Pedestrianism; or, An Account of the Performances of Celebrated Pedestrians During the Last and Present Century.: With a full narrative of Captain Barclay's public and private matches; and an essay on training.Thom, Walter
History
Pedestrianism; or, An Account of the Performances of Celebrated Pedestrians During the Last and Present Century.: With a full narrative of Captain Barclay's public and private matches; and an essay on training.
Thom, Walter
Walking
On Friday the 4th June 1807, Mr. Stevens undertook to go from the
Woolpack at St. Albans, to Finsbury Square,--a distance of twenty-one
miles--in three hours, for a bet of four hundred and fifty guineas. He
started at a quarter before two o’clock in the morning, and arrived at
his journey’s end by four. He ran in the first hour, seven miles and a
half; in the second hour, ten miles; and in the last quarter, three miles
and a half.
A match for twenty miles was run on the 12th September 1809, on a piece
of chosen ground near Maidenhead, between Mr. Greig and Matthew Mark, for
fifty guineas a side. Mark took the lead at the rate of eight miles an
hour, closely followed by his antagonist. They were equal at ten miles,
having performed that distance in one hour and eight minutes. They both
made play here, and at nineteen miles were together; but Mr. Greig gained
by two minutes only. The race throughout was well contested; and the
whole distance was accomplished in two hours and twenty minutes.
Captain Thomson of the 74th regiment, while stationed at Aberdeen in the
year 1808, undertook to walk twenty-one miles in three hours. He started
on the 5th of May at the 7th mile-stone on the Ellon road, returning to
the 4th, until he should perform the distance, which he accomplished in
four minutes and a half less than the time allowed.
On the 22d of February 1812, James Watson, a glazier, for a wager of £10,
went from Whitechapel Church to Romford in Essex, and back, in three
hours, the distance being twenty-three miles. He started at six o’clock,
and reached Romford at twenty minutes past seven. Having refreshed ten
minutes, he started again on his return, and completed the distance in
four minutes less than the given time.
On the 11th of February 1812, Mr. Webber undertook, for a bet of one
hundred guineas, to ride nine miles within half an hour, and to run five
miles in another half hour. He started at Two-mile Brook, near Colnbrook,
Bucks, and performed the nine miles in a light sulky, in four minutes
less than the given time. He now started on his pedestrian match, and
went four miles in a few seconds less than twenty-four minutes, labouring
under great distress; but he recovered his wind, and won the match in six
seconds within the time.
Mr. Froward of Berkeley-street, on the 14th of April 1812, performed
thirty miles in three hours and fifty-three minutes, for a wager of
twenty guineas.
CHAPTER III.
THE SAME SUBJECT CONTINUED.
To walk or run for two or three hours at the rate of eight miles an hour,
may be deemed extraordinary speed, conjoined to considerable strength and
command of WIND. But more than nine miles an hour have been accomplished
on a distance of twenty miles; and upwards of eight on a distance of
forty.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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