Gazette 29 Volume 7 Issue 4

October 2002

A Blakeley Cycling Champion

by Dorothy Blakeley

Thomas Blakeley 1929 -1991

Twins, Tommy and Andy Blakeley were born in Hawick, Scotland. At an early age they took up cycling as a sport, following in the footsteps of their older brother Ivor Blakeley who was killed, in World War II, at Arnheim on the 22nd September, 1944.

Tommy, as he was known in Scotland, and referred to as Tom by his Australian wife and friends in New Zealand, cycled with the Hawick Cycle Club and began to distinguish himself at about age 22, when a scrap book put together by his youngest sister Sarah and sent to his daughter Roslynne, describes him at age 23 as the new holder of the Scottish All-Rounder Cycling Championship with an average speed of 22.618 miles per hour over 50 and 100 miles and twelve hour races.

In 1953 he was presented with an oak cabinet by the Hawick Cycle Club in recognition of his being the first member to win the Scottish Best All-Round Championship. This cabinet was sent to New Zealand by Tom's parents many years ago and holds his trophies which he won in Scotland and in New Zealand.

Besides cycling as a sport, Tom took an apprenticeship with British Railways, Scottish Region as a mason from from 1944 to 1949. At the same time Andy was apprenticed as a horticulturist and married early and did not compete in cycling. Tom worked in Hawick, Edinburgh University Schools of Residence and in 1958 decided to emigrate to New Zealand. When asked by his wife why New Zealand, he said it was the furthest place he could come for the least money! Australia cost more, but then our lives wouldn't have crossed as I met Tom at a wedding of a fellow cyclist to my flatmate in Aukland, NZ, when I was here on a working holiday!

Until emigrating, Tom enjoyed his years cycling and racing with the Musselburgh Club when he relocated to Edinburgh with his work. He had a bad accident when riding for the Olympic Possibles in 1955 but came back to regain the national championship with a record 23.147 m.p.h. which included a new Scottish "12" record of 257.25 miles. He also shared the Hawick "Sportsman of the year" award with Rugby player Hughie McLeod.

In New Zealand Tom worked as a stonemason in the South Island and spent his first Christmas cycling to Queenstown with a few other immigrants from the hostel where he was living in Christchurch. He met and married his wife, Dorothy in 1961 and his work took him into the Arthur's Pass National Park, the Lewis Pass National Park, as well as working on buildings in Christchurch. In 1970, he was asked to relocate to Auckland to build the new public library and his work kept him very busy for the next few years.

When his son Graham wanted to buy a "10 speed" bicycle at about 14 years of age, Tom helped him in his choice of bike, and took himself off for a ride, just to see how it felt - it felt good! So Tom bought himself a racing bike. He joined the Manukau Cycking Club in Auckland around 1978, competing as a veteran and started to enjoy finishing in the top five in each race. He won Gold in the Veteran Time Trials in 1980, 1987 and 1990. He also won Silver in 1981 and 1983, and Bronze in 1982, when competing against the whole of New Zealand. He also won his Manukau Club Championships throughout the 1980's

In 1987, Tom was invited to race in the Australian Apple & Pear Corp. Veteran Cyclists' Marathon Tour - 3800 kilometers - from Brisbane to Adelaide, as part of the New Zealand team of 4 cyclists. Each Australian state had a team entered and Tom came 6th in the 50-58 category. Also in early 1987, Tom flew to Samao to build the stonework on the Bahai Temple and was away from New Zealand for 6 months.

Each winter we had a holiday in Queensland, Australia, and Tom always took his bike with him so that he could get out early each morning to cycle around and see the country. We had decided to retire in Queensland where Tom would build our home, but this was not to be. In 1991, Tom was employed as mason in charge, on the ASB Centre in Auckland, the most extensive and dramatic use of natural stone in a building in New Zealand. His sudden death from cancer shocked and stunned everyone who had come in contact with him through his cycling and craftmanship as a mason and he is deeply mourned.

Tommy accepting a trophy, with twin

brother Andy 2nd from right