CYCLING AND MOTORING.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 160, 23 November 1912, Page 7

CYCLING AND MOTORING.

A specially-l)u ilt •Renn racing car. will soon, lyakc, its appearance in America. .Tlifi oar . to have been purchased ,by , a well-known race promoter, and will probably be driven by Robert Burnam, holder of \the. world's re-, cord for* a trjt &li t-awiiy. ' speeding, in an endeavor to; lower his ;.own record of 25 "i-ose?. ifor. the- jnile, established on a •straightaway stretch, of hard sand qn Florida beach (U.S.A.) in April. 1911. The car is reported to have made a mile in 2isee., or almost ''tlire&'-miles' a minute. '

Becanse of, I the narrow streets in several pavts of L.ondonv.it has .been found impossible to use the ordinary motor omnibus,, on account of its comparative length and tlie attending difficulties oi turning the 'bus around at the end of ?. trip, i Some of the routes laid out for the motor 'biis are circular, thereby obviating the necessity for making conv plete tui-ns. On some occasions it. has been found impossible to map out circular routes,'..and a new type of 'bus is being tided, which is reversible, the same as a-trolly car. It can be steered from either cud, conductor ajid driver simply changing places. . .. .. :: .For tlie purpose of facilitating the transportation of the general staff in case of war, she French military authorities have''decided to give'it'hos/i ;\Yiho own cars of 'medium horse-poWeit, and who are able to prove their ability of driving them and taking care of th'Om as far as' tyres.and ordinary road .repairs are concerned, a special opportunity to discharge their military duties: in an agreeable fanner. Instead !i>f,toeing compelled 1,0 drill with the such owners must sign. aii agreement with the authorities that' they will turn over to the Government, im'mfediately following mobilisation, the vehicles described in their' application .for', this sort of service. At all manoeuvres tlie ear must be at the service'of.-the military authorities, to b;> ' '■-. <•'?»!»!•

himself under orders from the officer*,

On Friday, November 1, at ' the Amateur Sports Grounds, Melbourne, Mr. J Booth, riding a 3y>-h.p. B.S.A. moto! cycle, succeeded in establishing a ne\l Australasian record by covering fiftythree miles "201 yards iii the hour, beating all previous records by over one mile. The 'full hour's .run was accomplished without a stop and the rider was checked and timed by 'the'officials of the Victorian Motor Cycle Club. It was Mr. Booth's first, real experience of the B.S.A. cvcle. and lie was satisfied that he would have verr nearly put up' sixty miles, an hour if the fttaCk Wtmld'have let him go all out. In France, although big crowds attend meetings of the Buffalo and other tracks in Paris, cycle road racing is far more popular, and there arc some rich plums for the top-notchers. All the road races finish on the track, where a lap or more has to be ridden, and .the gate money, always a large sum, enables big prizes to be offered. At the.-finish of one race, which took place' 'while an Australian scribe was in Europe,, over £llOO was taken at the gate of the finish track. The days are wonderfully long in Great Britain in mid-summer. While he was at Wick, in the North of Scotland, he was able to read letters by daylight at 1(,.30 p.m., and there was hardly any darkness at all.