Charles Frédérick Barden (1874–1962) was a British cyclist. He placed second in the
UCI Track Cycling World Championships
The UCI Track Cycling World Championships are the set of world championship events for the various disciplines and distances in track cycling. They are regulated by the Union Cycliste Internationale. Before 1900, they were administered by the UCI ...
men's sprint in 1896 and 1897.
He held the English cycling title among other records. He was accused of dangerous riding among his colleagues. His career was ruined after the death of a fellow rider allegedly due to his negligence.
Early life
Barden was born in
Canterbury
Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...
,
Kent
Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...
,
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
. Beginning in 1881, Barden was a resident of the
Borough of Chelsea. In 1891 he moved to
Kensal Rise
Kensal Green, also known as Kensal Rise, is an area in north-west London, and along with Kensal Town, it forms part of the northern section of North Kensington. It lies north of the canal in the London Borough of Brent, and also to the south, ...
. He began racing in his early teens and moved to London where he joined the Polytechnic Cycling Club, making friends with one of the stars,
Bert Harris. The two eventually toured Europe together to race in tournaments.
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Racing
In 1892 Barden moved to the club at Catford
Catford is a district in south east London, England, and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Lewisham. It is southwest of Lewisham itself, mostly in the Rushey Green (ward), Rushey Green and Catford South Ward (electoral subdivi ...
, then in the countryside south of the city. The Catford club held races in the streets of the village and built a track reputed to be the fastest in Europe. Barden's talent was noticed and developed there.
In 1895 Barden rode at Catford against Jimmy Michael
Jimmy Michael (18 August 1877 – 21 November 1904) was a Welsh people, Welsh world cycling champion and one of the top riders in the sport for several years.
Origins
Jimmy Michael was tall. He was born in Aberaman, Cynon Valley, Wales. His p ...
of Wales
Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...
, who won the world's first motor-paced racing
Motor-paced racing and motor-paced cycling refer to cycling behind a pacer in a car or more usually on a motorcycle. The cyclist (or stayer in this case) follows as close as they can to benefit from the slipstream of their pacer. The first paced r ...
championship that year in Cologne
Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...
, Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
. The occasion – which prompted tales of doping and fixing of races – was called a chain match because it pitted riders using the new Simpson lever chains against riders using the standard roller chain
Roller chain or bush roller chain is the type of chain drive most commonly used for transmission of mechanical power on many kinds of domestic, industrial and agricultural machinery, including conveyors, wire- and tube-drawing machines, pr ...
s. Riders who used Simpson chains were contracted to compete against those using the older design, to prove which was superior. While most accounts say the race was held in Catford, others say it was Germany. Barden and Michael were pitched in a five-mile race in front of a crowd of about 15,000. Right before the race, Michael took a drink provided to him by his coach and manager, Choppy Warburton and began the race. He rode poorly and ended with falling off his bike, remounting and setting off in the wrong direction. Michael's strange behaviour led him to accuse Warburton of doping him. Barden, too, later made accusations of race-fixing and they were to ruin his career in Britain.
Barden rode the world professional track championship at Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
in 1896 and Glasgow
Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...
in 1897, finishing second on both occasions. His fame and looks drew huge crowds at velodrome
A velodrome is an arena for track cycling. Modern velodromes feature steeply banked oval tracks, consisting of two 180-degree circular bends connected by two straights. The straights transition to the circular turn through a moderate easement ...
s and he was mobbed by fans wherever he went. He was English champion in 1896 and broke records from 440 yards to 10 miles.
Accusations and downfall
Bert Harris was the first English sprint champion.[''Leicester Mercury'', England, undated cutting] In one meeting in Australia he won £800, at a time when a skilled worker in England earned £85 a year. On Easter Monday, 1897, three years after Harris' national championship, with his career starting to fade, he rode at a meeting on the track at Aston
Aston is an area of inner Birmingham, in the county of the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Located immediately to the north-west of Birmingham city centre, Central Birmingham, Aston constitutes a wards of the United Kingdom, war ...
, Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...
. He crashed in the 10-mile race, hitting his head on the track. He died on 21 April without regaining consciousness.
Barden accused other riders in the race of causing the fall by cutting away the front wheel through their riding so Harris would not win. The National Cyclists Union
The National Cyclists' Union (NCU) was an association established in the Guildhall Tavern, London, on 16 February 1878 as the Bicycle Union. Its purpose was to defend cyclists and to organise and regulate bicycle racing in Great Britain. It merge ...
held an inquiry and Barden made himself more unpopular by accusing witnesses of "out and out lies". The issue split fans of cycling, but race promoters were more united and Barden found it harder to get engagements.
He could still compete in races on the continent and moved to Paris. He lived there until 1899.
Years later, in 1903, Barden participated in the first London Six Day race, where he was initially partnered with Frenchman Raoul Buisson __NOTOC__
Raoul is a French variant of the male given name Ralph or Rudolph.
Raoul may also refer to:
Given name
* Raoul André (1916–1992), French director and screenwriter
* Raoul Anglès (1887–1967), French politician
* Raoul Aragon, Fi ...
, who was later replaced by Italian Anteo Carapezzi. They finished third, covering 819 miles, 20 miles less than winners Hall
In architecture, a hall is a relatively large space enclosed by a roof and walls. In the Iron Age and the Early Middle Ages in northern Europe, a mead hall was where a lord and his retainers ate and also slept. Later in the Middle Ages, the gre ...
and Martin.
Personal life
He married his first wife Mary in 1897 and by 1911 had 5 children – 2 of whom died as children.
When he retired and returned to England, he joined the Merchant Navy, sailing on a troop ship to the Boer War
The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic an ...
. He moved to Leicester, where Bert Harris had lived, and married a girl in the city. He opened a shop in Saffron Lane, Leicester, where a cycle track was later built, then worked at Bentley Engineering in the city. He joined the Working Men's Club
Working men's clubs are British private social clubs first created in the 19th century in industrial areas, particularly the North of England, Midlands, Scotland, Northern Ireland and South Wales Valleys, to provide recreation and education ...
, but rarely spoke of his career.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barden, Charley
English male cyclists
British male cyclists
English track cyclists
British track cyclists
Sportspeople from Canterbury
Sportspeople from Leicester
People from Chelsea, London
People from Kensal Green
People from Maldon, Essex
1874 births
1962 deaths
British Merchant Navy personnel