Ross Garrigan

Norman, how right you are. Memories, hear-say and folk law can't be relied upon as being historically accurate. During my years of research I constantly came across written comments, and even had some made to me by former riders' family and friends, which were not accurate. Lionel Van Praag, Ron Johnson, Bluey Wilkinson, Bill Kitchen, Vic Huxley, and Jack Young are just some former greats I carried out research on and encountered the problem of faulty memories. When researching Bluey Wilkinson's first season racing in the UK (1929) I found a 1930 interview he gave on the subject of his arrival in England the previous year. His memory had let him down in just 12 months. Riders, and riders' family and friends, who comment years, and even decades, after events take place, are prone to passing on inaccurate comment. I put those who write on the subject of speedway history in two baskets, those who read and regurgitate what others have already written on a subject, and those who make the time and effort to do the research themselves. The former group are the ones who perpetuate speedway myths as they are just reproducing what others have already written. The material they use is only as accurate as what others have already used. I don't consider these type of speedway writers to be "historians". I admire immensely the second group of speedway history writers, and I have the honour of numbering about a dozen of these people as friends. People would be horrified if I was to relate how much money my decade-long speedway research has cost me, the figure runs into thousands of Australian dollars. My research and documentation of Bluey Wilkinson's first season racing in the UK took nearly five years. I set out originally to disprove yet another Johnnie Hoskins' myth, this one concerning Wilkinson, and knew what I wanted and didn't give up until I found it. My research and documentation of Jack Young's early life and his racing career from his debut meeting in South Australia to the winning of his first World Championship took me five years. How much easier and cheaper these tasks would have been if I had just read what others have already written on the subjects and then made a compilation of the material. It may have been easier and cheaper, but it wouldn't have been as informative and more historically accurate. Addition to posting: - The Bluey Wilkinson story I referred to above was published in 2008 and I also gave permission for its inclusion on a West Ham website. For those interested in Bluey Wilkinson, here is the website link: - http://www.freewebs.com/customhousekid/bluey1929.htm

Johnnie Hoskins played a major role in the introduction of dirt track motor cycle racing into the UK did he? If we are talking about 1928 here, Hoskins was a "bit player" at best. The third paragraph should also be filed away in the "fiction" department. Motor cycles were racing on sports grounds in Australia years before 1909, and the surface wasn't asphalt. So, grass track racing commenced in Australia in 1917? No, it was earlier than that. In 1923 Johnnie Hoskins introduced motor cycle racing on a dirt track and under lights at Maitland did he? Wrong - the surface was grass. I hope thinking people would question the comment that "speedway was born" at Maitland in 1923. Then the last paragraph - the wording could create the incorrect impression, or maybe the writer didn't know better when he wrote it. Hoskins did not leave Maitland to go to Newcastle, he left Maitland to take up a position in Sydney, a job not connected with motor cycle racing. He left that Sydney job to take up the position as Secretary to the promotion which had built and opened the track at Newcastle. He took up that post after the racing season had commenced. There are some who think Hoskins built the speedway at Newcastle and ran the operation himself. I have the list of Directors of the company which built and opened the speedway - Hoskins is not mentioned.

I've mentioned on this thread that Johnnie should be remembered for the many fine things he did do for speedway, and not what he didn't do. I researched and wrote a speedway historical piece some years ago now in which I detailed a major achievement of Johnnie's for which he is seldom given credit, in fact few even know about it. He was the driving force behind organising, and even managed, the first touring party of English speedway riders to visit Australia. I told a few amusing anecdotes about Johnnie in that story, what a character he was!

Thanks for the response Dave. I don't know if this thread has run its course or not, but the number of postings has dropped. I'll keep looking here for a few days yet. I spend very little time on this Forum and only visit a few times a year or when I'm told a topic which interests me has appeared. Ross.

Dave, if you have read what I posted re Maitland, you would know that you won't get any argument from me when you wrote "Maitland was a watershed in our sport". As for referring to Johnnie Hoskins as the "Godfather of Speedway", that is your right. One question Dave, do you believe speedway was invented at Maitland by Johnnie Hoskins on December 15, 1923? As for Wikipedia, I could go into just about any Wikipedia entry I wanted to right now and alter the wording, or even start a new entry, whether I was an expert on the topic or not. I am an "oldie" and I remember the days when if I wanted information I had to go to a tome of a printed encyclopaedia to get it. Those who wrote the entries in encyclopaedias in those days were people qualified in the various fields to do so. Dave, do you think all people who contribute to the pages of Wikipedia would have the qualifications of those back in the days I have been referring to? I can assure you that even in the field of speedway history there is a lot of rubbish appearing on Wikipedia. About two years ago I was asked if I would help to correct some of those very entries in Wikipedia. I had to decline as I wouldn't have been able to spare the time necessary to do so. What appears on Wikipedia is not always representative of "history". The documentation of "history" is by definition the documentation of what actually happened. If there was such a computer program as a "history check" available to be applied to Wikipedia entries as there is a "spell check" on our computers, an awful lot of material would be deleted from Wikipedia in one overall application.

I'll say just a few more things and call an end to this. For decades I too believed that Johnnie Hoskins invented speedway at Maitland. That's what people had written for decades so why wouldn't I think it was correct? When I retired from full-time work I started my speedway research at the State Library here in Brisbane. Now I know that what people had been writing for decades was not correct. Because I too once believed the Hoskins/Maitland myth, I can understand why many are horrified when a few start writing that what has been believed for decades is wrong. If people still want to believe that Hoskins invented speedway at Maitland on December 15, 1923, even having seen well researched and documented evidence that he didn't, so be it. Let's look at the word "speedway" as used in discussions and arguments concerning December 15, 1923 Maitland. Having seen newspaper advertisements for the staging of carnivals at sports grounds and show grounds across Australia from as far back as the first decade of the 20th century, I can say that at first the motor cycle races at these carnivals were referred to as "motor" races. Then with the advent of motor cars into our society, the term "motor cycle" races came into prominence. In the advertising and the carnival reports and results of the 1923-24 Maitland carnivals, ALL the motor cycle racing was called just that "motor cycle races". No mention at all of the word "speedway". We now use the word "speedway" to refer to both the sport and the venue where the racing takes place. A change occurred in Maitland with the publicity for the first carnival of the 1924-25 season staged at the Maitland Show Ground. In late 1924 the word "speedway" was first used, not in reference to the racing, but to the venue. The Maitland Show Ground started to be referred to as the "Maitland Speedway" in the newspapers. During my research of the motor cycle racing that season I also found the term used to describe other venues - Maitland Super Speedway (the racecourse at Maitland), Tamworth Speedway, Dungog Speedway, Cessnock Speedway, Penrith Speedway, ....... The advent of the internet has changed our society. There are a proliferation of websites dealing with just about everything imaginable, including speedway history. What some ill-informed people have written on some of these websites in the name of "speedway history" is appalling. The average reader of this material wouldn't have carried out any speedway research so they think what they are reading is fact. That is how speedway myths start. The worst internet speedway history article I had to correct takes the cake - and it concerns both Johnnie and Ian Hoskins. Somebody wrote on a speedway website that when Johnnie Hoskins set sail for England from West Australia in 1928 he left his son Ian in charge of the Claremont Speedway operation. What's wrong with that you may ask? What's wrong is that Ian would have been about 4 or 5 years old at the time. The material which appears in speedway books, speedway magazines and on speedway websites is only as good as the knowledge and research ethic of the people writing it. Should anyone have a question concerning anything I have written on this forum, I will answer it if I can.

OK Jack, let's draw the line here and start again. People have commented on this thread who have contributed significantly in print to the reporting of speedway history. These people are the ones who are trying to help those who are following this thread because they want to know the truth about Johnnie Hoskins/Maitland. Any historian worth his salt will tell you that folk law, memories, and hear-say are not a good basis on which to compile history. Few people actually know the meaning of the word "history". Re Ian Hoskins, he has written books, many speedway articles, and has written on websites. Unfortunately his memories are not always factual. I could give examples of when Ian really made somewhat of a fool of himself with what he wrote. On one occasion he even went as far as to have a go at me in print concerning something I wrote about his father. History will always win out and proof was furnished that I was correct and Ian's memories were wrong. I still await an apology. I would dearly love to spend a day with Ian and take him to our library and show him that what I have been trying to tell him for a decade is true. People are entitled to their own opinion, but diligent research proves that speedway evolved and was not invented with the staging of one carnival at Maitland. However, one point I always stress is that the carnivals staged on the Maitland Show Ground during the 1923-24 season advanced the evolution of Australian speedway to a new level. In all my research I had never found so many occasions in such a short time at which motor cycle racing was featured on carnival and sporting programs at one venue. This continuity of racing enabled the riders to improve their racing skills, adapt their machinery to the track and conditions, and even to purchase new machinery more suitable to racing. The continuity also proved a positive as far as building a spectator following was concerned. During the 1923-24 Maitland carnival season, motor cycles raced on 15 programs during a period of just over 4 months. Johnnie Hoskins, in his position as secretary to the local Show Society, was only involved in the staging of 3 of those 15, other promoters staged the other 12. Few know that fact. What happened at Maitland the following season advanced the evolution of speedway to yet a higher level as the season of motor cycle racing at Maitland in 1924-25 was staged on a loose surface whereas in 1923-24 the surface was grass. Prior to the commencement of the 1924-25 season work was carried out on the Maitland track to make it more friendly to motor cycle racing. I am the first to give Johnnie Hoskins credit for what he actually did do for speedway, but it is folly to credit him for what he didn't do.

Jack I owe you an apology. It was good of you to draw me into line in your position as a moderator of this forum. I know it is a moderator's job (I have been one myself so I know), and nobody else's, to decide what/how members can and cannot post. I no doubt in the near future will receive an official warning. Just to clear up one point though, where did I say that only those I want to comment can do so? I will also take this opportunity to ask you a question Jack. You have been one of the major posters on this thread, just what positive contribution have you made to better the understanding and knowledge of the members who are interested in both what happened at the Maitland Show Ground in the 1920s and what had happened as far as motor cycle racing in Australia is concerned pre-Maitland? I hope I haven't broken another forum rule in being so bold as to ask the question. Maybe I'll get two official warnings and even be banned from here.

The reason I used those words Jack is that some may be interested in what had been happening within motor cycle racing in Australia pre Maitland December 1923. I didn't want red herrings, hear-say, abuse and folk law to confuse history. Are you always this aggressive? I know your view on the subject, so I assume you answered "no" to my question. I may have been included in those referred to as "arm chair" historians in one posting. Let me explain just how I developed my understanding of pre-war motor cycle racing within Australia. I did not rely on what others had either said or written about what happened during that period. I do what grass roots researchers do, go to the newspapers of the day. I have spent countless hours reading newspapers from across Australia on microfilm. I have followed developments in the evolution of speedway in Australia day-to-day, I have seen the advertisements for these carnivals which featured motor cycles as one of the attractions, I have seen the reports of what happened and have seen the results of the racing. Naturally I haven't read the newspapers from all towns and cities from across Australia going back to the start of the 20th century, that would take a lifetime. When Johnnie Hoskins programed motor cycles on the occasion of that December 15, 1923 carnival, he did what had been happening across Australia for years. There was nothing different or new about that occasion. Maitland is a town in the Hunter Valley region of New South Wales. Motor cycles had raced on carnival and sports programs on show grounds and sports grounds in the Hunter Valley for nearly 20 years prior to December 15, 1923. How do I know that? I have seen the advertisements and results which appeared in newspapers of the day. I paid particular attention to the early carnival racing at Thebarton Oval in South Australia. The surface on which the motor cycles raced there was changed from grass to cinders. Motor cycles raced there on cinders and under electric lighting before Maitland December 15, 1923. Here in Queensland there was even a Championship meeting staged for motor cycles. In August of 1919 on just one page of a Rockhampton newspaper there appeared advertisements for three carnivals to be staged at the local show ground over a period of a month, one being the Central Queensland Championship. Forums such as this can only serve a purpose when intelligent debate can take place. I know people can be passionate about their beliefs, but there is a better way to go about discussion than aggressiveness and abuse.

Let's be a bit serious here please. Can those who support the Ian Hoskins/Johnnie Hoskins version of the invention/start of speedway on December 15, 1923 at the Maitland Show Ground answer the following for me with a one word answer: - Had motor cycles previously raced on a grass surfaced showground/sportsground in Australia as part of a carnival program as happened at that first appearance of motor cycles racing at the Maitland Show Ground in December 1923? Should you answer "yes", then here is a supplementary question - how was the racing at Maitland on Decemebr 15, 1923 different to what had previously taken place? Should you answer "no", there is no supplementary question. Only those who are serious about this topic need bother to participate please. No name calling please, just a sensible debate for those interested in sorting this mess out.

Ian Hoskins wrote of his father: - "I put it this way- if an un-named person allowed a field to be used by some motor cyclists to do a few circuits in 1920, what is the point in calling him the pioneer promoter of speedway if he never followed up by staging weekly events before the public as Johnnie did in 1923?" Does Ian Hoskins know the extent to which motor cycles raced at carnivals on showgrounds around Australia before his father took the position of secretary of the Maitland Show Society? This had been going on for years, not in "fields" but at showgrounds and sports grounds. A championship event for motor cycles had even been staged on a showground. Motor cycles had even raced on cinders under lights in South Australia before they raced on the grass at Maitland in 1923-24. What happened at the Maitland Showground during the 1923-24 season is a very important step in the evolution of speedway in Australia. During my extensive research into the early motor cycle racing in Australia, I did not come across so many carnivals which included motor cycle racing staged over such a short period as occurred at Maitland in 1923-24. This enabled riders to hone their racing skills on a small track, to adapt their machinery (or even purchase new machinery) to improve performances on the track. The regular racing also enabled the spectators to build an interest in the racing. The events staged at Maitland that season were not speedway meetings, they were carnivals with motor cycles just one of the attractions. The very last carnival staged that season was the only "all motor cycle racing" event staged. Johnnie was secretary of the show society and in this position oversaw the staging of only 3 of the carnivals staged at Maitland that season. All the rest were promoted by various other bodies who paid for use of the ground. To say Johnnie "promoted" motor cycle racing at Maitland in 1923-24 is not correct. By the way Ian, you said Johnnie staged "weekly events before the public in 1923". If you are referring to carnivals which included motor cycles on the program, there were only 2 staged during 1923, one promoted by the Show Society and the other by a cycling promotion.

How correct you are speedyguy. There is one myth which I put several years of research into debuncking. That concerns what Johnnie Hoskins wrote decades ago about when Bluey Wilkinson first arrived in England (1929). That Hoskins' myth has been perpetuated for decades. The details of my research (gathered with assistance from numerous others who were keen to help me) will probably appear in an isuue of The Speedway Researcher early next year. During the last couple of weeks a small group of people have devoted many hours of their time preparing information for an historical speedway item (dealing with the late 1920s) which hopefully will appear in Speedway Star shortly. I hope the content of that article will generate worthwhile debate. I must say I enjoyed thoroughly my involvement with the exercise.

People still write articles on speedway history with their sources of information being what others have previolusly written in books/magazines AND also what others have TOLD THEM happened. Both of these sources of information can be unreliable. If using what others have previously written, one has to assume that what had already appeared in print was correct. Also, if one uses riders' recollections and what family members etc say happened, one has to assume the "word of mouth" is correct. Assumptions have no place in the diligent documentation of speedway history. If writers can't/won't do grass roots speedway research for their writing they should at least find someone reliable who has. If one is going to write an item/book on any aspect of speedway history, it is important to know just what historical writing is - by definition it is the documenting of what happened - the documentation of HISTORICAL FACTS. There are those still writing on speedway history today who blatantly ASSUME things happened and write these assumptions as if they DID occur. That is NOT historical writing. Cyril May might have been spot on with what he wrote about British riders (I don't know as I haven't researched a lot of British speedway), but he failed miserably with what he wrote on a number of occasions about pre-war Australian riders. His writings in a number of cases have led to the creation of speedway myths which are still being perpetuated today. What is not needed is the creation of more speedway myths - and believe me some current day writers are unknowingly (??) doing just that.

I first became suspicious of the reports that McKay was in the UK for Christmas 1927 when I did my detailed research of the racing in Sydney in late 1927. McKay featured in Sydney newspaper articles in November of that year. He was in Sydney.

Keith McKay was more interested in promoting speedway than riding. He was the man behind the first staging of speedway at the famous Wayville track in South Australia. At the time of his accident in Australia in late 1928 which resulted in his death, McKay was already planning his promotional ventures for 1929, one venture being in the USA. I have an interview he gave shortly before his accident. Re the time taken for a vessel to sail from Australia to the UK in the late 1920s, that depends what one uses as a starting point. Most sailings originated in Brisbane or Sydney on the east coast. The time was then about 6 weeks. From Fremantle (the final port of call on Australia's west coast for sailings to the UK useing that route), the time was less. Re Cyril May, one should question anything he wrote concerning Australians of the period we are discussing here. Sadly his errors in Ride It are still being perpetuated today. One of the most extraordinary things he wrote was a feature on Bert Spencer. Some of the content is absolute nonsense.

Jim, Eric and Reg were friends for about 60 years. During Eric's final couple of months with us Reg phoned him weekly on a Saturday. I phoned him every Friday. Eric just loved receiving phone calls from his friends. Eric's computer had packed up and his friends and family started phoning him as Internet contact had been lost. I can still hear his infectious laugh even now.

Reg Fearman has just added to this wonderful site a tribute to his friend Eric Williams who has just passed away. The photographs Reg has incorporated in his tribute to his great mate are superb.

Two further speeches delivered at Eric's funeral service yesterday have been added to the top Speedway History Forum link. The speeches were made by a pair of 14 year olds, the Green twins, who adored The Little Welshman. Their father Rob Green delivered the eulogy.

Jim Blanchard has opened up his Speedway History Forum to visitors for a short period. The first link to the Forum is to the "The Passing of Eric Williams" thread. This thread contains comments from Eric's daughters and Eric's friends and readers following his passing last week. Also on the thread is the eulogy delivered by Eric's great friend Rob Green at yesterday's funeral service. The second link is to the home of Eric's great stories. I had the privilege of working with The Little Welshman documenting stories about his grandparents, his parents and siblings, his childhood, his teenage years, the war years, his growing interest in different forms of motor cycle competition, his start in speedway, and the period during which he was attached to the Birmingham, Cradley Heath and Wembley teams. We got as far as the end of Eric's simply superb 1954 Wembley season before he became seriously ill and passed away. http://speedwayhistory.proboards.com/index...&thread=521 http://speedwayhistory.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=eric

This Sunday Eric's brothers Fred and Ian, together with Eric's beloved sister Kate, will be present at Margam Abbey in Port Talbot to remember their brother. Margam Abbey was a place Eric often spoke to me about. At one time Eric's grandparents lived in a little Estate cottage close to Margam Abbey when they worked at Margam Castle. Eric's father was born in that cottage. Eric and Helen were married in Margam Abbey. Eric's funeral will be held in Mackay on Thursday July 30th at 11am at the Mackay Funeral's chapel in Alfred Street. Eric's body will be cremated and his ashes sent to Linda in New Zealand. A memorial service will be conducted for Eric in Hastings at a date to be determined. Re Eric's nickname "Wiggs/Wiggy". Jenny's twins have the honour of being responsible for that. When they were young they couldn't pronounce "Eric" - it came out "Earwig". This then became "Wiggy". Eric had a number of nicknames, one of which he gave himself just a few weeks back. He sent me an aerogram which had a drawing of a green frog on the front of it. Eric had printed above the frog "Welsh Tadpole". We joked about it when I phoned him to tell him it had arrived here. The few times he sent me letters after that he didn't print his name on the reverse in the section where one gives the sender's details - He just printed "The Tadpole" and his address in Mackay. It's things like that which made knowing Eric so terrific.

Those who knew Eric would know of the esteem in which he held Jenny Green. Eric was forever jokingly threatening Jenny and myself with cuts to our pay if we didn't pull our socks up, me with the writing of his stories and Jenny with her P.A. (Personal Assistant) duties. What memories we have of those great times and what laughs we had. We weren't worried about the pay cuts because we were working for nothing anyway. Probably we should have been paying The Little Welshman for the privilege of his companionship. Eric's passing has had a profound effect on the Green family as well. Jenny has given me permission to post this email she sent me this evening. I'd better explain Jenny's reference to the "angel". A tribute to Eric is being written for inclusion in next week's Speedway Star. I emailed Jenny this morning asking her to verify a couple of points for the person entrusted with writing the tribute. I told her we had better get all the facts right or Eric would send an angel down to inform us we were going to have our pay cut again. Also, Jenny mentions Wiggs and Wiggy. That is Eric. There is a story there about how Eric got the nickname and maybe one day I might tell it. "Em" is Jenny's daughter Emma, one of the twins who Eric just adored. Emma sent me an email yesterday which left me in tears. Jenny's email: - Dear Ross, We've been so thrilled, proud & humbled by the love & support & wonderful messages of condolence from Wiggy's "global fan club." Like you, we miss him dreadfully already & I wish, purely for my own & my families selfish reasons, that he was still with us. His vibrant, delightful & endearing personality, his sheer love of life & his "cape diam" (spelling?) attitude are now sadly & blatantly absent in our lives. While reading all the glowing, heart e-mails I blubbed all over the key board but Ross, your comment on Wigs sending down an angel to "cut our pay" alleviated my sadness considerably & tears turned to laughter - cheers . To change tack slightly & at the risk of being corny, we chose a white coffin for Wigs & I especially asked for red & white flowers to be arranged in the chapel - the colours of the "The Little Welsh Wembley Lion." Ross, thanks so much for replying to Em's e mail, she was thrilled with your reply, & if I'm not mistaken, is accessing the site as I write. We will include some of the wonderful tributes & comments in his eulogy. The general populous of Mackay have no idea what a legend they have - oops, had, in their midst. I so appreciate you forwarding all the correspondence on to us, thanks so much. Even we didn't realise what a legend we had in our midst, and THAT was because Wigs was such a modest & unassuming fellow, God bless him. If you want to put any of my ramblings out for general viewing, please feel free. A "virtual" hug for you from us all, Jenny

Eric Williams passed away in the Palliative Care Unit in a Mackay hospital about 4 a.m. on Friday July 24th. He was admitted to hospital on the Wednesday. Eric's condition worsened late on Thursday night. His great friends Rob and Jenny Green were at his side during his final three hours. Eric was always telling me what a great family the Greens were and he was most appreciative of all they did for him. In Jenny's own words, "It was a peaceful passing, he was comfortable and pain free." I will never forget receiving the email from Eric last November in which he told me he had cancer. It upset me greatly. I have kept his emails and letters which I treasure. This is from that November 2008 email: - "This is rather difficult, as I hate to let you know that I have myeloma. Your having a bad run with Dads and Foster Dads, but big boys don't cry, especially after the terrific life I have had, and which you have described so beautifully for me." To explain what Eric meant when he mentioned "Dads and Foster Dads" I will repeat a story I told on The Speedway History Forum yesterday: - "I want to tell a story about the remarkable Eric Williams. My Dad and Eric had something in common, they both battled cancer bravely. I lost my Dad 13 months ago. When he was really sick in hospital Dad told us he wanted to die in his own bed in his own home. With the help of the Cancer Council and the staff at Mount Olivet we made that possible for him. During Dad's final weeks I was his principal carer and what I had to go through really got me down. During that harrowing period I had the support and encouragement of a wonderful man - Eric Williams. He emailed me almost daily and tried to keep my spirits up. When Dad died, a remarkable thing happened - Eric offered to be my "Foster Dad". Eric did things like that, a trait which endeared him to those whose lives he graced with his presence." Eric struck a bad patch in early December last year and his friends feared he was about to give up the fight. At that same time he suffered a stroke, thankfully a mild one, and his two "girls" (as he called Linda and Mandy) made arrangements to come over from New Zealand to spend Christmas with their Dad. Eric just loved Christmas 2008 spent with his girls and the Greens. That gave Eric a new zest for life. Eric, just like all cancer sufferers do, had his highs and lows. Through 2009 he always remained positive. Eric surprised the medical staff who were looking after him and battled on. He emailed me on one occasion and said, "My departure has been delayed." In recent weeks Eric enjoyed some wonderful moments - he became a great grandfather and was thrilled when a grandson gained his pilot's licence. Eric's final week also brought him some pleasure. He just loved golf, having been a very good golfer himself prior to his cancer sapping his strength. A Pro-Am golf tournament was played in Mackay last week and Eric went out to have a look. This was made possible by a friend of Eric's offering him a "spare seat" in a motorised golf cart. Eric just loved being out on the course once again. One of the great joys in Eric's life in recent years were the occasions he played golf with Rob Green. He sent me some wonderful descriptions of their "days out". At this sad time it is some consolation knowing that The Little Welshman was still getting some enjoyment out of life during his final weeks with us. It was an absolute privilege knowing Eric and working with him documenting some of the highlights of his life. He was a very special human being who brightened up so many people's lives during his stay on earth. I am proud to have been able to call Eric Williams a friend. I miss him already. Ross.

Eric Williams, lovingly known to us as "The Little Welshman", has passed away. Eric's daughter Linda passed on the sad news to me this morning Brisbane time. I will post more details on The Speedway History Forum at the weekend. I will also email the details to all those on our Eric Williams Story mailing list. To Eric's family and friends I express my deepest sympathy at this sad time. "God's speedway track was ready and Dad has won his final race with honours." Linda expressed her Dad's passing with these most appropriate words. R.I.P. William Eric Williams. Ross.

Would anyone be able to help me with information on mechanic Bill Smith. I am particularly interested in his connection with Jack Young. Bill worked at New Cross and then at West Ham. He took over the running of West Ham's workshop with the departure of Ken Brett after the 1953 season.

Should anyone be interested, the Eighteenth Collection of Eric's stories has now been added to Eric's own sub board in the Post War section of the Speedway History Forum. Also, in Eric's section on the main Post War board is an item posted by one of Eric's old friends from New Zealand. Bill decided he would put his memories of Eric into print and share them with others. The item is not long and Eric himself loved the content. http://speedwayhistory.proboards67.com/index.cgi