TonyMac Posted November 29, 2016 Report Share Posted November 29, 2016 IF you're a fan of modern speedway in Britain and like to read a new book on your favourite sport at Christmas, tough luck! As far as we can tell, only three new speedway books have been produced for the 2016 Xmas market. There's a very niche one on the Wembley Lions which (obviously) only covers the history of that famous old club. And then there are our two new books, BACKTRACKING Volume 1 & 2 - a collection of some of the best interviews and features we've printed in our retro Backtrack magazine over the past 12 years, plus many new pictures that didn't appear with the original editorial. At £16, we believe they are good value. www.retro-speedway.com None of the current GP stars, or any of the clubs operating in the three tiers of Britain, have got anything out there in print. Is there a lack of interest among supporters, or are publishers now too reluctant to take a punt on a sport that is losing support? So what does this say about the current state of speedway? Are supporters more interested in reading about past favourites than the current lot? Our books on Kenny Carter, Michael Lee, Malcolm Simmons and those written by the late John Berry all sold relatively well - in excess of 2,500 copies each. But we don't see books in the name of Greg Hancock, Tai Woffinden, Nicki Pedersen, Chris Holder, etc. It's a far cry from the days when, as a kid, I badgered my mum to write off to Eddie Toogood and order the latest books from Peter Collins, Ivan Mauger, Barry Briggs and John Louis. A sign of the times. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The White Knight Posted November 29, 2016 Report Share Posted November 29, 2016 And then there are our two new books, BACKTRACKING Volume 1 & 2 - a collection of some of the best interviews and features we've printed in our retro Backtrack magazine over the past 12 years, plus many new pictures that didn't appear with the original editorial. Are supporters more interested in reading about past favourites than the current lot? Our books on Kenny Carter, Michael Lee, Malcolm Simmons and those written by the late John Berry all sold relatively well - in excess of 2,500 copies each. But we don't see books in the name of Greg Hancock, Tai Woffinden, Nicki Pedersen, Chris Holder, etc. It's a far cry from the days when, as a kid, I badgered my mum to write off to Eddie Toogood and order the latest books from Peter Collins, Ivan Mauger, Barry Briggs and John Louis. A sign of the times. I'm afraid I won't be buying these two Books as I have saved every copy of 'BackTrack since Issue One. Had I not done so - I would have bought them like a shot. Simple answer to your question is - Yes. I have a fair number of your Books now and they are a very good read. I am not that interested in today's lot (as you put it). 'BackTrack' and 'Classic Speedway' does it for me. I always look forward to my copies with relish. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve roberts Posted November 29, 2016 Report Share Posted November 29, 2016 I'm afraid I won't be buying these two Books as I have saved every copy of 'BackTrack since Issue One. Had I not done so - I would have bought them like a shot. Simple answer to your question is - Yes. I have a fair number of your Books now and they are a very good read. I am not that interested in today's lot (as you put it). 'BackTrack' and 'Classic Speedway' does it for me. I always look forward to my copies with relish. I've bought both books and they are excellent! Although I also have all the Backtrack numbers they have become rather dog eared as I tend to read them whilst in the bath! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The White Knight Posted November 29, 2016 Report Share Posted November 29, 2016 I've bought both books and they are excellent! Although I also have all the Backtrack numbers they have become rather dog eared as I tend to read them whilst in the bath! I like that - but I haven't had a Bath for years. I'm a Shower man myself - for some reason I find it even harder reading my BackTrack in the Shower. :D 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ch958 Posted November 29, 2016 Report Share Posted November 29, 2016 I like that - but I haven't had a Bath for years. I'm a Shower man myself - for some reason I find it even harder reading my BackTrack in the Shower. :D i was going to message you and ask if you'd seen them - i have recently just bought 5/6 back issues and it is fantastic = chances are i will buy them unless someone close takes the hint and asks santa. Its both a great read and a slightly sad one as GB speedway slips down the pecking order. Personally i think the closing of the gap between the top 2 divs will be a good thing but oh that 6 point idiocy!! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gresham Posted November 29, 2016 Report Share Posted November 29, 2016 I think there is an interest in the sport from the past. People reminiscing about the old days. You've only got to see what comes up on modern social media...all the old stuff. I'm really surprised you say the books on past riders were seen as a relative success, when only 2500+ were sold. My good friend has recently written a book on the rise of Forest Green Rovers...a non league football club, from a small village in the south Cotswolds. His first book has sold more than that since it's release last month. Hardly any publicity and no history to speak of. Speedway is in a terrible state...only kept alive by those who found love of it in bygone years. Of the sides starting in the Premiership this season, I can realistically see only 5 of them racing next season or possibly finishing this coming season. So many people living in the past and not wanting to change for the good of the sport. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TonyMac Posted November 29, 2016 Author Report Share Posted November 29, 2016 So many people living in the past and not wanting to change for the good of the sport. We're very glad they do! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gresham Posted November 29, 2016 Report Share Posted November 29, 2016 We're very glad they do! My mistake in explaining better...we all miss the good Ol' days and like to reminisce. What I meant, was those in power, have allowed the sport to deteriorate to what it is now. That's why people prefer to reminisce...as Speedway as a whole today, just doesn't cut the mustard. Even when you take the rose tinted glasses off ;-) 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Smith Posted November 29, 2016 Report Share Posted November 29, 2016 Sums Up State Of Speedway Today: Closed for the winter, starts again in March Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StevePark Posted November 30, 2016 Report Share Posted November 30, 2016 I always look forward to my copies with relish. So, you're looking forward to looking back! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keepturningleft Posted November 30, 2016 Report Share Posted November 30, 2016 Must admit having a 'best of' in book form kind of appeals to me rather than storing 'thousands' of mags on the shelf, so I will probably dip my toe in and buy the first volume. Tony, amongst my favourite features in backtrack are the 'opening times' articles - do these feature in the books? It seems obvious to me why there are many books on speedway's past and few on the present. Tens of thousands watched the sport back then - many still alive - so there are simply more fans and potential nostalgic customers than now! PS Don't forget Jeff Scott's collection of books on modern speedway. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TonyMac Posted November 30, 2016 Author Report Share Posted November 30, 2016 (edited) Must admit having a 'best of' in book form kind of appeals to me rather than storing 'thousands' of mags on the shelf, so I will probably dip my toe in and buy the first volume. Tony, amongst my favourite features in backtrack are the 'opening times' articles - do these feature in the books? It seems obvious to me why there are many books on speedway's past and few on the present. Tens of thousands watched the sport back then - many still alive - so there are simply more fans and potential nostalgic customers than now! PS Don't forget Jeff Scott's collection of books on modern speedway. Thank you for trying volume one - hopefully you will enjoy it. As you say, better than storing all the mags and thumbing through 77 back issues. As well as appealing to existing readers of the mag who like the book's handy format (who remembers an interview that was published some 8-10-12 years ago?), we're hoping non-Backtrack readers will try the books and be interested in subscribing to our bi-monthly magazine. None of our Opening Times pieces feature in the books, as they are a fairly recent addition to the magazine and we deliberately wanted to avoid reproducing relatively 'fresh' content in the books. For that reason, everything in them would be at least a couple of years old (bearing in mind Backtrack was launched 12+ years ago, so there is a lot of editorial to choose from). Yes, of course, Jeff Scott deserves credit for his books on modern speedway. It's obviously true that meetings in the 70s and 80s were watched by more fans than the numbers attending league speedway today but finding them is not easy. We do a lot of PR work on here and also on Facebook and Twitter (and occasionally via regional press) but what about the tens of thousands who have turned their back on the sport and cannot be reached? Most of the GPs attract big crowds and yet no books have been produced on GP riders since Crumpie's came out some years back. Edited November 30, 2016 by tmc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The White Knight Posted November 30, 2016 Report Share Posted November 30, 2016 Most of the GPs attract big crowds and yet no books have been produced on GP riders since Crumpie's came out some years back. Had it been Phil - I might have bought it. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Humphrey Appleby Posted December 1, 2016 Report Share Posted December 1, 2016 Most of the GPs attract big crowds and yet no books have been produced on GP riders since Crumpie's came out some years back. I'm not convinced that younger people are particularly great readers nowadays, and if they do it would be electronically. Having said this, how many books are there on the likes of Hans Nielsen? I was a bit surprised to hear the John Berry and other books 'only' sold around 2.5K copies though. No criticism intended of the publisher as I think your books are generally excellent, but I think it does show where the sport is nowadays. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JCookie Posted December 1, 2016 Report Share Posted December 1, 2016 **buy our new books** Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve roberts Posted December 1, 2016 Report Share Posted December 1, 2016 (edited) I'm an avid collector of Speedway literature and/or books that discuss the sport in the past. One of the best recent books I purchased was Reg Fearman's which gave an interesting insight of the the sport during his tenure. Anything that's slightly controversial in content (John Berry's books were first class). including Malcolm Simmons' and Michael Lee's efforts...all great reads! I also purchased the story of Garry Middleton (Author Tony Webb) which again made for an interesting read. One prized book (when I eventually sourced it) was the 'Complete History of the British League' which covered the years between 1965 - 1990 (would be nice to have it updated) edited by Peter Oakes. Edited December 1, 2016 by steve roberts 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arnieg Posted December 1, 2016 Report Share Posted December 1, 2016 The biogs of world champions tend to be a bit predictable, following much the same pattern. The books of promoters contain more of interest (Reg Fearman, John Berry and Martin Rogers all spring to mind). Where there is a gap is a book from someone on the lower rungs of the sport (my favourite football books have been about managing a fourth division club and playing in the conference league - Gary Nelson and Ben Smith respectively). Apart from Rod Haynes this remains an unmined territory in speedway literature. I'd much rather read about Dean Felton's speedway career than Greg Hancock's. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve roberts Posted December 1, 2016 Report Share Posted December 1, 2016 The biogs of world champions tend to be a bit predictable, following much the same pattern. The books of promoters contain more of interest (Reg Fearman, John Berry and Martin Rogers all spring to mind). Where there is a gap is a book from someone on the lower rungs of the sport (my favourite football books have been about managing a fourth division club and playing in the conference league - Gary Nelson and Ben Smith respectively). Apart from Rod Haynes this remains an unmined territory in speedway literature. I'd much rather read about Dean Felton's speedway career than Greg Hancock's. I thought that Johnnie Hoskins' Speedway Walkabout was a fabulous read. Should be re-printed in my opinion! Dave Morton's book was also an interesting insight of the sport. How about one form Frank Ebden? Always sought controversy! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattK Posted December 1, 2016 Report Share Posted December 1, 2016 Books are a bit old fashioned and new media such as DVDs and computer games are limited by the ambitions (our lack thereof) of the respective rights holders. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve roberts Posted December 1, 2016 Report Share Posted December 1, 2016 (edited) Books are a bit old fashioned and new media such as DVDs and computer games are limited by the ambitions (our lack thereof) of the respective rights holders. ...okay so I'm old fashioned and proud of it! Edited December 1, 2016 by steve roberts 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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