Athletics and Football (extract)

i 8 2 ATHLETICS CHAPTER VII. A T H L E T I C ME E T I NG S . I F there be little to say of the individual athlete's requisites, there is much that is interesting to note in the requisites for the meeting at which the athlete figures. The days are now gone when the champions of each neighbourhood met upon the village-green, and took off their boots to run upon the nearest level piece of turf which was handy. A club which undertakes to hold a meeting has now to find a ground, prizes, officials,and a variety of implements and conveniences, which render the undertaking anything but a simple one. The first requisite of all is of course to get a ground, and it is of grounds, therefore, that we first propose to speak. In London, Birmingham, Oxford, Cambridge, and other great centres of amateur athletics there are regular running grounds, which can be engaged by a club which requires them. Nearlyall the regular paths are ' cinder tracks,' although of late years one or twohave been made (chiefly for cycling purposes) not withcinders, but with burnt ballastor red brickdust. The making of a good path is a difficultand expensiveundertaking, including as it does levelling, draining, and laying down of the cinders or brickdust. Excavation is made to the depth of from 12 to 18 inches, 12 inches being generally considered sufficient with a dry gravelly soil, while in a claysoil the full 18 inches is required. If the excavations be of 12 inches, about 5 or 6 inches of this is filled up with large brick rubbish, or what is known as ballastgravel—i.e. large stones which allow the water to drain through. Over the top of this, 3 or 4 inches of rough