Speaker Stewart Wilson

Fri, Mar 24th 2017 at 12:55 pm - 2:10 pm

Topic : Beryl Burton OBE


Rotary Club of Stirling, meeting of 24th March 2017.


President Alan Rankin welcomed members to our Friday meeting. Alan and Peter Mehta visited the School of English to present our donation which will help to cover the extra cost of assisting Syrian refugees currently learning English.  The charity film night will be on 14th May at the MacRobert , the film will be Lion. President Alan has sent out an anagram quiz, which members can copy, selling as many as possible. Proceeds to Start up Stirling.

SVP Stewart Wilson, fresh back from his own cycling trip to New Zealand, spoke to us about his boyhood idol, Beryl Burton OBE, UK woman's cycling champion for 25 consecutive years. In 1967 she set the woman's 12-hour record covering 277.62 miles, beating the men's world record and passing all the male competitors. No woman has ever bettered this performance. 
She held 7 world championships, 90 domestic records, won a stage in the Tour de France, and was renowned on the continent. At home, she was little known as cycling, particularly women's cycling was not a major popular sport at that time. Several facts make her career even more amazing. At the age of 11 she contracted Chorea, spending 7 months in hospital and was told not to over exert herself! In addition, bikes at that time bikes were much heavier, and there was no structured training or formal support. Her bike was provided by Raleigh but she received no money, remaining an amateur all through her 30-year career. She died suddenly aged 58 of heart failure, perhaps not surprising given her very high work rate over so many years. Truly a remarkable sportswoman.

The vote of thanks was given by John Rankin, one of his witty rhyming compositions and much enjoyed by the members.

Next meeting 31st March Speaker's host Alex Galloway, Visitor's host Alan Prentice.  For more info www.stirling.rotary1010.org
Photograph by By Kroon, Ron / Anefo - [1] Dutch National Archives, The Hague
Ian Richardson

VoT – Stewart Wilson  24.03.17 by John Rankin

Stewart talked of the great Beryl Burton
Who, when young, was really quite ill,
But when she started in cycling,
She developed great fitness and skill.

In so many different races
She set records again and again,
But the most remarkable statistic
Was the fact that she raced against men!

On a rhubarb farm, was her day job,
Then she'd cycle in all sorts of weather,
But with a twenty-five year career,
Her erse must have been made of leather!

So, another great talk on a Friday,
After we'd finished our meal,
 Will you please give Stewart some applause

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