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The Darren & Sharon Boocock Speedway Scholarship.


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The scholarship is pleased to advise those who have followed the scholarship over the past 6 years,that we will be running a tour to Australia this year .It will be our biggest and best yet.The scholarship will travel all over Australia.The tour starts in Western Australia on the 23rd of November and finishes late January 2014 in Queensland.This years tour will be the scholarships last,but watch out for news regards a scholarship team touring the united kingdom next season.Any body who wants to help or be involved in this years tour can contact me on EMAIL. morstonemanor@hotmail.com we have space remaing on our bike covers,and would welcome your support.I would like to thank all our regular sponsors and would like to welcome a few new ones this year.

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  • 2 weeks later...

The scholarship is pleased to advise those who have followed the scholarship over the past 6 years,that we will be running a tour to Australia this year .It will be our biggest and best yet.The scholarship will travel all over Australia.The tour starts in Western Australia on the 23rd of November and finishes late January 2014 in Queensland.This years tour will be the scholarships last,but watch out for news regards a scholarship team touring the united kingdom next season.Any body who wants to help or be involved in this years tour can contact me on EMAIL. morstonemanor@hotmail.com we have space remaing on our bike covers,and would welcome your support.I would like to thank all our regular sponsors and would like to welcome a few new ones this year.

who will be the beneficiaries of this winters Scholarship Marcus ?

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In the internatiinal section there is a posting on Young lions visit WA as a fully paid up member of technophobes anonymous(not anonymous in my case anymore) i cant post a link.

Marcus it might be worth posting a link to simplyalfa and other sponsors of the tour to maximise their company profile to forum users. That is if its within the rules of the forum.

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  • 1 month later...

There appears to be considerable confusion, here in the UK and in Australia, over this issue.

 

As I understand it, several young riders have bought and paid for airfares, but have now been told their tour is cancelled.

 

While it is truly unfortunate that one of the organisers has been involved in a traffic accident, surely others could step in and sort out matters to allow the riders to continue with their speedway education.

 

Isn't this what the D&SB scholarship is all about? And what about people I know who have contributed to the scholarship on the understanding their funding was to help young English riders gain experience by riding overseas?

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There appears to be considerable confusion, here in the UK and in Australia, over this issue.

 

As I understand it, several young riders have bought and paid for airfares, but have now been told their tour is cancelled.

 

While it is truly unfortunate that one of the organisers has been involved in a traffic accident, surely others could step in and sort out matters to allow the riders to continue with their speedway education.

 

Isn't this what the D&SB scholarship is all about? And what about people I know who have contributed to the scholarship on the understanding their funding was to help young English riders gain experience by riding overseas?

Fair questions. Any answers?

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There appears to be considerable confusion, here in the UK and in Australia, over this issue.

 

As I understand it, several young riders have bought and paid for airfares, but have now been told their tour is cancelled.

 

While it is truly unfortunate that one of the organisers has been involved in a traffic accident, surely others could step in and sort out matters to allow the riders to continue with their speedway education.

 

Isn't this what the D&SB scholarship is all about? And what about people I know who have contributed to the scholarship on the understanding their funding was to help young English riders gain experience by riding overseas?

Bloody good question, mate!

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There appears to be considerable confusion, here in the UK and in Australia, over this issue.

 

As I understand it, several young riders have bought and paid for airfares, but have now been told their tour is cancelled.

 

While it is truly unfortunate that one of the organisers has been involved in a traffic accident, surely others could step in and sort out matters to allow the riders to continue with their speedway education.

 

Isn't this what the D&SB scholarship is all about? And what about people I know who have contributed to the scholarship on the understanding their funding was to help young English riders gain experience by riding overseas?

My question as to who will be the benficiaries this year is still unanswered , Although I have a good idea why . we shall see .

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By beneficiaries do you mean the riders who were due to go? If so it was Richie and Steve Worrall, Kyle Newman, Ashley Morris, Tom Perry, Matt Williamson, Dan Greenwood and Hayden Sims.

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There appears to be considerable confusion, here in the UK and in Australia, over this issue.

 

As I understand it, several young riders have bought and paid for airfares, but have now been told their tour is cancelled.

 

While it is truly unfortunate that one of the organisers has been involved in a traffic accident, surely others could step in and sort out matters to allow the riders to continue with their speedway education.

 

Isn't this what the D&SB scholarship is all about? And what about people I know who have contributed to the scholarship on the understanding their funding was to help young English riders gain experience by riding overseas?

The "organisers" are Marcus and Beverley Williams. They are the ones who have put up countless thousands of their own money over the years to create and support the scholarship and they are the ones who throw open their house to accomodate the visiting riders.

Marcus was severely injured riding for Exeter at Newcastle in the 1980s and it is to his and Beverley's credit that they have been giving back to a sport that took so much from them.

He has been working on the 2013/14 Tour since late last year and his accident is a huge blow to everyone involved, whether it's riders, sponsors or helpers.

He now has to spend his time concentrating on getting as well as possible and I am sure Beverley's time is committed to supporting him. Under the circumstances, something had to give and that something is the Scholarship.

I am sure that the invited riders are absolutely gutted at the cancellation but I am also sure that every single one understands what has happened and wishes Marcus a speedy recovery.

I understand that there are steps afoot to try to reinstate some of the planned meetings but I have no further details at present.

On the matter of funding, I am one of those that has contributed to the costs, albeit in a fairly minor manner, and there is absolutely no way that I would consider asking for repayment. The money has been spent and the bikes will be ready for next year - all I can hope is that Marcus makes as full a recovery as possible and is able to offer Tour places 12 months from now.

If anyone wants more information, please contact me directly at gordonpairman@hotmail.co.uk

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Sad to hear Marcus (and Beverley) have been going through such an awful time of late. Like you, I say best wishes to him for a speedway and complete recovery, thats all that counts just now

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The "organisers" are Marcus and Beverley Williams. They are the ones who have put up countless thousands of their own money over the years to create and support the scholarship and they are the ones who throw open their house to accomodate the visiting riders.

Marcus was severely injured riding for Exeter at Newcastle in the 1980s and it is to his and Beverley's credit that they have been giving back to a sport that took so much from them.

He has been working on the 2013/14 Tour since late last year and his accident is a huge blow to everyone involved, whether it's riders, sponsors or helpers.

He now has to spend his time concentrating on getting as well as possible and I am sure Beverley's time is committed to supporting him. Under the circumstances, something had to give and that something is the Scholarship.

I am sure that the invited riders are absolutely gutted at the cancellation but I am also sure that every single one understands what has happened and wishes Marcus a speedy recovery.

I understand that there are steps afoot to try to reinstate some of the planned meetings but I have no further details at present.

On the matter of funding, I am one of those that has contributed to the costs, albeit in a fairly minor manner, and there is absolutely no way that I would consider asking for repayment. The money has been spent and the bikes will be ready for next year - all I can hope is that Marcus makes as full a recovery as possible and is able to offer Tour places 12 months from now.

If anyone wants more information, please contact me directly at gordonpairman@hotmail.co.uk

 

Thank you for your full explanation Gordon.

Edited by The White Knight
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  • 2 weeks later...

This is a tragedy for British speedway, with Speedway Star this week telling us of Czechs, Italians, Swedes and Yanks -- plus Kyle Newman, who has apparently organised his own trip -- riding in Perth later this month, while the proposed winter racing for half-a-dozen of our brightest prospects has come to nothing.

 

Allowing the prospect of further progress by GB at the top level to be further stifled. I note Gordon Pairman's explantation, but feel more could have been done to let these youngsters continue with their planned trip, even if on a curtailed basis.

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Here in Australia, we welcome overseas visitors. WA is a bit too far for our crew, but we'll be at the Title events in January, and will support local meetings at Gillman and Mildura. It'd be good to see riders from Europe, a shame the Poms aren't coming. Surely their Association could have stepped in to help that trip continue?

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If it had been possible for the Tour to have gone ahead then it would have happened. BSPA has put money behind it as have many others but what was needed was people able to provide accomodation, bikes, mechanics etc. In the past, this has been organised and often provided by Beverley and Marcus Williams but, with the uncertainty following the desperate injuries to Marcus, the riders, with one exception, decided not to travel. That was a huge disappointment to me especially as steps were being taken to try to make the Western Australian part of the trip continue as before but, as I have not spoken to any of the riders involved, it would be wrong of me to draw any premature conclusions.

 

I have spoken to Kyle Newman, however, who, as has been noted elsewhere, is still making the trip to WA and the Scholarship will arrange for bikes to be shipped nearly 5000km to him. He is then making his way to Townsville and hopefully will find plenty of meetings to ride on the eastern side of Australia..

 

Knowing Marcus, he will already be planning for November 2014, although I suspect that a different set of lads will be offered the privilege of being part of the Scholarship

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Reading between the lines of Gordon's post, are we to understand it was the young British riders who actually called off their trip, rather than those who had invested in it, and were trying to reorganise it?

The information that I have been given bears out your conclusion but, as I said, I have only had one side of the story. I am sure that the riders involved can speak for themselves should they so wish, and, it would wrong for me to be publicly critical when I don't know all the facts.

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  • 1 month later...

I would like to start of the post by saying the only person to blame for the scholarship tour not running this season was myself,After 9 months of planning

and a vast amount of money spent on equipment i was left with very little choice other than to cancel the tour due to my accident.

It would be fair to say that all the riders selected felt let down,It would also be fair to say that all the sponsors and scholarship team felt let down,but after

much hard work trying to keep the tour running the scholarship team was left with no other choice other than to cancel the tour.

 

As far as the scholarship is concerned we tried the best we could to still make the tour happen,we had some offers of help however we felt it was in the best interest

of all concerned to cancel the tour.Some problems just could not be overcome like transport,lodgings ,and behind the scenes support.I cant go into micro details,however

no rock was left unturned trying to overcome each and every problem.

 

I must also say that no sponsor is out of pocket,any monies placed into the scholarship fund have either been repaid in full or are in the process of being paid back in full.

I dont handle any sponsorship donations ,they are looked after by others,every penny which we are lucky enough to receive in either sponsorship or donations is spent on

equipment and other misc items like tyres,oil,fuel etc etc etc.Trust me there is no pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

 

I fully respect each and ever rider selected for this years scholarship tour,there is not one rider that has upset the scholarship team,There is not one rider who would not be

welcome again.Each and every rider at times must do what they think is right for them,the same applies to the scholarship.Each and every one of those riders selected and toured in

Australia is like family to the scholarship team.My wife and i treat each lad as if they were our own.........The riders are not to be blamed for the tours failure this year.......

 

This years tour was a massive undertaking We tried......I failed......its that simple.

thank you

marcus

 

 

 

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