AMONG THE WHEELMEN - J. E. Edwards - San Francisco Chronicle, 27 Apr 1895

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=== AMONG THE WHEELMEN ===
==== California's Club Races To-Morrow. ====
===== A Joint Run to Be Arranged To-Night =====
====== Parade to Be Held in Oakland Tuesday Night, Followed by Race Meets Next Day. ======
The greatest race meet the wheelmen ever held on the Pacific Coast is now a thing of the past, yet it will be remembered for many a day by the thousands of cycling enthusiasts who witnessed the races in San Jose last week and saw Eddie Bald lower the world's record for two miles on one day and the mile record the next.
The Garden City Cyclers may well be proud of a track which, on the first occasion of its use, was largely instrumental in lowering two records. It does not seem improbable that before the season of 1895 shall have passed more records will be smashed.
The riding of all the class B men was very clever, but in some unaccountable way Ziegler and Foster did not show to the advantage which their many friends expected. Perhaps Foster has a good excuse because of lack of training, as he did not intend to ride in these races until the day before the closing of the entries, hence he had no time to prepare himself.
The races next Wednesday at the Oakland Trotting Park are sure to develop interesting finals.
The introduction of tandem races has found favor with the various clubs. The Bay City Wheelmen, Garden City Cyclers and Reliance Club Wheelmen have strong teams entered in the tandem event, which is bound to prove one of the most interesting races on the card. A complete list of contestants appeared in Thursday's CHRONICLE.
Nearly all the city clubs will attend the Chinese lantern parade on Tuesday evening, and already the Californias and Olympics have signitied their intention of participating. It is expected that fully 700 wheels will be in line when Marshal George Neece sounds the advance alarm.
J. E. Edwards, the present holder of the five-mile Coast road record, is a pleasing young lad 19 years of age, standing about 5 feet 9 inches, and weighing 148 pounds in riding costume. He began riding a wheel several years ago, but made his initial bow to the public in the Santa Monica road race held July 4th last, at which time ninety-six riders competed. Edwards received a handicap of 19 minutes and finished in tenth place, passing seventy-six riders to do so. Upon the day of his arrival in this city the Y. M. C. A. Cycling Club held a race meet in Oakland in September, and he entered those races without a day's training, winning his maiden track race and a gold medal as a prize.
His next feat was riding the first ten-mile relay in the Associated Clubs' annual relay race on April 7th last. In this he beat all his competitors in the exceptionally fast time of 29:35 1/2. This performance in itself stamped the lad as a record-breaker, and when he signified his intention of riding in the road race of the Young Men's Christian Association Cycling Club of San Francisco, of which he is also a member, his many admirers loudly proclaimed his ability to lower the Coast record. The sequel showed conclusively that his riding abilities are not overrated. He not only lowered the record for five miles to 13:10, being thirteen seconds better than any previous time, but did so without any perceptible evidence of distress. The Young Men's Christian Association intends to hold another race very soon over the same course, taking the precaution to put in a tanden as pacemaker in the belief that young Edwards can lower the world's record for this distance.
He is a prominent member of the Olympic Club Wheelmen, and that club will be well represented both upon the track and road during the coming season by Edwards.
While training for the Santa Monica road race Edwards rode an unpaced mile in 2:16, and was caught by several watches, but never claimed it, as no sanction had been requested before the performance. He is a class A rider, and will, perhaps, give Jones of the Cyclers a hard rub.
The California Cycling Club at its last meeting decided to parade in the Fabiola lantern parade, to be held in Oakland next Tuesday evening. W. A. Sangster has been elected to membership. On Monday evening nominations for officers will be held. The election takes place on the Monday evening following.
H. F. Wynne, secretary of the Californias, is slightly incapacitated from riding. Owing to swelling of the veins in his limbs, but expects to be around again shortly.
Captain Burke of the California Club has a run called to Santa Cruz for next Saturday and Sunday, leaving the clubrooms, corner of Twenty-second and Folsom streets, at 5:30 P. M. Saturday afternoon, stopping overnight at Congress Springs and making an early start Sunday morning for their destination. The return trip will be made by train to Los Gatos, thence by wheel to this city, thereby avoiding the hard return mountain climb. To-morrow this club will hold its initial one-mile handicap club tryout track race, open to members only. The races will begin at 10 A. M. at the cement track, corner of Eighth and Market streets. It is the ciub's intention to hold these track tryouts on every other Sunday, so as to bring out more of the racing talent.
The regular semi-annual election of the San Jose Road Club resulted in the following named gentlemen being chosen: President, J. T. Bailey; vice-president, C. Fischer; secretary, R. D. McFarland; treasurer, C. J. Belloli; captain, C. C. Peppin; first lieutenant, Gus Navlet; second lieutenant, M. O'Brien, Captain Peppin has called a run to Palo Alto for the San Jose Road Club, which will take place to-morrow.
The Imperial Cycling Club will hold a five-mile handicap road race on Sunday, May 12th. It is quite possible that J. E. Edwards and F. M. Byrne will come together in this race on the scratch mark. The result will be anxiously awaited.
Captain Thornton has called a club run of the Olympic Wheelmen to Mill Valley
and return for to-morrow, starting on the 9 A. M. Sausalito boat.
It is whispered around the various cycling clubhouses that a resolution is to be brought to the attention of the Board of Supervisors of this city contpelling all riders of wheels to pay a tax of $5 per year.
A new cycling cap has made it appearance. It has a transparent visor, or rim, so that if the roads become dusty and
windy one can pull the cap down over the eyes and yet not obstruct the vision.
Captain C. D. Bates has a run called for the Reliance Club Wheelmen to Tocaloma to-morrow, taking the 8 A. M. Sausalito boat, then by train to San Anselmo, and thence awheel to destination. One of the features of this run will be an impromptu five-mile race, distance to be measured by cyclometers sent on ahead, and all in the race to start from scratch. The losers are to foot the hotel bill.
The banquet given by the Olympic Club Wheelmen to the Eastern visiting wheelmen was an enjoyable affair, and many circuit yarns were recounted.
The Pacific Cycling Club will pose for a group picture at a studio to-morrow morning, after which Captain Etting intends holding a short run to the Cliff and Presidio.
Captain Etting contemplates calling a club run of the Pacifics to Spanishtown on some Saturday afternoon before the roads become too dusty for enjoyable wheeling.
Casey Castelman and Billy Burke will each try for records to-day at the Garden City Cyclers' track. Castelman will try for the twenty-five-mile record and Burke may try for the same distance. Pacemakers will be used in each event.
A meeting will be held this evening at the Bay City Wheelmen clubroon's of all the captains of the California Associated Cycling Clubs for the purpose of arranging a joint run of all the clubs.
Captain Meyer has called a run of the Liberty Cycling Club through the Park to-morrow, leaving the clubrooms at 10 A. M. sharp. This enterprising club contemplates holding a picnic next month at Niles canyon.
The practice of late by new riders is to carry a whistle in their mouths while scorching up and down the prominent streets. Some of these whistles are of such hideous tone as to give a nervous person the horrors. It is a practice which should be done away with not so much on account of the disagreeable sound as for the danger of having it jabbed down one's throat should the rider be unfortunate enough to take a tumble on the slippery pavements. Another reason is that these novices who carry these miniature locomotive whistles imagine a pedestrian has no right to cross their path after receiving a warning whistle. It is needless to say that they are laboring under a delusion.
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Category:Among The Wheelmen
Category:records