AMONG THE WHEELMEN. - A Cycling Trip to Santa Cruz - San Francisco Chronicle, 29 Jun 1895

From Wooljersey

AMONG THE WHEELMEN

A Cycling Trip to Santa Cruz.

The Golden Gate's Road Race To-Morrow.

Many Interesting Track Events Will Be Held on the National Holiday.

The wheelmen can have no cause to complain at the lack of races to be held on the Fourth of July, as almost every town of any size has such events on its programme. The Petaluma Wheelmen, Stockton Athletic Club and Garden City Cyclers of San Jose each have a varied programme, and it is safe to assume that very few wheelmen will spend the national holiday in this city.

Many of the clubs will call runs to San Jose on Wednesday evening and others will start Thursday morning, reaching the Garden City in time to take part in the parade of wheelmen and to witness the races.

The harrowing termination of the associated clubs' joint run to Niles last Sunday will lessen the attendance at any future event unless the association itself guarantee the lunch.

Wheelmen are on the watch for interesting facts from the League Racing Board. Ugly rumors are being spread that many of our local cracks are to be suspended pending investigation into the disposition of the prizes won by them during the past season.

The Pacific Cycling Club at its annual election on last Monday evening elected the following officers: President, Adolph Herbst; vice-president, Frank Scott; secretary-treasurer, Henry H. Paulsen, captain, Fred W. Paulsen; first lieutenant, Frank Flaglor. Before the meeting adjourned the retiring captain, Charles W. Etting, was presented with a gold medal in recognition of his past faithful services. The medal is in the shape of a wheel.

The Liberty Cycling Club will hold a club run to Mill Valley to-morrow, leaving the city on the 9 A. M. boat. This club will hold another ladies' night on Thursday evening, July 25th, at the Mission Turn Verein Hall. The election of officers resulted as follows, President, C. Westphal; secretary and treasurer, W. E. Bouton; captain, C. Steinan; first lieutenant, A. Joost; second lieutenant, F. Fanning.

Richard Siebe of the Golden Gate Cycling Club will endeavor, on July 7th, to lower the record recently made by C. Sorenson for a double century. If he is successful Sorenson will establish a record for 300 miles and feels confident of success.

The Outing Road Club has moved into its new clubrooms and as a result has many applications for membership. To-morrow the club will enjoy a run to the Park and beach, starting from the clubrooms at 9 A. M.

The Ladies' Cycling Club of San Jose is to have elegant clubrooms in the new Young Men's Christian Association building.

A perceptible increase of tandems is noticed each week, and the demand far exceeds the supply. One style noted on the road last Sunday was fitted with a diamond frame forward and a drop frame rear, which reverses the general order at riding. It is the custom to allow the lady the forward seat, but this particular wheel appears to disregard the prevailing custom.

In the matter of selecting a lady's wheel many hard questions must first be answered before the purchaser invests. At the present day the style for ladies appear to be the diamond frame, and with them must of necessity be worn the much-abused bloomers.

It is claimed for the diamond frame that they are stronger and more liable to stand hard usage, but it is very seldom that one hears of a lady's wheel being broken, as the riders do not take unnecessary risks.

The Stockton Athletic Club has arranged to hold on the Fourth a mile novice, one mile handicap, class A, and a one mile handicap, class B. Valuable prizes are offered for each event.

The Imperial Cycling Club will hold its second try-out races at Central Park to-morrow, beginning at 10 A. M.

L. W. Pryor of the Pacific Cycling Club has just returned from a wheeling trip to Los Angeles.

In making the trip to Santa Cruz by way of the road leading from Mountain View to Los Gatos an observing cyclist and a member of the league has furnished the cyclometer measurements which heretofore have been lacking from the league maps.

Miles.
Mountain View 00.00
Saratoga and San Francisco roads 1.45
West Side 5.45
Los Gatos and Saratoga roads (turn left) 10.75
Hermitage 12.25
Cemetery and Saratoga avenue (turn right) 14.25
Los Gatos 14.75

The Crescent Road Club has adopted neat and effective uniform to be worn in all club runs.

The California Cycling Club, under command of Captain John Burke, will hold a club run to La Honda and return. The start will be made from the clubrooms, corner of Twenty-second and Folsom streets, this afternoon at 6:30 o'clock, stopping over night at Woodside, and continuing on the journey early Sunday morning.

The Royal Cycling Club will hold a club run to Camp Taylor to-morrow under the command of Lieutenant Sternberg.

Messrs. Vollmer and Wahing have been elected members of the Liberty Cycling Club. Through the personal endeavors of H. F. Wynne, who has given much time to the matter, the Board of Supervisors have made the lighting of Folsom street by electric lights permanent, and here after the lamps will be lighted all night. This will allow cyclers to enjoy the smooth pavement, no matter whether on dark or moonlight nights.

A. Thiesen of the Californias will try for the ten-mile Coast record to-morrow over the Haywards course, and will be paced by some of the club's speedy riders.

The Olympic Club Wheelmen have been troubled by having their wheels "borrowed." At the meeting Tuesday evening a resolution was passed that a member of the Olympic Club who took a bicycle from the wheelroom not belonging to him and without the written consent of the rightful owner should be expelled from the club.

The Olympics have applied for October 7th to hold a race meet.

Jack McGlynn was presented with a solid gold button badge, suitably engraved, by the Olympics in recognition of his earnest work in developing racing talent for the club.

Walter Foster, who is to go against the five and twenty-five mile world's road record, will not make his trial until August, and it will not be a straightaway course, as at first proposed, but will take place over the San Leandro triangle.

A five-mile handicap road race will be held by the Olympics about the middle of July over the San Mateo course.

A committee consisting of Messrs. Thornton, Leighton and Stratton are working on plans for a theater party next month for the Olympic Wheelmen.

An amendment introduced relative to the relay rules of the California Associated Cycling Clubs reads as follows:

"Teams must be composed of men who have been members of the clubs they represent sixty days prior to race, and must be legal residents of the State of California for six months prior to date of relay race."

This amendment comes up for action in the August meeting, and, if carried, will do away with the importation of Eastern talent expressly to ride in the relay race.

It is conceded that many of the Eastern crack teams will soon be here, and may stay on the Coast a long while. To prevent clubs from securing their services this amendment is offered, and it is quite likely that it will be unanimously carried.

The relay race last Sunday between the Redwood City Wheelmen, Mountain View Cyclers and San Mateo Wheelmen was won by the first-named club in 1h. 9m. 40s. Each man rode five miles and each team was composed of five men. Carl C. Allen of the winning team made the remarkable time of 1.1 21 [time is partially legible] on his relay. The San Mateo club entered a protest against awarding the silver cup to the Redwood boy's because Ley of the victorious team had transferred the packet about ten feet outside of the transfer flags, having become mixed up as to the exact station. The judges ignored the protest. A return race will be held next month.

Captain C. D. Bates has a picnic run called up for tomorrow for the Reliance Club Wheelmen.

A trip to Santa Cruz is one thoroughly appreciated by those who love a continuous change of scenery, with a spice of real danger thrown in, and who are not easily discouraged by a dusty roadway. The wheelmen as a rule divide the trip from San Francisco to Santa Cruz by stopping overnight at San Jose and then making an early start Sunday morning after a hearty breakfast.

There are several ways of journeying to Santa Cruz from San Jose, and the main roads can be reached without even going down that far, as the wheelmen can turn off from the main San Jose road at either Mountain View or Murphy's.

If intending to make the trip via Boulder Creek the road leading from Mountain View is much the handier and cuts off considerable. The right hand road leads to Santa Cruz via Big Tree Grove, while the left hand road also leads to Santa Cruz, but via Soquel.

The left hand road is preferable as the other is covered with great stretches of sand, which necessitates much walking.

After passing the Hotel de Redwood, when taking the left hand road, keep to the lower road, as the upper is the old one and much out of repair.

At Soquel you can turn to the right and go direct to Santa Cruz, or take the left hand roadway leading over the bridge, and a mile on will bring you to Camp Capitola.

The road leading out at Capitola over the bridge will take you into the direct road again along the sea coast, straight into West Santa Cruz, and a half mile further is the City of the Cross.

In making either of these trips it is advisable to carry a light lunch and a lemon or two, as after leaving Alma you will find no stopping place until the summit is reached.

Many of the hills are dangerously steep, and unless the machine you are riding is fitted with a brake it is advisable to walk down, or else attach a drag made of the limb of a tree to the rear of your wheel. Some of the turns of the incline are very short, and a keen watch ahead must be kept in order to avoid teams coming up the mountain.

Carry a little chain lubricant in your tool bag, as so much is encountered that the chain may run hard before half the trip is made. A good precaution and one which will amply repay you is to thoroughly overhaul your wheel before taking this trip in order to see that all nuts, screws and bolts are tight. Be particular to see that your handle bar head is properly and tightly adjusted.

The trip down can be made by back pedalling if one is an expert. A timely suggestion is that if you propose back pedalling it, lower your saddle about one inch lower than customary, which will insure getting more leverage on the pedals.

Go prepared for an accident by taking your tool bag complete. Take along a few scraps of cotton, arnica, salve and linen cloths. The distances as measured by cyclometer and the principal points encountered en route are:

Miles.
San Jose 00.00
Los Gatos 11.75
Alma 15.25
Summit 20.35
Hotel (De Redwood) 23.85
Soquel 34.00
Santa Cruz 38.25

By way of Saratoga the distances are:

Miles.
San Jose 00.00
Saratoga 11.00
Pacific Congress Springs 12.30
Summit 17.30
Flume House 26.30
Boulder Creek 31.55
Felton 38.30
Santa Cruz 45.55

The most level road is the one which leads out to Gilroy into Salinas and then skirts the seashore, passing Watsonville, Aptos and Soquel, into Santa Cruz. This road is level for forty odd miles, and the hilly part is not particularly bad.

The reason that it is not popular is on account of its great length, being 100 miles to Santa Cruz from San Jose, against forty miles on either of the other roadways.

The principal points on this road measured by the cyclometer are:

Miles.
San Jose 00.00
Cemetery 4.10
Twelve-mile House 12.00
Madrone 17.90
Gilroy 29.50
Camp Sargent 36.15
San Juan 42.00
Summit 45.50
Natividad 53.75
Salinas 59.50
Castroville 68.50
Moss Landing 71.25
Watsonville 80.80
Summitville 88.70
Aptos 92.65
Soquel 96.50
Santa Cruz 100.75

THE CAMERA AND LENS.

Many City Scenes by the Local Photographers.

...

The report in reference to the California Camera Club Cyclists was also of considerable interest. When a cycling annex to the club was suggested the project was viewed with suspicion by those who feared an interference with the purposes of the club. The annex was organized, however, and has proved to be a great success, stimulating the interest of its members in amateur photography. Some of the most artistic pictures of this season have been taken by the cyclists, and all protest against the annex has disappeared.

The cyclists of the club had an enjoyable run to Tocaloma on Sunday a week ago. Owing to the distance there were no ladies in the party. The trip was marred by only one accident. One of the leaders of the party, C. S. Close, narrowly escaped serious injury. He was riding full speed down the road, when his wheel swerved, and he was carried over a cliff fifty feet high. He succeeded in catching the limb of a tree near the top of the descent and saved himself. His wheel was wrecked and he was compelled to walk a distance of three miles. He secured, however, some of the most artistic pictures of the journey. His camera, fortunately, was saved.. Its members will be at Anderson's Springs on July 1st, and will remain until July 4th to assist in the celebration of Independence Day. This party will include Charles A. Adams, H. C. Owens and W. Bent.

...