chunky

I never said they WEREN'T special. Or at least, they COULD be special. Again, looking at it from an event point of view, we were spoiled by Wembley. It seems to be a case of fans looking for different things from speedway. Do you want to go to Wembley with 93,000 others, and experience a poor meeting with maybe one or two decent races, but a fantastic atmosphere. Or do you want to see an incredible GP with breathtaking racing at Wroclaw. Do you want to see a competitive meeting with AT LEAST 12 of the Top 15 riders in the world, or a meeting which was never designed (post-war, anyway) to field the world's best, and was usually missing one or two of the expected front-runners? Nothing is - or ever was - perfect. Yes, I miss the good ol' days. I miss the gleaming chrome and black leathers. I miss Wembley, Wimbledon, and Belle Vue. I miss Moore, Briggs, and Boocock. But you know, it wasn't ALL great. It never will be ALL great. Life changes, and we change. However, speedway can still be the most fantastic sport in the world - if you just sit down and watch the racing...

Oliver Langton, Clem Cort, Len Myerscough, Frank Varey, Bob Harrison, Eric Langton, Dusty Haigh. Belle Vue 1930.

So you DO have a couple of speedway books by the BSPA Chairman Mao?

I have as many NON-speedway books by Mr. Jacobs as I do speedway books!

Did they have cameras back then???

Why wouldn't they great pleasure from them? Wroclaw last year was perhaps the greatest speedway meeting ever. As others have said on here, it also depends on where they were. I enjoyed every World Final I attended, but without being disrespectful, places like Norden, Amsterdam, and Bradford can't be mentioned in same breath as Wembley, and maybe even Katowice.

1977 stands out because of the poxy weather, I'm sure!!! I did : Wembley (69, 78, 81), Bradford (85), Los Angeles (82), Norden (83), and Amsterdam (87).

Of course, my fave is Tom Stenner's "Thrilling the Million"...

That was fantastic!

I actually watched the 1976 final (well, what there is of it), and quite honestly, the quality of racing was the best I've seen. Of course, 1981 was great, but basically because of two races and the superb Wembley atmosphere.

So sad to hear that. Very good - and very under-rated rider. R.I.P. Jim.

If any of you are ever looking for books, abebooks is a great website, and you can compare prices from different stores around the world (including places like World of Books). I have bought dozens of books through abebooks.

Funny, I look at a lot of the old videos on YouTube, and do that! You know, a lot of us really put ourselves about back in the day, didn't we?

Same over here. I said to a mate today that fishing would be ideal (and safe), but California has already ordered people not to leave the house, and I'm sure others will follow.

Just read the BSF; EVERYBODY is an expert on here...

I wish EVERYBODY (not just you - and on BOTH sides) would READ what is being said, rather than just interpreting what they want. 1) NOBODY said the coronavirus causes sneezing. 2) Just because someone sneezes doesn't mean that they DON'T have the coronavirus. 3) if the virus can be spread by coughing, there is no reason it couldn't be spread by sneezing; the nose and throat are connected.

What I don't get is why specific numbers are used. Why is 498 people acceptable, yet 502 not? People are still going to be together in a confined area. Over here, the states and cities are imposing their own limits. Some, it's 100, and lot are 250. Weird thing is some of the extra policies... There is a small darts tournament scheduled in San Diego. Public gatherings in San Diego are currently restricted to fewer than 250, which is fine, as they wouldn't even get close to 100. However, while this would be permissible, the city states that no individual may get closer than 6' to another! I can see the logic, but it's totally ridiculous, and besides, who the hell is going to go around measuring???

Of course, it's tough, and a lot of people are going to be affected. I am not saying sport SHOULD continue, but whatever happens, life goes on, and people will still want to do things, either as a participant or as a spectator. Don't forget that, even though we are talking about "sport", sport/entertainment provides a livelihood for thousands - probably millions - of people around the world. From participants to bar/restaurant staff, from cleaners to maintenance staff, from ticket agencies to journalists. I'm sure you wouldn't want to lose your job for weeks (even months), and of course, the way things will be if everything shuts down, it is more than just simple damage to the economy. Does a flu-like (and no, I'm not attempting to trivialise it) virus necessitate the whole world shutting down everything that someone may consider "non-essential"? Think about it...

It was possible in the old World Finals, and nobody complained about the possibility then... We've been through this before on here, anyway... In an individual event, the individual CAN be rewarded for finishing first, but not always. In a team event, why should the TEAM finishing ahead of the opposing TEAM not be rewarded. It happens in other sports (cycling, for example). Anyway, if a system is designed to find the highest accumulation of points, rather than simply how many times you win, then you can't say that it's "can't be right"; it's the same for everyone, and it's FAIR for everyone.

Surprised nobody has mentioned Ian Clark - he really doesn't look any different! Plus, the Hagons and Pete Wrathall...

Thanks! I was thinking Stape was there too...

Yep. That pic was on the cover of SS. I seem to remember Martin Ashby and John Louis as well.

That's right! Forgotten all about that...

Don't forget that Shawn Moran covered Chris Spedding's "Motorbikin'". I had the single...

Thing is, we all have memories. I have still followed speedway over the last 20 years or so, but my best - and most vivid - memories are from W-A-Y before 2000. Watching Olle Nygren at Plough Lane, attending Christer Lofqvist's debut at West Ham (and Sverre breaking his arm), Wembley World Finals, and plenty of others, they all seem like yesterday to me. Of course, not all memories are good - Lokeren, Tommy, watching Leif Wahlmann crash right in front of me... Terrible, but indelibly etched into my brain. I don't subscribe to something as simple as elapsed time being the decisive factor; Personal impact (both good and bad) and importance are what keep our memories alive...