The Washington times., 1895-05-26
CYCLING IS ALL THE RAGE
Ii Has Invaded the Sacred Pre-
GinGts of UpperiendOm.
MR.. THURBER IN BLooMERs
Liverymen Complain of the Inroad the
Silent steed Is Making Upon Their
Business-wahl Makes a New
Record-Columbia Athletic Clubs
Meet on Their New Field.

|
Record-Columbia Athletic Clubs
Meet on Their New Field.
Never before in the history of cycling
has so much real interest been taken in
this delightful sport as there is in this
city at present. With its 140 and odd
miles Of smooth hard street pavements
our city is a veritable paradise for cyclers
/ During the past two months the interest
has spread to the higher circles of society,
| until now it is quite in proper FORM
for the society belle to ride, and many
now take their morning airing on their
| wheels instead Of driving, and the roads
leading from this city to everywhere are
fast becoming acquainted with the dainty
social pets. who until very recently looked
down upon the pastime as one below their
station.
Mr.. Thurber, the Presidents private sec
retary, has ordered a pair OF bloomers, and
is learning TO ride.
Neany-all the members of the Diplomatic
Corps and the attaches are riders.
Senator Brice's secretary is very strong
rider, and recently, with party of friends,
| made the round trip to Cabin Johns Bridge
in hour and 52 minutes.
The Misses Brice are devoted to the wheel
and make frequent excursions over the
! suburban roads.
| The question of costumes is Still very
unsettled one, and while few bloomers
and as many short skirts and leggings are
seen, yet the great majority of lady riders
cling to their long, unwieldy and dangerous
skirts. -
| 1t is only necessary now that some one or
| two OF our leading young society ladies
adopt the safer costume, which has found
so ready an adoption III New York and
in other northern ciHes.
THE FIRST MEET IN FOUR YEARS.
The bicycle meet to be given at Columbia
| field, at Seventeenth and B streets, on
Decoration Day, bids fair to be the great
est affair of its kind ever held here.
The interest taken in it by society is
very great, and requests have been made by
| the Metropolitan and the Army and Navy
| Clubs for large blocks of seats, and the
| event will be notable, socially as well as
athletcally, and the event viii still further
| increase the interest in the wheel.
The local managers, representing the
| various makers OF wheels, report that their
| sales are far in advance of the supply, and
| they predict that the season now at hand
Will be record breaker for number of
| riders OF the silent steed.
The liverymen, on the uther hand, are
complaining that cycling is making heavy
! iDroadS on their business, for where for
merly man kept horse for his family's
use he now does without the horse, and
| for what the horse and outfit brings he
| buys wheels for himself and wife and those
big enough to ride, and the wheels do not
a hia Sfipp the mans salary pr in
come for feed.
Many new riders are not posted as to the
number of miles certain runs call for, and
for their information The Times prints
the principal ones, and the distances given
are those over the best roads, which, in
some instances are the longest routes by
which place can be reached:
To Dickey's, 16 miles; Fairfax Court
| House, 10 miles; 0ccoquan, 80 miles;
| River View, 1S miles; Marshall Hall,
| 2S miles; Marlborough, 20 miles; Baltimore
40 miles; Laurel, % miles; Ashton, 81
miles; Ellicott City, 80 miles; Brookville,
| 20 miles; Gaithersburg, 20 miles; Rock
| vile, 16 miles.
A number of the members of the Capital
Bicycle Club will start on a 200mile run
on the evening of the 30th, and Will return
on June I'd.
ITINERARY OF THE RUN.
The itinerary Of the four days run is as
follows:
Leave the clubhouse at $50 a. M, May
| so, aud ride to Frederick, fifty-tbree
miles, stopping On the way at Ridgeville
for dinner
On May 81 leave Frederick for Martins
burg, forty-four miles away, aud have din
ner at Hagerstown.
June 1st, leave Martinsburg in the after
noon for Leesburg, a run of fifty-nine
miles, with diuner at Winchester, and on
| June I'd, leave Leesburg for home, forty
| four miles. The run is one OF easy stages,
aud will be full of pleasure. Among those
who have signified an intention Of taking
the trip are: Mattiugly, Carusi, Boteler,
Chandlee, Crook, DR.. j. B. Hills, Usini,
| c. j. Allen, Libbey, N. Lewis, j. l.. Writ,
/ F. S. Hardesty and S. E. Lewis.
The Columbia Bicycle Club has run
scheduled for to-day TO the Clifton, Vir-
| ginia, soapstone quarry.
Washington Road Club started on q run
to Dickey's, opposite Great Falls, last
night, and will return home to-day. W.
| T. Robertson, president Of the Road
| Club, is the official Handicapped for this
District AS strong rider and very
successful one he is well known on all the
nearby tracks. His business and his Of
| ficial position viii prelude his racing this
season.
Fred schade, the crack local rider in
| Glass A. is the popular lieutenant of the
Road Club.
The other officers of the club are: W.
". Hodges, vice president; c. E. Wood,
secretary; A. Wall, treasurer, and C. L.
| riders.
Palmer, all well known racers and
The clubs racing team this seasonc consists
| of F. L. Schade, G. E. Ganse, of Glass B;
| Smith, George Wood. and Konsavile.
W. Fred Sims will ride under the c. A. G.
colors in Class on May 80 and will have
| against him such cracks as j. NJ. White
| John Fister, Won Boeckman, and Wood in
the one-lnile open, which Will be scorch-
| ing event.
What has become of the good riders of
their time when safeties were unthought
of when the higher the wheel the greater
| the speed was the popular thing; when race
| tracks were laid around Iowa Circle and
! the sport was just beginning to be popular;
/ when Mckee, Borden and Ben Hanna and
/ viii Crist and Lem Barber were the popular
| idols of the day? These cracks were men,
| bers then and are members now of the G.
| Bi. c.. but it is doubtful if any one of them
ever gets astride of a Wheel
l.. c. WALLS NEW RECORD.
Information comes that L. c. Wahl for
merIy a member of the local Century Road
| Club, and now located at Colorado Springs,
| Col broke the worlds record for fifty
mile road riding during the past week,
/ making the distance in two hours and fif-
| teen minutes. Hey was not paced but he was
| timed at start and finish by L. A. w. men.
Previously Americas fifty-mile road
! ord irtr mi md