The Bearings, Vol 9, No 24
Articles in this issue
- Manager Atkins has camped the Rambler team at Waltham after Julian Bliss was impressed by the metallic surface, and they plan an assault on Johnson's 1:56 mile record the following Saturday, with Githens, Lumsden, Connolly, and others as pacemakers.
- Johnson and trainer Eck were expelled from the Century Cycling Club of Syracuse on charges of ungentlemanly conduct and an alleged attempt to extort money from the club, with threats to have Johnson declared a professional.
- A.A. Zimmerman made his first professional appearance at the Buffalo Velodrome in Paris on July 8, winning two races against English rider Edwards including a one-kilometer final lap in :23 2/5, breaking the record.
- Paris, June 24: Constant Huret, a 24-year-old baker, covered 736 kilometers (457 miles 1,612 yards) in 24 hours at the Paris track, surpassing Frank Shorland's world record by 32 miles; rival Lucas was injured in a crash early on and Meyer finished a surprising second.
- Florence and Milan, June 17–25: Zimmerman and Harry Wheeler won multiple international races in Italy, with Zimmerman setting a :23 lap at the Florence track; Italian riders tried to pocket Zim with unfair tactics but he simply rode rings around them.
- An editorial observing that L.A.W. Class B numbers fewer than 100 riders despite expectations, and predicting that professional racing will become a permanently established feature in the United States within one or two years.
- An editorial discussing John S. Johnson's dispute with the Century Cycling Club of Syracuse, where he refused to ride a third time after twice exceeding the half-mile time limit, resulting in his and Eck's expulsion and threats to have him declared a professional.
- An editorial arguing that the epidemic of record attempts by Johnson and the Rambler team does less for the sport than actual paced races would, and urging that records be left until after the racing season proper.
- An editorial defending Zimmerman against European reports of race-fixing and double-dealing, noting that a man against whom no suspicion existed as an amateur is unlikely to have turned dishonest so quickly, and pledging continued trust absent positive proof.
- W.S. Furman of Oran, Ohio, started from the 2:30 mark in the Poorman road race on the Fourth and beat established road riders including Van Wagoner, McDuffie, Peck, and Gardner to win the General Poorman trophy in record time.
- L.A. Callahan of Buffalo won the time prize in the Rhode Island Wheelmen's 25-mile handicap at Providence in 1:10:45, only 8 seconds behind the world record, from scratch, with A.M. Shepard of Meriden winning the race itself.
- A humorous squib about a self-important track intruder who rode the wrong way around during practice, declared he was exercising in the manner of a race horse, and was made to come off before finishing last in the novice event.
- New York, July 9: Raymond MacDonald made his first Class B appearance at the Riverside Wheelmen's fourth annual meet at Manhattan Field before 10,000 spectators, winning the ten-mile invitation race over Titus and the Murphy brothers by six inches in a tremendous finish.
- London, June 30: The Surrey Bicycle Club's 100-mile scratch race at Herne Hill in tropical heat saw the 50-mile competition record broken at 2:04:42, with 15 men still on track as the letter was closed.
- Racing men including Sanger, Titus, Tyler, Bald, Murphy, MacDonald, and Steenson are vacationing together at Ocean Grove near Asbury Park, following a daily training routine and organizing night pranks under the newly formed 'Stuffed Club,' whose initiation involves being thrown into the surf.
- Joe McDermott, Zimmerman's brother-in-law, sailed from New York on July 13 to join Zimmerman at Antwerp for the international championship.
- Louisville, July 7: Prince Wells' third annual road race and cycle derby featured very slow times due to a neglected, soft track; James Levy of Chicago dominated the Class B events and won the 8¼-mile road race from scratch in 27:12, while an 18-year-old on a Cleveland won the road race overall.
- The Mountain City Wheelmen's inaugural race meet on July 4 drew nearly 3,000 spectators to their new half-mile track; the highlight was a one-mile dash in which W.M. Brown on a bicycle beat a trotting mare named Bangle in the final stretch, finishing in 2:40½.
- Philadelphia, July 8: W.H. Swank failed to lower Dampman's Newark-to-Philadelphia century record by over two hours; W.A. Wenzel of the Quaker City Wheelmen broke the five-mile competition road record with 12:15 on the Montgomery Pike; and the new Riverton Athletic Association track in New Jersey opened to strong reviews.
- Springfield, Mass., July 10: A correspondent describes how six thousand Springfield cyclists have exposed every poor street in the city but still cannot secure adequate appropriations for road repair, while the Springfield Club tournament prepares to challenge the Waltham mile track record.
- W.F. Pieronnet, a 21-year-old Illinois Cycling Club member and former Cook County road race winner, died in Chicago on July 9 from a blow to the head delivered during a fight in Garfield Park; the assailant J.W. Nicholls, who wielded a wrench, was held over to the grand jury.
- Five riders all under 18 years old broke the Syracuse 10¾-mile road race record of 30:10 in a Y.M.C.A. handicap event; 16-year-old messenger Frank Knowland won in 29:27, and his brother Charles was second in 29:30.
- Vienna, June 27: German champion August Lehr dominated the international meet of the Wiener Bicycle Club before 15,000 spectators, winning the Derby and the 50-kilometer race, while American George A. Banker won the 2,000-meter handicap from scratch by mowing down 19 opponents and breaking the German, French, and Austrian records for the distance.
- Richmond, Ind., July 4–5: Two-day report on the Indiana division championship meet, where Sanger and Tyler swept the Class B events while Walter Marmon and W.T. Bonnfield tied for the overall division championship, settling it with a coin toss.
- Milwaukee, July 12: The Milwaukee Wheelmen have abandoned the traditional Waukesha road race route in favor of a new 18-mile course via Wauwatosa and Elm Grove, while preparing for the L.A.W. circuit races at National Park on August 6 featuring Johnson and Sanger.
- Oskaloosa, Iowa, July 5: The second day of the Iowa division meet drew 5,000 total spectators over two days; Ross Miller of Wichita broke the Iowa state ten-mile record with 26:41, and C.W. Ashley of Sioux City won both the quarter-mile and two-mile state championships.
- Fort Wayne, Ind., July 6–7: Two-day race report in which Gus Steele outsprinted Sanger by six inches to win the two-mile handicap and John S. Johnson won the mile open in 2:14 1/5 on day two; 13-year-old Lee Richardson twice broke his own record for riding a safety bicycle backwards, reaching 2:37 2/5 for a half-mile.
- E.C. Stearns of Syracuse returned from Paris and London reporting that European manufacturers were astonished by his 17-pound racing wheel against their average of 29 pounds; he also described the steep Portland cement Buffalo Velodrome, meeting Zimmerman in the infield, and French women cycling freely in bloomers.
- Regular department listing bicycle trade changes across the country, including hardware stores in Arkansas, Texas, Virginia, and the Dakotas seeking bicycle agencies, failures and assignments in Providence, Boston, and Holyoke, and factory expansions in Indianapolis.
- The much-anticipated strength test between the E.C. Stearns bicycle and the Lu-mi-num aluminum frame of the St. Louis Refrigerator & Wooden Gutter Co. failed to come off at Ithaca because the Stearns company was unprepared; a new date will be arranged.
- A review of the Lu-mi-num bicycle frame's promotional booklet 'An Entirely New Scheme,' which depicts L.W. Conkling and W.A. Shockley standing on the frame, front forks, and handlebars to demonstrate strength; 325 pounds pressing on ordinary handlebars would likely break them.
- Philadelphia, July 8: Charles Measure departs for Cleveland to open a Union Cycle Co. department there; Overman agent George Bolton, Union's Jack Greer, and Spalding's Manager Wells returned from the Pennsylvania division meet at Scranton and Wilkes-Barre with orders; local houses now close at 1 o'clock on Saturdays.
- Colonel Albert A. Pope has paid for a polished granite monument at Antietam's Burnside Bridge in memory of the 35th Massachusetts Regiment, which crossed under fire on September 17, 1862 and lost 214 officers and men killed and wounded.
- A letter signed by chairman John Griffiths, director Alfred du Cros, and American manager Geo. S. MacDonald firmly denies published reports that the Raleigh Cycle Co.'s U.S. business is being closed, stating it is permanent and intends to expand.
- New York, July 9: Trade notes cover Wilson-Myers Co.'s lavish new store at 4 Warren Street, Folsom Arms selling Helical Premiers at half-list price, George Kuhlke's Liberty bicycle win in the Charlie Schwalbach 25-mile road race, H. Fox's special 20-pound 'Devil' and 24-pound 'Angel' bicycles, and six chainless League bicycles shipped to France.
- London, June 30: S.F. Edge has resigned from Rudge in mysterious circumstances; the Seddon Tire Co. is closing its retail depots; Central Engineering Works' serrated ferrules are gaining favour; chain lightening has gone too far, with broken chains becoming common; and Ridings & Burns of Manchester are experimenting with electrolytic aluminum frames.
- During the railroad strike, the cycle corps of Chicago's First Regiment serves as military couriers on Pope Co. bicycles, while soldiers quartered at the South Side track bet on training cyclists; captain Cy Davis of the Chicago Cycling Club bluffed his way past a sentinel by wearing the club's star insignia.
- Trick rider Sid Black, who has never raced for money but accepted pay only for exhibition riding, is advised by W.B. Young that the L.A.W. amateur definition permits trick riding for cash, so Black will apply to join the L.A.W. and compete in Class B road races and hill-climbing contests.
- Pittsburg, July 7: Adolph Goehler of the Buffalo Ramblers swept nine first prizes worth $900 at novel boulevard road races in the new town of Ellwood, Pa., while local favorite A.L. Banker rode in poor form due to illness; the event may attract Racing Board scrutiny as it was run within L.A.W. road rules but was virtually a track meeting.
- Noderer Bros. of Cleveland are selling their $1.25 adjustable bicycle stand nationally; it holds any size tire whether inflated or flat, requires no screws or bolts, and allows the wheel to be rolled in without lifting.
- Regular department listing recent U.S. bicycle-related patents including pneumatic tires and rims by James Smallman of London, an ice velocipede by Louis Grieneisen of Philadelphia, bicycle oilers, cycle canopies, tire tighteners, a unicycle by Henry Sacksteder of Louisville, electric bicycle lamps, and a rubber tire by Charles Welch of London patented in twelve countries.
- Gormully & Jeffery have turned out several new Rambler models including a 16-pound racing tandem fitted with light G. & J. racing tires, and a new road model for tall men with 34-inch wheels, of which a goodly number have already been sold.
- G.M. Allison & Co., Columbia and Hartford agents in Louisville, suffered an estimated $4,000 loss (covered by insurance) when a faulty electric wire ignited the repair shop; local wheelmen who spotted the blaze broke in the front door and rescued many bicycles.
- The editor recommends the Bridgeport Brass Co.'s searchlight lamp after a week's use: it stays secure over bumps, throws light 15 yards ahead, is as clean as a locomotive headlight, and is sold exclusively in Chicago by the Pope Mfg. Co. at 291 Wabash Avenue.
- Geo. W. Marble of Plymouth, Ind., has sailed for England with 150 sets of his wooden bicycle rims to introduce them to the British market; the rims are already used by nearly every leading American manufacturer, and Osmond and Shorland have been riding them since receiving earlier shipments.