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Even as a Hyde Road regular I cannot vouch for the truth of that at all. Both great riders in different eras. But your black and white narrative is untrue and clouded in sentimentality. PC opted out of British Speedway and riding for Belle Vue and England in 1981 and again in 85 (making himself only available for selection for the World Pairs if required). As I understand it, he was also ruthless in his financial negotiations with Belle Vue, even coming close to going to Leicester and King's Lynn in the 80s. PC did what was best for PC. Fair enough. It's a short career and he understood his value and leveraged it. I'm sure Tai Woffinden has a similar approach. It's no coincidence that some of the most successful riders in the sport's history - Mauger, Briggs, Fundin, Olsen, Pedersen, Rickardsson all put themselves first and foremost. That's what separates the great from the very good. Just as PC is not Mr Perfect, neither is Tai Woffinden Dr Evil either. He has raised £100k for Great Ormond Street and £35 for Cancer Research UK.

Morning On a much less serious note; here is a true story I have just read; how do I know it was true? well it was on the internet so it must be... So there was this man in Bulgaria who drove trains for a living. He loved his job. Driving a train had been his dream ever since he was a child. He loved to make the train go as fast as possible. Unfortunately, one day he was a little too reckless and caused a crash. He made it out, but a single person died. Well, needless to say, he went to court over this incident. He was found guilty, and was sentenced to death by electrocution. When the day of the execution came, he requested a single banana as his last meal. After eating the banana, he was strapped into the electric chair. The switch was thrown, sparks flew, and smoke filled the air - but nothing happened. The man was perfectly fine. Well, at the time, there was an Old Bulgarian law that said a failed execution was a sign of divine intervention, so the man was allowed to go free. Somehow, he managed to get his old job back driving the train. Having not learned his lesson at all, he went right back to driving the train with reckless abandon. Once again, he caused a train to crash, this time killing two people. The trial went much the same as the first, resulting in a sentence of execution. For his final meal, the man requested two bananas. After eating the bananas, he was strapped into the electric chair. The switch was thrown, sparks flew, smoke filled the room - and the man was once again unharmed. Well, this of course meant that he was free to go. And once again, he somehow managed to get his old job back. To what should have been the surprise of no one, he crashed yet another train and killed three people. And so he once again found himself being sentenced to death. On the day of his execution, he requested his final meal: three bananas. "You know what? No," said the executioner. "I've had it with you and your stupid bananas and walking out of here unharmed. I'm not giving you a thing to eat; we're strapping you in and doing this now." Well, it was against protocol, but the man was strapped in to the electric chair without a last meal. The switch was pulled, sparks flew, smoke filled the room - and the man was still unharmed. The executioner was speechless. The man looked at the executioner and said, "Oh, the bananas had nothing to do with it. Not only am I rubbish at driving trains; I'm a bad conductor too." Regards THJ

I'm getting tired of you coming up with such sensible and well thought-out posts. There is clearly no place for you on the BSF...

Well the craic is "if" the restrictions are lifted they will have a go in running and if it's August the talk was of 6 North 6 South leagues and a play off between the top two. Time will ultimately be the deciding factor as to what can be fitted in... The issue for clubs next year will be where do they get sponsorship from as everyone's pockets will be in lock-down mode for some time to come and I can see this potentially pushing some clubs over the edge... Plus how hard has the fan base been hit with an average crowd age that must be pushing 60+ how many of them are stilll around and of those who are how many would want to attend an event where social distancing is difficult to achieve... Some big decisions to be made that's for sure and there are no daft ideas at the moment I would say that nothing is off the table... Regards THJ

Honestly You would think that though wouldn't you because you are just an antagonistic A-wipe who should crawl back under your rock... So now you have had a bite you can "pull the heed of the chicken" and give yourself your cheap thrill... and move on... A total tool... who talks complete and utter keache... What people have mainly expressed is how they are impressed with the effort and support to the local community the promotion put in and how they are promoting the club and supporting speedway... genuine positive comments about a genuine club and genuine people... Best laugh is I bet you haven't watched the documentary you have just made the comment for effect... Sooner the schools go back the better... Regards THJ

Speedway Quiz night tonight and every Friday 8pm on You Tube, get your pens and paper ready. search speedway quiz night.

The sooner the government realises that they need to get folk back to work the better

Collins did he ever make the gate at Hyde Rd??? i often think he gets forgotten Garry certainly when Tai is concerned.With a bit of luck he could of won three world titles the thing with Peter was he was around with three legends in there pomp Ivan, Ole, Anders.He took it to them and was on a level with them also he was the most exciting rider to watch in the world.I don't know what has gone on but one of my greatest wishes would be for Belle Vue now to bury the hatchet with Peter and let's see him at the NSS on a regular basis.Was thinking god what would Peter be like at the NSS the track would be made for him he could pass anywhere inside or out.

Some of the 'old stuff' on YouTube wouldn't get seen in a good light by a wider non Speedway audience if shown on the mainstream channels, simply because so much of it was filmed with production qualities which were 'wedding video' standard, and many commentaries were pretty average, done by well meaning amateurs... No fault of whoever produced them, that was just the technology of the time outside of the main TV channels.. Even the newly formed Satellite company's old work looks well dated (as done in SD), and often one camera action... Watching the many meetings available does though show that, for me, so much of what we have today is at least as good, and often better, racing wise, than the 'old stuff', and some of the production standards are excellent.. I would suggest a decent marketing team could make something out of the raw material of the racing and would be able to make personalities out of the riders if given a chance... Employing one of them to do a joined up national advertising campaign using the best clips from today during this 'down time', would be far better for the sport than just putting out random Speedway on TV (to a mainly non plussed audience), I would say..

You are right Sid and Falcace, I think its disgusting how people on this most interesting thread are focusing on Cradley's pork sarnies I for one am searching out food websites for posh recipes and restaurants and also Jamie Olivers site (who wants to eat those friggin' veggies as per his School Dinners show)Thus I will never mention the CH pork sarnies on this thread ever again!!. They weren't half good though!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Can't say I blame you! Pork and stuffing sarny sounds good right about now...

2018 Premiership Riders final from Poole on Monday 20th April. Followed by Poole v Wolves 2004 Elite League Final 2nd leg on Wednesday 22nd April.

No it wasn`t but no doubt Poole will be showing that next week.

Very poor from BSI, there are bound to be people who either cant or dont want to go to the re-arranged date. BSI need to understand that people bought their tickets in good faith about seeing a meeting. Had the meeting been called off due to the weather I suppose they have an argument but not under these circumstances, as I say very poor IMO. Maybe if their contact wasn't coming to an end they would care a bit more.

Just a shame that neither Oxford or Reading are involved now...cracking local derbies down the years. Now only "The Budgies" exist.

Now that the riders have given insights to tracks it might be interesting, to some, on how & why it is difficult to find to find the perfect set up. The bikes are very similar so the biggest part is getting the right engine to suit the right rider on the right track. We hear about off-set engines, long & short stroke, the different cams & flywheels used. Just how does a rider set his bike up? What changes are made during a meeting & why? Jet sizes, warm or cold weather conditions, slick, greasy or heavy(lots of shale or ploughed up) racing surface, changing sprocket sizes, changing timing. The supporters might get a better idea of what the riders & mechanics do during a meeting & why, it seems, is a difficult sport.

1989, Ipswich 1 Chris Louis, 2 Peter Chapman, 3 Mark Loram, 4 Alan Mogridge, 5 Dean Standing, 6 Robbie Fuller, 7 Kevin Teager. Hackney 1 Andy Galvin, 2 Barry Thomas, 3 Steve Schofield, 4 Paul Whittaker, 5 Gary Tagg, 6 Warren Mowat, 7 Michael Warren. 1990, Ipswich 1 Chris Louis, 2 R/R David Norris, 3 Dean Standing, 4 Alan Mogridge, 5 Shane Parker, 6 Robbie Fuller, 7 Craig Hyde, 8 Darren Fitch D/N/R. Hackney 1 Andy Galvin, 2 Gary Tagg, 3 Steve Schofield, 4 Paul Whittaker, 5 Tim Korneliussen, 6 Michael Warren, 7 Ian Humphreys.

Who's that noisy git

Issue 96 is out now and here's a small taste of the feast of nostalgia inside . . . JEREMY DONCASTER: Life & Times Continuing our new series of in-depth timeline profiles, ROB PEASLEY chronicles the career of the former England, Ipswich and Reading No.1 who successfully made the leap from grasstrack to top flight British League racing in the early 80s. RAIN, RAIN GO AWAY Is there another summertime spectator sport in Britain more susceptible to the weather than speedway? In this comprehensive and revealing study, DOUG NICOLSON examines the costly issue of rain-offs during the Backtrack era, from 1970 to 1989. Which clubs had the most/least postponements? What were the wettest/driest months and seasons? Which unlucky club endured 12 meetings in one summer? And which lucky venue went four consecutive years without a single wash-out? All these questions and many more are answered in this fascinating, in-depth analysis. BIG NIGHTS: Golden Gauntlets PHIL CHARD continues to review some of British speedway's most prestigious individual meetings. This time he is back in Leicester to re-visit the annual Blackbird Road classic. Past winners of the 11 Golden Gauntlets, introduced in 1972, include hat-trick hero Scott Autrey, plus Ole Olsen, Anders Michanek, John Boulger, John Louis, Peter Collins, Phil Crump, Tommy Knudsen and Kenny Carter. TRACK RIVALRIES: Hackney v Wimbledon Reviewing club rivalries, ROB PEASLEY recalls classic matches between London's last two teams. With quotes from Dons' Terry Mussett and Kestrels' Paul Whittaker, match winners and other key men included Ronnie Moore, Jim Tebby, Gary Everett, Garry Middleton, Trevor Hedge, Tommy Jansson, Bo Petersen, Zenon Plech. And from the National Leaghue era, Trevor Banks, Paul Bosley, Mike Ferreira, Jamie Luckhurst, Andy Galvin, Todd Wiltshire, Kevin Jolly, Garry Rolls. BACKCHAT MARTIN ROGERS answers readers' questions on . . . riders' averages and whether any of his team members gave their personal figures undue attention; merits of the Anglia and Central Junior League; his England and Rest of the World 'Dream Teams' of the 70s; and the three speedway people (living or deceased) he would invite to dinner. ALAN SAGE: Exclusive interview By a very fortunate twist of fate, Alan Sage turned down an invite to join West Ham's tour that left six people dead. In this new interview with ANDREW SKEELS, the former Hammer and Crayford star reveals the full story behind his lucky Lokeren escape. THAT NAME RINGS A BELL: King's Lynn Whatever became of them, all the ex-riders who had second-half races, junior matches or interval spins in the 70s and 80s at . . . KING'S LYNN? In this memory-jogger, we list all those budding one-time Saddlebow Road hopefuls, who ranged from a future World Champion to obscure novices, who can at least look back and proclaim: "I had a go!" Plus . . . brief obits on Roman Matousek, Doug Templeton, Mike Raymond, Darrell Mason and Ken Archer. Although we no longer sell single issues, if you wish to take out a new subscription now at www.retro-speedway.com, then just ask Susie to commence it with this issue 96 (97 has just been published).

somehow if poss . it would be good to see some sports returning to a normal schedule of fixtures and stuff . but , in the bigger picture would it not be better to see this covid problem out to the bitter end and save everyone from any doubt that covid is finally gone . lets just forget about 2020 and look forward to next season (2021) knowing that we can attend speedway meetings, horse and footy matches without any fear of getting something we dont really want . its for the greater good, innit ......

Only in the mind-baffling world of speedway can you cancel a qualifier (Abensberg) for 1st June, in the same country where you are still selling tickets for the SGP (in Teterrow) , 2 days earlier.

The USPGA are intending to start up in June with the first four tournaments played without spectators. Some live sport on TV would be nice, even golf

Trump say's he will open the stadiums gradually....first empty, then with maybe two seats space between everybody.... In Germany the horse racing fraternity are hoping to start in May with no spectators. Of course mostly paid for by betting anyway. Even my local trotting track, you get in free for most meetings.....football might start up again without spectators here

Great point Steve , even though he did not achieve as much as Peter ( he still had a fantastic career) for me as racers there was not that much between them.Chris longevity wise was terrific a great team man and influence and for excitement there were not to many better .His pass of Carter in the 1983 Northern riders championship ( on you tube) was sublime never tire of watching that.Also he beat Hans in the 1984 BLRC when Hans was getting near to being the superstar he was no mean feat indeed.

News from poland, no mass gatherings for the rest of the year. looks like racing behind closed doors without spectators June or July being mentioned and thats only if the TV company comes up with sufficient cash. So I can't see speedway in the UK starting this season.

Correct in parts. England never won it again after Chris and PC did the business for both their club, country and city.

Any chance of showing the 1999 Premier Trophy final with Newport???

1976 for me. I had just left school and started my job and (of course) the long hot summer came along soon afterwards! Watching PC dominate the league season and go on to take the title in Katowice - priceless. It was also the year that Alan Wilkinson took another step forward to become a true heat leader. Great racing at Hyde Road with brilliant visitors such as Jessup, D Morton, Simmons, Betts, Wyer and Olsen. Happy days!

Apologies, I didn't realise. So if I've understood you correctly, the Dugards no longer have any involvement in the running of the speedway then? How come a number of them got involved in the Glasgow fracas last season?

Miss a year. 2020 GP top 15 remains for 2021.

Teo with Ian Williams, taken around the time he arrived here .

One of the best Speedway videos I have seen. Struck the perfect balance between racing and the human element. Every track should strive to match the way this promotion treats its customers whilst maintaining a professional approach and a desire to win without having the extreme “win at all costs” attitude which pervades too many tracks these days. It was a bit like going back before the “me” culture of the mid 1980’s kicked off the rot which has led to a steady decline in the sport ever since. good luck to the Glasgow organisation, they deserve all the success possible. Any locals who see this will surely be tempted to go along to sample what is on offer themselves. And that my friends is what should be the absolute priority of ALL promoters.

Colin Pratt also deserves a mention as a former Provincial League rider who came good.

Anyone can have an Audi, BMW, Mercedes etc. these days if they’re willing to pay monthly and never own the vehicle. Doesn’t mean the fans are affluent, just that they might not have their priorities in the right place. Speedway fans, Speedway mindset.

Were they really two of the greatest races ever seen? Would the similar races in a league match be seen the same way? It was the very fact that they were World Final races in a packed Wembley stadium that made those races stand out through time. For me, possibly the best race I've ever seen was the heat 13 at Belle Vue, when Max Fricke went from last to first while the other 3 riders kept changing positions. The races between Penhall and Olsen/Knudsen never came close to that. But they are the ones that will go down in history. And that is because they were at a Wembley world final. You talk about poor racing at Cardiff, but Harris beating Hancock to win a Grand Prix final was on a par with the Penhall races from Wembley.

With anything written it's the way you read it. I didn't see any issue with it

Rob McCaffery telling someone that they are trying to sound superior .. my irony meter has gone crazy

I'm sure it will come as a major surprise to some .not so much to others though , the Fire Brigade are at Brandon trying to put out a fire in the main stand

For me, Tai was not a patch on PC. One was a rider who won all there was to win, turned up and proudly rode for their country winning ten world championship honours, and was the darling of the sport and further popularised it at the time. The other was, in comparison, someone who could not be arsed, as it was all about him. Sad but true.