Parsloes 1928 nearly

Short track has been a regular feature at the BMF most years since 2006... There has also in the past been quite extensive Vintage Speedway races too but maybe that's not happening this year?

Oh dear, perhaps someone should buy them!!!!!

WH Smith consistently a good place to get Speedway Star in the capital. I don't know ANY WH Smith branches where you can't see copies for sale. Which considering since 1991 there's only really been FIVE years when the sport has been staged in London ain't bad!!

Well one fact i do know about the various formats is that Crayford hold the record winning score in two of them! Most know that the Kestrels 1980 65-12 win over Workington was the 13 heat record but two years later in the 16 heat format Crayford set the record for THAT format beating Milton Keynes 76 -20 :approve:

Well, does seem a bit contrived to come up with a region never before described called 'Central Southern England'...!!! Guess they're referring to the loss of Reading and now Oxford. Places like Sittingbourne, Harlow, Crayford, Romford, Peterborough are too far east to be called 'central' but certainly Swindon would HAVE to be included in such a mythical 'region'..! Romford is indeed thriving : really big crowds on Fridays and Saturdays since the demise of the 'Stow. Amazing really that a track can run on those two successive nights and get big crowds on both. And it ALSO stages meetings on Mondays and Wednesdays too! Hardly a sport on its uppers! And I know what you mean when you say "the trouble with greyhound racing is now you can only treat it as a fun night out" but wouldn't it be great if more people regarded Speedway in the same way..: as a FUN, entertaining night out...?

To be honest though, I think the point of a discussion forum is to allow the discussion to go the way it wants, as an organic thing so to speak... Too many people on the BSF get over-concerned about changes in direction of a discussion. Think of conversations down the pub - you start talking about something and within no time you're debating an entirely different subject!!

Indeed! iris and sidney made comments so I couldn't resist! Sorry!!

No way in a milion years was Bergkamp a better player than Brady or Henry..! Bergkamp's career is smoke & mirrors..: the most over-rated footballer of all time. He only had one truly great season at Highbury: 1997/'98

Yes, Jacko was runner-up to one of MY all-time favourite riders, Joe Owen in the NNLRC at Plough Lane in '76

Jon Armstrong is indeed a true great at this level of Speedway - the sort of rider it's worth the admission money alone to see!

Well I doubt it though, not if both of the other two of you had it differently! Maybe I was rushing off to the station to get the train (could've been a later than normal finish) and so got heat 20 wrong...

Ah I will deffo need to get into my loft now coz I have completely different scores for Barney & Vic!!

Cheers mate - it's more my sanity than my physical well-being which is under threat when I venture into the loft! I can NEVER find what I'm bloody looking for!!!! Then the next time I go up there to look for something else, the first thing I stumble across is the thing I couldn't find for love nor money the previous time!!!

Well the prog's in the loft and might take a bit of locating but I shall endeavour to do so. And at same time could check that Heat 20 from the KTT! Are you planning to get along to Central Park this coming season? Would be great to see old Crayford faces there!!!

Hi mate, No, this meeting on a predictably rainy Tuesday made it to three heats! Crayford 12 (Laurie Etheridge 3[M]; Richard Davey 1; Garry May 0; Alan Sage 3[M]; Mike Bessent 2+1[PM] ; John Hooper 3 [M]) Stoke 5 (Trevor Charley 2; Tim Nunan 0: Stuart Mountford 0; Steve McDermott 2; Ian Robertson 1; Robert Dole 0; Gerry Hintz 0) (aband. after 3 heats – result does not stand) Barney finished on 5 points. Vic on 3. The winner was Tom Owen!!!!!

Hmm, well a slightly odd way of describing the event... I believe it's been styled as the 'Celebration of Speedway' event since moving to the Speedway Museum at Paradise Park Wildlife Park from High Beech. The rationale behind the event before that, was to commemorate the first Speedway meeting in the UK (debate no doubt would ensue if on a 'history' thread!!), where it happened behind the King's Oak pub. And therefore it was held on a Sunday in Feb. Moving to Paradise Park was because it's relatively near and the museum's there, of course, but the date has basically remained around about the same time ('twas 19/2 last year). I'd assume it's going to be on this year not least as 2013 is a landmark year..: 85th. anniversary of that first High Beech meeting and worldwide, 90th. anniversary of the first ever Speedway meeting in Australia (now I KNOW that'll spark a debate!)!

And of course a recent THREE-times World Champ WAS born in Britain!!!! Which answers the question about Adam Ellis. British parents both, working abroad and so Adam born in France. Still makes him British!! Still can't see how Master Swart, as he has an English mother would be a 5 not a 3...

The strange concept of patriality relates to grand-parents doesn't it... This young man has an English mother so the same as Stefan and counts as British on that basis. The likes of Heeps have 'patriality' but shan't ever be represented GB: they're Aussies...

Calamity tends to follow Deano around.. We were on a Sittingbourne Crusaders Northern Tour with a Saturday meeting at Redcar followed by an afternoon one at Scunthorpe. Knowing that the journey wasn't a long one on the Sunday with plenty of time so no need for an early start, seemed safe to have a late one in the bar at the Middlesborough hotel we were staying. We finally left the bar at around 2am - only to find that that the hotel had put a notice up in Reception that as it was the Middlesboro' Fun Run the Sunday morning unless vehicles were out of the car park by 7am they would have to stay there 'til 2pm!! As the van with the bike in was, of course, in the car park it meant a bloody early start!! DOH!

Wouldn't he be entitled to a 3 rather than have to ride on a 5?

Mad Welly scored 18 for Swindon Sprockets at Plough Lane funny enough on Buzz's debut for the Dons in '03. He also scored 18 riding his one and only match as a Sittingbourne Crusader the next year! In both cases contributing basically half his team's total! I think you could be right too about once scoring 20 points ast Wimbledon... He was indeed one of the most prolific visitors to Plough Lane in the CL era.

You are of course 100% right. And with all due respect, great as the likes of Huxley, Kempster, Tauser & Lamoreaux certainly would've been, they are all way before the time of ANY of us on here (well except Bryn of course!!!) so really it's hard to comment on their inclusion. IMHO, 'Greats' should also be judged within their era, status of the club at the time and the impression/contribution they made at the time which is why I'd include Buzz.. Waiting now to get shot down by those who won't accept that concept....

I agree 100% Ian - but to be fair, this Forum is a very insular and specialist thing; and what's debated on here effectively goes no further... To the new public we need to attract in the local area and hopefully across Kent, this WILL be a whole new team, a new place to enjoy a sport many won't have seen live before and the riders will be "their" riders. To me it will be nice to able 'spin' the riders as local in as many ways as possible, so those from Kent or Sussex and/or who started their racing at Iwade are ideal - but Speedway fans will pick their own idols... Whoever would've thought a rider who'd spent his whole career riding for northern clubs and without an overly spectacular reputation could become a living legend at a London track...: I speak of Buzz at CL Wimbledon of course. Proof too that a 'veteran' in a third tier club ain't necessarily a bad thing. My wish for the new place is crowd pleasers like that, because what's really going to get the crowds in is thrills and excitement. Bring it on!!!

It was 6 August 2003 - I have the scorers down as: Wimbledon 44 (Wayne Barrett 12; James Clement 1; Gareth Hickmott 1+1; Peter Collyer 6; Mark Burrows 21[M]; Chris Hunt 3; Matt Cambridge 0) Boston 49 (Luke Clifton 8; Rob Hollingworth 15; Darren Rolph 1+1; Roger Dickerson 3+3; Dean Garrod 13+3; Peter Boast 9+2) (CL) Boston obviously must've used R/R. Buzz I think got a six pointer win in his 21. Still a strange configuration of scorers - with 33 points coming from the home side's top two riders and still losing by five points!!!

Agree would love to see Marc (who I first saw ride as a 12 year old up the road at Iwade) in the Kent side...: not sure on his current fitness/injury situation...