Anders Michanek

[marcusthepom]

hello tmc how about a book about the great anders michanek.the best swede ever.there would be plenty to write about.perhaps combine the book with the best janks ever bruce ,bobby,dennis,shaun,kelly and rick.and for good luck throw in a few good australians billy,gary,philp and jason.theres your next best seller.

p.s......loved the kenny carter book well done .

[iris123]

Much rather read a book about Varg Olle Now i am sure he really has a few stories to tell.Was right there at the start of Swedish Speedway and is still involved in the sport today.Truly great rider/sportsman and one of the wildmen from Sweden

[spin king]

hello tmc how about a book about the great anders michanek.the best swede ever.there would be plenty to write about.perhaps combine the book with the best janks ever bruce ,bobby,dennis,shaun,kelly and rick.and for good luck throw in a few good australians billy,gary,philp and jason.theres your next best seller.

p.s......loved the kenny carter book well done .

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Think Ove Fudin and Tony Rickarsson would dispute the best Swede tag.

[star ghost]

Top Three Swedish riders (from the real days)

Ove Fundin .......... Olle Nygren ........ Rune Sormander

Next best

Per Olaf Soderman .......... Bjorn Knutsson ....... Soren Sjosten

[spin king]

Top Three Swedish riders (from the real days)

Ove Fundin .......... Olle Nygren ........ Rune Sormander

Next best

Per Olaf Soderman .......... Bjorn Knutsson ....... Soren Sjosten

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How can you class two riders who have never won a World title in front of one that has.

[Dietbowers]

and your forgetting about the likes of Toby Harryson and Gote Nordin

[iris123]

How can you class two riders who have never won a World title in front of one that has.

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Not that hard.I would say Gollob,Jancarz and Plech are all better than Jerzy S

[shazzybird]

perhaps combine the book with the best janks ever

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[spin king]

Not that hard.I would say Gollob,Jancarz and Plech are all better than Jerzy S

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Okay I can accept that one.

[star ghost]

Well spin king the reason I can class two riders without a World Title above someone with one is the same as someone???? can class a once winner ahead of a five times winner.

In fact it is really only a matter of opinion after all.

I could have said Tommy Jansson or some of the others.

Rickhardson won some G P titles but I have not quoted him among my selections as his titles are "entry by invitation only"

I do not consider that the two systems should be ranked equal.

If Jack Young arrived in England today and signed for Edinburgh (in the 2nd division of Speedway) he would not get an invite to next years G P system. He did in the past and qualified to go into the final and win it

Also iris123 I agree Olle's is a story worth telling . His years spent in the Sport are unsurpassed and will remain so. One night at Harringay Olle put his shoulder "out", swung his arm round a couple of times, got back on the bike and carried on the meeting.

Edited August 27, 2007 by star ghost

[spin king]

Well spin king the reason I can class two riders without a World Title above someone with one is the same as someone???? can class a once winner ahead of a five times winner.

In fact it is really only a matter of opinion after all.

I could have said Tommy Jansson or some of the others.

Rickhardson won some G P titles but I have not quoted him among my selections as his titles are "entry by invitation only"

I do not consider that the two systems should be ranked equal.

If Jack Young arrived in England today and signed for Edinburgh (in the 2nd division of Speedway) he would not get an invite to next years G P system. He did in the past and qualified to go into the final and win it

Also iris123 I agree Olle's is a story worth telling . His years spent in the Sport are unsurpassed and will remain so. One night at Harringay Olle put his shoulder "out", swung his arm round a couple of times, got back on the bike and carried on the meeting.

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Fair comment.

[marcusthepom]

Fair comment.

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your all correct,but in my eyes anders was the best ever swede and a good bloke to boot.

talk about turning the clock back i can still remember standing on the forth bend at tilehurst watching the great man,i was only a little nipper but it was watching anders that got me thinking about riding a bike one day.

what a team to anders rode with,im sure it went like this but dont hold me to it

1.anders

2.bernie the bolt

3dag lovaas

4.dickie may

5.skippy curtis (one of the best ever ozzies i have ever seen and meet)R.I.P.

6.mike bell

7.mudgie

im not sure weather they all rode that year 1973 0r 1972 how the years pass because i can also remember watching a couple of wild lads to like josef angermuller,and jack millan.

one thing i can say with 100% is that in those days you followed a team,for good or bad,you would drive up and down the uk to watch your team and when you turned up all your team was present and ready to ride,whats happening in speedway today is just bulldust,guest riders ,stand ins,riders coming and going,

with out the english league those top fellows would be worth nothing perhaps they should treat the english league a lot better.and there would be far more bums on seats.thats 100% for sure

[Guest]

Rickhardson won some G P titles but I have not quoted him among my selections as his titles are "entry by invitation only"

I do not consider that the two systems should be ranked equal.

 

Hi SG, just to say that Rickardsson won his first title in 1994, which is you'll no doubt recall was the last of the one-off World Finals.

 

My father told me about Peo Soderman (a lovely gentleman apparently) and Knutsson. Would have loved to have been around in the 60's to have watched these great riders on show.

[Parsloes 1928 nearly]

If Jack Young arrived in England today and signed for Edinburgh (in the 2nd division of Speedway) he would not get an invite to next years G P system. He did in the past and qualified to go into the final and win it

 

Absolutely: an excellent example that shows how completely unfair the current GP system is.

For most in the so-called GP series, it it's just a pay-day - they've no intention of winning it, just staying in it.

Greg Hancock is the perfect example..: is there honestly anyone out there who believes he’d have let Chris Harris past him if that was the final bend of a World Final with the title up for grabs..?

 

Another good example which compares the meritocracy that was the proper World Championship system with the tired monopoly that is the travesty masquerading under that title today, is the rise of Michael Lee.

A raw 16 year old newcomer to the Second Division (NNL) in 1975, by September of 1977 and aged just 18 he was able to ride in the World Final (and indeed get into a run-off for third place in that Final; could have even won the title but for the reinstatement after 2 minutes exclusions of Olsen & Mauger.. ).

 

Now fast-forward to now. There are young talents around as good as Lee was in '75 as a 16 year old in Tai Woofinden and Lewis Bridger. Now let's estimate how many years it'll be before those two will be 'allowed' into the GPs..??

Perhaps by the time they are, they may have lost interest: the opportunities to excel and achieve having been denied them in their early prime…

[Guest]

The main problem I had with the old system, was the 50/50 split between the Western speedway nations and the "Eastern bloc" countries in terms of allocation of actual final places.

 

Whilst the system did allow a National League heat leader (or British League reserve) progress up the ranks from say an April meeting at Crayford through to the British Final and beyond, it was patently unfair that at times (especially 1978 when only 4 Brits were allowed to reach the final!) that the Poles. Czechs and Russians had a far,far easier route to Wembley, Ullevi or Katowice.

 

Apart from the odd upset, Gordeev in 1971, Sczakciel and Plech in 1973, Plech again in 1979, you could almost guess the bottom four placings in advance.

 

In no way, do I mean to belittle the efforts of the likes of Plech, Jancarz, Stancl, but surely Petr Ondrasik et al added little to proceedings??

[star ghost]

Per Olaf Soderman came to the U K to ride for Coventry Bees on the recommendation of Ove Fundin. I think he took the Brandon track record on his first night there.

 

The 50/50 split was not how it was at first. When the Continentals first staged their own rounds only 4 got to reach the Final direct. Prior to that they had to ride in our Qualifying rounds starting on our 2nd division tracks. At one time I know Reg Morgan, Bob Mark and Phil Clarke rode in Continental rounds. The Swedes made the initial breakthrough and other countries had just the odd one who qualified but as the sport progressed in Europe so they all wanted a cut of the places on "Wembley" night. Among the riders who never qualified for a Final it is somewhat of a surprise to find the name of Arne Pander.

Edited September 11, 2007 by star ghost

[Guest]

So SG, it's really all the fault of the Norwich No. 1.

 

Fancy having the cheek of winning the title 5 times...

[star ghost]

Ha Ha. I would blame Les Mullins instead as he was a brilliant bloke with engines

[Parsloes 1928 nearly]

The main problem I had with the old system, was the 50/50 split between the Western speedway nations and the "Eastern bloc" countries in terms of allocation of actual final places.

 

Whilst the system did allow a National League heat leader (or British League reserve) progress up the ranks from say an April meeting at Crayford through to the British Final and beyond, it was patently unfair that at times (especially 1978 when only 4 Brits were allowed to reach the final!) that the Poles. Czechs and Russians had a far,far easier route to Wembley, Ullevi or Katowice.

 

Apart from the odd upset, Gordeev in 1971, Sczakciel and Plech in 1973, Plech again in 1979, you could almost guess the bottom four placings in advance.

 

In no way, do I mean to belittle the efforts of the likes of Plech, Jancarz, Stancl, but surely Petr Ondrasik et al added little to proceedings??

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Well done on the Crayford mention, pd..: I'd have been proud of that one!!!

 

Looking back at the World Finals of what I'd consider to be something of a golden era (certainly the era I was going to World Finals more often than not..) you're certainly right that the Eastern Europeans did monopolise the bottom positions.

1975: bottom 5 all Poles & Russians; ditto 1976 (even though in Poland!); 1977: Poles & Czechs in the bottom four; 1978 & 1979: 4 out of the bottom 5, East Europeans; 1980 4 out of the bottom 5 this time (with Egon Muller the (slightly) odd man out!; and again 4 out of 5 in 1981.

 

You mention Zenon Plech as an honourable exception but looking at the World Final stats from his era, it is remarkable to note that though he is one of a comparative few riders to have two rostrum positions to his name (in '73 and '79) he also finished in the bottom three no fewer than FOUR times ('75, '80, 81 & '83)

 

The fact that the likes of Plech, Muller and Jancarz [2nd. in '68 but himself a bottom five finisher several times ('75,'76,'77 & '81)] suggests to me that the World Finals were consistently far more competitive than the current World Championship format. The likes of Greg Hancock are untroubled each year in remaining in the GP without seriously challenging for the title. There was no such comfort zone in the proper World Championship...

[salty]

That would be the Greg Hancock who finished 2nd in 2006 would it?

Having said that I take your point. We used to be in a position where riders like Crump or Sanders would sometimes be out of the World Championship race before the European season had even started.