Bruce Penhall

[Humphrey Appleby]

Probably that query along with similar mysteries regarding why on earth he would give up the best, most exciting sport in the world when he was approaching his peak and had at least 10 years ahead of him.

 

It could have been all sorts of reasons. Speedway is dangerous and you start to reflect more on your mortality as you get older, or perhaps he simply got tired of endlessly travelling around a dank country to dilapidated stadiums with poor facilities. More likely though, especially for naturally talented competitors, is that once you've won the ultimate prize you don't feel there's any challenge left.

 

What changed in Bruces mind? because as you wrote his dream was always to be a speedway rider and become world champion, which he did with great skill, but his dream as a youngster or ambitions were NEVER anything about powert ski/power boat cruising.

 

You can change your mind. My ambitions have certainly changed over the years, not least because I've achieved some of them, but also because my interests have changed. Although I liked speedway from a relatively young age, I never had much time for other forms of motor sport but that's completely the reverse now and I'm much more interested in 4-wheeled racing these days. If you ask me why my interests changed though, I wouldn't really have much of a clue.

 

Hollywood aspirations and power ski racing are nothing to be proud of.

 

I think you're viewing it from a contemporary viewpoint. With the rise of celebrity and reality shows, people are much more aware that Hollywood is not all it's cracked up to be, especially playing a bit part in a mediocre television filler series. I'm not sure that was always the case though, and perhaps CHiPS was seen as a stepping stone to better things in showbiz. Some people make it and some don't and it's often down to being in the right place at the right time (as David Hasselhoff surely demonstrates), but you certainly have to be in it to win it...

 

Powerboat racing also attracts a lot of rich and influential people, so it's perhaps another avenue for career advancement even if it's a rather niche sport.

 

I spose you think his hollywood career was actaully successful?

 

[dirt]

I think this is well covered. Bruce felt that he had already reached the very top of the sport. His dream was to become World Champion and he did it, twice. He had an offer to appear in what was a hugely successful TV series at the time and it was an offer which had enormous appeal to him.

 

 

 

You are clearly entitled to your opinion, but I'm sure many powerboat fanatics would say similar things about speedway.

Top of the sport? Did he surpass Ivans record did he? Not even close. Not even Olsens. He jagged or managed two championships you could say, then left with no explanation.

 

obviously a very niaeve young pretty boy as that massive TV series turned into a fizzer and he threw his career away for nothing/squat. Then was too stubborn or scared to put the leathers on again and show what he could do!

 

Though he still must have had plenty of money to throw about on his power boats.?ahhh His name should be erased from the history books IMO.

 

He drained every cent he could while he rode speedway, then left it in the crap! Never has a rider retired after indeed winning a world crown. He denied K. Carter the opportunity to win for nothing more than showing off in front of his home crowd! what a twit. Carter never recovered from that, and Penhall was responsible for Carters downfall.

[Humphrey Appleby]

Top of the sport? Did he surpass Ivans record did he? Not even close. Not even Olsens.

 

You have to do a lot of hard yards to achieve what Mauger and Olsen did, and perhaps he just didn't have the desire to make the ongoing necessary sacrifices. Everyone ticks differently, and perhaps once he'd won two titles he'd proved it wasn't a fluke, but wasn't sufficiently motivated to carry on doing the same thing year-after-year.

 

Though he still must have had plenty of money to throw about on his power boats.

 

I could be wrong, but weren't the Penhalls fairly affluent outside speedway anyway? Again, that might give some insight into motivation.

 

He drained every cent he could while he rode speedway, then left it in the crap!

 

No more so than most top professional riders, who after all are trying to make living out of their profession. His retirement could have been timed better and was a bit inconsiderate to his employers (not to mention the Cradley fans), but it's a bit harsh to blame him for speedway's demise!

[dirt]

1. I could be wrong, but weren't the Penhalls fairly affluent outside speedway anyway? Again, that might give some insight into motivation.

 

2. No more so than most top professional riders, who after all are trying to make living out of their profession. His retirement could have been timed better and was a bit inconsiderate to his employers (not to mention the Cradley fans), but it's a bit harsh to blame him for speedway's demise!

1. Yes they werent short of a dollar to the point of entering power boat spending, but why was he known to be the most stingy money craving dealer when it came to his speedway contracts and negotiations if he was involved in a huge family business and already was wealthy?

 

2. He contributed by choosing to run at the worst possible time hence why I believe he got scared. Lee was into the wrong substances but still fighting and riding admirably, as so other yanks (reportetly), Carter was a wild consistent cannon with more guts than anyone, but the sport required a stabilising proven influence instead they got a pretty rich boy to claim 2 in a row then flee off to the big screen acting business leaving a huge gap impossible to fill straight away.

 

He isnt solely to blame - but no petty reasons will fool me from the fact that he hasnt opened up to the true reasons.

 

It basically doesnt need to be said really- its clear he wimped out. The only question left is why think its worthy of writing a book about it? To say you respect him more for taking up those fairytale opportunities given the fact they failed rather than going for some more crowns and giving the fans what they would have liked is utter moronic coming from a speedway fan. Or are you just a Bruce fan rather than a speedway fan?

 

Im more than happy to let bygons be bygons you can worship him I couldnt care one iota, but unless Bruce went on to something bigger and better which he did not it was a misjudged failure of a move.

 

You only change sports or careers for that matter if you are better at something else!!!!! he clearly wasnt, so he made a mistake . End of story"

[The White Knight]

So you don't approve of him Dirt.

[Humphrey Appleby]

Or are you just a Bruce fan rather than a speedway fan?

 

I was never a Bruce Penhall fan, and I think going to CHiPS was a mistake and cheapened his legacy. However, whatever the actual reasons for doing it, everyone is entitled to lose interest in what they're doing and go off and do something else. I think the ongoing bitterness and blame from some quarters is a bit excessive nearly 30 years down the line.

 

1. Yes they werent short of a dollar to the point of entering power boat spending, but why was he known to be the most stingy money craving dealer when it came to his speedway contracts and negotiations if he was involved in a huge family business and already was wealthy?

 

Presumably people become wealthy in the first place by cutting good deals for themselves. Even if you are wealthy, that doesn't mean you shouldn't seek to be paid what you think you're worth. I'd sure the Cradley promotion were in it for the money as well.

 

Lee was into the wrong substances but still fighting and riding admirably, as so other yanks (reportetly), Carter was a wild consistent cannon with more guts than anyone, but the sport required a stabilising proven influence instead they got a pretty rich boy to claim 2 in a row then flee off to the big screen acting business leaving a huge gap impossible to fill straight away.

 

Probably a good time to get out I'd think!

Edited December 4, 2010 by Humphrey Appleby

[Thischarmingman]

I was never a Bruce Penhall fan, and I think going to CHiPS was a mistake and cheapened his legacy. However, whatever the actual reasons for doing it, everyone is entitled to lose interest in what they're doing and go off and do something else. I think the ongoing bitterness and blame from some quarters is a bit excessive nearly 30 years down the line.

 

Indeed, since when did taking up speedway and becoming World Champion commit you to carry on with it until you're seriously injured or old, past it and living on former glories? Returning to California rather than living half the year in the UK, what a crazed madman.

 

I must admit I didn't start following speedway until a couple of years after he quit, but going out as double World Champion has a certain style about it, though no doubt a huge shock to the sport at the time.

 

Dirt, do you even remember Bruce Penhall as a racer, I have my doubts? I can't imagine such rage building up against someone, based on a book you have read about a subject. Most bizarre.

[salty]

He denied K. Carter the opportunity to win for nothing more than showing off in front of his home crowd! what a twit. Carter never recovered from that, and Penhall was responsible for Carters downfall.

Dirt, you have your opinions on Penhall and whilst I don't agree with them I accept your right to have those opinions. However, you surely can't be serious when you blame Penhall for Carter's downfall?

[The White Knight]

At the end of the day he was a Quitter - pure and simple. Let's move on............................

[Thischarmingman]

At the end of the day he was a Quitter - pure and simple. Let's move on............................

 

That Leigh Adams, he was a quitter. Still one of the best riders in the Elite League and he just walked away..........

 

Every speedway rider quits at some point, unless nobody is interested in them anymore and they don't get the chance.

 

At least Bruce did it with a bit of style.

[liverpool chad]

At the end of the day he was a Quitter - pure and simple. Let's move on............................

 

It's a bit harsh, that is!

I'll tell you what, i'd of retired years ago if someone had offered me a megabucks deal to star in some american series set in sunny California!

 

Dudley Wood or Hollywood? No contest really is it? speedway or no speedway, i think most of us would pick Hollywood, seven days a week!

[dirt]

So you don't approve of him Dirt.

Not one bit. Do you?

[dirt]

I was never a Bruce Penhall fan, and I think going to CHiPS was a mistake and cheapened his legacy.

 

Presumably people become wealthy in the first place by cutting good deals for themselves. Even if you are wealthy, that doesn't mean you shouldn't seek to be paid what you think you're worth. I'd sure the Cradley promotion were in it for the money as well.

He wasnt worth nothing though was he...in the end? I wonder if he told the Cradley boss he was likely planning to consider hollywood acting or at least in his final contract did he mention he might walk out to start an acting career, in a film or TV series staight after LA World Final? Very dishonest to speedway it isnt just a sport - its your employer and you are an employee working for a boss/business. He not only let CH down but the whole sport by not promoting anything or being a good ambassator after winning the World Final which was very important part of it all back then. Most selfish greedy thing you could ever want to do!

 

Dirt, you have your opinions on Penhall and whilst I don't agree with them I accept your right to have those opinions. However, you surely can't be serious when you blame Penhall for Carter's downfall?

Im deadly serious. Even Carter questioned why he wanted to win it in 82 if he was about to retire... or QUIT the sport.

 

At the end of the day he was a Quitter - pure and simple. Let's move on............................

Couldnt agree more. Why his name is now popping up writing articles is an absolute travesty and some sort of practical joke as he would be a hypocrite in everything he writes as he did worse than any rider to ever ride.

 

It's a bit harsh, that is!

I'll tell you what, i'd of retired years ago if someone had offered me a megabucks deal to star in some american series set in sunny California!

 

Dudley Wood or Hollywood? No contest really is it? speedway or no speedway, i think most of us would pick Hollywood, seven days a week!

Not everyone is only interested in mega money! or money even at all. Sportsman do it for the love of the game /sport or speedway riders well a lot of them anyway do it for the thrill and fun of riding the bike, and making fans happy also for some riders if they are good enough. Money isnt the factor for riders generally.

 

When you have plenty of money anyway even less of a concern is money making potential, although you certainly earned a good living back then and actually earned a good crust doing a hard job and something to be proud of. The exact opposite of What Penhall decided to switch to!

 

He has his claims to fame sure and they cant be taken away, but he did not reach his potential as a sportsman and never will deserve much respect for quitting so young and wasteing a career. I bet he cherishes his wins, but everyone else would be wondering why he didnt achieve/do more.

[salty]

Dirt - so much anger!!!

You can't seriously believe Penhall's decision to ride at the Coliseum in 1982 had anything to do with Carter's actions 4 years later?

As for "why he didn't achieve/do more?" - he won everything there was to win, why bother to carry on doing it. I reckon the majority would say well done for having the bottle to try and be a success in a totally different field.

As a Cradley fan I was disappointed when he walked out in 1982, but I can totally understand why he did.

[heathen79]

It is like glorifying a conman.

 

Compared to speedway bike riding that is something to be ashamed about, like a gardening contest or flower bouquet competition... dont try and disguise his wimping out by glorifying powerboat racing as it isnt even a sport and more like a waste of petrol and thrashing boats for fun.

 

His name should be erased from the history books IMO. He denied K. Carter the opportunity to win for nothing more than showing off in front of his home crowd! what a twit. Carter never recovered from that, and Penhall was responsible for Carters downfall.

 

Why his name is now popping up writing articles is an absolute travesty and some sort of practical joke as he would be a hypocrite in everything he writes as he did worse than any rider to ever ride.

 

 

Yikes!

 

I can't compete with those kind of arguments. We must be working on some different logic. I'm going to 'do a Penhall' and quit on this debate!

[dirt]

This was hardly a debate Heathen you wrote a whole book glorifying a rider who quit, and I expressed the honest reality and feelings from a speedway fans point of view.

 

You can sugar coat anything you want but Penhall ripped off everyone he ever dealt with as he wasnt a team player, only out for himself, but worst of all he didnt have the guts to stamp his name as a great, instead fleeing after two great victories for a dud career of attampted acting and powert ski racing which has and will never be as popular as speedway.

 

Speedway had huge crowds back in his riding days and was popular worldwide...who knew anything or rated such a sport as powerboat racing back then? even now its not even a big sport and its only accessable by the super rich.

 

As for him trying his hand as an actor that shows him up perfectly, he was never a sportsman. Prettyboy maybe but not a sportsmans bootlace and although he learnt to ride a speedway bike quite well he couldnt get near the greats like Mauger Olsen and everyone else who rode longer than him.

 

Longevity is what its about. Penhall didnt posess any of it. Flash in the pan.

 

It would have been better to not even mention his powerboating or failed hollywood career as they were just a waste of paper. More should have been studied with his rivalries with riders and his speedway stories, not just statistics and even powerboat stats. lol

 

Should have been called: Penhall - Career stats/achievements and overview.

 

Because it goes into no detail on the man himself.

 

Hope my feedback is helpful as you acknowledged my comments in my first appraisal. For review purposes id give it ** stars out of ***** stars.

 

matt the rat. aka dirt

[liverpool chad]

 

 

Even Carter questioned why he wanted to win it in 82 if he was about to retire... or QUIT the sport.

 

I suspect Carter questioned why Penhall wanted to win it in '82, because deep down Carter questioned his own ability to win a major round of the world championship! Because when it comes down to the crux of the matter, Carter never got close to winning the world title!

 

 

Not everyone is only interested in mega money! or money even at all. Sportsman do it for the love of the game /sport or speedway riders well a lot of them anyway do it for the thrill and fun of riding the bike, and making fans happy also for some riders if they are good enough. Money isnt the factor for riders generally.

 

 

have you been sniffing glue??? "Money isn't the factor for riders generally" You ask Ivan Mauger, Barry Briggs, Ole Olsen, Ronnie Moore, Peter Collins and Egon Muller if they thought money wasn't a factor! Ivan Mauger and Barry Briggs fought tooth and nail in the 1970's for riders wages to be increased greatly. Many riders even threatened to go on strike in the early 1970's.

 

 

When you have plenty of money anyway even less of a concern is money making potential, although you certainly earned a good living back then and actually earned a good crust doing a hard job and something to be proud of. The exact opposite of What Penhall decided to switch to!

 

 

Whenever anyone changes their employer or changes professions, they very rarely do so for less money. Most people who are successful and have earned alot of money get a desire to earn more. It's a fact of life. "money makes the world go round" And this is coming from me, a left wing socialist! But i'm not that naive in thinking it's about anything other than money.

 

 

He has his claims to fame sure and they cant be taken away, but he did not reach his potential as a sportsman and never will deserve much respect for quitting so young and wasteing a career. I bet he cherishes his wins, but everyone else would be wondering why he didnt achieve/do more.

 

Bruce Penhall reached the pinnacle of his chosen profession, speedway. You can't go any higher than being world champion! FACT nobody not even Bruce Penhall himself will ever truly know whether he could of won more world titles! FACT.

[Thischarmingman]

 

Speedway had huge crowds back in his riding days and was popular worldwide...

 

 

Was it really a huge sport in the early 80's, I got the impression it had already passed the mini-boom of the mid/late 70's by then?

 

Yes, the crowds in the UK were bigger domestically in those days than they are now, but it was the late 70's/early 80's, not the post war boom we're talking here. I know some tracks pulled in really big crowds at times and Wembley could pull a crowd for the World Finals.

 

Speedway has always been a niche sport in the US, slightly bigger in those days than it is now, and pretty much concentrated in the California area. Why do you think the Coliseum had less than 40,000 there that night when the place held over 80,000? There was probably a regular season baseball game on at nearby Dodger stadium that had a bigger crowd.

 

Other that that it was as popular in Eastern Europe as it is now, possibly more so, but I can't think of anywhere in the world that speedway was hugely popular 30 years ago and has disappeared now. Can you dirt?

[The White Knight]

Not one bit. Do you?

 

 

NOPE!!!

[Humphrey Appleby]

I can't think of anywhere in the world that speedway was hugely popular 30 years ago and has disappeared now.

 

Maybe South Africa or Rhodesia, and wasn't there speedway in Brazil and Mexico at some point?