cityrebel Posted August 29, 2021 Report Share Posted August 29, 2021 On 8/28/2021 at 4:30 PM, singy13 said: Yep in1973 we travelled to Wimbledon to cheer on Lou Sansom in the Div Two Riders Championship a major event..he finished third after 3 man race-off...It was a very impressive stadium, for example to have your own worktop type seating, handy to lay drink and programme on it....Although being behind glass made for a quiet atmosphere. Didn't stop us returning next year to shout for Mitch Graham who was a top star in Div 2 but failed to re-produce his form that night, he fell and was injured in his second ride...oh well it was still worth watching lol. We did, one of those years, move on to Crayford (having stayed at Sittingbourne)....we arrived quite early to be greeted by a Crayford riders mechanic...he asked where we were from. 'Workington' we added - to which he said "ahh yes the stadium that is always empty of fans". Such cheek the fact was crowds were in decline but Derwent Park grandstand held 1100, still does, and was always heavily populated - the stand wasn't very visible from the pits which is probably why the Crayford guy formed his opinion? 1100 nowadays would be deemed excellent... and anyhow I wished I could have met him later that night because there was hardly anyone supporting Crayford...who then folded later that year.....so up his wotsit to that. Thanks for inspiring some of my Comets memories...so many more to recall but don't want to be soooooo boring. Crayford first closed as the Highwaymen at the end of 1970. They reopened as the Kestrels in 1975 and lasted until 1983 when the stadium was sold for redevelopment. The stadium was not demolished until early 1985. The team moved en bloc to Hackney in 1984. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neila Posted August 29, 2021 Report Share Posted August 29, 2021 On 8/25/2021 at 9:18 PM, Neila said: Last time I was down Northside, about a month ago it was still a long way from staging speedway, the base to the new extended track was down, but no particular shape, the shale off Derwent park was starting to be sorted, will have a walk down over the bank holiday weekend. One bit of good news is that tha caravan dwellers that had taken up residence have been expelled, BUT are now all over different parts of Workington including a school playing field !! Also a new security gate at the entrance near the docks has been put up. Wish the guy behind it good luck Had a walk down to Northside today, been a little bit more activity, on surrounding area, but still a very long way to go before bikes can be raced. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martinmauger Posted August 30, 2021 Report Share Posted August 30, 2021 (edited) I've also visited Newcastle & Workington, 2 venues with a lot of speedway history, I enjoyed both tracks and was so glad I made the effort. Sadly I never made it to Wimbledon, another venue of much history of course. On enquiring of a possible Hull Speedway Supporters Club coach trip in either 1980 or 1981 I was informed "we are not sure whether we are taking a coach to the Wimbledon v Hull match, but then again we are not sure whether the Hull team will even be there" (!). A caustic, yet accurate remark referring to the (in)famous match Dons v Vikings match in 1979 when 3 Hull riders didn't make it to Plough Lane and the remaining Vikings (Ivan Mauger, Kelly Moran, Dennis Sigalos, Joe Owen + guest Graeme Stapelton) battled on, losing 41-36. Many still beleive this meeting cost Hull Vikings the League Title in 1979, the final match of that season was lost before an estimated 20,000 crowd (!) at Coventry, another venue of great history.... Edited August 30, 2021 by martinmauger added pain from 1979 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve roberts Posted August 30, 2021 Report Share Posted August 30, 2021 6 hours ago, martinmauger said: I've also visited Newcastle & Workington, 2 venues with a lot of speedway history, I enjoyed both tracks and was so glad I made the effort. Sadly I never made it to Wimbledon, another venue of much history of course. On enquiring of a possible Hull Speedway Supporters Club coach trip in either 1980 or 1981 I was informed "we are not sure whether we are taking a coach to the Wimbledon v Hull match, but then again we are not sure whether the Hull team will even be there" (!). A caustic, yet accurate remark referring to the (in)famous match Dons v Vikings match in 1979 when 3 Hull riders didn't make it to Plough Lane and the remaining Vikings (Ivan Mauger, Kelly Moran, Dennis Sigalos, Joe Owen + guest Graeme Stapelton) battled on, losing 41-36. Many still beleive this meeting cost Hull Vikings the League Title in 1979, the final match of that season was lost before an estimated 20,000 crowd (!) at Coventry, another venue of great history.... ...I was there also but some of the "Vikings" unprofessionalism cost them dearly at crucial venues (Swindon also comes to mind). Ian Thomas may have been a good administrator but, in my view, 1979 blotted his copybook although one could say that it was out of his, or Ivan's, control. John Berry must have had a quiet smirk as regards the failure of Hull to collect the title considering that he was often at loggerheads with the aforementioned Thomas! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cityrebel Posted August 30, 2021 Report Share Posted August 30, 2021 7 hours ago, martinmauger said: I've also visited Newcastle & Workington, 2 venues with a lot of speedway history, I enjoyed both tracks and was so glad I made the effort. Sadly I never made it to Wimbledon, another venue of much history of course. On enquiring of a possible Hull Speedway Supporters Club coach trip in either 1980 or 1981 I was informed "we are not sure whether we are taking a coach to the Wimbledon v Hull match, but then again we are not sure whether the Hull team will even be there" (!). A caustic, yet accurate remark referring to the (in)famous match Dons v Vikings match in 1979 when 3 Hull riders didn't make it to Plough Lane and the remaining Vikings (Ivan Mauger, Kelly Moran, Dennis Sigalos, Joe Owen + guest Graeme Stapelton) battled on, losing 41-36. Many still beleive this meeting cost Hull Vikings the League Title in 1979, the final match of that season was lost before an estimated 20,000 crowd (!) at Coventry, another venue of great history.... I was at Plough lane the night Hull never turned up. I saw Wimbledon ride twice at the Boulevard. 1980 and Royal wedding day 1981. I caught the train for the first one and went on the supporters club coach for the 2nd! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BEATTHEBOOKIEBOB Posted August 30, 2021 Report Share Posted August 30, 2021 8 hours ago, martinmauger said: I've also visited Newcastle & Workington, 2 venues with a lot of speedway history, I enjoyed both tracks and was so glad I made the effort. Sadly I never made it to Wimbledon, another venue of much history of course. On enquiring of a possible Hull Speedway Supporters Club coach trip in either 1980 or 1981 I was informed "we are not sure whether we are taking a coach to the Wimbledon v Hull match, but then again we are not sure whether the Hull team will even be there" (!). A caustic, yet accurate remark referring to the (in)famous match Dons v Vikings match in 1979 when 3 Hull riders didn't make it to Plough Lane and the remaining Vikings (Ivan Mauger, Kelly Moran, Dennis Sigalos, Joe Owen + guest Graeme Stapelton) battled on, losing 41-36. Many still beleive this meeting cost Hull Vikings the League Title in 1979, the final match of that season was lost before an estimated 20,000 crowd (!) at Coventry, another venue of great history.... Don’t remember this incident and am intrigued to know the reason why the Hull riders did not turn up - the remaining 4 plus Graeme Stapleton I remember well and thus can see why they kept the score tight - Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyO Posted August 30, 2021 Report Share Posted August 30, 2021 On 8/26/2021 at 7:07 PM, singy13 said: We can always live in hope of a Comets return..but...your mention of Iwade brought back some nice memories....My late wife had an Auntie residing in Sittingbourne, so after the Comets had finished on a Friday night we would speed off to stay with her (not too fast in an Austin1300 _ but it was ok) this was to take in the Comets weekenders v Canterbury and then on to Eastbourne. On our first such trip we called in at Iwade on the Saturday afternoon (after a nice kip on Aunties sofa lol)...correct me if I'm wrong, it was 50 years ago, but I think it was grass track racing? Very entertaining whatever. The Comets put up good performances too..it was a long trek back to Cumbria on Sunday evening though. Hi Singy, there was definitely a grass track at Iwade prior to the speedway training track being opened by Barry Thomas and his brother, not sure if it was on the same sight or nearby? Doubt it would have been a grass track meeting on a Saturday afternoon though so maybe it was the training track when you visited? Not sure of the year that it was opened ... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martinmauger Posted August 30, 2021 Report Share Posted August 30, 2021 (edited) 4 hours ago, BEATTHEBOOKIEBOB said: Don’t remember this incident and am intrigued to know the reason why the Hull riders did not turn up - the remaining 4 plus Graeme Stapleton I remember well and thus can see why they kept the score tight - Safe to say neither Ian Thomas nor Ivan were pleased (to say the least), Ivan was 'the man' in 1979 winning his 6th World Championship and took New Zealand to win the WTC.. Ian Thomas explained at a supporters 'do' that the 3 who didn't make it (Bobby Beaton, Frank Auffret & Graham Drury) to Wimbledon had transport issues. Beaton was collecting Auffret on the way down from Scotland but broke down on the way and Drury, travelling alone, came across a big car accident and was understandably held up in all the traffic there. Must have been a 'fun'(!) and more than stressful occasion - no mobile phones in those days, just public telephone boxes. Think the Swindon match, which was a 39-all draw, Joe Owen broke down on the way. It could be said the issue was finally adressed when Hull won the Premier League treble in 2004 (League, KOC & Young Shield) , and while we in Hull we don't still 'dine out' (or whine and cry) over it, but darn it to 'lose' the league due to car break downs . Sometimes you only ever get the one chance. Posssibly John Berry, not really a close pal of Thomas, may not have been too cut up over it, we'll never know as sadly neither are here to discuss the matter but I think most in speedway at least sympathised a bit with Hull at the time.... Edited August 30, 2021 by martinmauger added info 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BEATTHEBOOKIEBOB Posted August 30, 2021 Report Share Posted August 30, 2021 2 minutes ago, martinmauger said: Safe to say neither Ian Thomas nor Ivan were pleased (to say the least), Ivan was 'the man' in 1979 winning his 6th World Championship and took New Zealand to win the WTC.. Ian Thomas explained at a supporters 'do' that the 3 who didn't make it (Bobby Beaton, Frank Auffret & Graham Drury) to Wimbledon had transport issues. Beaton was collecting Auffret on the way down from Scotland but broke down on the way and Drury, travelling alone, came across a big car accident and was understandably held up in all the traffic there. Must have been a 'fun'(!) and more than stressful occasion - no mobile phones in those days, just public telephone boxes. Think the Swindon match, which was a 39-all draw, Joe Owen broke down on the way. It could be said the issue was finally adressed when Hull won the Premier League treble in 2004 (League, KOC & Young Shield), and while we in Hull we don't still 'dine out' (or whine and cry) over it, but darn it to 'lose' the league due to car break downs.... Thanks Martin for the information - Deflating way to lose out on the title - Thankfully cars and vans much more reliable these days - Back then a lot of the guys would put the bike in a frame on the back of the car - Remember seeng Bobby Beaton and Graham back in the day, not sure about Frank - I had the great pleasure of meeting Ivan when I was down at Lydd in 2000 - I would go there with one of my sons on sundays for his practise and racing and like most fathers did we helped out on the track by track grading, carrying red flags, painting the boards etc - On one occasion I was track raking at speed and someone shouted ‘Ivan’s here’ and everything stopped and I thought what is going on - we all walked back to the pits and there he was - the great man - apparently he knew the club patron and had asked to come along and see us all - Ivan started talking to us but I think pretty much everyone was starstruck so I thought it best to interact with him and it seemed to put him at ease and afterwards ( and I will never forget this) he came walking across to me with his arm outstretched to shake my hand - it just seemed unreal - and we spoke one to one and I apologised for booing him years before which made my friends laugh but he laughed and then kindly said he took all the boos as a mark of respect - He was the consummate professional with immaculate leathers and bikes - a great man - Lovely to be able to share the story - 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BEATTHEBOOKIEBOB Posted September 7, 2021 Report Share Posted September 7, 2021 On 8/26/2021 at 7:07 PM, singy13 said: We can always live in hope of a Comets return..but...your mention of Iwade brought back some nice memories....My late wife had an Auntie residing in Sittingbourne, so after the Comets had finished on a Friday night we would speed off to stay with her (not too fast in an Austin1300 _ but it was ok) this was to take in the Comets weekenders v Canterbury and then on to Eastbourne. On our first such trip we called in at Iwade on the Saturday afternoon (after a nice kip on Aunties sofa lol)...correct me if I'm wrong, it was 50 years ago, but I think it was grass track racing? Very entertaining whatever. The Comets put up good performances too..it was a long trek back to Cumbria on Sunday evening though. I was at speedway practice today and got talking to the gent who had told me Northside were due to do training in September - He now says the plan is November - I hope he is right - I also managed to talk to another old un like myself whom I asked about grass track racing to which he pointed in a direction away from the current Iwade track and confirmed that yes they did have grass track racing years ago ‘ over there’ so nothing wrong with your memory there Singy 13 - Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martinmauger Posted September 11, 2021 Report Share Posted September 11, 2021 At the risk of being slightly annoying; whilst perusing Scunny v Poole proggie half saw a report on BBC2 Newsnight Friday night about the political situation in Workington, something about "the football & rugby club are working together to save their ground" then a brief shot of what MAY have been Derwent Park, back straight stand. No mention of speedway or the Comets though.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geoff100 Posted September 12, 2021 Report Share Posted September 12, 2021 18 hours ago, martinmauger said: At the risk of being slightly annoying; whilst perusing Scunny v Poole proggie half saw a report on BBC2 Newsnight Friday night about the political situation in Workington, something about "the football & rugby club are working together to save their ground" then a brief shot of what MAY have been Derwent Park, back straight stand. No mention of speedway or the Comets though.... The track was ripped up so the football could play at derwent park whilst the reds ground was knocked down to build a new stadium for rugby and football no mention of the comets.it started out at £5 million then went to £ 25 and lastly at £ 100 over 50 yrs with the rugby and football not paying one penny towards it just the tax payers.thankfully it was voted down to late for the track to be saved ripped up so 400 people could watch a sunday league style football team. Tried to visit northside today but access road is fenced off to stop the gypo's gettind down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eric i Posted September 12, 2021 Report Share Posted September 12, 2021 I know there are some security concerns but could Northside be made bigger and developed into proper speedway track? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geoff100 Posted September 12, 2021 Report Share Posted September 12, 2021 1 hour ago, eric i said: I know there are some security concerns but could Northside be made bigger and developed into proper speedway track? It could but i think its bit far for people without transport to get too, but lots of land to build a redcar or scunny type track . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piotr Pyszny Posted September 12, 2021 Report Share Posted September 12, 2021 4 hours ago, geoff100 said: The track was ripped up so the football could play at derwent park whilst the reds ground was knocked down to build a new stadium for rugby and football no mention of the comets.it started out at £5 million then went to £ 25 and lastly at £ 100 over 50 yrs with the rugby and football not paying one penny towards it just the tax payers.thankfully it was voted down to late for the track to be saved ripped up so 400 people could watch a sunday league style football team. Tried to visit northside today but access road is fenced off to stop the gypo's gettind down. 672 at Reds’ home game yesterday. Not bad for ‘Sunday League’. How many times did Comets get that many spectators through the turnstiles during their last season? Remind me how much the Workington Speedway promoter lost while running Comets. £750,000 in just six years, wasn’t it? Completely unsustainable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gregory peck Posted September 12, 2021 Report Share Posted September 12, 2021 Cant see anything ever happening speedway facility wise, workington is just a dwindling spectacle sports wise, a forgotten neglected town, only thing councillors channel their energies into is there expenses sheets Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Racin Jason 72 Posted September 12, 2021 Report Share Posted September 12, 2021 51 minutes ago, Piotr Pyszny said: 672 at Reds’ home game yesterday. Not bad for ‘Sunday League’. How many times did Comets get that many spectators through the turnstiles during their last season? Remind me how much the Workington Speedway promoter lost while running Comets. £750,000 in just six years, wasn’t it? Completely unsustainable. 750,000 jeez Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cityrebel Posted September 12, 2021 Report Share Posted September 12, 2021 I thought the 'new' Northside track was nearing completion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neila Posted September 12, 2021 Report Share Posted September 12, 2021 6 hours ago, eric i said: I know there are some security concerns but could Northside be made bigger and developed into proper speedway track? Think plans are for a Redcar size track, but as I have previously said a long way off staging any practice/events, wish the guy good luck, maybe more information will be released when the track is nearing completion Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neila Posted September 12, 2021 Report Share Posted September 12, 2021 7 hours ago, geoff100 said: The track was ripped up so the football could play at derwent park whilst the reds ground was knocked down to build a new stadium for rugby and football no mention of the comets.it started out at £5 million then went to £ 25 and lastly at £ 100 over 50 yrs with the rugby and football not paying one penny towards it just the tax payers.thankfully it was voted down to late for the track to be saved ripped up so 400 people could watch a sunday league style football team. Tried to visit northside today but access road is fenced off to stop the gypo's gettind down. You could have parked up at parking area just over the bridge and walked to see what was going on, you lazy sod or were you in the big red bus ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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