28th June 2007

Whatever Happened to Bobby Duncan? (PDF Version) The former Stoke starlet was one of those riders that demonstrated potential but then simply disappeared. He got in touch with us recently so we took the opportunity to find out what happened and what's happened in his life post-speedway.

The Millennium Stadium (PDF Version) All roads lead to Cardiff this Saturday, so to get you in the mood here's some pictures of the stadium taken by Scott David at last year's SGP.

Dream Team: Dean Murphy (PDF Version) Dean selects his favourite seven Leicester Lions riders. He finds room for 'Lester' Collins, who was representing the Lions when he finished second in the 1982 World Final.

Jay Read of No-Brakes-UK is auctioning three customised model bikes in aid of Garry Stead. These three bikes are all painted in Garry's 2007 bike livery. The auctions will run on eBay for 7 days and postage for these items will be free worldwide. The first auction will start at 3pm on Sunday 8th July. You can keep up to date with this and other fund-raising initiatives at www.garrystead.com Jeff Scott's been particularly unlucky with the weather on his recent book signing tour. Hopefully he'll have better luck over the next few days at Peterborough, Cardiff, Newport and Swindon.

TRAGEDY - KENNY CARTER Tony McDonald's new biography of the former England captain is now available for £15.99 (post free in the UK) To order your copy - call the Retro-Speedway order hotline on 01708 734 502 Alternatively, order through the recently redesigned Retro Speedway website.

Brian Alexander on Oxford - Your Shout: "Speedway boring? Yes, all too often. Add that to admission cost + programme + car park + travel cost (45 mile round trip from Edinburgh to Armadale) + poor spectator facilities + poor presentation of riders prior to meeting start. Added to all that, asking the spectators to contribute to the rider's fuel cost, Bill Gibbs is right, there will be many more closures, and no mistake. " An Ex-Promoter on Fences - Time for Action: "It is important to bear in mind the reason air fences were introduced into the UK - Television. It was always hoped that the space could be sold to a blue chip sponsor and it was important that each track had a similar appearance to help sell it. Rider safety was never the primary issue which is why these fences are not homologated, do not have a quality standard rating based on research and development or why there are no studies to establish if indeed they do improve rider safety. To act in the same way as a catchment fence they have to be free standing and absorb the impact, rider and machine so that they give substantially. When they are mounted on an existing fence they only absorb the impact and then ricochet the rider and or machine back on to the track, possibly in front of following competitors and because of the lack of a catch facility have launched rider and machine over the top. The greatest danger in racing today is being run over by a competitor, bikes are so fast that riders have only split seconds to lay down but as the skills mix is so varied at the moment there are many relatively inexperienced youngsters 'flying' in every league and have not the skill to expertly put a bike down at racing speed. Air fences that catch and retain the competitor will help but slowing the technology down will have a more beneficial effect in the long run." Greenlightson on Premier League Preview: "I know that we are a few weeks into the season, but I really don't see Rye House first. King's Lynn will walk it. They beat IOW away and there will not be another team doing that this season. I know Holder got hurt and probably cost IOW 6 points, but K.L. were 8 down after 6 heats. They are just too strong. The sad thing is that there is not more equalisation. For example, if you are a Berwick fan, what is the point of going to watch your team get hammered every week? It's not much fun to have little or no hope of winning one match. Similarly if you are a K.L. fan, it's a bit of a hollow victory, if you are guaranteed to win all 3 competitions because the other sides are so much weaker." Click here to leave your own feedback

 

21st June 2007 - Berwick 40th Season Special

An Interview with Kenny Taylor (PDF Version) The Berwick Bandits celebrate their 40th season with a special meeting at Shielfield this Saturday evening. The Taylor family were the first promoters of the Bandits and were involved from 1968 until 1983. We caught up with Kenny Taylor to find out about the early days at Berwick, their later move to Berrington Lough and his own return to the sport over the last couple of seasons.

Berwick - From the Air Speedway fan and pilot Mark Meynell recently took a flight over the Berwick area and captured aerial photographs of the two tracks to have staged speedway in the town - Shielfield Park and Berrington Lough. The picture of Berrington shows that the gradual deconstruction of the stadium has continued, though the track itself is still visible. Thanks to Steve Harland for sending these pictures to us.

Bandits in the Lough (PDF Version) The pictures above, and the general theme of the week, made it an obvious decision to bring this poem to your attention again. It's written by David Walsh who had three spells racing for Berwick.

Maggie Radcliffe is looking for a programme from the Jack Unstead memorial meeting at Exeter in 1967 - Can You Help? Merlin's "Around the Premier League Tracks" articles, covering all the latest news and results from the middle-tier, now have their own home on the web. You can find them on a new blog entitled Merlin's World. There seem to be a few blogs appearing these days, so we've added a new section to our links page to accommodate them. Let us know of any others that we should add.

The next stops on Jeff Scott's book signing tour are: 21 June Sheffield v Birmingham 22 June Edinburgh v Redcar 23 June Berwick 40th Anniversary meeting 24 June Glasgow v Birmingham 25 June Belle Vue v Eastbourne 27 June Poole v Coventry 28 June Peterborough v Eastbourne 30 June Cardiff GP 1 July Newport - Welsh Open 1 July Swindon v Peterborough

John Earnshaw on Birmingham Track Pictures: "What a cracking looking track and stadium a very big WELL DONE to all concerned in getting speedway back to Birmingham (Ex-Barrow fan 1972-1985)." Mick Cast on Paul's comments in last week's feedback: "Is it Clive James who wrote unreliable memoirs? Sorry Paul, Mods and Rockers, beach fights at Margate and Southend. They were the early sixties. Skinheads and Greasers 68-70+. Most early sixties BSA gold stars, probably would have broken down by then, likewise the old Vespas and Lambrettas. I have never found speedway to be a motorbike rider exclusive sport. In fact over the years I have found it to be the opposite. Having said that, if he had got his unreliable scooter to the stadium, he would probably have had a queue of people wanting to help fix it. They are strange these speedway supporters, some of the best people I have ever met. I remember a wet night at Crayford, we came out after the meeting to find we had punctures in both back tyres. Absolute disaster you would think, well to me it was. Best togs on, in fiancees motor, p***ing down with rain. Suddenly out of the crowd came Bernie on his Kawasaki, I think? Anyway he changed both tyres (the future wife for some strange reason used to carry two spares). "I am better dressed for the wet weather", he said. I have even seen opposing supporters helping each other out. That's what Speedway is all about. I would hate a football type support." Brian Bath on West Ham - Colour Memories: "Like Bryn Williams, I first saw speedway at Custom House in 1965 - Wow! I went with my two brothers. Every tuesday we'd cross Woolwich Ferry or use the walking tunnel. If lucky we'd get the North Woolwich train to Silvertown or walk (yes, there and back). The Hammers won everything that season - first of the British League. The amazing Ken Mckinlay and Svere Hardveldt. Over the years: Simmo, Tony Clarke, match winner - Stan Stevens, 15 year old Dave Jessup, gentleman George Barclay, Dave Lanning firing everyone up! The fairest track of all - even the poles had a chance!" Richard Perring on Track Photographs: "I only found your site by accident but I am pleased that I did, the stadia data is absolutely brilliant. Great pity there were no photographs of Walthamstow, Rayleigh Weir and the old Firs Stadium, Norwich. Nevertheless it was superb footage." Click here to leave your own feedback

 

14th June 2007

Track Pictures - Birmingham (PDF Version) The new Birmingham circuit has attracted great praise so far, indeed Ivan Mauger himself is using the blueprints to create an identical circuit somewhere else in the world. These pictures of the new track are courtesy of www.brummiesfans.com

Your Shout: Oxford - Part 2 (PDF Version) The comments on the implications of the Oxford closure have continued to come in over the last week. The latest contributions include the following quotes: Where are the English guys? The talent will always emerge Keep the punters wanting more A regional league that ran on a short season Teams should be built by common sense and not by 0.10 of a point If you alienate your customers over petty things, it will cost you Speedway may get sick from time to time but it'll never actually die Too many 'here today, gone tomorrow' promoters It's not too late to have your say, simply fill in the feedback form at the bottom of this page or send an email to speedwayplus@hotmail.com

Dream Team: Simon Ashworth (PDF Version) Simon has followed Hull, Halifax, Belle Vue, Middlesbrough and Castleford over the years, he now supports the Sheffield Tigers.

Edition four of the excellent 'One Flew Over the Safety Fence' podcast is now available to download from ITunes or to listen to at speedwaypodcast.co.uk. This time the lads look back on the British Final and debate whether David Howe deserves his wildcard place at Cardiff. Hot prospect Tai Woffinden has a new website at taiwoffinden.com. Tai is currently recovering from the injuries he picked up in that horrific crash at Birmingham last week. Jeff Scott is now into the second week of his book signing tour, you can meet him at the following meetings over the next few days. He'll be selling "When Eagles Dared", "Showered in Shale" and new picture book "Shale Britannia" (which we reviewed last week). 15 June Arena Essex Lakeside v Eastbourne 16 June Eastbourne v Peterborough 17 June Sittingbourne v Scunthorpe 18 June Reading v Coventry 20 June King's Lynn v Mildenhall 21 June Sheffield v Birmingham 22 June Edinburgh v Redcar 23 June Berwick 40th Anniversary meeting 24 June Glasgow v Birmingham Speedway-Blog.co.uk is a new website that will solely host speedway related blogs. If you're looking to start one then you may wish to check it out. There's not much on there as yet, hopefully it will fill up as the season progresses. Simon Holden is looking for a 1989 World Final programme - Can You Help?

Bill Elliot on Fences - Time for Action: "One of the best and well put articles I've read. Absolute no brainer, as is suggested. Principle is simple - air fences save lives and reduce risk of serious injury, whether the rider concerned is the world champion or a novice coming out for his first ride - every life has the same value - priceless." Paul on White City (London): "A great nostalgic site for me. I was an ardent speedway fan during my teen years, but I had one slight problem, I was a mod and had to hide my scooter at least a mile away from all the London stadiums I watched speedway at! I used to arrive at least an hour before the first race and leave half an hour after the last race was over! But I have to admit, the rockers' birds were a lot more tasty than our mod ones! I used to date 'em and tell 'em that I'd had to borrow me brothers scooter 'cos me Gold Star had broken down. Provided that they didn't ask me any questions about motorbikes, I could usually get away with it! Oh, for those long missed days (nostalgia IS an age thing!)" Merv Carter : "Super site, keep up the good work. First went to Speedway in 1955. My Uncle was Les McGillivray. Great days they were. In the 60's, went regularly to Hackney & West Ham. Magic days they were. Stay in S W Scotland now, go to Cardiff every year." Tony Webb on Jeff Scott's Article on the Sky Meeting: "I really must agree with Jeff on the reporting of matches on Sky. Tony Millard is such a dimmo it's almost beyond belief! His pronunciation of some riders names has both my wife and myself laughing ourselves silly! Also talk about stating the glaringly (for want of a better word) obvious! A blind man could see what is happening without him rattling on! Please let Sky have Nigel Pearson and the superb Sam Ermolenko take over all of the commentary duties, especially for the GP's. " You can read Jeff's opinions on virtually all this season's Sky meetings on his blog at methanolpress.com. Click here to leave your own feedback

 

7th June 2007

Your Shout: Oxford and the Implications (PDF Version) The sudden closure of Oxford, and the article we published on the subject last week, prompted an unprecedented response with many of you wishing to share your thoughts. We've collated these into a single article rather than feature them in our regular 'your feedback' column. We've extracted a quote from each of the contributions that attempts to summarise the principal point. These are as follows: We must stand on our own two feet Get professional or die Bond with the supporters Run as a viable business A good racetrack is a must Too expensive for most families I won't be taking them again until the summer holidays Gates like that are, frankly, embarrassing Affordability is probably the real issue Let's not bury the sport yet! Too many meetings are boring I'm not convinced that letting kids in free will benefit today's promoters The Oxford situation may have a lot to do with the poor team Crowds of 2000 would have been regarded as disastrous Speedway is seemingly dying on its feet! It's not too late to have your say, simply fill in the feedback form at the bottom of this page or send an email to speedwayplus@hotmail.com Given that this is a lengthy article you may wish to try out our new facility to view articles as Adobe Acrobat PDF files.

Book Review: Shale Britannia (PDF Version) This eye-catching image is the front cover of the latest book from the Methanol Press range. This time popular author Jeff Scott has turned photographer and captured images of speedway life at every track in the country. These aren't pictures of riders and races, but of the more obscure and interesting aspects of speedway life. The photographs were taken on his extensive travels throughout the 2005 and 2006 seasons and every track that operated in those seasons is represented. The paperback book runs to 256 pages and includes 245 colour photographs. It retails at £15. Jeff will be touring the country over the next few weeks - promoting, signing and selling this new book. You can catch up with him at the following meetings: 7 June Swindon v Wolverhampton 9 June Rye House v Glasgow 10 June Sittingbourne v Buxton 11 June Wolverhampton v Reading 15 June Arena Essex Lakeside v Eastbourne 16 June Eastbourne v Peterborough 20 June King's Lynn v Mildenhall 21 June Sheffield v Birmingham 22 June Edinburgh v Redcar 23 June Berwick 40th Anniversary meeting 24 June Glasgow v Birmingham 25 June Belle Vue v Eastbourne 27 June Poole v Coventry 28 June Peterborough v Eastbourne 30 June Cardiff GP 1 July Newport - Welsh Open 1 July Swindon v Peterborough If you can't make any of those dates, or simply can't wait to get your hands on a copy, then you can order the book in the following ways: From the Methanol Press website By sending a cheque for £18 (to include p&p) made payable to "J.Scott" to Methanol Press, 2 Tidy Street, Brighton BN1 4EL

Butcher, Baker, Candlestickmaker... (PDF Version) It's been a busy week for the Speedway Plus mailboxes, if you weren't commenting on the Oxford situation then you were taking up Jim Henry's challenge to find rider names that are also occupations. Top marks for those who came up with the likes of Phil Alderman, Alan Mason and Troy Butler. However some of the other suggestions are a little more obscure - has anyone really ever listed "Gathercole" as their occupation on a passport?

A charitable fund has been established to raise funds for the seriously injured Garry Stead. Donations may be sent payable to, "Garry Stead Benefit Fund" c/o Yorkshire Bank, 14 High Street, Alfreton, DE55 7BB or paid in at any Yorkshire Bank branch quoting the above detail. David McAllan's website is back online and has a brand new look. You'll now find it at davidmcallanracing.co.uk Adam Lowe is the latest racer to set up a personal website. The address is adamlowespeedway.co.uk. Barry Dalton is looking for programmes for some shared events from the last 25 years - Can You Help?

 

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