it was not until a track of this length j naa been Tormed in Australia that cer- ! tain riders discovered that, by skid- ! ding the back wheel of their machines 1 as they turned, they were able to | tiayel taster and control their mounts better. This led to the development or a track with a loose surface which ! helped the slide, and the construction of still shorter tracks of one-third of j a mile and, later, of a Quarter-mile cir- ! cumference, brought a new art into : cornering. Riders had to learn a new techi nique vastly different from road or grass track riding. This led to the development of a special machine shorter than the usual ! I motor-cycle, to enable it to be | turned quickly, and powered with ! a high-speed engine. This drove j | the rear wheel through extremely ! j low ratio gears, giving great power l 1 with a maximum speed of little j 1 more than half that of the sport- | ing road machine. | From Australia the sport was carried to England, where mushroom tracks sprang up all over the country. In many cases these were built inside the tracks laid down for the then popular sport of “tin hare” whippet racing, and were too small for the competitors to broadside. In these centres the cinder track sport soon

lost favour and many failed through insufficient financial backing. Many other of these racing ovals were then altered to the full quarter-mile circumference and have become exceedingly popular. The first exponents of the broadside in England were Australians and one or two New Zealanders also j achieved fame on the cinders at Home. Outstanding among these was Speni cer Stratton, well known here a few ! years ago for his work on the grass j course. Fie has since retired "from j active racing and has organised a | chain of cinder tracks through Ger- ! many. Although a comparatively new sport in the Dominion, cindertrack racing has had a wonderfully successful season and has gained a large following. This year a chain of speedways in i the four centres joined in importing first-class men from overseas, a very ; necessary step in order to give the j New Zealand riders an opportunity of j competing against the best and of i learning from their defeats. Consid- ! ering their short experience on the | slippery oval track, the leading Do* j minion racers show promise of bej coming equal, if not superior, to many | from across the Tasman in the home i of broadsiding. So well, indeed, have some of these men performed that they have decided to go abroad and race on the world’s best tracks against world champions. Wally Kilmister, Wellington’s champion, will be one of the first to leave for overseas. Another Wellington rider, Harry Maugham,

! spent several months in Australia during the 1925-29 season, riding with ! success at many centres. The Dominion certainly has coming champions riding on her tracks, and it is only a question of training and experience for these men to come to j the fore. The cinder circuits them- • selves here are equal to those overseas in their design but, owing chiefly jto an intentionally thick layer of i cinders to keep speeds low until the j new riders have gained experience, the times registered may seem somewhat disappointing when compared to those in other countries. Undoubtedly the fastest track in New Zealand is that of the Kilbirnie Stadium, Wellington, where the Dominion championship meetwas held this week. The manager, Mr. George Sutherland, well-

known in Auckland sporting circles. made exhaustive tests to discover the secret of correctly preparing the surface. As in Australia, granite chips liav

been mixed with the cinders of the loose covering. These are of a fairly large size to prevent hollows and banks forming. Riders, knowing this, 5 are more confident and can pay greater attention to the finer points of the sport. Mr. Sutherland, too, hasMnvented a new harrows which, he states, is invaluable in securing a smooth cinder surface. Mr. Sutherland has been successful in making broadsiding the leading summer sport of Wellington. The stadium is not a large one. seating under 14.000, but the average attendance is nearly 10,000, and on several occasions numbers have been turned away through lack of accommodation. This is Wellington’s second season, and it is only logical to expect that -Auckland, too, will take an even greater interest in broadsiding next year. As it is, the weekly average

attendance at cinder track meetings here is in excess of the Wellington * figure, and the Western Springs Stadium made a Dominion record in attendance, which later was actually ! raised. This year lias seen the first Dominion cinder rack championship, riders from all four centres competing at Wellington in a series of elimination contests. This meeting was staged on Wednesday last, when the Auckland i speedster, Alf Mattson, carried off the title. Riding on a strange track, Mattson showed a remarkable turn of speed, j although he did not set the fastest j time of tlie night. He covered the mile in 83sec, equal to the time established by Kilmister, who had been expected io carry off the Dominion title. Matt- ! son holds the Chevrolet and Pascoe : Cups won at Western Springs. ! This performance was an extremely meritorious. one, involving the defeat lof Harry Mangliam. a Wellington | rider of considerable experience overseas. and of racers who have been ! considerably longer on the cinder track. This year. too. lias seen the intro duction of women racers to broadsiding. The four centres have been j visited by Miss Fay Taylour, a rider i ot international repute, who came to the Dominion fresh from successes it. | Australia and England. She has ap ! peared three times this season in I Auckland, and will be seen once more before her departure for Australia. Auckland has the honour of being the first city to have its own women rider on the cinders. Miss Violet Matthews, who rides at Blandford Park, lias competed with success against i the men on several occasions already, although her experience extends over i only a few weeks.