West Ham How Good Was The Track.?

[Sidney the robin]

1971 was the Hammers last year. Clarke and Kasper weren't in the team. Newcomers that year included Preben Rosenkilde, Mick Handley, Allan Belham, Alan Sage and Barry Duke. They finished bottom of the league and then it was all over.

Sorry "norbold oops!!!!! 😂😢 that 1970 team looked pretty good though i was very surprised they finished that low. Edited July 30, 2017 by Sidney the robin

[Guest]

I saw many stock car and speedway meetings at West Ham between 1954 and the early part of 1961. I enjoyed them all. I never saw another meeting there after that.

Edited July 30, 2017 by Guest

[salty]

Just looked at there last year in 1970 Nygren, the exciting Lofqvist, Tony Clarke Stanley Stevens and both the late and missed Peter Bradshaw/Martyn Piddock.Looked a decent side but surprisingly they finished second from bottom the main reason i presume for that was the poor year that Antonin Kasper (snr) had.

Lokeren in mid-July must have knocked the stuffing out of them - and they were only a couple of wins away from mid-table.

[Sidney the robin]

Lokeren in mid-July must have knocked the stuffing out of them - and they were only a couple of wins away from mid-table.

Trying to think salty i know Harrfeldt never got fit a massive blow to them i think Gary Hay rode but that season was a tough one for the club.

[salty]

If I remember rightly Harrfeldt struggled from the off (having missed the previous season through injury) and them got another bad bang. I think that's when they introduced Christer Lofqvist. I also seem to remember Sverre becoming team manager post Lokeren.

Garry Hay did ride and escaped from Belgium with minor injuries, then had a terrible crash in the close season which left him paralysed.

[Sidney the robin]

If I remember rightly Harrfeldt struggled from the off (having missed the previous season through injury) and them got another bad bang. I think that's when they introduced Christer Lofqvist. I also seem to remember Sverre becoming team manager post Lokeren.

Garry Hay did ride and escaped from Belgium with minor injuries, then had a terrible crash in the close season which left him paralysed.

Yes did Langfield the Aussie not agree terms? remember Harrefeldt being injured the year before he was a class act and was greatly missed.

[norbold]

Yes did Langfield the Aussie not agree terms? remember Harrefeldt being injured the year before he was a class act and was greatly missed.

Yes, John Langfield rode for West Ham in 1969 but didn't return for the 1970 season. Ken McKinlay, for so long the backbone of the team, also left after the 1969 season as did Stan the Man. As has been said, although Sverre returned for 1970, he was just a pale shadow of his former self and then got injured again. Kasper was signed up but went walk about, arriving later in the season. Brian Leonard and Barry Crowson also left.

Edited July 30, 2017 by norbold

[Daytripper]

West Ham was more than just a Speedwáy track, it was a culture and a way of life.

 

I grew up in a house in Otley Road and the main gate was at the bottom of our street. There was no better place to spend a childhood. Some people in the area had been going since it opened in 1928, and a lot of the old stars were still household names : Malcolm Craven, Aub Lawson, Bluey Wilkinson, Tiger Stevenson and the great Jack Young. Everybody knew them even if they never went to Speedwáy.

 

It was in the middle of a residential area, but nobody ever complained about the noise like they do today. People understood that the Speedwáy , greyhounds and stock cars provided jobs for people in the stadium and brought business in for the local chip shops, sweet shops and the Nottinham Arms, at the top of Bingley Road where, according to legend the great Ken McKinlay used to stop for a pint on his way into the stadium as well as on his way home (I don't know if that's true or not but it comes from my mate that used to help him unload his bike,, but anyway it's a lovely story!). There was just a fantastic community spirit around the neighbourhood that Ive never experienced anywhere else in my life. It all seemed to centre around the stadium.

 

Barry Briggs said it was his favourite track because it was so big and wide you could pass anywhere. I still have the programme for the last of his six British Championship wins there. I can't think of many sporting events in my life where a competitor was as dominant as Briggo was that night. Ken McKinlay was something else round that track. An absolute master of track craft at a level we never see today. On the rare occasions he missed the gate he would make a false attempt to,pass round the outside then when the opponent moved out to cover the move he would quick as a flash switch to the inside for the pass, nearly always on the last bend when there was no time for the other rider to come back.

 

I disagree with Norbolds version of the shortening of the track. Living so close to to stadium there were lots of people who got to hear what was going on, we even had some that worked there. I never ever heard it was anything to do with Jack Young, the version that got around the area was that it had to be shortened to make the bends wider so stock cars could be introduced in 1954, but in fairness the National Speedwáy Museum website simply says it was shortened dur to "complaints about the size" but no other details are given so that could mean anything. I suppose at this distance of time we' ll never be able to confirm what the facts really were so let's just sat it was a privilege to have been able to experience such a great place to watch Speedwáy

 

The Lokoren tragedy knocked the bottom out of the club in 1970 and things were never the same again.

 

Sorry to go on at such length but, Sidney you have brought back memories of some of the best times of my life.

Edited July 30, 2017 by Daytripper

[Sidney the robin]

West Ham was more than just a Speedwáy track, it was a culture and a way of life.

I grew up in a house in Otley Road and the main gate was at the bottom of our street. There was no better place to spend a childhood. Some people in the area had been going since it opened in 1928, and a lot of the old stars were still household names : Malcolm Craven, Aub Lawson, Bluey Wilkinson, Tiger Stevenson and the great Jack Young. Everybody knew them even if they never went to Speedwáy.

It was in the middle of a residential area, but nobody ever complained about the noise like they do today. People understood that the Speedwáy , greyhounds and stock cars provided jobs for people in the stadium and brought business in for the local chip shops, sweet shops and the Nottinham Arms, at the top of Bingley Road where, according to legend the great Ken McKinlay used to stop for a pint on his way into the stadium as well as on his way home (I don't know if that's true or not but it comes from my mate that used to help him unload his bike,, but anyway it's a lovely story!). There was just a fantastic community spirit around the neighbourhood that Ive never experienced anywhere else in my life. It all seemed to centre around the stadium.

Barry Briggs said it was his favourite track because it was so big and wide you could pass anywhere. I still have the programme for the last of his six British Championship wins there. I can't think of many sporting events in my life where a competitor was as dominant as Briggo was that night. Ken McKinlay was something else round that track. An absolute master of track craft at a level we never see today. On the rare occasions he missed the gate he would make a false attempt to,pass round the outside then when the opponent moved out to cover the move he would quick as a flash switch to the inside for the pass, nearly always on the last bend when there was no time for the other rider to come back.

I disagree with Norbolds version of the shortening of the track. Living so close to to stadium there were lots of people who got to hear what was going on, we even had some that worked there. I never ever heard it was anything to do with Jack Young, the version that got around the area was that it had to be shortened to make the bends wider so stock cars could be introduced in 1954, but in fairness the National Speedwáy Museum website simply says it was shortened dur to "complaints about the size" but no other details are given so that could mean anything. I suppose at this distance of time we' ll never be able to confirm what the facts really were so let's just sat it was a privilege to have been able to experience such a great place to watch Speedwáy

The Lokoren tragedy knocked the bottom out of the club in 1970 and things were never the same again.

Sorry to go on at such length but, Sidney you have brought back memories of some of the best times of my life.

No problem "daytripper" Thanks great for your input Briggs being my favourite ever rider great to hear about how good he was around West Ham.😀 Edited July 30, 2017 by Sidney the robin

[iris123]

Briggo was good around the big tracks.What was his record at belle Vue?Did he love it?I think he did.He won a lot of BLRC's there

[cityrebel]

If I remember rightly Harrfeldt struggled from the off (having missed the previous season through injury) and them got another bad bang. I think that's when they introduced Christer Lofqvist. I also seem to remember Sverre becoming team manager post Lokeren.

Garry Hay did ride and escaped from Belgium with minor injuries, then had a terrible crash in the close season which left him paralysed.

harrfeldt broke his arm on the same night lofqvist made his debut for the hammers. A hard first turn by peter Murray ended his evening. I remember this, because it was my first ever visit to west ham, v wimbledon may 1970. An early birthday present from my old man!

[norbold]

Briggo was good around the big tracks.

He certainly wasn't as good round small tracks. I think the year he rode for New Cross was just about his worst ever - well, since he had become a top clas rider in the mid 50s.

[BL65]

A letter to the Speedway News editor in November 1953 asked about changes to shorten the Custom House track, with the response being that the speedway authorities were anxious to proceed but were awaiting approval from the greyhound authorities, who were the stadium owners.

 

At the end of December 1953 Speedway News reported that Coventry track manager Alf Elliott had been loaned to West Ham to carry out the alterations, with work to begin in January to shorten the circuit by ‘roughly 30 yards’, by widening the bends and thus leaving the football pitch intact by not taking anything away from the sides of the pitch or changing the track straights. The report went on to say ‘It is thought that the wide bends will greatly improve the racing, for Alf is after the same effect he achieved at Brandon last winter – an equal chance for the rider on the outside and the man on the line’. Coventry and West Ham were both operated by Alan Sanderson, hence the connection.

 

Speedway News reported that the Speedway Control Board met on 12^th January and rejected a proposed breakaway by West Ham, Wimbledon and Bristol to form a London and Provincial League. Jack Young is understood to have been one of two leading West Ham riders who had indicated to the Speedway Riders’ Association that they would not remain with their team if the proposal went ahead.

 

At the same meeting on 12^th January, West Ham asked how the Board felt about stock car racing and were told that the Board had no authority to grant approval as this was a matter to be dealt with by the R.A.C. The greyhound company, as stadium owners, had been approached by stock car representatives only to be told that the rights of all motor sport at West Ham were in the hands of Mr Sanderson. It was also reported that at that time the Greyhound Racing Association was against the use of their stadia by stock cars.

 

The lead article in Speedway News 10^th February 1954 edition accompanied a picture of the West Ham track alterations which were in progress. The article by Len Went started with ”Too much processional racing” was the cry at the quarter-mile Custom House circuit last year. The article went on to describe the nature of the work, as well as Alf Elliott’s experience as a rider at Sheffield, Wombwell, Poole and Oxford, followed by his track alterations at Wigan, Cardiff, Aldershot, Oxford, Coventry, Poole, Wombwell and Ringwood. The picture showed Jack Bibby, Pat Clarke, Reg Fearman and Alf Elliott working on the track alterations.

 

The sequence of events outlined above suggests that the West Ham speedway authorities decided on track alterations in the latter part of 1953, well before any arrangement was made for stock cars to use the circuit and the West Ham proposal to join a newly created London and Provincial League was the main cause of Jack Young’s discontent, resolved when the Control Board rejected the idea.

Edited July 30, 2017 by BL65

[Guest]

BL65 === I found your references in the preceding Post in regard to stock car racing making overtures to stage meetings at West Ham for the 1954 season.

The snub in regard to West Ham led to the group staging their first British meeting at New Cross on Good Friday 1954. They raced before a record crowd, many spectators were locked out. The success led to other tracks staging the sport and it has now evolved to its present standing in small oval car racing.

West Ham did eventually stage stock car racing - and the Sanderson quoted in BL65's Post was the promoter of the sport at Custom House. I saw some top class racing there and because of its size and shape, West Ham-cum-Custom House provided some of the best racing during the period of stock car racing development in Britain.

Edited July 31, 2017 by Guest

[25yearfan]

West Ham was a wonderful big fast track and the stadium was huge, although it still had created good atmosphere even if under a fifth full!

 

I often wonder whether West Ham Hammers speedway team would have survived up to the present if the stadium had been saved from redevelopment?

[cityrebel]

Probably not. The stadium stands were mainly made of Wood, which would have been a fire risk in itself. The upkeep on such a large venue would have been expensive, considering the crowds were falling on a yearly basis.

[Guest]

The most successful speedway rider turned stock car driver to appear at West Ham was former High Beech and California-in-England rider Ted Pankhurst, who was third in the 1961 Brisca Formula One World Championship behind Jock Lloyd and Johnny King.

[Guest]

From the DEFUNCT STOCK CAR, MIDGET & BANGER TRACKS website re stock cars at West Ham:

"...West Ham. The legendary Custom House stadium (not the football club's ground) which was 'The Daddy' of London tracks run by the same people as Coventry. It boasted a 575 yard dog track, the biggest in the country, and a 100,000 capacity. It was sold off in the late 60's, the profit paid for Coventry's upgraded grandstands and restaurants and PRI ran there until it finally closed down in 1972. Now a rather unappealing housing estate with streets named after speedway riders and one after promoter Johnnie Hoskins..."

[Daytripper]

Probably not. The stadium stands were mainly made of Wood, which would have been a fire risk in itself. The upkeep on such a large venue would have been expensive, considering the crowds were falling on a yearly basis.

 

Yes the stadium was pretty well life expired and needed a lot of investment. The back-straight stands burned down sometime around the late sixties when some oily rags left laying around caught fire and the whole wooden framework went up in flames, and I suppose that was the beginning of the end. The fire risk was then evident and money would need to be spent. I am not sure about falling attendances though. I have no figures but from memory the crowds always seemed pretty good until the Lokoren tragedy, but after that the patched up team was so weak its not surprising crowds fell away. All very sad.

Edited July 31, 2017 by Daytripper

[BL65]

Further to my comments in post #33, confirming Norbold’s account Speedway Star reported on 23rd January 1954 that 'Even some of the Hammers' riders complained about the size of the circuit and star man Jack Young once went so far as to state that he would seek a transfer unless the track were made smaller'.

 

With the West Ham track reduced in size and with the Hammers staying in the First Division, there was a further twist when Speedway Star reported in the 3^rd April 1954 edition that on returning to Britain Jack Young had written to the Control Board stating that he wanted a transfer, with Norwich his preferred destination. Writing in the Star, Eric Linden suggested that an agreement between Norwich and West Ham might include Aub Lawson returning to Custom House, but both riders subsequently stayed with their respective teams. Ironically, the West Ham track had been reduced in size from 440 yards to 415 yards and Young then indicated a preference for the larger 425 yards Norwich circuit.

Edited July 31, 2017 by BL65