Richard Tyrrell

Hi Steve, nice to talk again. Maybe we could meet half way for a handover? Now where would 75 miles each get us to?

I have a large box of Reading programmes, a large box of Swindon programmes and a large box of assorted track programmes that I inherited from a very good friend of mine. He lived by himself and used to get to speedway most nights of the week ie Reading, Milton Keynes, Coventry, Oxford where he lived, Swindon. Sadly he is no longer with us and I have just got round to thinking about getting rid of the boxes to a good home. But where? Anybody any ideas? Whoever gets them would have to collect from near Oxford. Oh yes, he also left many Oxford programmes but I'm still reluctant to get rid of those although I've got most of them myself! All the programmes go back years from early 1970s.

The Wimbledon situation is just the latest reflection by a bunch of greedy bastards.

OK folks, I stand corrected. I know you shouldn't believe all you read in the papers but I'm a simple soul and was posting from memory. Today's Oxford Mail actually says "Read by 53,233 people in print and online every day" so, yes, I was wrong. Even that figure seems to have reduced by around 5,000. The speedway pages as mentioned have all been sponsored by local businesses and serve at least to keep what has been a regular reminder of the good days to the fore and, hopefully, the good days to come.

Hi Steve Roberts, long time no see! You wouldn't know, living in York, that the Dag Lovaas page in the Backtrack to which you refer has been one of a series of full page adverts that have appeared in the Oxford Mail over recent months, sponsored by local companies. Spencer Timmo has been very prominent in doing this along with others associated with the Save Oxford Stadium project. The pages have created a lot of interest for local speedway fans with Hans Nielsen featured in one of them, the Isle of Wight team in another and a page featuring all the Oxford race jacket designs from 1949, amongst others. The Mail claims an over 58,000 circulation but we're having to be very patient for any decisive news.

I enjoyed watching Todd ride at Oxford but remember a few years ago posting on the Oxford website that is was obvious when he was riding in a Grand Prix at the weekend. His performances in those weeks were below his usual standard and I said that maybe he was saving his best bikes for the GP. His then wife replied on the site and I was well put down! I enjoyed reading Rob's latest article on Todd, Rob has certainly come on in the speedway journalism department! The one question that remained for me, having read the article, was why did Lanney and Horton hang around to make so sure the bikes were removed so suddenly at the end of the Poole meeting? An unexplained mystery?

Hi Folks, I have just posted my feelings, as below, on the Facebook page 'Save Oxford Greyhound Stadium'. I know you can't please all of the people all of the time but feel better now I've had my say!: The latest copy of 'Classic Speedway' dropped through my letterbox this morning. What a pleasant surprise to find a tribute to the first Great Dane, Arne Pander, who is pictured on the cover. I well remember his first meeting for the Cheetahs, he was an overnight sensation as hardly anybody had heard of him before he came to Oxford. There are eight pages inside with several pictures. It is a good article but what a shame they had to wait so long before writing one on Arne. I questioned the owners about this a few years ago and even sent them a photo I had of Arne (in the traditional yellow sash body colour) but nobody did anything about it when, in conjunction with 'Backtrack', they seemingly go to the ends of the earth to find other older riders. In the article Colin Pratt says he was the only speedway related person present at Arne's funeral. That's sad considering how popular he was back in the day and I just felt that such an article could not be published a while ago when Arne would have realised he was still remembered and appreciated. Richard Tyrrell

That's exactly my point - Circus Speedway! The riders don't really belong anywhere. A reason to keep Elite League at arms length, in my view.

Friday night Elite League speedway? This was killed years ago, along with Saturdays, when the Grand Prix stared. So Sittingborne might elect for that - another promotion lured into Circus Speedway with a team one week and loads of guests the next throughout the season due to international commitments. 'Circus Speedway' - the term used when 'top' riders belong to two or three teams throughout Europe and breeze into town to ride for 'their' team once a week. (As an aside, I wonder how Kings Lynn supporters feel that Rory Schlein was injured riding for a Polish club? Bad enough that he is injured at all, lets hope he gets well soon, but 'your' rider riding for someone else?

Car racing would be far better if they put the fastest cars at the back. That would be far more interesting over 70 odd laps as opposed to now where I believe sometimes happens that the fastest car leads for 70 odd laps, start to finish. Is that racing?

Yea, me too!!

Does the Speedway Star Xtra contain all the magazine content? For instance, on the cover of last weeks issue it stated 'Ringwood return' but, having scoured the pages, I could find any mention of this inside. Did I miss something?

Oh dear, Bryn!! I suppose its the right end of the season to do something like that? Plenty of time to get better and ready for next season? Get well soon!

I have two tickets available for the Cardiff Grand Prix as I now can't go! They are at the concession price of £19 each and situated in the 'air horn free' zone in the upper block U14, row 6. Please contact me if you are interested. Regards

This is terrific news!!! I just wish it had happened in Oxford.

Certainly made a World Final trip to Wroclaw in 1992 well worth the trouble. Great memories!! And good luck!

For me the decline of speedway started with the ease of international travel. When I started going riders by and large belonged to the clubs they rode for and there was loyalty and continuity with some big star meetings annually at most tracks. There was a Golden Helmet series after which the two combatants stayed and rode in the second half. Visiting teams only visited once a season, maybe twice in a knockout cup, and these matches became 'must see' matches if you wanted to see their top riders. International club teams visited to tour and there were international Test matches with the mystique of visiting riders of which little was known. Compare that to today. Loyalty? Forget it. I read in this weeks Star, for instance, the goings on between Coventry/Brimingham/Kings Lynn over riders. Its been the same for years and will be into the future, and these riders all 'belong' to clubs in three/four different countries. With the guest rider system you could see the same riders every fortnight, or every week if you've got Sky. And thats another problem. Why not stay at home and watch the invitation world championship? Top flight speedway has become one big travelling international circus and I don't know how you can now stop it. So don't miss it when it comes to your town, the field the tents are pitched on may be needed for housing!

Don't you just love somebody who only posts half a story??

Seems like another Oxford to me.

I have never understood why the water truck waters the outside of the track near the fence on the bends where the riders never go, and the track gets graded from the outside near the fence and the middle strip of the bends but not the blue line that was so apparent last night. The riders never go out there by choice, only if their momentum carries them that far in the slide. This seems to have grown to be the norm at several tracks around the country and not just at Reading last night. Tracks I've seen prepared by Bob Dugard at Eastbourne are graded from the fence to the white line and look the same before each race. As for lack of staff at Reading last night, three of them were more interested in wiping dirt off the sponsors banners than they were in track prep. And the GB performance? They did better than I expected (Dad's Army, etc) Its a bit like football. We can't expect a great national team when we pay lip service to things like Youth development and then gleefully stock our national league teams with foreign riders who proceed to beat us on our own tracks. Unfortunately you can't have it both ways. As they say on Big Brother - you decide - but it seems the decision has already been taken some while ago.

Thats what I've been saying for years - it just needed some of those sleepers they took off the bends, to provide for some under cover terracing to give a bit of height onto the track. But, with their history, I doubt if it will be anything as good as that, though, even for a British Speedway showcase.

So, with the first event happening at Reading next Thursday, is there any sign of some improvements for spectators on the back straight, or is it still a 'no go' area?

Then why not arrange from the start to hold it at an established stadium that isn't in dire, immediate need of alteration ie Poole, Sheffield, Peterborough, all of which have staged successful international events in the past? Regards

But think of the money Postlethaite will save, and hope to make, by staging it in his own stadium!!

TMC, Good to know that there will be something in one of your magazines about Arne Pander soon, I am looking forward to it. As an addition, I got over to Czech recently for the Golden Helmet for the first time. Also took in the Lubos Tomicek Memorial meeting in Prague. I was surprised to see that the meeting was the 37th in the series, quite something for a memorial where, sadly, many get forgotten along the way. Any chance of a revealing article about Tomicek in one of your mags - I did see him ride in the 1965 World Final and for Prague at Oxford on tours in 1967/68 and it would be great to know more about him. Regards