CYCLING AND MOTORING NOTES.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 10251, 30 May 1911, Page 7

CYCLING AND MOTORING NOTES.

(By Free Wheel.)

F. White, who left Fremantle at 6 a.in. on April 4th to endeavour to lower F. Birtles' overland cyde record to Sydney, succeeded in Ills task, but by a very .small margin for a. ride of tliis 'description. WJiito arrived in Sydney on Wednesday, . May l(>th, at 9.3 p.m., his time for the trip, about 3,350 miles—allowing two hours tor the difference in time between Perth and Sydney— being 36 days 13 (hours 3 minutes as against Birtle's time of 36 days 17 hours. Ait Adelaide it looked ns if White would fail, but he was coached and paced from there to Sydney (1100 miles), and this gave him the record. Bad WMte come through unpaced from Adelaide—Birtles ihad no pacing assistance— lie must have failed. White, for a new rider, showed plenty of grit and determination, and lie j deserves every praLe .or his fine run. '"Birtles .states that as soon as i he (has returned from his omemato- |

graph picture expedition into Cen-

tral Australia-lie will make an attempt on the new figures, which he is confident he can reduce to 30 davs.

The New South Wales Motor Cycle Glub has decided to offer a gold medal to any amateur motor cyclist who establishes a continuous riding ■record" between Melbourne and' Sydjivey (575 miles). There-Ms" so far only been one attempt to e&Eablish a motor cycle record .between the two capitals, amd that failed through the rider falling .and smashing his machine, .but it is believed there will be several attempts made both by Sydney larnd Melbourne .motor cyclists next ispring. The fastest time yet recorded over this route— but not i continuous, a section being covered ' in -consecutive day*— is about 25 { hours, recorded in the Melbourne-1 Syfdney ■Reliability .'Motor Cycle Contest (held last Christmas. A straight out run over this course is an en- | tirely different matter, aud one tMt will prove a severe ordeal, for thitoughest of our motor speedsmei. The motor ca/r record is 19hr. 47mi.i.. established in April, 1910, by the Adelaide motorist, Mr G. G. White.

Eighteen months ;igo Paul OhiiJttard, the brilliant French paoe follower, astonished the world hy ri iing a cycle 63 miles 255 yards in 60 minutes behind motor cycle paw on the Munich track. At the time several crack European pace foiljvers stated with confidence that They would even improve on these wonderful figures, but despite several attempts, Guinard's figures still rer.ia'n the world's best. In a recent interview with-"Cycling" (Englaui), the hour record holder gave some mo«t interesting particulars of i.ij remarkable ride, and his feelings whilst trailing pace at over sixty miles an hour. Guimard states that it took years of. training and racing behind pace before he arrived art tlhe point when lie felt he was capable of such a sustained effort. He made his debut on the road, starting in the Bor-deaux-Paris Road Race of 1894, in w.hich he finished .fourth, but it,was not until 1905 that he came to the front on the track. He itlhen created a stir in Paris by covering 55 (miles in 60 minutes. From this out he, Robl (killed whilst aeroplaning la*t year), and Wills in turn increased the hour's mileage until he had to better Wills' 61 males 100 yards.

The well-known itrans-.contdnent.al cyclist, Francis Birties, left Sydney last Saturday on another of his cycling expeditions into the centre of tilie continent. On this occasion he is not record hunting, (fojr lie iS being aecompaneid by an expert cinematograph operator, whose object will be to obtain films of aboriginal life, huffalo, kangaroo and ailigatorhunting, etc., in Central Northern Australia. With the knowledge that Birties has of tlhis country, some splendid pictures should (result. This is the first occasion anything of the kind ha.s been attempted in Australia. A valuable outfit, valued at £350, is being taken—iinolnding some 40,000 feet of film— and alf told 24 owt. 'wifll be carried by Birties and It. Primmer (the operator) on their Universal bicycles. Birties has chosen bicycles in preference, to horses or camels for the rtrip as from experience he ha:s found tihat faster travelling can in most instances be made on the ,'bicycle, even when heavrily loaded. Birties anticipates being away some eight or tee months, dhiring which period poses covering some 8000 miles. His intention is to first imake for Bourke and (then (strike north through Australia to Port Darwin.

*-* * * * The National Cycling■■ Association, of America has accepted F. T. Keefe's 100 .miles' uripaced road record of shr. 2min., the fas.nan-in road crack vstablished last January at Los Aageles it wii: be remembered that - .\ i-o •? at present on a visit to America—endeavoured to capture £'2o < fi'ered by the Dunlop Ruu'x>r Company to #he fir-sit- Australasian cyclist ivho betters L. Meredith's English unpaced hundred miles out and home road record of 4'hir. 52min. 51 4-osec, and lie put up by far the best performance yet recorded by any Australasian rider. Tihe Ta-smanian wrack has also imade a claim for the intermediate 25, 50 and 75 males American road records, and these will also probably be passed and accepted' after the times and distances have been verified. ***** A motor show on a large scale is to be held in Sydney 'next October. The venue will be the Agricultural Grounds, and already twenty firms engaged in the motor >and allied trades have signified their intention of exhibiting. In other parts of the world motor shows are now a.n important annual fixture of great interest to the public, and assistance to the trade, an- there is no doubt that there is roron for similar pxiliibiI tions in this country.