The San Francisco call., 1895-10-19

Associated Cycling Clubs, which was so
replete with accidents and inc idents. But,
thanks to the equable climate we live in,
club runs may pe held almost continu-
ously through the winter to nearby
points, and our wheels need never be put
aside for any great length of time owing
to the severity of winter weather.
The road race last Sunday is still the
uppermost topic among wheelmen, and
the terrible fate of young Harvey is
greatly lamented. Those at the finish of
the race, and there were probably Large
thousand wheelmen there, did not know
that at least three times that number
lined the roadside the entire distance.
where a better view could be obtained, and
this accounts for the apparently small
number at the finish.
That the proportion OF those who did
not ride out the race, because of accidents
to their wheels, and consequently to them
selves, should be exactly one-third OF those
who started, clearly demonstrated that the
racing machine of to-day, and particularly
the tires, are entirely too light and fragile
for road use. Some of the men whose
chances for success seemed rosiest were
thrown or forced to quit by collapsing
wheels and tires, and if record could
have been kept of all the disasters it would
lldN6 maui all interesting ldDlc IOT COUl-
parison as to the relative merits of certain
machines.
While the scoring and timing at the fin
lsh were very accurate as far as they went,
this was only possible because of the long
experience of few of the officials and
their personal acquaintance with nearly
all the co ltestants, but Ii was then evident
that some improvement should be made in
the handling of road races at the finish.
The CALLS cycling editor has been an Off
clal at the finish of nearly every road race
this year, and has realized the incomplete
ness and inaccuracy of the present system
whereby one man marks down the times
given him by timer. and must at the
same instant look up and get the number
OF the man crossing the tape. Imagine
the impossibility of doing this correctly
when, as last Sunday, seven or eight men
crossed the line within the space of one
second, amid the bowling and cheers of an
excited mob of wheelmen all crowding
around and shutting the riders from the
view of the officials.
There is only one plan / can suggest and
1t was partially adopted at last Sundays
race with considerable success. One timer
called the various times to a scorer and
noted how many men passed in each
bunch. If there were six their times were
afterward given as one-ffth of second
apart. A clerk on a raised platform
where he could see plainly, called out each
riders number to another scorer, and
when the two scores were compared they
fitted TO nicely. Beside the timer who
did the calling stood two other timers.
who checked him with their watches. thus
making that part of the work accurate.
AS check on the whole the timers scorer
put down such riders numbers as he could
conveniently get. The whole plan worked
fairly well, and but for it the records of the
road race would have been sadly jumbled,
The experiment was tried by George p.
Wetmore, who called out the times to the
writer, and was checked by George II.
Stratton and Captain George H. Strong,
George l.. Hall kept score of the riders
numbers, and had a merry time of it,
there were so many of them and they
came so fast-from one to. five every sec
ond. Still an accurate score was secured
as the records in last Mondays papers
will attest. If any one has better plan
to suggest THE CALL will be glad to SUBJ
NIT it to its readers that the matter may
be generally discussed prior to the next
meeting of the Associated Clubs, when the
delegates will talk the various suggestions
over and adopt some plan for next year S
road races. incidentally, may add that
it is to be hoped that the next board of
timers will attend the various events more
regularly when requested to by the racing
board. Most of them were quite lax in
their duties the past season. Perhaps If
there were fewer official timers, and the
association paid their expenses, more
prompt attendance would be insured.
The annual election of the North Cali
fornia Division League of American Wheel
men is now IN progress, the voting con-