mikebaker Posted October 31, 2022 Report Share Posted October 31, 2022 (edited) A one team rider. Having ridden at Cleveland Park from 1968 till 1980. My first hero when i started following the Teesside Tigers in 1972. Edited October 31, 2022 by mikebaker Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve roberts Posted October 31, 2022 Report Share Posted October 31, 2022 1 hour ago, mikebaker said: A one team rider. Having ridden at Cleveland Park from 1968 till 1980. My first hero when i started following the Teesside Tigers in 1972. Remember Pete Reading well...I was fearing this thread was announcing his passing? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chunky Posted October 31, 2022 Report Share Posted October 31, 2022 2 hours ago, steve roberts said: Remember Pete Reading well...I was fearing this thread was announcing his passing? Yeah, I thought exactly the same thing... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ch958 Posted November 1, 2022 Report Share Posted November 1, 2022 one week a world beater, next week a second string and very much a Cleveland Park specialist 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The White Knight Posted November 19, 2022 Report Share Posted November 19, 2022 On 10/31/2022 at 7:10 PM, steve roberts said: Remember Pete Reading well...I was fearing this thread was announcing his passing? Me too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve roberts Posted November 19, 2022 Report Share Posted November 19, 2022 (edited) 51 minutes ago, The White Knight said: Me too. I was thinking the other day about one club riders and they are very few and far between...Pete only rode for Teesside. A good servant and what club speedway is all about in my opinion. We had Rick Timmo at Oxford. Wouldn't happen nowadays! Edited November 19, 2022 by steve roberts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chunky Posted November 19, 2022 Report Share Posted November 19, 2022 2 hours ago, steve roberts said: I was thinking the other day about one club riders and they are very few and far between...Pete only rode for Teesside. A good servant and what club speedway is all about in my opinion. We had Rick Timmo at Oxford. Wouldn't happen nowadays! And Leicester, who used the same seven riders all season in 1969... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve roberts Posted November 19, 2022 Report Share Posted November 19, 2022 4 minutes ago, chunky said: And Leicester, who used the same seven riders all season in 1969... ...bit different to Oxford in 2005 who used 23 riders (14 of which who rode in six or more matches). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beirao Posted November 19, 2022 Report Share Posted November 19, 2022 5 hours ago, steve roberts said: I was thinking the other day about one club riders and they are very few and far between...Pete only rode for Teesside. A good servant and what club speedway is all about in my opinion. We had Rick Timmo at Oxford. Wouldn't happen nowadays! And Martin McKinna who only rode for Glasgow. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BL65 Posted November 19, 2022 Report Share Posted November 19, 2022 2 hours ago, chunky said: And Leicester, who used the same seven riders all season in 1969... That's correct regarding official matches. I saw George Major ride for the Lions at the beginning of the season. He appeared in a couple of challenge matches before DeWayne Keeter arrived. Dene Davies rode in place of Keeter in two challenge matches at the very end of the season. Norman Hunter also guested in place of John Boulger in a challenge at King's Lynn. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chunky Posted November 20, 2022 Report Share Posted November 20, 2022 2 hours ago, BL65 said: That's correct regarding official matches. There were several other teams that ran them close that year. King's Lynn made just ONE change that season, when Geoff Penniket replaced Pete Bradshaw for a night, and Wimbledon and Poole only used nine riders. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
salty Posted November 20, 2022 Report Share Posted November 20, 2022 I've got Coatbridge only using 9 riders as well. Wimbledon is more than 9? A number of guests alongside the main 7 of Moore, Hedge, Luckhurst, Tebby, Dugard, Maidment, Everett and main replacement Murray. Those were the days eh? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chunky Posted November 20, 2022 Report Share Posted November 20, 2022 5 hours ago, salty said: I've got Coatbridge only using 9 riders as well. Wimbledon is more than 9? A number of guests alongside the main 7 of Moore, Hedge, Luckhurst, Tebby, Dugard, Maidment, Everett and main replacement Murray. Those were the days eh? I was sure there were other teams as well... I'm talking about those "representing" Wimbledon, not guests. In those days, each team would have one or two main replacements, but of course, there were still odd teams who got through a bunch of riders. Thing is, people complain about riders doubling up these days, but the reality is that we've always had them. What we DIDN'T have was more guests than actual team members. The fact is, unless a rider was legitimately injured - he would ride for your team (unless he was Swedish)! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ch958 Posted November 20, 2022 Report Share Posted November 20, 2022 4 minutes ago, chunky said: I was sure there were other teams as well... I'm talking about those "representing" Wimbledon, not guests. In those days, each team would have one or two main replacements, but of course, there were still odd teams who got through a bunch of riders. Thing is, people complain about riders doubling up these days, but the reality is that we've always had them. What we DIDN'T have was more guests than actual team members. The fact is, unless a rider was legitimately injured - he would ride for your team (unless he was Swedish)! yes in the days when there was clear demarcation between the divisions the top 2nd tier boys were "no 8" for 1st division teams. E.g. Steve Wilcock performed this role for Coventry among others. Nobody seemed to mind that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chunky Posted November 20, 2022 Report Share Posted November 20, 2022 5 minutes ago, ch958 said: yes in the days when there was clear demarcation between the divisions the top 2nd tier boys were "no 8" for 1st division teams. E.g. Steve Wilcock performed this role for Coventry among others. Nobody seemed to mind that. Absolutely. In the '70's, we had Colin Richardson and Richard Knight. Cradley had David Shields and John Hack. White City had Mike Sampson. Nope, nobody complained back then. We liked having regular and reliable stand-ins. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve roberts Posted November 20, 2022 Report Share Posted November 20, 2022 27 minutes ago, chunky said: Absolutely. In the '70's, we had Colin Richardson and Richard Knight. Cradley had David Shields and John Hack. White City had Mike Sampson. Nope, nobody complained back then. We liked having regular and reliable stand-ins. ...and David Kennett. Of course in those days there was often a promotional tie in. White City/Oxford - Eastbourne/Peterborough and King's Lynn - Boston for example. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chunky Posted November 20, 2022 Report Share Posted November 20, 2022 2 hours ago, steve roberts said: ...and David Kennett. Of course in those days there was often a promotional tie in. White City/Oxford - Eastbourne/Peterborough and King's Lynn - Boston for example. Right, but again, nobody complained. Yet everybody wants to do away with "doubling up" these days! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve roberts Posted November 20, 2022 Report Share Posted November 20, 2022 (edited) 37 minutes ago, chunky said: Right, but again, nobody complained. Yet everybody wants to do away with "doubling up" these days! ...I certainly didn't as Oxford/White City benefitted hugely from "doubling up" whereby riders from its sister promotions eventually became full time assets. The likes of Malcolm Ballard, Gordon Kennett, John Davis, Richard Greer, Paul Gachet and Steve Weatherley (Bobby McNeil and Roger Johns escaped us!) but of course that was the original concept of the old Second Division to develop British talent and it was a way to gently introduce riders to the harsher environment of the upper league. Belle Vue, King's Lynn and Ipswich, amongst others, also benefitted with the old "doubling up" formula. Unfortunately that concept changed by the early eighties and it's no accident that the national team began to dry up when the National League as it became began to take its own identity. The "doubling up" scenario appears to be a very different animal nowadays. Edited November 20, 2022 by steve roberts 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chunky Posted November 20, 2022 Report Share Posted November 20, 2022 (edited) 35 minutes ago, steve roberts said: The "doubling up" scenario appears to be a very different animal nowadays. What makes it worse is that we only have a handful of teams, and we STILL don't have enough riders to fill them! I don't actually know the reason, but it appears to me that riders in the NDL are reluctant to move up. Again, expense may well be a part of this, as moving up would put a huge amount of pressure on the riders financially. However, i do have another theory. It may be not be a 100% accurate, but i think that a lot of the problem may simply be the attitude of riders. It has often been mentioned on here how everyone in speedway now wants to boast about their status as a "professional" rider. Now, it may seem strange, but I am aware of a similar situation in darts, particularly in the US. There are a lot of up-and-coming dart players over here, but they never develop into anything. Why? Because they think they are something special. Because they think they have "made it". Because they want the rewards without earning them; they don't want to put in the effort. Of course, darts isn't expensive, and there are basically unlimited opportunities at EVERY level. Speedway isn't like that, and opportunities are very limited. It seems that rather than throw their hat into the ring, and take risks (including financial), they are happy to sit in the NDL and just go through the motions. I know a lot of Brits resent how Lambert and Bewley took the chance, and tried their luck in Poland. It has certainly paid off for them, and they most definitely merit their rewards. Others can't - or won't - move up from their comfort level. Look at all the top British stars from yesteryear; not one of those sat at a lower level stagnating. Sure a few did start off in the lower tier, but moved up to (or at least started competing at) the highest level as soon as they could. Jessup, Louis, Collins, Lee, Carter, Havelock etc. Kids today don't want to put in that effort and dedication. Edited November 20, 2022 by chunky 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve roberts Posted November 20, 2022 Report Share Posted November 20, 2022 (edited) 37 minutes ago, steve roberts said: ...I certainly didn't as Oxford/White City benefitted hugely from "doubling up" whereby riders from its sister promotions eventually became full time assets. The likes of Malcolm Ballard, Gordon Kennett, John Davis, Richard Greer, Paul Gachet and Steve Weatherley (Bobby McNeil and Roger Johns escaped us!) but of course that was the original concept of the old Second Division to develop British talent and it was a way to gently introduce riders to the harsher environment of the upper league. Belle Vue, King's Lynn and Ipswich, amongst others, also benefitted with the old "doubling up" formula. Unfortunately that concept changed by the early eighties and it's no accident that the national team began to dry up when the National League as it became began to take its own identity. The "doubling up" scenario appears to be a very different animal nowadays. ...I forgot Trevor Geer! Colin Richardson was another who "escaped" us. Rode as a fifteen year old at Cowley (I recall an "exhibition" match race between him and Michael Lee which Colin won). However he was snapped up by Reading whilst an "Eagle" and eventually ended up at Plough Lane. Edited November 20, 2022 by steve roberts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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