Main Man

add in Nathan Greaves as well that is a mighty trio --perhaps in years to come the bulk of the GB World Team Cup side ??

EVENT PREVIEW It’s the turn of the Dirt Trackers this Sunday at the Abbey Stadium! The Speedway circuit at the Abbey Stadium, Blunsdon will be the home to a different type of racing this Sunday as the British Dirt Track Championships comes to town in Round 3 of the series. The championships incorporates an array of different motorcycles, including Quads, Mini Bikes, Motorcross and Grasstrack machines with the events being jam packed full of sprint races and entertainment. The Quad element of the event is the coveted and 21 year old QUADZILLA QRA British Quad Oval Championships which will see the countries top racers do battle for series points and the on the night title. These guys are not scared to mix it so expect bar banging, and some close and personal racing. There is a full line up of these Quad riders, from Young hot shots to championship contenders as well as some comeback kings making their first appearance for a number of years. Only 8 points separate the top 6 in the series with fiery Welshman Ben Richmond leading the way ahead of his fellow countryman the flying teenager Luke Cooper who won round 2. Round 1 winner and former Champion Lee Hazelwood loves the big tracks, and Reading riders Danny Smith and former Champion Carl Bunce will be gunning for the win. Locals to watch out for are Harry Timbrell and Tom Claxton of Cirencester and Swindon’s Andy Hobbs of the Over the Top Stunt Team. In the Welsh Pitbikes British Dirt Track Mini Bike class another full line up will see current series leader look to fend off the hard charging challenge of Welsh teenager Adam Frearson who won round 2. Last years stand out performer Terry Saunters is also back whilst Wayne Holloway of Swindon who last season finished second will be looking for a strong showing. Blaine Blackwell is another local rider who should be a contender in the Mini Bikes being a national champion on the Mini machines in 2011. Blaine will also be riding the MX class where he is an accomplished racer, and will be up against Swindon Robins Team Manager Alun Rossiter and the young Australian Robins rider Nick Morris, both of whom are looking to impress the crowd. In the M& S Truck Rentals British Dirt Track Solo championships, which is contested on Grasstrack bikes the battle for the series lead is between Jon Stevens and Eric Pike, although former Swindon Sprocket Trevor Heath will be looking to claw back some points. All told there will be over 40 races of Motorcycle action in which will be a thrill a minute event, so don’t miss it. Turnstiles open at 5pm with a 6pm first race. Bars and catering facilities will be open. Prices are Adults £10, Concessions (Students and OAPS with ID) £7, Children 12-16 £3 and children 11 and under go FREE. For further spectator info visit www.britishdirttrack.co.uk or call Paul Oughton on 07917 117007 or emailpaul@allterrainevents.eu

Long Eaton Invaders 22 Sheffield Cubs 14 MDL Saturday 30th June 2012 A victory for Long Eaton over Sheffield Cubs on Saturday evening, and also a little victory for speedway over minor adversity. The Invaders were already depleted by the loss of Lee Geary and Chris Widman, both having been invited to ride in the National League for Rye House and Buxton respectively, but had managed to put together a quartet of riders, thanks to the addition of Kings Lynns' Jake Williams. Meanwhile, Sheffield had been unable to raise a full team. The result of this was that Lee Springthorpe switched over to ride for Sheffield, leaving each team with three riders only, and both using the rider replacement facility. Long Eaton Invaders 1) Jake Williams 3+3+0+2 = 8 2) R/R 3) Liam Rumsey 1+3+3+2* = 9+1 4) Connor Coles F+1+1*+3 = 5+1 Sheffield Cubs 1) Andy Braithwaite 0+2+1*+0 = 3+1 2) Martin Knuckey 2+2+2+3 = 9 3) Lee Springthorpe 1*+0+0+1 = 2+1 4) R/R H1 (Braithwaite broke tapes, 15m h/cap) Williams, Knuckey, Rumsey, Braithwaite 4-2/4-2 71.94 H2 Rumsey, Braithwaite, Springthorpe, Coles 3-3/7-5 69.94 H3 Williams, Knuckey, Coles, Springthorpe 4-2/11-7 70.37 H4 (Braithwaite broke tapes, 15m h/cap) Rumsey, Knuckey, Braithwaite, Williams 3-3/14-10 70.10 H5 Knuckey, Williams, Coles, Springthorpe 3-3/17-13 70.65 H6 (Braithwaite broke tapes, 15m h/cap) Coles, Rumsey, Springthorpe, Braithwaite 5-1/22-14 74.81

MERCIA VIKINGS TAKE POINT OFF LEAGUE LEADERS BELLE VUE IN THRILLING DRAW. COVENTRY –MERCIA NCA Vikings 18 .. Belle Vue Diamond HC 18 MIDLAND DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE The unbeaten Belle Vue Colts dropped their first MDL point of the season so far as the Coventry-Mercia Vikings held them to a thrilling 18 all draw. With two debutants in their quartet the NCA Vikings in 15 year old Ellis Perks and 16 year old Adam Portwood , they went into the decisive final heat two points ahead at 16-14 but Tom Wooley held off determined home captain Martin Knuckey with rival skipper and National League rider Chris Widman relegated to third spot to give the Colts a 4-2 and gain the draw. The Colts lost guest Shaun Tedham in his first ride when he crashed and wrecked his bike but his remaining rides were well covered by David Holt and Woolley who replaced him in the decisive final heat which he won . Vikings No. 1 Dan Greenwood, resplendent in his Vikings team suit sponsored by Spensites who administer the Vikings site(www.merciavikings.co.uk) and his own (www.dangreenwoodracing.co.uk) , raced to an impressive maximum in his three rides. He has been beaten just once in four meetings and boasts a suerb 11.60 MDL average. Biggest cheer of the night though was reserved for the youngest rider on show Ellis Perks. He had an eventful debut touching the tapes in heat one then looping the bike and missing the re-run then fell on the first turn in his second when challenging David Holt. Then he saved the best till last recovering from a slow start to chase Holt again before a 4th bend burst got him past his opponent and he held on for his first point in British Speedway. The other Vikings debutant ,Adam Portwood , battled hard recovering from having to lay his bike down in his first ride to avoid the fallen Shaun Tedham , to notch paid 3. Co Team bosses Kelvin Lapworth and Laurence Rogers were well pleased with the point they gained in what was a good MDL clash and the two side meet again on Monday in the return at Belle Vue where the Vikings are hard hit by work, school , college and injuries and track a completely different quartet with only Ellis Perks available from their squad. COVENTRY-MERCIA 'NCA' Vikings; 1.Dan Greenwood 3 3 3 9 MAX 2.Ellis Perks F/NS F 1 1 3.Martin Knuckey© 2 2 2 6 4.Adam Portwood 1' 1 0 2+1 TEAM MANAGERS : Kelvin Lapworth & Laurence Rogers. BELLE VUE 'Diamond H' COLTS; 1.Chris Widman© 2 3 1 6 2.David Holt 1 0 1 0 2 3.Tom Woolley 3 2 2 3 10 4.ShaunTedham FX 0 TEAM MANAGERS: Stephen Williams & Graham Goodwin. Heat Details: 1:Greenwood, Widman, Holt, Perks(f,ns) 3:3 3:3 2:Woolley, Knuckey, Portwood, Tedham(fx) 3:3 6:6 3:Greenwood, Woolley, Portwood, Holt 4:2 10:8 4:Widman, Knuckey, Holt, Perks 2:4 12:12 5:Greenwood, Woolley, Perks, Holt 4:2 16:14 6:Woolley, Knuckey, Widman, Portwood 2:4 18:18

Be interesting to see if Robert gets things back on track in the next few weeks when his dad Chopper arrives !! Be good to see you again Darryl

Sean mason

COVENTRY-MERCIA NCA Vikings Dan Greenwood Ellis Perks Martin Knuckey © Adam Portwood TEAM MANAGERS : Kelvin Lapworth & Laurence Rogers BELLE VUE Diamond H COLTS Chris Widman © David Holt Tom Woolley Shaun Tedham TEAM MANAGERS : Stephen Williams & Graham Goodwin Demo Race after heats 2 and 4 : Nathan Greaves Following the withdrawal of Halifax from the MDL and NJL last week the results from the Dukes meetings have been expunged from the records. This adversely affected Long Eaton, Sheffield and unfortunately the Vikings. Our 29-6 win at our last home meeting that saw us leapfrog into 4th place has been removed so we have it all to do again to get into a play off position. After the Coventry v Eastbourne Elite League clash on Friday (June 29th) the Coventry-Mercia Vikins have a tough MDL meeting against the unbeaten league leaders Belle Vue .The Vikings include two debutants in 15 year old Ellis Perks and 16 year old Adam Portwood who missed the Halifax clash after blowing his motor the previous night at Peterborough. For Ellis , son of former ref Rob and great nephew of Cradley legend Dave Perks, it has been a frustrating start with rain offs and curfews hitting him hard. The family emigrated to Australia in 2007 but Ellis is back aiming to catch the eye and get a NL spot in 2013. No pressure on him though as he has some 30 friends and family attending the meeting many of which have never seen speedway but including his Great Uncle Dave Perks --- ….and a reminder to Ellis to pack the Gold Coast sunshine next time he comes!! Also take a look at Dan Greenwood’s new Kevlar’s sponsored by Spensites who adminster his website : www.dangreenwoodracing.co.uk …..the first set ever made for a MDL rider in club colours.

December 25th ??

think Jack is also 13 but will check. I wondered if it was Hans's relation as well.

HALIFAX DUKES WITHDRAW FROM MDL + NJL 19TH June 2012 The Midland Development League and Northern Junior League have been hit mid-season by the withdrawal from both competitions of the Halifax Dukes team. The Dukes have had a torrid start to the MDL losing all three matches to date scoring just 26 points and conceding 77. They were due to race at Buxton on Sunday in a NJL against Berwick and although the teams were present and bikes in the pits the clash was called off . Within 36 hours of this the MDL and NJL were informed by club organizer Geoff Hayes that after consideration he was withdrawing the Dukes from both leagues. Efforts were made to get him to change his mind and offers of help made but he has stuck by his decision. The MDL management committee has decided to expunge the Halifax results from the records and three clubs –Long Eaton, Sheffield and Coventry-Mercia have had their points deducted and a new league table issued. League co-ordinator Kelvin Lapworth believes this was the fairest way to handle the situation, “ At this stage of the season it would not be practical to try to introduce a replacement team so we will continue with the seven remaining clubs. We have amended the results accordingly with three clubs affected adversely by this.” “ We wish Geoff every success with finding a site for the Dukes in the future but for now the club name unfortunately has again been lost to the sport.”

no idea Iris!!

that is correct

wish him all the best from me ......think he liked my leg pull about his right and left hand???!!!

and blew his engine in his last ride ---so paid 8 from three completed rides for Heathens

MIDLAND DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE : Friday June 15th COVENTRY-MERCIA Vikings 29 HALIFAX Dukes 6 NCA Vikings : 1. Conor Dwyer 3 3 3 = 9 max 2. Cam Hoskins 2’ 2’ 1 = 5 +2 3. Martin Knuckey (c ) 2’ 3 2’ = 7 +2 paid max 4. Paul Quarterman 3 2’ 3 = 8 +1 paid max DUKES : 1. Adam Keynon F N N = 0 2. Connor Coles N N N = 0 3. Michael Mitchell R 1 2 F = 3 4. Lee Springthorpe F 1 1 1 = 3 Ht 1 : Dwyer Hoskins Keynon (fell) Springthorpe (fell) 5-0 5-0 2 : Quarterman Knuckey Springthorpe Mitchell (ret) 5-1 10-1 3 : Dwyer Quarterman Mitchell 5-1 15-2 4 : Knuckey Hoskins Springthorpe 5-1 20-3 5 : Dwyer Mitchell Hoskins 4-2 24-5 6 : Quarterman Knuckey Springthorpe Mitchell (fell) 5-1 29-6 The Coventry-Mercia Vikings raced to a resounding 29-6 victory over the luckless Halifax Dukes at Brandon on Friday. The Dukes were first hit by the non arrival of Connor Coles and followed this up by losing skipper Adam Keynon in the first heat when he crashed coming out of bend four and was withdrawn from the meeting with a foot injury. With Lee Springthorpe damaging his bike when he looped at the start of heat one the depleted Dukes were on a hiding to nothing. Using a spare bike though the remaining Duke duo did their best but the Vikings were showing no mercy. With five maximum heat wins in the six heats it was only Michael Mitchell’s gallant second place in heat 5 that prevented a total whitewash. Conor Dwyer posted a full 9 point maximum whilst Paul Quarterman and skipper Martin Knuckey posted paid maximums with Cam Hoskins on paid 7. The two league points leapfrogged the Vikings to fourth spot in the table and they now travel to Scunthorpe next Friday determined to continue their climb up the league positions.

He is mechanicing for Ryan Fisher

MERCIA VIKINGS ADD ELLIS PERKS TO SQUAD Coventry Mercia Vikings have added 15 year old ELLIS PERKS to their MDL squad as a replacement for Lee Springthorpe , who has requested a break from the team. Ellis Perks was born in Worcester U.K. on 18/3/97 . The family emigrated to Australia in Dec 2007 and now resides on the Gold Coast of Queensland. Ellis rode junior grass track before the move down under,. In Australia he rode junior speedway 125cc for 4 years before making the move onto a 350cc machine at 14.Son of former UK referee Robbie Perks and Great nephew to ex speedway rider Dave Perks –a Cradley Heathens legend. Ellis is hoping to make an impact in his spell in the UK aiming to attract a National League place for the 2013 season. Vikings joint manager Laurence Rogers knows the family well and is pleased to be able to offer Ellis the chance to ride in the MDL , “ I have a long association with the Perks family knowing Dave from my time at Cradley and crossed swords with Rob as a team manager when he was a ref. I remember Ellis as a cheeky little devil but one who could certainly ride a bike. He has grown quite a bit since I last saw him five years ago and I am looking forward to having him in Vikings colours.”

WHO KNOWS --BUT WE HAVE TO PREPARE AS IF IT IS

MERCIA VIKINGS v Halifax “HARGREAVES FOUNDRY” DUKES When did a Halifax side last ride at Coventry ?? 1985 so it seems !! Well on Friday night (June 15th) after the Elite League clash between Coventry Bees and Kings Lynn Stars the Dukes are at Brandon to race against Coventry-Mercia Vikings in a Midland Development League clash . The NCA Vikings are without regular No. 1 Dan Greenwood as he has a busy National League diary this weekend for Dudley so locally based former Bees mascot Conor Dwyer comes in to cover for him. New signing Tyler Govier is unavailable as he takes part in the British Under 16 Championship at Northside near Workington this weekend and we wish our young Devonian capture the best up there and hopefully he will make his debut away next Friday at Scunthorpe. Cornish based Martin Knuckey captains the side tonight with fellow teenagers Adam Portwood and Cam Hoskins in the Vikings young side with an average age of just over 17!! Teams : NCA Vikings : 1. Conor Dwyer. 2. Cam Hoskins. 3. Martin Knuckey © 4. Adam Portwood. Team Managers : Kelvin Lapworth and Laurence Rogers Halifax “HARGREAVES FOUNDRY” Dukes : 1. Adam Keynon. 2. Connor Coles. 3. Michael Mitchell . 4. TBC Team Manager : Wayne Carter

It is !! (Prounouced like Wozniak) Great lad. He crashed out in the 250 races in heat one at Wolves on Monday and felt sorry for himself and his battered bike after slamming into the air fence on bend four in his first ride after finding too much grip whilst chasing Nathan Greaves. But he bounced back in the best possible way with this win --a British World Champion!! His facebook page had the trophies on and they were bigger than him and his dad Kevin rang me from Germany after the meeting with the news.

For Michael it is all part of the speedway learning curve. I have got to know Michael and his dad through the under 15's and he is doing fine --strangely enough when I was at Buxton the other week I had a conversation with them both that many might find strange when I said in one race that it was a "good last!!" ...they understood what I meant in that he was on the pace in a race with three experienced heat leaders and that is how he will learn. Keep on learning Michael!!

amended results : Following a review by the MDL management the result of the Long Eaton v Stoke MDL match on Saturday has been amended to a 16-16 draw. Due to the use of two riders more than four times as per the regulations agreed the result of heat 5 has been amended to be 3-0 to Long Eaton Long Eaton Invaders v Stoke Spitfires (MDL) 9th June 2012 – at Leicester After the Long Eaton Invaders were beaten by Stoke in a dramatic last heat at Beaumont Park the result has been amended by the MDL management. Going into heat 6 with a 16-14 advantage, the home side seemed all set for another victory, but saw Liam Rumsey fall, and then Ben Holloway - leading at the time - fell on the final bend, to present Stoke with a 5-0 heat win and a 19-16 victory. But heat 5 has been amended to be a 3-0 meaning that it was 16-11 after five heats and the resultant Stoke 5-0 levelled the end result to a 16-16 draw, Long Eaton Invaders 16 Lee Geary 2 + 3 + 3 = 8 Lee Springthorpe 1* + 0 + 0 =1+1 Liam Rumsey 1* + 3 + f = 4+1 Ben Holloway 2 + 1 + f = 3 Stoke Spitfires 16 Shaun Tedham 3 + 2 + 1* + 3 = 9+1 Adam Briggs ef = 0 Martin Wrathall f = 0 Connor Dwyer 3 + f + 2 + 2* = 7+1 H1 Tedham, Geary, Springthorpe, (Briggs ef) 3-3 /3-3 68.63 H2 (awarded) Dwyer, Holloway, Rumsey, (Wrathall fell) 3-3/6-6 No time H3 (Tedham & Dwyer replaced Briggs & Wrathall) Geary, Tedham, Holloway (Dwyer fell, excl) 4-2/10-8 69.28 H4 Rumsey, Dwyer, Tedham, (Springthorpe fell) 3-3/13-11 70.31 H5 Geary, Dwyer (points deducted), Tedham (points deducted), Springthorpe 3-0/16-11 70.06 H6 Tedham, Dwyer, (Rumsey fell) (Holloway fell) 0-5/16-16 71.81

Congratulations to Zach Wajtknecht who raced to the World 125cc Chamopionship in Germany on Saturday.

Following a review by the MDL management the result of the Long Eaton v Stoke MDL match on Saturday has been amended to a 16-16 draw. Due to the use of two riders more than four times as per the regulations agreed the result of heat 5 has been amended to be 3-0 to Long Eaton. Long Eaton Invaders v Stoke Spitfires (MDL) 9th June 2012 – at Leicester Invaders were beaten by Stoke in a dramatic last heat at Beaumont Park. Going into heat 6 with a 16-14 advantage, the home side seemed all set for another victory, but saw Liam Rumsey fall, and then Ben Holloway - leading at the time - fell on the final bend, to present Stoke with a 5-0 heat win and a 19-16 victory. Stoke Spitfires gained a last race victory to beat top of the league Long Eaton 19-16 at Leicester. The Spitfires lost Adam Briggs and Martin Wrathall in their first races leaving Connor Dwyer and Shaun Tedham to complete 5 rides on the trot. Speaking about their first away win team manager Mike Gittings Said "It was an amazing night full credit to Connor and Shaun to do five rides on the trot and come away with a victory against the top of the league club is amazing." Long Eaton Invaders 16 Lee Geary 2 + 3 + 3 = 8 Lee Springthorpe 1* + 0 + 0 =1+1 Liam Rumsey 1* + 3 + f = 4+1 Ben Holloway 2 + 1 + f = 3 Stoke Spitfires 19 Shaun Tedham 3 + 2 + 1* + 1* + 3 = 10+2 Adam Briggs ef = 0 Martin Wrathall f = 0 Connor Dwyer 3 + f + 2 + 2 + 2* = 9+1 H1 Tedham, Geary, Springthorpe, (Briggs ef) 3-3 /3-3 68.63 H2 (awarded) Dwyer, Holloway, Rumsey, (Wrathall fell) 3-3/6-6 No time H3 (Tedham & Dwyer replaced Briggs & Wrathall) Geary, Tedham, Holloway (Dwyer fell, excl) 4-2/10-8 69.28 H4 Rumsey, Dwyer, Tedham, (Springthorpe fell) 3-3/13-11 70.31 H5 Geary, Dwyer, Tedham, Springthorpe 3-3/16-14 70.06 H6 Tedham, Dwyer, (Rumsey fell) (Holloway fell) 0-5/16-19 71.81

Mercia Vikings add Tyler Govier to squad : Vikings management duo Kelvin Lapworth and Laurence Rogers are delighted to announce that they have secured cover for long-term injury victim, skipper Freddie Owen, by signing highly-rated Devon-based rider Tyler Govier for the remainder of the season. 'TG' is already a member of the Long Eaton Invaders MDL squad, although he has yet to feature in their league campaign. Tyler is, however, making an impression in the Anglian Junior League, having shown significant progress for Mildenhall. The 15-year-old hails from Exeter and makes the long trip to Suffolk to ride for the Fen Tiger Cubs. Tyler rode grass track until he moved to speedway as a 13-year-old, with Michael Coles encouragement and mounted on a 'Colesy special' bike! Tyler is featuring in the 500cc class of this year's British Youth Championship and finished joint fifth in the first round at Leicester recently. The addition of Tyler to the Vikings squad further enhances the club's commitment to helping young riders progress, and by linking with the team Tyler is confident that regular outings around Coventry's acclaimed Brandon circuit will help him develop as a rider and add significantly to his experience. Both parties are therefore looking forward to enjoying a mutually beneficial partnership. Already counting one of the Vikings team partners, FB Race Plates, amongst his list of personal sponsors, we hope that Tyler will also appreciate and benefit from the discounts offered on products and services by some of our other team partners, including Teng Tools, and Beeline Oils, and the Cov-Comp vouchers provided by Nuneaton Speedway Supporters Club. The support of these companies is extremely helpful to the riders, all of whom receive no financial reward for their commitment to racing at Midland Development League level, and is therefore very much appreciated by everyone involved with the Coventry-Mercia Vikings.