ARU777 Posted May 24, 2014 Report Share Posted May 24, 2014 Remember Dag Lovaas? Rode with Reidar Eide in the World best pairs, rode for Newcastle, Oxford and quite a few more. Did Dag suffer a bad back injury, possibly broken? I might be getting my riders mixed up, help appreciated Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grachan Posted May 25, 2014 Report Share Posted May 25, 2014 Best rider in the world if it was raining. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
salty Posted May 25, 2014 Report Share Posted May 25, 2014 Was one of my favourite riders in the 70's. Can't think why to be honest, he wasn't particularly spectacular, but I followed him from his tough first season at Brough Park to his breakthrough as a heat leader at Reading. Was a big fan of his brother Ulf who had a short spell as a Heathen in 1974 and was a silver cloud in a very dire year. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lucky lee Posted May 25, 2014 Report Share Posted May 25, 2014 remember watching him ride for white city Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stratton Posted May 25, 2014 Report Share Posted May 25, 2014 A very good rider,was outstanding for Hackney even challenged for the golden helmet reached 1 world final in 74.He was decent for Oxford but if i can remember rightly never liked the White City track never suited him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arnieg Posted May 25, 2014 Report Share Posted May 25, 2014 Best rider in the world if it was raining. Absolutely. Do you remember the Mike Keen testimonial? Sheeting down and Dag won every race by a straight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terry Posted May 25, 2014 Report Share Posted May 25, 2014 My earliest speedway memory is of a rider in yellow leathers flying from the tapes. He was practically unbeatable during that 74 season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cityrebel Posted May 25, 2014 Report Share Posted May 25, 2014 He was white city's best rider in 1977!!! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grachan Posted May 26, 2014 Report Share Posted May 26, 2014 Absolutely. Do you remember the Mike Keen testimonial? Sheeting down and Dag won every race by a straight. I do. I was at that meeting. It's funny how when tracks became slippery everyone would ride slower yet Lovaas would carry on as normal. I seem to recall he used to practice on frozen lakes in Norway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stratton Posted May 26, 2014 Report Share Posted May 26, 2014 He was white city's best rider in 1977!!!But "City he only averaged 7.76 a really low average for him he had averaged over 10 for Reading,Hackney,and Oxford.I can remember seeing Dag in the Mike Keen meeting and in the 1974 European Final at Wembley when he qualified. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grachan Posted May 26, 2014 Report Share Posted May 26, 2014 But "City he only averaged 7.76 a really low average for him he had averaged over 10 for Reading,Hackney,and Oxford.I can remember seeing Dag in the Mike Keen meeting and in the 1974 European Final at Wembley when he qualified. That would have been 1976. In 1977 he didn't ride at White City and they used r/r all year, winning the league title. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stratton Posted May 26, 2014 Report Share Posted May 26, 2014 That would have been 1976. In 1977 he didn't ride at White City and they used r/r all year, winning the league title.Spot on "Grachan" the Keeno meeting was in 1975,in a way Dag,s career reminded me so much like that of Scott Autrey. How there careers went one bad move and just could not get there level back as we know both were world class in Scott's case he could of been WC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cityrebel Posted May 26, 2014 Report Share Posted May 26, 2014 But "City he only averaged 7.76 a really low average for him he had averaged over 10 for Reading,Hackney,and Oxford.I can remember seeing Dag in the Mike Keen meeting and in the 1974 European Final at Wembley when he qualified.it was my attempt at being sarcastic Sidney! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stratton Posted May 26, 2014 Report Share Posted May 26, 2014 it was my attempt at being sarcastic Sidney!Oh sorry "city" how was Dag around that venue? i only went in there championship year and for individual meeting's World team cups and Berger Grand Prix meetings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cityrebel Posted May 26, 2014 Report Share Posted May 26, 2014 Hit and miss really. The first time I really took notice of him was at west ham in 1971, when he got a full maximum riding for reading. It was a real surprise to me at the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
salty Posted May 26, 2014 Report Share Posted May 26, 2014 If I remember rightly Dag stuck with a 2 valve Jap in 1975 at Oxford and in 1976 at White City. With most other riders on 4 valves that would certainly have put him at a disadvantage around the big White City track which would account for his slump in average from 10 plus at Oxford. Never broke a bone either I don't think (in reply to the OP), but suffers from a bad back after Reider Eide stuffed him into the fence at Newport. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stratton Posted May 26, 2014 Report Share Posted May 26, 2014 (edited) If I remember rightly Dag stuck with a 2 valve Jap in 1975 at Oxford and in 1976 at White City. With most other riders on 4 valves that would certainly have put him at a disadvantage around the big White City track which would account for his slump in average from 10 plus at Oxford. Never broke a bone either I don't think (in reply to the OP), but suffers from a bad back after Reider Eide stuffed him into the fence at Newport. Salty what was his brother Ulf like at the Heath?he was the 1972 Norwegian champion i only see him for Oxford he did look more than usefull not in Dag's class of course. Edited May 26, 2014 by sidney Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miro Posted May 27, 2014 Report Share Posted May 27, 2014 I had the pleasure of watching Dag often at Tilehurst when the sport was big in Reading, and later he was an outstanding number one for the Rebels at Oxford. Superb stylist and so effortless, his prowess in the wet came from practicing on ice in Norway on a conventional speedway bike it was said. He was the last man to ride a JAP in a world final but in the end they couldn't get it to work with the silencer. His elder brother Ulf was a good rider and a tough guy, a Norwegian army sergeant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gatwick Rocket Posted May 28, 2014 Report Share Posted May 28, 2014 Could the original poster be thinking of another great Norwegian speedway rider, Rolf Gramstad, who broke his back in a track crash in the early 1980s? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stratton Posted May 28, 2014 Report Share Posted May 28, 2014 Could the original poster be thinking of another great Norwegian speedway rider, Rolf Gramstad, who broke his back in a track crash in the early 1980s?i think you are right rocket,he rode for Swindon and moved to Leicester and really improved did another quite good Norwegian rider Einar Kylingstad get injured as well i believe you are right though Rocket. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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