Simmo how is he remembered?

[Robbie B]

50 minutes ago, iris123 said:

Not so sure many would use the term legend.If you call Simmo a legend then there are many many that deserve the term as well

When he came to Plough Lane he dropped 2 points off his average and his best days were behind him

Although it's true he was past his best when rode for the Dons, but I would state that being a 4-time World Team Cup winner 3 World Pairs titles (with different partners) and a large collection of individual titles and what he achieved for his various teams as a rider and manager makes him a legend in my eyes. Post racing his excellent column in Backtrack magazine was always something worth reading - plus he gave his autograph many years ago as a child without any issue also made hi a top bloke to me.

[Sidney the robin]

3 hours ago, iris123 said:

Not so sure many would use the term legend.If you call Simmo a legend then there are many many that deserve the term as well

When he came to Plough Lane he dropped 2 points off his average and his best days were behind him

I do a bloody good rider nobody can take away the fact  that Malc Simmons was a very very good rider over a number of years number 2 in the world not bad eh.!

Edited September 20, 2018 by Sidney the robin

[iris123]

No not bad,but he isn’t that high up in the list of best rider never to win a world title is he?Les Collins,Chris Morton,Gordon Kennett John Louis are they all legends?And Tommy Knudsen,Bo Petersen,Dennis Sigalos,Billy Sanders Phil Crump etc.....How many legends are there just from the 70s and 80s?

Robbie B was making it sound an exclusive club,but then when you look at the criteria it doesn’t really sound like one

[Robbie B]

There is no way I was trying to state that Malcolm Simmons has exclusive rights to be called a Legend regarding speedway that would be a completely stupid assertion of mine.

There are many riders that I admire right from the beginning of speedway starting in the UK that I would have loved to have seen riding and i wish that I had a time-machine to carry this function out.

[iris123]

I wasn’t indicating you did think Simmons had ‘exclusive rights’,but asking if the riders I mentioned are also considered legends

[fatface]

Legend is an overused and misused word.

I’ll tell you who is a legend - King Arthur. He’s a total ledge.

Is Simmo an all-time great of the sport? Hmm, probably not. But in purely England or Poole terms, absolutely. 

 

Edited September 21, 2018 by falcace

[Robbie B]

3 hours ago, iris123 said:

I wasn’t indicating you did think Simmons had ‘exclusive rights’,but asking if the riders I mentioned are also considered legends

There are many parameters that can be used to decide whether a riders deserves legendary status not just how many World titles or other titles that they might have won. You could also include a riders loyal service to a particular club or length of riding within the sport. Plus their attitude towards fans etc. Because of this what one person thinks of a rider is a legend another will not, as you can never please everyone. You list is a good list of 70s and 80s riders and everyone will have their own opinion on the riders mentioned.

At the end of the day someone who wins multiple World Titles whether as an individual or within a team deserves all the credit for the efforts and most importantly the memories created and stored in the brains of those who witnessed them riding.

Take the TV show Pointless today the 16 most famous Londoners that featured David Beckham he is only famous for achieving club success and not internationally, and for being in magazines all the time, so I was surprised to see him mentioned. London has produced far more successful sportsmen and ladies over the years than him.

[25yearfan]

Simmo rode speedway from 1963-87 then in 89 and 93.

 

He won the World pairs, was it 3 times in a row? World team cup winner multiple times and came 2nd in the individual World Championships.

 

He was also a team manager, track curator, promotor, quality grasstrack rider, done other motorcycle racing disciplines and had very interesting/insightful opinions on the sport!

 

His longevity, at his best, World class ability combined with his interesting character in my opinion makes him a legend! 

Edited September 22, 2018 by 25yearfan

[longlivefrankie]

On 19 September 2018 at 10:07 PM, Tsunami said:

Couldn't believe how they didn't crash more fighting to overtake on the square corners. I thought it was a terrible track for proper racing. Just 4 corners and 4 straights.

I'm not saying it was a perfect track, but it was my home track for 13 years and still managed to produce some good racing , battles between the likes of Briggs & Nordin, Crump & Collins, Eide & Olsen.  Etc. 

[longlivefrankie]

On 19 September 2018 at 10:07 PM, Tsunami said:

Couldn't believe how they didn't crash more fighting to overtake on the square corners. I thought it was a terrible track for proper racing. Just 4 corners and 4 straights.

I'm not saying it was a perfect track, but it was my home track for 13 years and still managed to produce some good racing , battles between the likes of Briggs & Nordin, Crump & Collins, Eide & Olsen.  Etc. 

[Trotter65]

I think Simmo's van had an automatic cut out that stopped it making it to Belle Vue ..either that or he got a nose bleed coming that far north !

[Sidney the robin]

I dont really worry to much about his tarnished reputation for me as an all round rider of all disiplines he was a class act over a long period of time.Very similar to Leigh Adams always in control a very measured rider.

[TonyMac]

On ‎9‎/‎9‎/‎2018 at 9:28 AM, norbold said:

My best memory of Malcolm Simmons is always of that day back in August 1965 when, as a West Ham supporter, I saw the best the best meeting I have ever seen. The day Malcolm Simmons became a star!

 

In that year, one of the Quarter Final matches of the KO Cup saw a local derby London tie with West Ham drawn at home to Wimbledon. Before the tie, the two teams appeared to be evenly matched and so the match proved. With one heat to go the scores were level at 45-45. That final heat saw the Wimbledon pair, Olle Nygren and Reg Luckhurst, shoot in to an early lead over West Ham’s Brian Leonard and Norman Hunter and it looked all over for the Hammers when suddenly Luckhurst’s engine blew up resulting in a 3-3 and a tied match at 48-48.

 

Having drawn at West Ham, Wimbledon looked a good bet to take the tie in the replay on their own track. But there was even worse news for West Ham as their top rider, Sverre Harrfeldt, was injured the previous evening at Hackney and unable to take part and their third heat leader, Norman Hunter, was also unable to ride as it was his wedding day! There were no guests allowed so the Hammers had to resort to filling the places of two heat leaders with Tony Clarke, making his racing debut, and a Wimbledon junior, Geoff Hughes. Only Ken McKinlay was a recognized heat leader and, although by now a team regular, it should be remembered that at this time West Ham’s 19 year old Malcolm Simmons was just a reasonable five point average second string who had shown no signs of the great rider he was to become in later years. No-one, not even the West Ham supporters present that afternoon, gave the Hammers much hope.

 

 

 

By heat six it looked as though Wimbledon’s superiority was about to assert itself as Wimbledon skipper, the great Olle Nygren. along with the experienced Jim Tebby, took a 5-1 against West Ham’s newcomer, Tony Clarke, and second string, Brian Leonard. The lack of two heat leaders looked as though it was now beginning to tell. But as West Ham were six points in arrears it meant they could use a tactical substitute and they wasted no time bringing in Ken McKinlay for reserve Ray Wickett in the very next heat. The line-up for heat seven was therefore Bob Dugard and Keith Whipp for the Dons, Malcolm Simmons and Ken McKinlay for the Hammers. The young Simmons shot away from the gate with McKinlay behind him and that’s how the heat finished. A 5-1 for West Ham and four points pulled back. Simmons’ time of 66.2 was the fastest of the night.

 

 

 

The next heat saw McKinlay out again, this time in a scheduled ride, with old campaigner Reg Trott lining up against Reg Luckhurst and reserve Mike Coomber. Some brilliant team riding by McKinlay and Trott kept Luckhurst behind them and with Coomber falling, it meant another 5-1 to the Hammers and, unbelievably, at the half-way stage, West Ham now found themselves with a two point lead.

 

 

 

With Nygren and Tebby lined up against Simmons and Wickett in heat 10 it looked as though the Dons would edge back in to the lead, but, once again, Simmons rose to the occasion and beat Nygren in the second fastest time of the night. Heat 12 saw another astonishing turn of events as Wimbledon’s Bobby Dugard fell and was excluded from the re-run. It was a simple matter for McKinlay and Trott to defeat Whipp and take a 5-1. It was now West Ham who were six points up and it was now Wimbledon who used a tactical substitute as they brought in Nygren for reserve, John Edwards. Unfortunately it did not have the desired effect as, for the second time that night, West Ham’s new hero, the young Malcolm Simmons, beat Nygren, leaving West Ham still six points in front. This time though, Simmons had done it the hard way, coming from behind and taking the Wimbledon captain on the last lap.

 

 

 

With just three heats to go, time was running out for Wimbledon and the impossible suddenly looked possible. However, a Nygren and Dugard 5-1 over Trott and Leonard put them back in with a chance and when, in heat 15, Tebby and Coomber pulled off a 4-2 against Clarke and Hughes, the scores, were back to level with one heat to go.

 

 

 

The line-up for that final heat saw Keith Whipp and Reg Luckhurst for Wimbledon against Ken McKinlay and Malcolm Simmons for West Ham. The tension around the stadium was palpable. Everyone was holding their breath. A match which at the beginning of the afternoon had seemed likely to be very one-sided had now come down to a last heat decider.

 

 

 

To some extent the final race as a race was a bit of a disappointment as Simmons once again flew off from the start and never looked to be in any danger and with McKinlay settling for a steady third place, the match was won by West Ham by 49 points to 47.

 

 

 

The small band of Hammers’ supporters who had made the trip across London couldn’t believe what had happened. The hero of the hour was the 19 year old Malcolm Simmons. He had beaten the Wimbledon captain, Olle Nygren, twice and had set the three fastest times of the night. In fact he still wasn’t finished. In the second half scratch race event, the Cheer Leaders’ Trophy, he won the first heat, beating, McKinlay, Luckhurst and Dugard and then went on to win the final, once again beating Nygren. As if that wasn’t enough, a special Handicap race was held with Simmons starting off 20 yards, Nygren off 10 and Trott, Leonard and Tebby off scratch. Yet again, Simmons got the better of Nygren, even with his handicap.

 

 

 

As for me, although that match was held 52 years ago I can still remember it as if it were yesterday. In fact I can remember it better than matches I saw last season. It was just such an amazing afternoon. I went along there with a few other Hammers’ supporters expecting a reasonable match but when it was announced just before the meeting started that neither Harrfeldt nor Hunter would be taking part we seriously considered going home. The Wimbledon supporters around us were saying things like, ’You’ll be lucky if you get 20 points’ and ’This is going to be the biggest thrashing of all time.’ Of course we gave back as good as we got but in our hearts we felt they could well be right.

 

 

 

But suddenly there was this rider called Malcolm Simmons, who we had seen rise from the ranks of a second halfer at West Ham to a reasonable five point second string but no more, taking on and beating the likes of Olle Nygren and Reg Luckhurst on their own track in the fastest times of the night. He was just phenomenal.

 

 

 

Recalling the match later in an interview I carried out with him, Malcolm Simmons said that the West Ham team had gone to the meeting thinking they would get thrashed but somehow the whole team had risen to the occasion. He went on to say, “It was the first good meeting I ever had for West Ham. I just came good on the night.”

 

As we now know, Simmons went on to become one of Great Britain’s greatest ever riders and runner-up in the 1976 World Championship, World Pairs Champion in 1976, 77 and 78, World Team Champion in 1973, 74, 75 and 77 and British Champion in 1976. He was capped 80 times for England, seven times for the British Lions (touring Australia), five times for Great Britain and four times for the Rest of the World.

 

But it all started that night and I feel very privileged to have been there to witness what must have been one of the best matches of all time and one of the most outstanding personal performance of all time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our new London Speedway Tracks & Teams DVD has footage of Simmo (and other Hammers and Dons) competing in this very meeting covered above in such depth...
 

 

[TonyMac]

On ‎9‎/‎9‎/‎2018 at 11:50 PM, Andy Downes said:

His 70's glory years were before my time

 

I remember being disappointed when he joined hackney in the 80's - mainly because his huge average meant we had to lose 2 decent riders and promote a junior - the result meant hackney 1986 was perhaps the most forgettable of the hackney Kestrel Teams

 

A beautiful stylist who dropped down a league too early (IIRC he was the only rider to beat Neil Evitts in the British Championship Final that year) but his final years seemed to be surrounded with controversy (I doubt Arena Essex fans have fond memories of him) with non arrivals, questionable injuries and other rumoured happenings that may or not be true but cannot be repeated as they could be construed as libellous

Doubt you could defame Simmo more than he did himself. At least he had the balls to come out and admit his flaws and wrongdoings (well, most of them!) instead of trying to project a false image way beyond his racing days. The negative responses on this thread are virtually all of his own making, because those opinions are largely based on his own admissions. I'm sure people would think much less kindly on quite a few other big names if they had bared their souls with equal transparency but I don't blame them for not doing so. Believe me, there were other equally damning things Simmo wanted to put in his book but I advised him not to disclose. The mind boggles!

I'm naturally biased, because he was always very good for Retro Speedway, but his genuine love for speedway and motorcycling in general never left him. When he became terminally ill, I suggested we drop his Backtrack column because he clearly had more important things to worry about. But he was indignant and insisted we carried on for as long as possible - one of his last pieces, I believe, was in support of the Iwade (Sittingbourne) training track. He cared deeply about how speedway has been mismanaged in the UK and expressed his very well founded fears in typical forthright fashion.

Simmo earned a lot of money out of speedway (and wasted most of it) but he also gave a lot back and there are plenty of younger riders who benefited from his knowledge and experience.

I will have nothing but fond memories of one of British speedway's all-time greats.

[TonyMac]

On ‎9‎/‎11‎/‎2018 at 8:07 AM, Sidney the robin said:

I noticed he never rode that much at Exeter over the years.

He loved going there after he joined Poole, when it became a 'local derby'.

[TonyMac]

On ‎9‎/‎17‎/‎2018 at 9:09 PM, longlivefrankie said:

I remember simmo as someone who had difficulty making it over the Severn bridge from memory. Never one of my favourites. 

You could say the same about Peter Collins and Dave Morton, to name just to who spring to mind (Mort admitted as much in his book). But it's always Simmo that gets singled out. As I say, he's made himself an easy target.

Even Crumpie admitted Newport was a death-trap.

[moxey63]

8 hours ago, tmc said:

You could say the same about Peter Collins and Dave Morton, to name just to who spring to mind (Mort admitted as much in his book). But it's always Simmo that gets singled out. As I say, he's made himself an easy target.

Even Crumpie admitted Newport was a death-trap.

The problem with Simmo, though, if my memory serves, he remained loyal to the vehicle that kept on letting him down and it conked out numerous times en route to meetings.