britmet

The transition from speedway to Ice racing apparently isn't easy. Ivan Mauger, just the year before winning his first World Championship, - 3rd in the World on shale - , was entered into the World Ice qualifiers. He came 16th (out of 16) and didn't participate again. http://www.speedwaychampions.com/ice-champions.php

Best of luck you guys cancelling Sky. Its a lot harder that you'd hope, according to all the letter columns and complaints on the press 'help' pages.

. The scheme in Malaysia that Mauger ran was supported by the government of the day to keep the youngsters off the streets and out of trouble. (It mainly used mopeds and small such bikes stripped down, with just a few pukka bikes and displays of what we know as broadsiding speedway.) . When the government changed the new administration weren't interested and the scheme collapsed. .

YES !

The 125 Championship was a one-off mtg at P'boro in June, . . . but I can't find anything about a 2015 150cc championship. . ? . The British Lions site, 'Info/History' page says "In 2014 we also ran for the 1st time a one off 150cc final, on the same rules." . Is there one in 2015 ?

Always remembered, Cradley 1963.

. There has been re-awakened interest amongst riders at Walkerville near Johannesburg in the last few months and again last Sunday, as rider registrations for the meeting for the Boet Strydom Best Pairs meeting were up. (Like m/bike clubs in the UK, participants pay an entry fee to race, - as well as for preceding weekends' practices ! - , the purse being divi'd out to the top 3 of each class.) As well as solo Speedway, the 26 heat programme also featured Sidecar, Flat-Track and Quad racing, plus a PeeWee class for the club's infant family members. . Former Scunthorpe and Heathens' rider Byron Bekker scored 11 points, (having team-ridden his partner Justin Steyn into first place in one of their heats,) but Steyn's fall in their Semi-final meant that the trophy ultimately went to Mario van der Merwe and Grant Frank after defeating Lyle Kotze & Robin Brill in the Final. 17 year old Brill was nominated 'Man of the Meeting'. Derrick '2Dogz' Hilliar was unbeaten in the Sidecar class. Report & Results. .

. More than 'half-decent' ! . . Arthur's highest levels of achievement in motorcycle sport were as a member of the British ISDT team (International Six Day Trial,) mostly on a big Cheney-Triumph, during both the '60s and all of the '70s, representing his country at senior level all over the world in the annual event, (which subsequently morphed into the ISDE.) .

Arthur, . .Always remembered by me as the rider that jumped the canyon on a motorbike to deliver the box of Black Magic chocolates in the first such TV ad, . . . as well as many good times traveling the country with the Brum team in the early '70s in that silver Ford Cortina 1600E. Like Trigger's broom, it had done 250,000 miles and was on its third engine. . The Cortina towed a trailer, so said because though Arthur could get his bike on the back of it, he needed a trailer to carry his size 12 boots !

. i) There may be a requirement for a new stadium to be built, but if that's the requirement it doesn't stipulate that said stadium has to run speedway. Lay turf, . . pay football, . . and the req't is satisfied. . ii) There may well be a covenant in place, but there have been many instances, after the passage of say, 5 - 10 years or so, that covenants have been changed / revoked. .

. Yes, Woodbines and Park Drive were 1/3, and Players & Senior Service were the classy cigs at 1/6. ! ( circa 1958/59.)

.. The result was 22- 38 to Penhall's team. I'll message you with a scan .of the speedway page from the programme. .

. Byron Bekker returned to his home track outside Johannesburg last week and led his family team, (in memory of uncle Des Bekker,) to a clear cut 32-10 win. In his first meeting this year he was unbeaten with 3 easy wins. Full results and photos on Speedway-SA ,

. Just a reflection of the status of UK speedway throughout ! .

. It still goes on ! - That list's incomplete. See this one, (- last table on page, along with the Brandonapolis and the Olympique.) Stadium owners, the Cearns, still stage it, now at their Sittingbourne track. .

(I've not trawled thru all the previous 114 posts, just the first few today, so if other posters have responded similarly, it says something !, . .but . . . ) . . .When I was dope & oiling in the 60s & '70s I'd often volunteer to do the driving back home so a rider could get some sleep, as he had to turn in for work the next morning ! It would often be 3am. when we got back, occasionally later. To stay overnight was unthinkable, - the cost. ! ! ( . and today's motorway network has got to make the traveling easier.) No adverting allowed back then, - no sponsors picking up the tab, . . it all came out of your own pocket! Riders then rode for the thrill and enjoyment of competing. In other motor-cycle sports today, and some cars at dirt ovals, riders pay to enter a race, knowing that just the 1,2,3 (out of a large field,) would get a monetary prize, - or sometimes just a cup - , and they're content to compete on that basis. Get real, fella ! .

It's good-bye again to Wembley speedway in Johannesburg, South Africa, as today's Wembley Raceway goes up for sale for site redevelopment. Joburg's original Wembley Stadium was initially built for dog racing but changed to staging dirt-track speedway post-war when track betting in the Union was prohibited. It was the scene of many internationals, MRCs and league racing, replicating the UK scene and featuring the likes of world champs Briggs, Moore, Fundin, Williams, plus Nygren, Crutcher, and locals, Henry Long, Buddy Fuller and Fred Wills, etc. Wembley Stadium was demolished in 1978: Wembley Raceway was constructed c.1990, primarily for Oval car racing but with speedway bikes in composite meetings, run throughout the '90s and early '00s until the track was tarmac'd over. This Wheels24 article carrying the news wrongly attributes South Africa's speedway heydays to one single site: soon both will be gone! Speedway-SA

Depending where you are postage could be bind. I used Hermes, ~half PO price, either collected or drop off at your local grocery store. https://www.myhermes.co.uk/send-a-parcel.html

Send them to the Speedway Museum at Paradise Park. They sell off progs & mags to help fund the place. Peter Sampson - Director Paradise Wildlife Park White Stubbs Lane, Broxbourne, Herts. EN10 7QA peter@pwpark.com Telephone: 01992 470490 ext 230 Fax: 01992 440525

It was to be hoped that the myths that existed about these Paris meetings before internet research of the last 10 years or so clarified the situation would have been eliminated, but apparently not so. Promoted by an Anglo-French consortium, the Paris championships ended in 1935 when the Wembley event was organised for '36 and replaced it. Schneeweiss's 'claim-to-fame' championship of 1937 was the European Championship, (staged in Prague.) The 1934 Paris World Championship programme made clear that its 1933 World Champ was Fernand Meynier., (scans of this have been posted on several websites in recent past years incl'g OTS,) also thus debunking the names given above prior to that meeting other than Lamont, - the '31 Champ - , and Wilkinson, - the '32 Champ, the first two. There was no World Chmpshp in '29 & '30. Many big-name meetings were regularly held in Paris, (incl'g European Championships staged there in '32-'34 inclusive, the winners being Meynier, 3x, and Bellisent, in '34,) for which the above listed names may well have been the winners - , but of the list, only Lamont (in '31) and Wilkinson could claim the World title.

..... (Prompt report from FIM for a change. Last place I'd expect to look at this early hour.) What a close finish, - 2 pts between the top 4 teams. The first time Germany have been knocked off the top spot. Well done boys. . And how pleased must Mitch Godden have been to collect the trophy named after his father ! .

. Where can we see the scores?

. All up-to-date Bronze Helmet winners, - and past Gold and Silver Helmet and Sash winners - , can be found on the 'British Match Race Champions' page of the Speedway Champions website.

"Do averages tell us the full story?" A man has his feet in 2 bowls of water, the average temperature of which is 50 deg.C. According to the average he should be pleasantly content, BUT . . . one bowl is full of boiling water at 100 C. , . . . the other is full of iced water at 0 deg.C. In reality he's in extreme pain from both feet ! Answer to the question? - You decide. .

There is no such rule !