Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1893-06-25

ing events Of note are scheduled for
July I, among them the Poorman road
race at Cincinnati and the Waukesha-
Milwaukee road race between those
cities.
Allen and .Sachtleben have just com
pleted their wonderful trip around the
world, Frank G.. LEM is pedaling
through the wilds of China on his globe
girdling tour, Tom Roe is speeding
toward San Francisco in his ondeavor
TO cross the continent in sixty-hve
DAYS and break the eightysix-day re-
cord, aud Frank Beedleson is working
his one leg for all it is worth In an at
tempt TO ride from San Francisco to
New York.
That bicycling is not the sport Of
state or section is DEMONSTRATED by the
fact that three splehdid' new tracks
have Just been completed at such
widely divergent points rs Waltham,
Mass, Chicago aud San FFap9isco. The
Chicago track is the mosF Interesting
OF the three TO whESlmen, for 4he rea-
son that over It WILDE run the great
races for the intefnatioDal champion
ships Oh Aug. 7-12. TIP tratk, which
is situated in the Chicagabasf6all park,
on the South Side, is oneShirh Of mile
incircumtereuce and tbs surface is
composed of nearly thtee Inches Of
the finest Joliet gravel laid over
bed of screened ! maoadam.
On the turns the bankingTor $50 feet
reaches a height of feet. There are
two straight stretches, each of which is
436 feet long. The turnsSre 80 feet
wide, the backstretch % feet Nand the
homestretch 40 feet One hundred arc
light will be erected so that the admir-
ers of wheeling at the Worlds Fair may
witness night racing. Chairman Ray
mond expects that at least 1000 bicy-
clists will be entered for the National
L. A. w. and international races in Au-
gust. Among the racing men who Will
probably compete are the champions or
crack riders of dozen countries.
The new SLAP track Of the Bay City
wheelmen near San Francisco is proba-
bly, the most remarkable wheeling
course in America. 1t Is egg shaped,
aud the turns, which are plank plat
forms covered with two inches OF well
tamped concrete, are banked up l3 feet
high. When a rider Strikes the turns,
he is almost at an angle OF Go degrees
with mother earth, The incline is so
great that a wheelman must ride at high
speed or tipover. What bicyclistS term
"loafng" is consequently impossible on
the Bay City track. for the reason that
the rider who does not maintain a good
pace will be very apt TO find himself
tangled up with his wheel at the bottom
OF the I3.foot embankments. At top
speed riders on this track are at right
angles with the surface OF the turns,
lust as il they were on the level, and to
a spectator they seem to be on the point
of falling over. They would do so were
il not for the fact that their speed prac-
tically offsets the power OF gravity.
This high banking was absolutely
necessary, for the turns are so sudden
that riders could not make them sue
cessfully were the track laid level. The
straight stretches Of the course are only
1S6 feet long, but there Is quite an eX-
tended parabolic curve In the APP
proacheS to the sharp turns where the
high banking occurs. The home stretch
is only 80 feet wide, and accept at the
turns the outer edge OF the track is six
inches higher than the inner. The
course is very fast, and some record
breaking may occur during the July
race meets.
The SLAP track at Waltham has a
banking of seven feet at the turns. This
is very high, but it does not seem so
when the California track is considered.
The straight stretches at Waltham are
4Os3I feet Ions, and the curves are 4714
feet. The course ranges IN width from
go to 40 feet. Ii is as smooth and hard
as could be desired and mas perfect
system Of drainage. The grand stand
will seat 3, 900 people, and electric lights
are in position for night racing.