Ernie Baker 'all At Sea!'

[Guest]

By JOHN HYAM

THERE’S nothing like telling a porkie-pie to help get a rider into a team. I must confess that I was involved in such a harmless prank - just once.

It was in the mid-1950s when south Londoner Ernie Baker - who was closely involved with famous New Zealanders Ronnie Moore and Barry Briggs - was trying to break into racing.

Sadly, no tracks seemed to be interested until I turned Ernie into a merchant seaman. I then contacted Dickie Case, who was part of the organisation involved with Rye House in their Southern Area League days. I told him that Baker has been at sea for months, had shown promise as a rider before going away, but now wanted to resume his speedway career. That was enough to tempt the pre-war Aussie test star. So it was arranged for Ernie to have a trial rider at the Hoddesdon track, in which he performed with some success.

But, before any deal could be made, Ernie became part of the Eastbourne scene. Later, in the early days of the Provincial League in the 1960s, he was one of the section’s top stars at a variety of tracks, but especially so with Bristol.

However, what has puzzled me to this day is “why should the fact he was - or may have been - a seaman persuade Rye House boss Dickie Case to give him his initial trials?” I may have indicated, without actually saying so, that Baker had appeared on Australian tracks while sailing round the world. Could this have persuaded pre-World War Two Aussie international Case? No prizes for giving an answer.

Edited November 29, 2016 by Guest