Hamburg Langenfort 1948

[iris123]

A clip showing the British built speedway track in Hamburg including pre war Hamburg star Herbert Drews in what must have been one of his last meetings before his tragic death at the same track in January 1949

 

https://www.filmothek.bundesarchiv.de/video/583620?q=&xf%5B0%5D=all_personsinfilm&xo%5B0%5D=EQUALS&xv%5B0%5D=Viscount+Alexander

Edited October 27, 2015 by iris123

[iris123]

An article from the German magazine Der Spiegel from 04.12.1948

 

Without horn, without brake, without lights
The barrack and ruin dwellers at the sports field Langenfort in the bombed-out Hamburg district of Duisbert(sic) like to think back on the days when handball was played on the sand in front of their houses. For eight months now, popping exhausts of British Dirt Track machines have plagued their Sunday naps.

 

In Germany, the sports authorities after 1938 were not keen on dirt track races. There was never any explanation for the reasons for this "dislike."

After the war the Tommies brought the Dirt Track across the Channel again. In all the larger garrisons, they built their oval tracks with two hairpin bends and two short straights.

Dirt Track is just for iron men. Courage, skill and good nerves are important. The machines only play a secondary role.

 

When the drivers, muffled with helmets and thick leather suits, enter the narrow curve, the spectators cling to the iron lattice at Langenfort Platz. Black ash sprays. Rear wheels slide. Using an iron shoe on the left foot, the men brake and keep the balance. Sparks spray from the ground. The straight line is full-throttle. For four rounds go these hunts.

 

The Tommies assemble discarded army motorcycles for the dirt track. Mudguards and brakes are removed. Likewise, all superfluous screws and ornaments. The machine must be very light over the axis line. The fuel tank is not larger than a floor wax can.

 

For two years, the English troops rode Dirt Track amongst themselves. Battles between the garrison revive the racing program. The Hamburg Speed-Way-Club experienced the best reputation. Their riders, McCarhy, Hill, and Farr, made such long laps, until they were immortalized in all the record lists with track records. Even to Sweden and Denmark, they were invited and not beaten.

 

In the last few weeks, a few hundred more German spectators stood on the terracess of Hamburg-Duisbert . Herbert Drews, once Germany's dirt track-matador, is racing with the English.

 

The spectators know the 42-year-old from his glory days 15 years ago. Even today, it is rare that he isn't the first to cross the finish line with his shining number 2 on his back.

When he competed for the first time in a dirt track race in 1929, he finished last. But he is born with a marked ambition and tried further. Already the year after, he was able to win the "Golden Helmet" at the end of the season. This prize was awarded to the seasons best scorer.
In all, he won more than 500 prizes on all European circuits.

On his Dirt Track machine with a built-in 350 cc Jap engine, master mechanic Herbert Drews worked for two years getting it ready to race. Now she is tip-top in order. The rear wheel suspension amazes the English colleagues every Sunday.
"The whole thing is my Sunday pleasure," says Drews. He does not get a penny for his exciting rides. He also has to pay for gasoline, spare parts and insurance.
For the time being Herbert Drews and the 20-year-old Reinhold Möller (Drew's apprentice in the profession and on the track) are racing for the German colors around the 400-meter-long track. But the British would like to have more. An invitation was therefore sent to all German dirt track drivers to participate in a big event on the Langenfort train in Hamburg on December 12th.

 

NoteThe area is Hamburg-Dulsberg instead of Dulsbert in the article

Edited April 26, 2017 by iris123

[Guest]

A clip showing the British built speedway track in Hamburg including pre war Hamburg star Herbert Drews in what must have been one of his last meetings before his tragic death at the same track in January 1949

 

https://www.filmothek.bundesarchiv.de/video/583620?q=&xf%5B0%5D=all_personsinfilm&xo%5B0%5D=EQUALS&xv%5B0%5D=Viscount+Alexander

 

The speedway action was worth waiting for. Hamburg action from 70 years ago - and it looked good but TBH not enough of it.