chunky

Reading the last update posted about Morian Hansen got me thinking... I do have more than a passing interest in speedway riders who "served" in World War II. In addition to Hansen, we've also mentioned Pole Max Rech, who became an RAF pilot during the war, and Canadian George Pepper, who was killed in a test flight in 1942. There is another rider who sadly, was unable to survive the conflict; former Wimbledon captain, 'Smiling' Jim Kempster. Born "Ernest Kempster" on October 9, 1900, Jim really wasn't around for long. In a short career, he was listed both as "English Champion" (after beating Roger Frogley in a match race in 1928), and "World Champion" (when beating Sprouts Elder). Of course, nothing was official, but he still proved himself a quality rider, posting an average of 10.00 in 1929, and 9.21 in 1930. His average dipped to below 7 the following season. After taking a season off, he reappeared for Clapton in 1933, but was never the same rider. Still, in such a short space of time, he managed to find himself pictured on at least two sets of cigarette cards! So, on to the war, and he served with the Air Transport Auxiliary. The ATA delivered everything from mail and medical supplies to personnel and aircraft. On 29 June, 1945, Jim was piloting Anson DG916 when the aircraft hit some HT cables in bad weather, and crashed into the River Rhine. Flight Officer E.A.D. Kempster was killed along with Second Officer Harry Race. He was 44. His grave is at the Rheinberg War Cemetery in Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany.

When you think about it, Morian Hansen's story is perhaps the greatest of any speedway rider, but he has still largely been forgotten. If only we'd had the internet back then...

Well, it's not really the same when you only have three teams in the league, is it?

Yeah, knowing how old most of us speedway fans are, they probably need to produce a large-print version of the mag...

Good call! Peter Karlsson began and ended his British career with Wolves, and while I can't specifically state the same for Wayne Carter, he did appear for Wolves in both his first and last seasons. James Grieves is another one at Glagow - and he had several spells back there in between. Martin Yeates at Poole and Les Rumsey at Canterbury. Kevin Hawkins at Peterborough.

Ooh, you disappoint me! He finished his career at Rye House!

With the Eastbourne alumni, you could also include Martin Dugard... Boston's Andy Fisher is another one to add to the list.

Another one from my era gone...

See, that's what I was thinking too...

To be honest, I can't say I remember that. Perhaps one of the "older" members on here can answer that? As far as I know, all times were taken from the finish post.

That was years before. The gate used to be on the back straight.

That's correct. They'd messed around with Ede, Stevens, Dugard, Hagon, Wickett, and a couple of one-offs, and then Tony came in - and stayed.

Thing is, once Tony was in - he stayed in! Do what you want, it's fine with me; I just posted the figures...

Good point - except that I didn't actually include Ted Ede's average in the team total! I just listed those who had an extended spell in the team... To be honest, I was expecting you to jump in and give us the stats!

Well, I had a quick run through the 'Ammers from '65 (BL)... Harrfeldt - 10.97 (H) - 9.77 (A) McKinlay - 10.93 (H) - 10.67 (A) Hunter - 10.53 (H) - 8.06 (A) Clarke - 7.2 (H) - 4.00 (A) Simmons - 7.06 (H) - 5.43 (A) Trott - 5.78 (H) - 3.12 (A) Leonard - 4.46 (H) - 2.64 (A) Ede - 2.5 (H) - 3.04 (A) 56.93 (H) - 43.69 (A) ...and Dukes from '66... Boocock - 10.85 (H) - 9.47 (A) Boothroyd - 10.67 (H) - 7.94 (A) Younghusband - 9.94 (H) - 8.37 (A) Roper - 8.18 (H) - 6.70 (A) Kingston - 6.64 (H) - 4.15 (A) Jameson - 6.56 (H) - 4.00 (A) Gavros - 5.49 (H) - 3.09 (A) 58.33 (H) - 44.15 (A)

And they dictate the condition (and depth) of the track surface...

Well, you know how many unofficial "World" Championships back then, so it wouldn't surprise me if we had some unofficial "US" Championships around. Plus, the history of speedway and the AMA hasn't always been that clear...

Ah yes, I remember that win! Pat Pawson rode that night, and scored a couple!

Oh, okay... Thing is, while I didn't witness any of the fatalities at Hackney, I get the idea that at least a couple of them were kind of "freak" accidents, and the only real issue was the lamp standards. If you look at my website, you will also see that Newcastle had several fatalities. When I commented on that once, I was told that I was being most unfair. The thing is, we know that crashes can be caused by a variety of factors, including collisions. Are these collisions a result of situations caused by the track, or the bikes? I just think that the big problem there was the lamp standards...

Trust me, there were MANY bad accidents happening before the mid-70's...

That sounds much more like it...

The way that modern bikes rev and kick, it needs to be! I still don't get why we need all that power, just for wheelspin, and then it picks up a bit of dirt, and they're over the fence... Thing is, Hackney was just one of many where the (or 'a') racing line moved out during the meeting - and it made for great racing. I grew up never hearing the term "blue groove", but it seems to be what the riders want these days.

Ah, that makes more sense, then! Thanks.

Thing is, even now, some riders love to ride out wide - often right up against the fence (we've seen certain riders actually USE the fence - so what do you do? By its very nature, speedway is a dangerous sport, and no amount of air fences, helmets, or padding will change that. In ANY motorsport, competitors will take chances, as they look for a little extra. Yes, it's risky, but that's why riders enjoy riding, and we enjoy watching ..

Well, this just means I have even more questions! I live in Cincinnati, and this is confusing. We did have a short-lived board-track in Sharonville (south-east of Hamilton), but that closed in 1919. Nearly all of the info I can find about "Cincinnati-Hamilton Speedway" refers to a track on the Dixie Highway - that didn't open until 1929! I have found reference to a track that supposedly opened in 1919, but I have no official name or location. Guess I'll have to dig a little deeper...