The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-02-26
NEWS OF THE wHEELMEN.
MCFARLAND SHOWS CHAMPIONsHIP
FORM At MIDDLE DISTANCE RACING.
Points About Getting wheels Out of Storage
and Ready for tho -Misfortunes of
mn Enthusiastic Cyclist-The Training

lhnu IN Sun fTNntlHcO lHAI Week III u Dhceu TuCo
brings forward a new candidate for champion
ship honorS at middle distance. 1t Is said that
Fixes was not In condition. but granting this.
the merit OF McFarlands performance is not
detracted from. for he rode inside OF alleged
record time from tho third mile to
the finish OF the fifteen. Fixes quit
at the end OF the third mile when
he was ten laps behind. Mcfarland has been
known heretofore as q sprint racer. and his
ability to follow pace in the manner he did has
astonished many. When his past performances
at handicap riding are considered. though. his
work ut following n pacing machine Is not 80
surprising. and there Is seen to be n
lesson in It. Mcfarland lives in San
Jose. Cal. and his work on the circuit
has shown n marked improvement every
season for several years. He has won some re-
markable handicap races through sheer pluck.
In this style OF n contest 1t Is characteristic OF
him TO ride on and on with logged persistency.
when. apparently. there is no hope for him. He
goes II alone and sticks to his work until he
passes one man after another and wins. 1t was
this kind OF work that gave him training for
the trick OF sticking to II tandem at whatever
pace it travels. and he may be reckoned upon
as one who will be in IT, II he chooses to fol-
low pace next summer.
This is the season when the lne-weather
riders, who keeptheir wheels in cold storage"
during the winter. begin to take them out and
discover what their negligence has cost them.
Machines that were not properly treated before
being put away and have been left for months
without being touched or examined will be
found in a condition calculated to I'll the own
ers with disgust. There is only one way to 90
at a cycle that has been neglected and allowed to
get rusty. and that is to take it apartand go over
every piece. paying especial attention to the
joints and points Of bearing. Kerosene is a
great thing for spring wheel cleaning. 1t cuts
rust and dirt quickly. and is good for getting
rid OF the worst of it." 1t is all right on the
nickel parts. but 1t is not good for the enamel.
and great care must be taken not to let any OF
il. get on the tires. for it destroys rubber.
taken of, there are various rust-removing
pSastes that can bs employed 70 get rid
banehed il a good job is to be made. Then.
tt3ooii there are preparations for polishing the
srokes it viii usually be found that the nickel
has come off with it and left the ,spokes with a
n%ickelIed is troublesome and expensive, al IL
usually means taking araTt the wheels and
to use some of the Preparations on the market.
oi Wnieh several are eXSeLlent: but one Is
nickel imparts. There are aluminium paints
that will make snokes uniformly bright. though
not inStr"ns. and prevent rust in the future: a
apply liIuid enamel. which comes in both blue
and black. II is easy to put on, looks neat and
prevents further trouble Of the same kind. In
emery paperani coarse brick dust. which hope
kerosene and the LIQUID articles. or the fine
pastes, that are especially made for nickelled
and silver ware. Particularly should the use OF
any substance that wi scratch he avoided on
the cups and cones OF the hearings. The bear;
ing surfaces ought to be- cleaned perfectly and
brought to as high "A polish as possible.
In rem owing the balls from bearings it is Just
! "a NVnll n l. aan fha Sntg fran fha nnnnsita silaa
of the, crank hanger or hubs separate. even
though they are OF the same size, because
for u while. to wear off their own mperfections
aud adjust themselves to each other and the
it makes quite a difference if one set is
put into the place of another. To keep
small home-made cornucopias are handy. BY
using paper for receptacles instead of rags. the
its package. so as to be certain that they go
back exactly from where they were removed.
hif fro X Snb m rirht sida tf" can H thcn 'f be Iefs asid 9s
without worry. After kerosene has been used
Of the running parts toGlean them. theyshould
applied. The relative value OF lubricants
seems to be yet largely a matter OF
a heavy oil because it lasts longer and does not
force them to pay SO much attention to their
machines as The thin oils that have to be used
little and often, The heavy oils, however,
VIII gather dust and get gummy; while some Of
not do this. NaSeline is largely favored. Some
riders pack their bearing cases with it, but the
either in paste or powdered form. seems to be
gaining in favor for use. on ball bearings as
well as on chains and toothed gears.
In the spring it is often found that there are
loose spokes in the wheels and that they are
therefore not be forgotten. To tighten spokes
and properly true up.a wheel is a neat Job and
unless the rider is cXI erlenced or naturally apt
at mechanical work With tires there is little
they 40 are eAS all right ian%'o If '4 d%efect i've Because ssS s
Of having been left Nat. have them
EESTa q G to f turp " ths T Wheel 81 sio vs. and HE9q in lSes:
tigate whether the tire Is firm on the rim. for
time the wheel goes out. Most riders. who do
not keep their wheels tn commission from fall
air so well when brought out OF the
garnet. In a majority Of cases this is be-
Often the, valve will be found leaEy
accuse Of The r !. nss} n,d IN ii it sh heinz sas s.oE tHon by
When It is tightly lodged adrop Of water usl-
ms i the nsdals should net be iorEqttsn.
ings also, should be remen tercd. else the
rider will And himself a member Of the
whore on the roads in spring: The saddle
and saddle post are usually overlooked. If the
saddle has springs and il rusty or dirty It may
become the seat OF Il squeak that will poster
the rider for days to locate. After giving u
wheel an ovrrhauiing too much care cannot be
taken to see that every part Is properly re-
placed and set up tight. 1t is better to make
certain by IL triple survey than to meet with
accident because oil an oversight.
1t often has been urged that cycling is con-
ducive to tenn pcrance. but the time OF year. or,
more strictly. perhaps, the weather conditions,
make, a difference. This was strongly illus
trlted on Eighth avenue. Brooklyn. Yesterday
morning. by an individual who lurched along
IN the middle OF tho street; carrying a much
damaged cyrln OH his shoulder He was in full
oftthe tempcratuTe he was doing Justice to
the name of that, garment. The rim
broken. the spokes sadly twisted, and
the handleharI had curves in them such as are
not known in any factory even In these days OF
great variety in shapes. The clothing Of the
man was not only heavily splashed with mud.
but on one side showed signs Of having been
pressed against the ground in lingering CON
tact. In spite Of, all this. the wheelman
seemed happy and proud OF his distinction
OF being nhroah with n cYcle. eYen IL