steve roberts

Recall Martin Ashby being 'persuaded' by Wally Mawdsley to miss the practice session for the 1968 World Final (Ullevi) to ride a club meeting at Oxford. He worked on his bike thru' the night and then caught the charter plane from Luton the following day.

I took part in an Olle Nygren Training School many years ago at King's Lynn. A real character. My brother also went (wearing Briggo Team Leathers) prior to me and shared a bike with Chris Prime who was later killed at Brough Park.

I enjoy reading your comments...always constructive and always open to debate.

Strewth! I knew that it didn't look right when I typed it...!

Crumbs! At this rate there will be a need to have a speedway in York!

When I lived in Oxford I used to walk to Sandy Lane from my house in Littlemore (20 minutes). I gave up travelling to other venues during the last five years of my going to speedway except on the very odd occasion.

Trouble is there has always been a reluctance of Promoters to issue 'official' attendance figures. Why one may ask?

Living in York (and working within the Tourism Industry myself) I have never heard locals discuss or talk about speedway. I guess that because York has never had a speedway (a meeting did take place down the road at Green Hammerton during the early eighties) nobody is aware of the sport despite Sheffield having run for many years. However when I talk to visitors to York the number of people that say that they used to go to speedway but no longer do is interesting. Many years ago I remember seeing Eastbourne Speedway posters around Brighton but that might have something to do with the Dugard Family living in Hove I believe.

I activated a similar thread many months ago after meeting a Birmingham fan at my place of work. He tried to assure and/or convince me that attendances were on the up, generally, in speedway.

I guess that Ronnie Moore must be up there somewhere?

Personally I tire of yet another thread asking what the fans want as nobody in 'authority' apparently listens! I've commented elsewhere on numerous threads regarding this subject and really can't be bothered raising them all again. Speedway will continuously plod along on its merry self destructive way (the domestic programme trying to run alongside the GPs, teams full of unpronounceable foreign riders, forever changing rules, lack of tactical awareness, emphasis on bikes, lack of continuity etc etc)

Brilliant programme!

I think that Tony Lomas was later involved with antiques?

Good to read comments by White Knight and Gustix....welcome back!

Happened to pass Sunderland Stadium by chance today on my way back to York from Tynemouth. Couldn't resist calling in although everything was locked up and there wasn't a sole in sight. Couldn't help thinking of 'Crazy' Jack Millen when taking photos of the exterior!

Just updated my post!

Remember well Larry's warming up exercises flexing his shoulders as he rode round to the tapes! He was the only rider (other than Alf Busk) who succeeded in riding around White City very close to the fence picking up plenty of drive (scoring 17 points in the process during a league encounter between 'The Rebels' and Wimbledon in 1977).

Interesting article regarding the Peter Craven crash in the latest edition of 'Classic Magazine' (another superb magazine) where one time Edinburgh and Berwick rider Ian Paterson quotes: "There had been a bit of needle before they (Craven & Hunter) went out for the race. Hoskins was saying that Craven had to start off a 20 yard handicap but George didn't want any advantage handed to him, so he wanted to start level with Peter" "I'm not sure if those two started behind the other two in the race or whether all four started from the line, but Hunter and Craven definitely started alongside each other. Those two were so far ahead of the others when the crash happened. They say that Hunter's bike seized but I didn't think so...and I think that George just overdid it going into the corner" "His bike went down but then it started spinning around. Peter definitely had enough time to lay his bike down but he must have thought that he could go through the gap (between Hunter's bike and the wooden board safety fence). Trouble was, the gap shut on him at the wrong bloody time. It looked bad. But not horrendous." Personally never a fan of 'handicap' racing. During the early sixties it was decided that the 'Big Four' (Fundin, Briggs, Craven and Knutson) would be handicapped to add 'excitement' to the proceedings before 'Briggo' threatened to retire if the system wasn't dropped.

Sorry didn't read the question properly!

Has to be Scunthorpe?

Many thanks for that! Chance of another?

Dave any chance putting me out of my misery?

When I first went to speedway the behaviour of bikes were very different to when I stopped going (thirty year gap) To begin with riders would rev the engines whilst waiting for the tapes to rise. Now it's a case of turning the throttle full on. Riders would use the throttle to adjust the speed when entering the bend and cornering...constantly tweaking. Now it's just full on with perhaps a slight tweak when entering a bend. Riders starting to adjust their styles tending to leg trail rather than the old fashion foot forward style which makes altering direction when cornering more difficult. When I tried riding a two valve Jawa you could sense how heavy the bike was and required much throttle control to keep the bike going in the direction you so wished. Apparently the JAP was a real difficult ride and without the proper respect would only want to take you out to the fence!

I always found Larry Ross' analogy regarding travelling around the country to various tracks interesting when he first came to Britain. Apparently he would always have to start his journey from Plough Lane to travel across London and beyond. 'I knew may way across London but I had to start from Wimbledon. If I was starting from, say Kingston, I couldn't go across London to the M1 unless I went to Wimbledon first, and then I'd be able to find my way!'

Absolutely brilliant post! Set me up for work this morning! These stories would make a great book...or at least make it into the 'Backtrack' magazine! 'Speedway Travellers Tails!' I'm sure that I've told this story before but my first trip to Cradley on a Sunday (an England vs. USA Test Match) Could I find the track? I spent what seemed like hours driving around Dudley getting more and more frustrated. Then I happened to notice a car with a speedway sticker in his rear window and I'm thinking 'great'. So I follow him around what was apparently a housing estate ('no problems' I think) until he pulls up outside his drive with me behind. 'Thought that you were following me' he said! He was only going home for some lunch before going on to the speedway! He did, at least, explain to me how to get to the track which I was obviously grateful for. Never had a problem from that day on finding the track...with the leaning house opposite the entrance!