21-3-51 24-3-51 24-3-51 CAR RACING NOW POPULAR IN AUSTRALIA Motor-racing had made immense strides in popularity in Australia since the war, and organisers of events were finding it increasingly diffcult to cater for the number of competitors who wanted to take part, said Mr John Nind, of Sydney, a well known racing driver, yesterday afternoon. Mr Wind has come to Christchurch to take part in the Migram 100-mile motor race for the Lady Wigram Trophy. which will be held or Saturday week. Ine position was such in Australia that organisers events had to add extra races to their programmes to give all the drivers a chance of running. He had known as many as eighty drivers enter for a race, said Mr Nind. the Laster racing meeting at ¡ Bathurst it was quite common for as as 25.000 spectators to visit the town, which is about 130 miles from Sydney. Bathurst was regarded as the motor-racing Mecca in Australia, for it has the famous mountain circuit, which was built specially for motorracing before the war. Mr Nind, who is rot a young man, has been driving racing cars for more than seventeen "years. Previous to taking up the sport he was a keen follower of horse racing, having relatives who owned rode racehorses. However, now his main interest is car racing, although he admitted that he and his wife ' would most likely be visiting carton during their stay in the city. Not Much Betting Contrary to opinions often held the motor-racing fraternity in this country, Mr Nind said he did not think there was much betting on car races in Australia with bookmakers to-day. Although he admitted that after having driven successfully : in a race in West Australia he had been entered for a race in New South Wales and found that instead of being at the long odds he was previous to the race he could not do better than get 5 to 2 on himself. Motor-racing expensive sport Australia. the people who took part either pienty of money in the motor business. During the seventeen years he had raced he estimated that it had cost him about £500 a year, and he admitted that during that period he had met with a fair amount of success and picked up some prize money. Last year was! the first time he had actually shown a profit in a season's racing, to be were reckoned among the most reliable in competition in Australia, said VIr Vind who added that he wanted to make it clear that it was no fault of his that tnis was so. His mechanic was Tony Mcaipine, who this year had gone to England with the Isle of Man Tourist Trophy motor-cycle racing team. -IcAlpine did all the work on his cars, said Mr Nind, and consequently it was only when that he found it a • bit of an uphill grind" when he had to prepare his own car. Car Race at THRILLING MOTOR- RACING WIGRAM SAT. MARCH 31st! PRACTICE 10.30 a.m. FASTEST LAP TRIALS - - 12.30 100-MILE RACE 2.30 Polito TOP-RANKING MOTORISTS From AUSTRALIA: T. N. SULMAN GRAND PRIX MASERATI JOHN NIND 1100 c.e. COOPER K. V. TUBMAN K3 M.G. MAGNETTE BE THERE! And New Zealand's Own: GEORGE SMITH (Auckland) G.C.S. SPECIAL MOORE (Christchurch) ALFA ROMEO HẸC. GREEN NEW R. A. VANGUARD BE THERE! Wigram May Be Best Yet With three Australian racing drivers competing. and probably about fifteen New Zealand drivers, ¡the 100 mile Wigram car race, which is to be hela next Saturday afternoon, promises to be the most thriting and the fastest yet seen on that circuit. less than twelve of the cars | competing are capable of speeds in i excess of 100 miles an hour. Many of the drivers have behind them long lists of success in New Zealand motor sport, while the three overseas competitors have formidable records. Since the inception of the Wigram race speeds have increased yearly. In {1949 Morrie Proctor, of Wellington. brought his Brooklands Riley home victory in 1hr 35min 56sec. and last year the Christchurch driver, Green, won the race with his Wolseley Special in Ihr 30min 57sec. It may be confidently expected that this year the race time will come down considerably. For the time in the history of New Zealand motor racing there are three Italian cars competing. Tom Sulman, of Aus tralia, will be driving the black 4C Maserati with which he took the New Zealand championship hill-climb recently, and Les Moore, who crashed in the Waimairi road race early ie February, will be driving his Grand Prix Alfa Romeo. The well-known Christchurch Don Ransley, will be driving the dr the 2.3 litre sports tourer Alfa Romeo, which also belongs to Moore. Australian Drivers The other Australian drivers are John Nind, who is handling his new 1100cc Cooper, from which great things may be expected, and Ken Tubman, whose K3 M.G. such good effect in the hill-climb: championship. This year Hec Green will bring two. cars to the mark, one which will drive himself, while the other may be entrusted to his brother Gib. Besides the veteran Wolseley, which has taken part in many a hard tussie and helped Green to build up one of the mest impressive records in postwar motor sport, will bring out his new rear-engined car which em bodies many novel features. The new car is known as the R.A. guard. It is supercharged and should be particularly fast. The XK Jaguar sports cars, which attracted favourable comment at the Waimairi road race, will again be running in the hands of Ron Roycroft (Auckland), and Jack Tutton, of Rangiora. In addition there will be a third car of the same make, which has been entered by Bob Gibbons, who won the Paekakariki hill-climb with it a few weeks ago. There is 2500 in prize money and the Lady Wigram Trophy at stake. The race is a scratch event—all cars start together-but there are class prizes. With such a prize offering, all will be trying from the drop of the starter's flag until the drop of the chequered finishing flag. Other well-known names to New Zealand motoring enthusiasts feature in the entry list 26-3-51 TOP RANKING RACING MOTORISTS! From AUSTRALIA - and NEW ZEALAND'S own T. N. SULMAN GRAND PRIX MASERATI JOHN NIND 1700 c.c. COOPER GEORGE SMITH (Auckland) G. C.S. SPECIAL LES MOORE (Christchurch) ALFA ROMEO K. V. TUBMAN HEC. GREEN K3 M.G. MAGNETTE NEW R.A. VANGUARD will race in 100 MILE RACE at WIGRAM THIS SATURDAY (MARCH 31st) PRACTICE FASTEST LAP TRIALS - TROPHY RACE - - HOT WATER 28-3-51 Car Race Takings After the big car race whi be held at Wigram on Si members of the Papanui br the Returned Services" ASS expect that their new ciub will be practically free of d 1919 anu 1250. members branch acted as ticket sell collectors, and on each occas organisers of the race gave the gate takings towards t club rooms. This vear anoth will be given, and it is expec this amount will aimost cl debt on the building. 10.30 a.m. 12.30 P.m. 2.30.p.m. REFRESHMENTS ich is to ranch sociation • rooms lebt. In of the ers and sion the £200 of he new her £200 ted that lear the