Oserick Bernard "Ossie" Nicholson (1910 – 9 November 1965) was an Australian cyclist who twice held the World Endurance record for distance in a calendar year.

Australian cycling career

Nicholson was a professional cyclist in the years before World War II. He competed on both

road A road is a linear way for the conveyance of traffic that mostly has an improved surface for use by vehicles (motorized and non-motorized) and pedestrians. Unlike streets, the main function of roads is transportation. There are many types of ...

and

track Track or Tracks may refer to: Routes or imprints * Ancient trackway, any track or trail whose origin is lost in antiquity * Animal track, imprints left on surfaces that an animal walks across * Desire path, a line worn by people taking the shorte ...

, as was typical of Australian cyclists of the era such as

Hubert Opperman Sir Hubert Ferdinand Opperman, OBE (29 May 1904 – 18 April 1996), referred to as Oppy by Australian and French crowds, was an Australian cyclist and politician, whose endurance cycling feats in the 1920s and 1930s earned him international acc ...

and

Richard Lamb Richard William "Fatty" Lamb (26 December 1907 – 7 July 1974) was an Australian racing cyclist who competed on both road and track, as was typical of Australian cyclists of the era such as Hubert Opperman. Throughout his career, Lamb was as ...

. Nicholson was third in the 1929 Warrnambool to Melbourne Classic, behind Opperman and Horrie Marshall and won the 1929

Wangaratta Wangaratta ( ) is a city in the northeast of Victoria, Australia, from Melbourne along the Hume Highway. The city had an estimated urban population of 19,318 at June 2018. Wangaratta has recorded a population growth rate of almost 1% annually ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

race. In February 1930 Nicholson rode to break the Australian one hour

motor-paced cycling 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 ...

record, previously held by Opperman. The following week Opperman narrowly defeated Nicholson in a motor-paced

match race A match race is a race between two competitors, going head-to-head. In sailboat racing it is differentiated from a fleet race, which almost always involves three or more competitors competing against each other, and team racing where teams consis ...

. In September 1930 Nicholson broke the record for

Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...

completing the in 26 hours 19 minutes. A week later Nicholson set the fastest time in the Tour of

Gippsland Gippsland is a rural region that makes up the southeastern part of Victoria, Australia, mostly comprising the coastal plains to the rainward (southern) side of the Victorian Alps (the southernmost section of the Great Dividing Range). It covers ...

. In 1934 Nicholson was training

Billie Samuel Zara Kathleen Samuel (later Kesper; 24 March 1907 – 15 January 1995), better known as Billie Samuel, was an American-born Australian cyclist. In 1934, she became the first woman to cycle from Melbourne to Sydney. On her return journey, she bro ...

to break records. In the same year he was suspended for six months for interfering with E Waterford who was making a record attempt from Adelaide to Melbourne. The suspension was extended to 12 months as Nicholson unsuccessfully appealed. Nicholson was able to have the suspension lifted in time to ride in the Centenary 1000. The Centenary 1000 was a one-week race over seven stages covering . The race was run in as part of the celebrations of the Centenary of

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

. In stage 2 there was a crash at a railway crossing a few miles from

Penshurst Penshurst is a historic village and civil parish located in a valley upon the northern slopes of the Kentish Weald, at the confluence of the River Medway and the River Eden, within the Sevenoaks district of Kent, England. The village is situa ...

involving Nicholson, Joe Buckley and Bill Brewer. Nicholson suffered a severe head injury, completing the stage despite suffering from

concussion A concussion, also known as a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), is a head injury that temporarily affects brain functioning. Symptoms may include loss of consciousness (LOC); memory loss; headaches; difficulty with thinking, concentration, ...

, but abandoning the race at Stawell. In 1938 Nicholsen set the Australian men's seven day record, riding .

1931 Tour de France

Nicholson rode in the 1931 Tour de France in a combined Australia/Switzerland team including Opperman, Lamb and

Frankie Thomas Frank Marion Thomas Jr. (April 9, 1921 – May 11, 2006), was an American actor, author and bridge-strategy expert who played both lead and supporting roles on Broadway, in films, in post-World War II radio, and in early television. He was ...

. In the third stage Nicholson's crank broke. The 18 km walk for a new crank meant Nicholson finished outside the time limit and was eliminated.

World endurance record for distance cycled in a single year

In 1911 the weekly magazine ''Cycling'' began a competition for the highest number of 100 mile rides or "centuries" in a single year. The winner was

Marcel Planes Marcel may refer to: People * Marcel (given name), people with the given name Marcel * Marcel (footballer, born August 1981), Marcel Silva Andrade, Brazilian midfielder * Marcel (footballer, born November 1981), Marcel Augusto Ortolan, Brazilian ...

with 332 centuries in which he covered . A.R. Peebles of England had the highest number of consecutive centuries with 268. In 1932 the record for the greatest distance cycled in a single year was set by

Arthur Humbles Albert Arthur Humbles (born 9 May 1910, died 3 July 1997), subsequently known as Alan Alain Holt and Allan Holt, was an English cyclist who set the world endurance cycling record by covering during the calendar year of 1932. He broke the previou ...

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

with .

Malvern Star Malvern Star is a manufacturer of bicycles based in Melbourne, Australia. The company was established in 1902, and went on to become a known brand in Australia. History Malvern Star opened in a small shop at 58 Glenferrie Rd, in the Melbourn ...

was a sponsor of Nicholson, so when he agreed to undertake the record attempt in 1933 with

Bruce Small Sir Andrew Bruce Small OStJ (11 December 1895 – 1 May 1980) was an Australian businessman and politician. In Melbourne, he developed Malvern Star bicycles into a household name in Australia, then retired to the Gold Coast, Queensland, where ...

as his manager and promoter, Malvern Star supplied the bicycle with the latest equipment, the first

derailleur Shimano 600 front derailleur (1980) A derailleur is a variable-ratio bicycle gearing system consisting of a chain, multiple sprockets of different sizes, and a mechanism to move the chain from one sprocket to another. Modern front and rear d ...

to be available in Australia, a 3-speed made by the

Cyclo Gear Company Cyclo may refer to: * Cycle rickshaw, the pedal-powered version of the rickshaw * ''Cyclo'' (film), a 1995 Vietnamese film * ''Cyclo'' (Ryoji Ikeda and Carsten Nicolai album), a 2001 album by Ryoji Ikeda and Carsten Nicolai * ''Cyclo'' (Zazie al ...

. Nicholson was a tyre tester for

Dunlop Rubber Dunlop Ltd. (formerly Dunlop Rubber) was a British multinational company involved in the manufacture of various natural rubber goods. Its business was founded in 1889 by Harvey du Cros and he involved John Boyd Dunlop who had re-invented and d ...

who supplied his tyres. In 1937 the League of Victorian Wheelmen declined a request by Nicholson for patronage for his attempt on the record. Nicholson's response was to appoint a committee to supervise his attempt. Nicholson's initial target was for a total of . He predominantly rode from Melbourne to Portsea. A car collided with Nicholson on 12 December 1933, but despite a trip to hospital Nicholson was able to continue his rides without interruption. Nicholson raised the record to . Nicholson rode more than on every day and in doing so broke the record for the highest number of consecutive centuries, held by A.R. Peebles. It appears that Nicholson's record was unmatched until 2017. For his efforts, Nicholson received £25 from Cyclo and a gold watch from Dunlop. Nicholson is reported to have received an unspecified

honorarium An honorarium is an ''ex gratia'' payment, i.e., a payment made, without the giver recognizing themselves as having any liability or legal obligation, to a person for his or her services in a volunteer capacity or for services for which fees are no ...

from an unnamed "English sportsman" for the period he held the record. Nicholson's record was broken in 1936 by Walter Greaves of Great Britain with . On New Year's Day 1937, Nicholson rode off on the difficult journey to wrest back the record.

Bernard Bennett Bernard Bennett (31 August 1931 – 12 January 2002) was an English former professional player of snooker and English billiards, whose career spanned twenty-six years between 1969 and 1995. Bennett was a stalwart of professional snooker and ...

and

René Menzies René Menzies (c. November 1889 – c. 1971) was a French long-distance cyclist who at 48 held a record for the greatest distance ridden on a bicycle in a year. He rode in 1937. He was decorated with the Croix de Guerre in the First World War ...

were also attempting to break the record. Nicholson's initial target was per day for a total of . Nicholson developed a lead however Menzies had drawn level in October 1937, as both passed Greaves' distance. Each of the three riders beat Greaves' mark with Bennett riding and Menzies riding . Nicholson regained the record with . The record was broken in 1939 by Tommy Godwin with . He died in November 1965 in Auckland, New Zealand from a heart attack.Ancestry LifeStory: Oserick Bernard ("Ossie") Nicholson
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References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Nicholson, Ossie 1910 births 1965 deaths Australian male cyclists Cyclists from Melbourne Ultra-distance cyclists