Walter Greaves

Walter William Greaves (April or June 1907 ; † 1987 ) was a British cyclist who set the year endurance world record over 45,383 miles in 1936 . He only had one arm.

Personal background

Walter Greaves grew up in Bradford . At the age of 14, he lost his left arm in a traffic accident. He later became an engineer , but had trouble finding work in his hometown because he was a committed communist and known as a "troublemaker". He was also a strict abstainer and a vegetarian .

The record run in 1936

In 1933, the Australian professional cyclist Ossie Nicholson set an annual world record for endurance of 43,966 miles (70,756 kilometers). The distance that a cyclist covered within a year was measured. Greaves decided to beat that record in 1936. His search for sponsors was not very successful. Only one bicycle manufacturer, Three Spiers Cycles from Coventry , gave him a bicycle and a small weekly sum to promote the company. Cyclists from all over the country offered him overnight accommodation. But he is said to have had so little money that his clothes looked “little better than rags” and he couldn't sleep at night because he was worried about the money.

Greaves should have started his record attempt on January 1, 1936, but the promised bike didn't arrive until five days later. It was heavy and had thick tires so that it could be driven on snow and bad roads. It had fenders , lights, a saddlebag and a three-speed gearshift . In the course of his record attempt, a special device was attached to the handlebars on which he could rest his arm stump.

The record run began in one of the toughest winters in years, with snow and ice until the end of February. In the first five days, Greaves covered 800 kilometers, crashing 19 times and eight times in one day. A journalist who followed him in his car said he fell twice because he was being pushed by cars. In Leeds, the winds of a steam engine blocked his view and he slipped on the rails. The Telegraph and Argus newspaper then referred to Greaves as a "hero". By the end of February he was covering an average of 190 kilometers a day, and although snow and ice had been displaced by hail and rain, he increased his daily workload to around 215 kilometers. It rained all summer long, and in autumn it became foggy.

In July, Greaves crashed into a car in Yarm , then developed an abscess , had to be hospitalized for two weeks and had an operation. While still recovering, he drove 260 kilometers a day. From September 20 to October 8, he increased his daily performance to 290 kilometers. On December 13th, Walter Greaves reached Hyde Park in London and drove several laps around the Serpentine Lake accompanied by thousands of cyclists .

In the evening there was a reception in Greaves' honor. Journalists offered the teetotaler champagne to celebrate and said, “Come on, we won't tell anyone.” Greaves replied, “If I want to poison myself, I'll do it with arsenic .” After his stay in London, he drove more daily 210 kilometers and ended its record year on New Year's Eve at midnight on the stairs of Bradford Town Hall. The Telegraph and Argus reported "amazing scenes reminiscent of the public appearances of famous movie stars". The mayor presented Greaves with checks and trophies.

The longest distance covered by Greaves in one day was 443 kilometers. His longest sleep-free trip was 602 kilometers, his shortest 108 kilometers because he fell and had to repair his bike.

The day after Greaves' arrival in Bradford, on January 1, 1937, another English driver, Bernard Bennett , began another record drive (45,801 miles = 73,710 kilometers), as did the Frenchman René Menzies (61,561 miles = 99,073 kilometers). Menzies finished his record run at Alexandra Palace in London with Greaves by his side. However, Australian Ossie Nicholson broke these two records with a journey of 62,657 miles (100,837 kilometers).

In 1937 Walter Greaves was included in the Golden Book of Cycling .

Life after the record

Walter Greaves became a member of the British League of Racing Cyclists . He also founded the Airedale Olympic Cycling Club and organized a cycling race from Bradford to Morecambe and back in 1949 . He marked a turn with a large white arrow on the road and caused traffic chaos because motorists followed this arrow.

In the late 1940s, Greaves ran a bicycle shop in his hometown. He built bicycle frames and was considered talented and innovative. One of his models, King of the Mountains , is on display at the Bradford Industrial Museum today . After a fire in his shop, Greaves moved to Craven Forge and ran Winifred's Café there . Because he couldn't make a living on that alone, he took on another job. He also sang in clubs and pubs. He lived with his wife and a monkey in an apartment above his café.

In 1987 Walter Greaves died of complications from Parkinson's disease .

References and comments

1. ^ England & Wales Birth Register Index: Walter William Greaves; Quarter of Registration: April / May / June 1907; Registration district: North Bierley; Volume: 9b; Page: 146
2. ↑ One-armed cyclist's amazing odyssey . This is Bradford. Archived from the original on January 27, 2006. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
3. ^ ^{A b c d} John Naylor: "Hard Times". New cyclist . Book 10, p. 79
4. ↑ Breckon, Michael (Ed.): A Wheel in Two Worlds .
5. ↑ There are different reports of this accident, sometimes there is talk of a car, but also of a truck or a telegraph pole.
6. ^ Fellowship of Cycling Old-Timers . Volume 144
7. ↑ Cycling . October 6, 1937
8. ↑ Walter Greaves in the Golden Book of Cycling ( Memento from July 28, 2011 in the Internet Archive )
9. ↑ ^{a b c} Telegraph and Argus of September 21, 2001
10. ↑ "Walter Greaves: the man, his story and his bikes"