The NCU made a determined effort to promote bicycle racing in Scotland and the NCU (Glasgow Centre) held an evening meeting on July 30th 1885 to decide their one mile bicycle and tricycle championships. The meeting was very successful, attracting a thousand spectators and the racing was exciting, particularly the tricycle championship race which was won by Inglis inches ahead of Hutton, who were both riding "Genuine Humber" machines.
The five miles Championship of Scotland was held at Queen's Park on 9th July 1885, together with a two miles handicap and a novices handicap. Bellahouston BC held their two miles Championship on August 29th 1885. Queen's Park FC sports meetings resumed on 5th September 1885 and the success of this event at their previous ground was repeated, with a crowd of over 6,000 attending the sports. Two bicycle races were included, a one mile open handicap race which was won by TD Oliver of Jesmond BC, Newcastle and a two miles members handicap won by SA McArthur of Langside BC riding a new Humber bicycle, weighing 20½ lbs.
The Queen's Park annual sports and Scottish Championship races were the mainstay of bicycle race meetings at Hampden for the next eighteen years. In 1886, the Scottish one mile bicycle and five miles tricycle championship races were held on 16th June and the Queen's Park FC annual sports attracted over 3,000 spectators and included one and two miles bicycle races and a one mile tricycle race.
The Queen's Park FC sports were normally held in September, but in 1887, Queen Victoria's Jubilee year, they moved to June 11th. The chief attraction at the meeting was William Illston of Speedwell BC, the English 25 miles NCU champion, he rode in the one mile handicap race and beat the Scottish mile record in the heats. Illston won the three miles handicap race, JM Inglis won the one mile tricycle handicap race and an Edinburgh pair won the two miles tandem tricycle race. There was professional racing at Hampden on June 15th 1887, when a touring group of American professionals competed against English and Scottish professionals. Fred Lees* from Leicester won the five miles professional race off scratch, with a new Scottish record time. There was some top class bicycle and tricycle racing and a display of trick riding from Ralph Temple**, the Chicago champion.
In the late 1880s there was an influx of athletic and cycling members to Hampden FC who wanted to use the facilities. A gymnasium was added to the pavilion in 1889 with an instructor from Glasgow University.
The 1890s was a busy time at Hampden Park, the annual Queen's Park Athletic Sports continued, there was an SCU International meeting, SCU West of Scotland Championships races and various other Glasgow club events. Robert Vogt was a regular at Hampden, he held Scottish, English and World records at various distances, Vogt rode a Glasgow-made New Howe Company bicycle, Vogt was probably a ‘makers-amateur' for the company.
The 1893 Queen's Park annual sports had an attendance of 15,000 with 511 competitors. The top event was a five miles invitation scratch race, on the last lap, Charlie Barden^ surged to the front, followed by Vogt, who spurted past Barden to win by a wheel. Entrance to the sports at this time cost six pence (ladies free) and a shilling in the grandstand
The West of Scotland Harriers started to hold athletics meetings at Hampden Park in the 1890s which included around four bicycle races, they also ran evening races and a two day meeting on June 18th and 20th 1892. The West of Scotland Harriers meetings became very popular and, unlike Queen's Park meetings, professional races were include in the program, with top class English and Scottish professionals.
Queen's Park held an athletics meeting on June 1st 1902 at the Glasgow International Exhibition ground, which included a series of bicycle races. In 1902 they also held their annual athletic sports and the Queen's Park Cycling Club championship sports. The Queen's Park CC club championship meeting on Wednesday July 1st 1903 was probably the last bicycle racing at Hampden Park.
Hampden Park was one of the leading football grounds in Scotland, it hosted Scottish Cup finals and international matches and had football crowds of 50,000 in its heyday. Queen's Park FC needed to enlarge their ground to compete with the other leading stadiums for high level football fixtures, but their landlord refused more land, so they moved to their present ground at Mount Florida in October 1903. When the club left the ground, Third Lanark FC moved in and re-named the stadium ‘New Cathkin Park' after the name of their old ground, it became known later simply as Cathkin Park. Third Lanark went out of business in 1967 and Cathkin Park is now a public park, amateur football games are played there and much of the original terracing still evident.
* Fred Lees from Sheffield was one of the great professional riders in the 1880s. He won several 6 day races, he was the 100 miles British professional champion in 1882 and 1883 and the 25 miles English professional champion in 1887.
** Ralph Temple won the twenty miles Championship of the World in 1888 at Leicester.
^ Charlie Barden was a famous and popular English professional track rider, he was an English champion and record holder and twice finished second in the World Championships. He was trained by the notorious Choppy Warburton.
