norbold

So, just coincidence then?

I agree with all of that. It is very hard to overrate any rider who won four World titles! The only caveat I would add to that is that, after winning the title in 1997, he didn't figure greatly again until after the era of Rickardsson, Crump, Pedersen and Gollob was over, which, I guess, must mean something in where we rate him in the "Best Ever" category.

As some of you know I am chairman of the Trust that owns and runs our local theatre. We have spoken to our insurers about the situation as we are covered for loss of revenue if we have to close for any reason. We have been told that if we decide unilaterally to close we won't get anything, but if the Government or local council tell us we have to close we will. So our view is to wait until we are told. The real problem for us will be if the Government says that all gatherings over 500 are banned as our theatre seats about 580. It is not often we reach that figure and most shows would have audiences under 500, but some coming up in the near future are sold out or very nearly. So do we limit our ticket sales to 500? And what about those shows that have already sold more? Do we just cancel those and keep the others on? Could be a nightmare!

Yep, same here plus tinned Fray Bentos pies!

Well, yes it does. It could mean that riders two and three have actually ridden as a team to keep the fourth rider out, whereas rider one had no intention of riding as a team and just shot off for his individual win. This is a team event and that's why coming second and third is better than first and fourth. League speedway allows for a draw; the SON doesn't.

I agree chunky. Speedway can be an individual sport or a team sport. In the case of the SON, it is a team sport, so why not reward the best TEAM rather than the team with the best individual rider? The individuals can show their prowess in the Grand Prix (or not).

If Samara is the airport there shouldn't be any problem. My wife used to work on a joint Russian/British project and was always flying off to Samara. She was almost a regular commuter. She never had any problems and quite enjoyed her time out there. Though for some unaccountable reason she never went to speedway. Some people, eh!

Good pics, Steve. You must have got there too late to take a picture of my stand... It was a good and very rewarding day for me and, I hope, the WSRA. It was like this....The World Speedway Riders' Association have plans to rebuild and expand their Memorial Garden dedicated to deceased former speedway riders, so I took along some of my books to flog with all the proceeds going to this worthwhile cause. My table was next to Jeremy Luckhurst. Jeremy was selling some speedway memorabilia such as race jackets and speedway related sign boards. So anyway, before the "Celebration" even opened to the public, I sold £50 worth of books to a dealer and then, once it opened, sold a few more to the general public. After about an hour Jeremy said to me, "How much do you want for the lot? I'll buy them all." So he did and we made a nice wodge for the Memorial Garden. Thank you Jeremy. Good to meet up with several old friends as well and a good day was had by all.

So sorry to hear that. I became quite friendly with Len over the years. He was always a very happy and cheerful sort with a great sense of humour. I used to enjoy our little get-togethers. Still, one thing I suppose you can say was that he had a good innings and was still fit and with-it almost to the end. R.I.P., Lenny. You've earned it.

I'm not really sure what the point of this discussion is. I go to Ipswich on a reasonably regular basis and as yet have heard no discussion about Frank Arthur, Vic Huxley, Bluey Wilkinson, Vic Duggan, Jack Young or even Cyril Roger. Does that in some way mean they were not great riders or worth remembering?

Who did he get rid of?

For the first decade of this century there were four outstanding riders, head and shoulders above the rest, and that included Hancock, who had to wait till they had retired or declined before he came back into prominence. They were Rickardsson, Pedersen, Gollob and Crump, with Crump probably second best of that lot. Yes, Crump has been out of the sport for a longish time, but he was in a different league to all but about three or four current PL riders. I can't see him being anything other than a major asset for Ipswich. Good on you, Chris, for signing up one of the all-time greats of speedway.

That's my boy!

Is there a picture of Bob with a young up and coming rider called John Hyam?

Whatever happened to John Hyam? Did he ever make the big time?

I beg to differ.

Yes, as long as you take it with a very large pinch of salt!!!

Some of those books are brilliant....

Not quite. 1957, 1958, 1964 and 1966.

Top. Oh, and don't forget Barry Briggs.

That's your page! I have no problem getting on to Terry Mussett's page.

The 1937 Norwich team consisted of Jock Sweet, Alec Peel, Dick Wise, Wilf Jay, Paul Goodchild, Bill Birtwell, Jim Millward, Alan Smith, the Australian Bert Spencer and, of course, Grosskreutz himself. Over the next couple of years he brought in Wal Morton and Fred Strecker as well as the South African, Keith Harvey.

Both are well worth visiting. Been there many times. There is a particularly good information board in the Museum, explaining "The Start of it All".

When Max Grosskreutz launched the Norwich team in 1937, one of the things he did was to build all the team's bikes.

Thanks for that. Phew! For a minute there, I thought Tom might lose.....