Definition:
A Centurion is one who, as an Amateur, has walked in competition, in Great Britain, 100 miles within 24 hours.
BRIEF HISTORY
“Now the matchless deed’s determined, Dared, achieved and done.”
The Centurions are the most exclusive athletic body in the world. No other organisation demands the same high standard of performance. There are no patrons or honorary members. Number One was Mr. J.E. Fowler-Dixon, the doyen of long-distance walking and running, who as long ago as 1877 walked 100 miles in 20 hours 36 minutes 8 seconds. No amateur athlete created an important long-distance record until twenty years later, when “Teddy” Knott walked from London to Brighton within nine hours. The two paragraphs above have been printed in this handbook at least since its 1938
edition; whether or not they are strictly accurate may be debated for years to come. For instance, was Fowler-Dixon really the ‘doyen’ of long-distance walking? Were there really no important amateur performances between 1877 and 1897? Only extensive research will tell, as there is nobody alive today who can recall past performances with any great clarity.
The Pre-History
The Centurions were formed in 1911 by a number of athletes who had qualifying performances as per the definition above which is also the second rule of the “Centurion Society”, but before going into the known Centurion history, some mention must be made of our predecessors. In the 18th & 19th centuries there were many ‘Pedestrians’, such people as Hugue, Foster- Powell, Barclay, Wilson, Payson-Weston etc., their exploits and feats of endurance are well chronicled. It is most likely that these and many more could have qualified as Centurions had they been around in modern times, possibly even in their own times, but one must consider the mode of dress and the road conditions in those bygone days. Added to these doubts is the fact that these ‘Pedestrians’ usually performed for a wager or other form of recompense, and therefore they were certainly not amateurs; also, a form of jog-trotting was considered as walking; something that would not pass the scrutiny of modern day judging! The routes or venues for the great feats were many and varied: The York Road, Newmarket Heath, and in the case of George Wilson, a half mile up and back on Hare and Billet Road, Blackheath for his 1,000 miles in 1,000 hours attempt. Another popular venue was the Royal Agricultural Hall, Islington, which was opened in 1862 and affectionately known as the “Aggie”.
With acknowledgements to Surrey Walking Club – Gazette and Record. The Aggie was a tan (?clay) track of eight laps to the mile, around the body of the hall. The track had overhead gas lighting and British workmen in their thousands would gather to watch the races, almost all of them puffing away on their clay pipes or Woodbines. This was a very stuffy atmosphere for the walkers who would shuffle around the little circuit hour after hour, or even day after day. It was in these circumstances, in 1880, that Billy Howes walked 100 miles in 18 hours 8 minutes 50 seconds, and, continuing, completed 127 miles 1210 yards in 24 hours.
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