A Track I Wish I Could Have Visited

[SHALEWAY69]

Yes Jim.The Firs certainly seemed lot different at some Junior meetings compared to the nights when the Stars like Ove, Aub & Billy were riding. But then Barry East, the Sayer twins and Peter Atkins & co had their supporters also

star ghost.

you are correct there was always a different amostphere at practice sessions and training schools. i recall Hackney on a saturday and training schools at Mildenhall with Mick Hines. Often there would established riders and people from the business side of speedway there who you could yarn to away from the pressures of the meetings.

At Mildenhall in the 1976-80 period there was a wonderful little guy who was a pusher, he came from Norfolk and was an ex Norwich man. I cannot recall his name but he seemed to be on freindly terms with the Bales family. wondered if you could place?

 

[star ghost]

star ghost.

you are correct there was always a different amostphere at practice sessions and training schools. i recall Hackney on a saturday and training schools at Mildenhall with Mick Hines. Often there would established riders and people from the business side of speedway there who you could yarn to away from the pressures of the meetings.

At Mildenhall in the 1976-80 period there was a wonderful little guy who was a pusher, he came from Norfolk and was an ex Norwich man. I cannot recall his name but he seemed to be on freindly terms with the Bales family. wondered if you could place?

 

Tony - This could have been Terry Allen, who was an ex-Stars Junior in the days of Peter Atkins, Derek Strutt and the Sayer twins. Maybe on the other hand, it was Ronnie Lynch, he was an Aussie, who I last saw going over the fence at a training school at the Firs, I have been informed he is now a health & safety man at a Speedway track. Maybe Mildenhall or Kings Lynn. The most memorable bloke in the pits that I recall was Freddie who came from the "Fundin County". He was a great little bloke who had been following Speedway "for hundreds of years" as they say. He seemed to know everyone from Frank Varey at Belle Vue to Billy Bales at Norwich. I last recall Freddie as the "Pit Gate to Track" controller at Kings Lynn in the 80s or 90s. And he had a JAP which he would ride at the end of season meeting at Saddlebow Road. One season he fulfilled his ambition when he went on track with Ove. A real charachter in the best sense.

 

[SHALEWAY69]

Tony - This could have been Terry Allen, who was an ex-Stars Junior in the days of Peter Atkins, Derek Strutt and the Sayer twins. Maybe on the other hand, it was Ronnie Lynch, he was an Aussie, who I last saw going over the fence at a training school at the Firs, I have been informed he is now a health & safety man at a Speedway track. Maybe Mildenhall or Kings Lynn. The most memorable bloke in the pits that I recall was Freddie who came from the "Fundin County". He was a great little bloke who had been following Speedway "for hundreds of years" as they say. He seemed to know everyone from Frank Varey at Belle Vue to Billy Bales at Norwich. I last recall Freddie as the "Pit Gate to Track" controller at Kings Lynn in the 80s or 90s. And he had a JAP which he would ride at the end of season meeting at Saddlebow Road. One season he fulfilled his ambition when he went on track with Ove. A real charachter in the best sense.

 

Pretty certain that it would have been Freddie. my memory is that he appeared to know every one. he was small, wore a cloth cap and was very lively with a real Norfolk accent.

TONY

 

[star ghost]

Pretty certain that it would have been Freddie. my memory is that he appeared to know every one. he was small, wore a cloth cap and was very lively with a real Norfolk accent.

TONY

In that case "he" was Freddie Johnson. Rumour had it he won the money to buy his JAP machine on a local "spot the ball" competition in a Norfolk newspaper.

 

[DW]

Would loved to have visited London White City(nearly went to WTC Final in 1982 but Glasgow were at Mildenhall the same day,ironically my first visit there also)

Glasgow White City was just before my time and Motherwell would've been another.

Of more recent tracks, probably Skegness(remember them?), Milton Keynes(Groveway),Barrow(both tracks),Crayford,West Ham and Castleford

[keef]

Wembley Lions

White City

Stamford Bridge

Harringay

Crystal Palace

Lea Bridge

Crayford

Romford

Bristol

St.Austell

Southampton

Hyde Road Belle Vue

Exeter

Oxford

Leicester

Cradley

Halifax

Bradford

Norwich

 

 

Edited November 29, 2008 by keef

[Shadders]

I was a late convert to speedway in 1985, so missed the likes of Wembley and White City in the London area.

 

I'm glad I managed to travel to Long Eaton and Milton Keynes (Elfield Park) before they closed. The facilities at Elfield Park made Buxton and Sittingbourne look like the Millenium Stadium.

 

There are a couple of tracks that I could've very easily travelled to. Trelawny was one, although it's a fair way on a Tuesday evening. Another I should've checked out before it closed was Canterbury.

 

Of the tracks that closed pre 1985, West Ham, Romford, Rayleigh and White City would've been tracks I would've been most likely to visit, being within an hours drive of home. Harringay and New Cross closed before my time.

 

Mostly, I wish I'd discovered speedway much much earlier. I'd have loved to have seen speedway at Rye House during 1979/80, only 20 minutes drive from my home and I didn't even know it

Edited November 29, 2008 by Shadders

[Tracy Bird]

Would loved to have visited London White City(nearly went to WTC Final in 1982 but Glasgow were at Mildenhall the same day,ironically my first visit there also)

Glasgow White City was just before my time and Motherwell would've been another.

Of more recent tracks, probably Skegness(remember them?), Milton Keynes(Groveway),Barrow(both tracks),Crayford,West Ham and Castleford

saw the goals from barrow v brentford fa cup tie on telly earlier,you would never believe there was a speedway track there once.

[BOBBATH]

Amazingly I watched the Barrow v Brentford game live on TV here in Toronto and I thought the same thing as you tracy bird.But at least I got to see Holker-it looked like it was next to a harbour or something-miserable night there wasn't it!!

[czechhero]

Would loved to have seen speedway in the original stadium at Brum's present Perry Barr home.

Warren v Parker would have done nicely too.

[star ghost]

Ah well .... Bert Spencer, Tommy Allott, Paddy Mills, Stan Williams etc v Graham Warren or "Tiger" Hart would havebeen o k as well

[Tigerblade]

Of more recent tracks, probably Skegness(remember them?), Milton Keynes(Groveway),Barrow(both tracks),Crayford,West Ham and Castleford

 

I went to Skegness once - when they "reopened" in 1998, it was okay. Castleford is another one I wish I could have visited, that's not far from here.

 

[martinmauger]

Liked to have watched at Hedon Aerodrome (Hull Angels), but it was a ittle before my time; 1948/9, fixtures & league placing in Div 3 taken over by Swindon....

[spiegal]

Pretty certain that it would have been Freddie. my memory is that he appeared to know every one. he was small, wore a cloth cap and was very lively with a real Norfolk accent.

TONY

 

 

I am equally sure that this was Freddie...the ONLY person at Saddlebow Road who John Berry liked !!!!!

 

he was a lovely person...always wanted a 3hr chat...always smiling, a true son of teh local soil.

 

Wonder what happened to him.....indeed he was one of life's true delights.

[no-brakes-uk]

Leicester, Wembley and Tamworth but the latter closed about 20 years before i was born!

 

[Ben91]

Any in Britain which has hosted speedway but now shut down that i haven't been too, with special mention to Wembley, Trelawny, New Cross, Hackney and Hyde Road i'd say.

[stavvy1974]

I loved that place, even though facilities were a bit, er, spartan

 

There's quite a few I wish I had gone to: (in no particular order)

 

White City

Wimbledon ("old" track, so to speak, I've been to Plough Lane during their recent times)

Hackney

Scunthorpe Quibell Park, wasn't that on the inside of a cycle racing track?

Bristol (Eastville)

Hull (The Boulevard)

Claremont, Perth WA

 

If we are talking about tracks before your speedway time, then Crewe, Newport Somerton Park, Doncaster spring to mind.

Never got to Leicester or Bristol did the others loved Hyde road and Halifax. Not only did Quibel park have a cycle track on the outside the track actually doubled as an athletics track. A bit biased but loved Cleveland park found Crayford weird especially that dip on the 2nd bend.

[PhilK]

Trelawney - always meant to go but kept putting it off...and then they closed.

 

 

I made it to Trelawny Rabbit, but did the exact same as you with Camarthen

 

Would also have liked to have visited Halifax, Leicester, Coatbridge and Paisley, all tracks that were around when I first started watching speedway in 1976!

[TwoMinuteWarning]

High Beech, Feb 19, 1928

 

[Bee]

Easy for me to answer. As with your good self Norwich. I was too young to be allowed to travel that far when the Firs was still in operation. Which always was a dispappointment too me, especially now I'm old and can't go because it's gone. The Bees always seemed to do well there and that was even with Fundin in their line up.

 

Another I missed was Hampden Park Glasgow. Was due to go with my friend and his dad who started me on the speedway bug....But mum put her foot down because they were going in a camper van for a few days, and I'd miss a day or two at school!

 

It was not the Tigers or the Bees match. But I think it was a British Nordic Final of the World Championship.

 

There are a few other defunct places I would have liked to have visited, but up until I left UK in '99 I'd been to most every track that had operated between 70-99.