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Miscellaneous
Part 2 |
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| Tom Farndon Bike Transportation Bikes in the Boot Tynemouth Sands Rimini Italy Peter & Pam Oakes Peter Collins |
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| Scottish Speedway History |
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| By Jim Henry |
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| SPEEDWAY IN SCOTLAND- This is a very short potted history of Speedway in Scotland. More information can be found in Speedway in Scotland by Jim Henry and Ian Moultray (now out of print and needing updating.) |
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| Pre1939/45 War |
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| Glasgow Nelson In 1928, when the sport was known as dirt track racing, there was quite a bit of activity in Scotland. In Glasgow the pioneer venue was Glasgow Nelson which staged a few practice events in March 1928 before the April 9th opener. The Olympic Stadium was an egg-shaped trotting track which staged a further four meetings. The Glasgow Nelson Dirt Track Motor Cycle club also staged a single meeting at White City Greyhound Stadium in 1928 and a few races were staged atWhite City at a club event later that year. |
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| Glasgow Nelson did stage a few meetings again in 1932. |
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| Celtic Park, home of Glasgow Celtic FC started in late April but only managed 12 meetings before closure towards the end of July. It was operated by Dirt Track Speedways and featured the top stars and emerging Scottish talent. |
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| Carntyne Greyhound Stadium featured two relatively low key events in 1928 and an attempted revival with a much more professional approach in 1930 staged four meetings in 10 days before closure. |
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The aforementionedWhite City was a big success in 1929 but crowds fell away in 1930 and by the middle of 1931 it closed due to lack of support. The meetings featured a mix of stars from down south and locals, many of whom did very well. Glasgow had a team which took part in the 1930 and 1931 Northern Leagues. |
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White City closed down until a revival under Johnny Hoskins in 1939 saw "The Lions" take part in team events but they were excluded from the League set up. The venue staged a few meetings in 1940 before fears of enemy bombing led to closure. |
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| Still in the west the town of Motherwell saw racing at Paragon Speedway in 1930 and an attempt at a more professional operation in 1932 foundered by early June at the latest. |
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| A track was built atBroxburn in West Lothianin 1928 but was refused a license. It staged a couple of laps at a club event in 1929 before the riders crashed and the event was halted. |
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| InEdinburgh Marine Gardens opened in May 1928 and had a further successful year in 1929 before crowds fell away in 1930. The Edinburgh team raced in the Northern League in 1930. A few meetings were held in 1931 but the sport returned in 1938 and 1939 staging challenge fixtures with a team known as the Thistles. |
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| An event was staged inDunoonin 1932, atStenhouse Stadium in Edinburghin 1935 while a couple of meetings were staged at Dam Park in Ayr in 1937. |
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| Post1939/45 War |
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| Glasgow White City was back just after war ended in 1945 and in 1946 the newly named Tigers raced in the Northern League. The Tigers raced at this second tier level until 1954 when they closed after 2 meetings at home. A few meetings were staged in 1956. Tigers returned in 1964 for Provincial League action and from 1965 to 1968 the Tigers raced in the British League. The stadium was demolished to make way for the M8 motorway. |
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| The Tigers moved to Hampden Park, the giant national stadium, for 1969 – 1972 before spending 1973 – 1977 as theCoatbridge Tigers. They moved mid 1977 toBlantyre Greyhound Stadiumwhich was an egg shaped circuit before moving next door to Craighead Park, Blantyre until 1986. In 1987 they tried to run out of Workington which sadly failed. |
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| A mostly successful 10 year stint for the Tigers which included back to back League and Cup doubles started in 1988 at Shawfield Stadium. The Tigers did not run in 1996 when the track was used by the Scottish Monarchs. The Tigers then moved on toSaracen Park which had been the home of Ashfield Giants. The run down stadium has recently been revamped and is a wee gem compared with its previous condition. |
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| Ashfield Giants raced between 1949 and 1952 at the aforementionedSaracen Park and in 1953 a series of open events were staged. Between the Giants and the Tigers the stadium was used for greyhound racing. |
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| Edinburgh Monarchs arrived in the Second Division atOld Meadowbank in 1948 and lasted until mid 1954. The Monarchs nurtured Jack Young, an Aussie who won the World Championship in their colours. A few practice events were staged in the late 1950s and a charity meeting in 1959 heralded the new era which saw the revived Monarchs race until 1964 in the Provincial League and from 1965 to 1967 in the British league. The stadium was then pulled down to make way for the new Commonwealth Games Sports Stadium. Despite promises by the local authority – City of Edinburgh – no replacement was found. |
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After a ten year break speedway returned to Edinburgh’s reasonably plushPowderhall Stadium. This era ended at the end of 1995 when Monarchs were evicted and the site now is covered with houses. |
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| Monarchs spent a year in Glasgow before moving toArmadale in 1997. They remain at this, their most successful venue (2015) despite possible moves to new venues near toArmadale and Ingliston on the outskirts of Edinburgh. |
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A training track was operated at The Gyle in Edinburghin the late 1960s (now the site of the Mariott Hotel) and bikes were occasionally tested at a trotting track atCraigmillar in the 1950s and 1970s |
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Motherwell saw practice type events in 1930 at a track calledParagon Speedway. This was located in Airbles Road and was revamped in 1932 staging a least two meetings before, it appears, the site was redeveloped as a greyhound stadium. Unconfirmed reports suggest this was used for practice in the 1940s. Similarly unconfirmed reports have been seen referring to Carntyne in 1947. |
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A custom built track was established in Milton RoadMotherwell and was home to theLanarkshire Eagles1950 – 1954. It staged a few meetings in 1958 before the stadium was demolished. In the early 1990s the trotting track staged a few long track events and a smaller circuit in the centre green of the trotting track staged a meeting in 1972. |
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| Practice tracks have existed at Prestongrange (Prestonpans),Briech in West Lothian,Darvel, near Ayr, Bothwell near Glasgow,Calderbank and Dalmaculter (both near Airdrie) and even in the back garden of junior nearMilngavie (pronounced Mulguy) near Glasgow. A track is reported to have operated inHelen Street in the Govan area of Glasgow in 1930. Willie Wilson had his own “training track” near Beith and James Grieves used a red ash park at the site of Braehead Shopping complex in the late 70s/ early 80s. Based on chats with Bill McNeill and Ian Milne it is likely that many of the red ash parks in the west of Scotland could have seen some limited activity. Reports exist of the trotting track at Stirling and a track near Cowie being used for training. |
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| Newtongrange’s Victoria Park was used for training in the early 1950s and staged junior events in 1970 and 1973. |
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| The Showground atHamilton was used for one-off events 1947 to 1955 (except 1952). Billed as grass speedway the riders who raced there maintain it was also a red ash circuit. |
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| Scotland’s most northerly track was atCentral Park, Cowdenbeath. This staged 8 meetings in 1965 and a few training sessions into early 1966. |
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| A small training track nearLinlithgow was converted to a slightly longer circuit and a team known asLinlithgow Lightningentered the then British League Division Three in 1994. This wee venue deep in the countryside was sadly closed down when the owner sold his farm and the new owners redeveloped the site for an abattoir. |
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| Speedway spent a short two year stay atSt Mirren Park in Paisleywhich is just west of Glasgow. The Paisley Lions raced with little success in the lower League Division 1975 – 1976 and attempts by fans to save the venue over the winter of 1976/1977 sadly failed. |
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| Coatbridge’s Albion Rovers Stadiumhas been mentioned in passing as it is seen as a temporary home for both Edinburgh Monarchs 1968 – 1969 and Glasgow Tigers 1973 – 1977. This steeply banked track was turned into a dog track but this venture eventually closed too. |
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| Demonstration events have been staged atDens Park in Dundee andAnnfield Park in Stirling and possiblyFir Park, Motherwell. |
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| There have been a number of potential venues which never progressed including Thornton Greyhound Stadium in Fife, Roseberry Park in Glasgow and Whitletts Greyhound Stadium in Ayr. |
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| Jack Young |
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| Jack Ellis Young was born 31st January 1925 in Adelaide South Australia. Amongst his achievements he was world champion twice 1951 and '52 |
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| Irish Speedway |
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| Courtesy of Graham Gleave |
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| Leg Trailing |
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| Courtesy of John Spoor |
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| Leg trailing around speedway track bends goes back to the beginning of the sport in the 1920s and is due mainly to the Douglas in use then. You will see from the above picture that the "Flat Twin" Douggie has a larger than average engine slung at the bottom of the frame and a low saddle height. These factors meant the Douglas had an exceptionally long wheelbase and a low centre of gravity. The bike could be leaned over much more than a more conventional machine and the typical rider would trail his leg. As the years went by and the Douglas had had it's day the more conventional foot forward cornering style came in with the Rudge and JAP to the fore but some riders chose to leg trail. For me there is no finer sight than a leg trailer blasting away around the boards. I have had a look through my photo collection and put a few spectacular leg trailing pics on this page: - |
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| The above pic shows a Douglas rider cornering on the ragged line between keeping on the bike and falling. |
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Norrie Isbister
Drew McQueen |
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| Norrie Isbister Drew McQueen action at WC Glasgow |
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| Sprouts Elder |
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| Wal Phillips |
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| Max Grosskreutz |
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| Phil Bishop Roger Frogley |
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| 1930s Rider |
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| Oliver Hart |
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| Kid Curtis & Oliver Hart |
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| Aub Lawson |
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| Leningrad |
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| Courtesy of Graham Gleave |
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| Leningrad at Belle Vue 1970 |
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Midget Cars
AtSpeedway Venues |
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| Promoter Mike Parker and a few other promoters were keen to establish Midget Car racing at speedway venues. This form of oval track racing never caught on. The support was there for speedway but not for the cars which appeared to have been plagued by serious crashes. |
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| The Parker 500 |
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| Courtesy of Graham Gleave |
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| Apologies for the "Too Dark" image. I believe this car would have had the 500cc JAP engine mounted inside where the driver sat. He could reach over and touch the engine it was so close. Modern day Health and Safety would have ruled it unsafe I am sure. |
| The car is the Parker 500c and I presume had something to do with 1960s Newcastle Diamonds Promoter Mike Parker as I know he was involved with Midget Cars before coming to his senses and running Newcastle Speedway |
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| Ian Hoskins |
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| Ian is the son of the grandfather of UK speedway. Johnnie Hoskins brought speedway from Australia to the UK in the late 1920s. Ian was very young at the time. He is now 96 years old at the time of writing (May 2021). As a promoter it was clear that Ian was a chip off the old block. Both of the Hoskins men were entrepreneurs. |
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Reg Fearman says: Good Afternoon John, I hope you don't mind that I have just printed off several pages of photos relating to Edinburgh Monarchs of Old Meadow Bank. It is my intention to send them to Ian Hoskins who is in a Secure Home in New Plymouth New Zealand. Ian at 96 is suffering from early Dementia, I hope the photos jog his memory and give him something to talk about. Unfortunately the people at the home know nothing about his long career in speedway, therefore are unable to engage him in conversation. Now and again Joe Hicks visits him but that is about all from the world of speedway. Cheers, Reg |
| John says: Like many fans I can cast my mind back to a time when Ian was my local teams promoter. He ran things at Newcastle's Brough Park in 1970 where he says his best bit of work was in bringing Norwegian Dag Lovaas to British Speedway |
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| Ian riding in Spain and below introducing his attractive Edinburgh Monarchs to the Brough Park faithful |
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| Ian In More Recent Times |
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| Courtesy of Reg Fearman |
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| Courtesy of Reg Fearman |
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| It is sad that at 96 Ian has outlived many of his friends and relatives and suffering from dementia his days in the nursing home are quite lonely. I hope Reg's speedway photos package rekindles Ian's memories and he gets to show them around the nursing home |
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| Fay Taylour |
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| Courtesy of John Spoor |
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| Fay Taylour 1904 - 1983 Died At Blandford In Dorset Aged 79 Born At Birr West Of Dublin |
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| Reg Fearman says: Arguably The Best Female Speedway Rider Of Her Time She Started Riding Motorcycles At An Early Age Riding In Trials And Grass Track With The Coming Of Dirt Track Racing In 1928 She Switched To The Dirt Tracks With Some Success She Was One Of The First From The UK To Arrive In Australia For The 1928 - 1929 Season Fay Joined The Oswald Mosely Fascist Movement In The 1930s She was Arrested And Moved To The Isle Of Man In 1940 Along With Many Others Considered A Danger To Britain In WW11 They Were 'Contained' at Port Erin For The Duration. Fay Taylour Was A Guest Of The VSRA In 1973 At The Annual Dinner At That Time At The Rembrandt Hotel In Knightsbridge London It Was The Second Time That I Met Her In Person. The First When Aged 14 At West Ham 1947 I Asked For Her Autograph.Melbourne 1928 I Don't Recognise The Machine Looks Like A Twin I Am Sure Not Hers She Had A Douglas |
| John says: I think Fay is sitting on a modified Rudge. It is not a twin as these bikes had 2 exhaust ports from a 500cc single cylinder. Rudges had frames that were far too flexible, hence the strengthening struts on the first photo. |
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| Courtesy of Reg Fearman |
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| Courtesy of Reg Fearman |
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| Reg says: Western Springs Auckland NZ 1929 More Like It On A Douglas |
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| Fay Taylour v Eva Askquith |
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| Courtesy of John Spoor |
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| Courtesy of Reg Fearman |
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| John says: Fay's Nazi Friend I Wonder Who he was? He and Fay were Nazis in the 1930s, which made them, "enemies of the state," when WW2 broke out in 1939 |
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Fay's Detention on the
Isle of Man |
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| Courtesy of Reg Fearman |
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| Arrested And Eventually Going To The I.O.M. For Detention During WW11 |
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| Fay Taylour Midget Car Racer |
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| Courtesy of Reg Fearman |
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| Reg says: 2 wheels swapped for 4. Western Springs Auckland New Zealand 1953 |
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Fay 'Pin Up'
At Home |
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| Courtesy of Reg Fearman |
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| Reg says: Fay 'Pin Up' At Home In 1949, Working In The USA Selling Motor Cars. |
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| Reg says: This Photo Was Taken In Dorset Shortly Before She Died in 1983 Aged 79 She Had A Full And Most Interesting Life Which Perhaps Could Be The Envy Of Many Aspiring Ladies. |
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Ron Mason RIP |
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| Wulfrunians!1950 |
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| The above programme is from the only meeting of 1950 and is the only time "Wulfrunians" was used as Wolverhampton's nickname. The nickname vies with Liverpool "Chads" Yarmouth "Bloaters" and California "Poppies" as the strangest nicknames in speedway. |
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Tom Farndon RIP |
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| Pre War Canadians |
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| Courtesy of Ian Young |
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| John says: Canada supplied my Newcastle team with a few riders pre war, so looking at this photo I think the riders are George Pepper, Bob Sparks, Bruce Venier, Elwood Stillwell. Not sure of them or of the rider on the bike, can you help please?John |
Col Greenwell says: A bit of an enigma these Canadian pics. A few weeks ago...maybe you can recall, there was a speedway programme on ebay which had a picture of Kid Curtis stating he was a Canadian...According to a book by Jim Henry, Kid did ride for the Canadians against Edinburgh on July 19th 1938. The names I have for your pre war Canadian team are...George Pepper, Robert Spark, Kid Curtis, Bruce Vernier, Elwood Stilwell. Interesting eh..!!..as all other old mags etc say Kid is from London, which I would say is correct. |
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Team Canada
Pre-War |
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| Courtesy of Ian Young |
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| Back row: Goldie Keital, Eddie ?, Bob Sparks, Elwood Stillwell, Bruce Venier front: George Pepper, Johnnie Hoskins Eric Chitty, Jimmy ? |
| John says: The riders names were written on the back of the photo but 2 of the riders surnames are unreadable So can you help with surnames for Eddie and Jimmy. John The presence of George Pepper (also a pilot), makes the photo a pre war one as he lost his life when his plane was shot down or crashed on a training flight I understand, during the 1939-44 war. |
| Col Greenwell says: bottom right, It's not Jimmy Gibb by any chance is it? |
| John says: I am told the names are correct except back row far left is Goldie Restall not Keitel. Next to him is Eddie Barker and the rider far right front row, as someone has already pointed out is Jimmy Gibb. Incidentally the little girl is Eric Chitty's daughter, Carol Anne. |
Tom Marriott says: Back row L-R Godwin "Goldy" Restall, Eddie "Flash " Barker, Robert "Bob" Sparks, Elwood Stilwell, Bruce Venier. Front row L-R George Pepper, Johnnie Hoskins, Carol Ann Chitty, Eric "Rickey" Chitty, Jimmie Gibbs. |
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Peter & Pam Oakes |
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| This morning Saturday 25th September 2010, I (Reg Fearman), talked with Peter Oakes. Most of you will know that Pamela suffered a major stroke when on the operating table at Papworth Hospital for major heart surgery. She was in a coma for some time and Peter and family were told she probably had only two days left to live. Since that time in mid August she has amazed the specialists by recovering consciousness and gradually making minor improvement. She is talking but has very little movement of her limbs, but is just about able, with help to hold a glass to drink from. Pamela was transferred to Peterborough General Hospital where treatment is taking place for stroke recovery. Peter said that it will be a long road but are thankful the first prognosis was wrong. He said Pamela will be fighting all the way as she has done over these past few weeks. |
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Good news on Pamela - but she still need our prayers. Cheers, Reg |
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Peter Collins |
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| This morning Saturday 25th September 2010, I (Reg Fearman) talked with Angie Collins it is just over two weeks since Peter had an Aneurysm on the right side of his brain and was taken to the Walton Neurological Hospital in Liverpool. Angie says Peter is very weak and tired, he is being fed liquids through a tube to his stomach via his nose. He had an Angiogram on Thursday the results which were satisfactory. Peter has lost some movement on his left side but it is hoped he will make a full recovery given time. He is helped to a bedside chair for a couple of hours each day. Let us not forget our friends who may not be as well as us today |
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| John says: Good Luck PC |
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John Says: great news that PC is feeling well enough to travel to Perth. I assume that's Perth in OZ and not Scotland which is under 2 feet of snow as I type! |
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| ZZ Top! Nah It's The Leningrad Neva Team |
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The "Name the Rider" photo to stump you all. They appear to be mounted on identical ESO/Jawa machines making them eastern Europeans. Please email any ideas |
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| John says: I asked Dave Gifford for his views on the men and machinesthis great photo. |
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| John says: Maybe the Soviets had older bikes and equipment in 1971? So can anyone name the riders? |
| Bob Andrews says: The masked men photo was Team Leningrad, taken in 1971 at Belle Vue |
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| Russian/Eastern Bloc speedway teams visiting the UK in the cold war era were mysterious and great crowd pullers. |
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England v Australia
1947 |
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| John says: What a great picture! If you can help Tony with this please send him an emailPersonally I doubt the picture is of England V Australia second test as the two light helmeted riders are wearing West Ham race jackets??? but what do I know? eh! |
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Katowice Poland1973 |
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| Possibly the greatest speedway venue of the modern age Katowice where the 1973 world final, won by Pole Jerzy Szczakiel was watched by a reported 130,000 fans. The exact figure has long been in dispute with most settling for 120,000. The conspiracy theorists say the crowd was under 100,000 but no one can deny that the Polish venue was totally packed out and the crowd looked bigger that any world final before or after. |
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| Speedway Beauty Contest |
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| John says: Beauty Contests were common place in the years gone by. Now in 2014 they are regarded as demeaning to women. They are no longer part of speedway's social calendar despite the start girls at some tracks and the big televised GP events etc. Speedway teams Beauty Queens are now a thing of the past. |
| The above picture shows Miss Poole, Miss Sheffield, Miss Wolverhampton and Miss Newcastle. Can you name any of the girls, say what the competition was called and provide the year |
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| Colin Jewes says: Agree this is Belle Vue. I went to the PLRCs and BLRCs in the '60s, and my recollection is that there wasn't one at the first in 1962 but that they started in '63, or maybe '64. I recall one if not the first in the ballroom following a raining mtg, so did they plan the first for the centre green, revert by force to the ballroom, and thereafter go to the Ballroom, (i.e wouldn't have Elizabethan cards the first time in there, as it was by default.) If so - a lot of there speculation here - , but I'm going for 1964 ! Definitely a PLRC not a BLRC |
| Bob Bath says: The picture is from 1964-I recall Miss Newcastle winning it- I wonder what happened to all these beautiful girls of 1964-hope they had happy lives and are still with us. Bob Bath |
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Wolverhampton's
Dave Mobley |
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New Zealander Selwyn BurtRIP |
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Allan Batt says:Rest In Peace- Selwyn Burt! |
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| Speedway in general lost a great friend when Selwyn Francis Burt passed away on Sunday May 16th 2010. Selwyn, a life member of the Christchurch Speedway Association was one of the founding members back in 1958. He was a noted Solo and TQ racer back at the old Aranui Speedway, riding for Canterbury in teams events alongside English legend Norman Parker and hometown heroes Mick Holland and Barry Briggs, before embarking on a very successful TQ career that saw him win two South Island titles.When Templeton Speedway (now known as Ruapuna) was being built he was one of a small group of enthusiasts that never gave up on the dream, when finance and labour became scarce. Once the track was completed he went back to riding Solos and racing the TQ's each night and again was to the fore winning a South Island Solo Championship and being one of the pacesetters in the TQs. |
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| Selwyn also worked hard in the background providing riders and drivers with machines to race, and parts to keep them going, often without recompense. This was not limited to Christchurch riders and drivers either with many others benefiting from his knowledge and benevolence. His mechanical ability was also highly regarded and sought after, so much so that Selwyn prepared JAP engines from time to time for Ronnie Moore. When Ronnie made his comeback to the UK in the late 60's Selwyn put together an engine for him, shortening the stroke by using a BSA Gold Star con rod. It went well too! Coincidental or not, it was pretty much this configuration that was used in the JAP 4B Up until last summer Selwyn remained a true supporter of Speedway racing taking to the spectator seats at most meetings until the onset of ill health. Space prohibits a comprehensive run down on his contribution to the sport in Canterbury, particularly in the Ellesmere district , and a career in other forms of Motor Cycle racing that saw him win multiple New Zealand titles on Grass Tracks, Hill Climbs and TT Races but it is needless to say that his place as a true Speedway legend is well deserved for a man who sought no accolades yet loved the sport at all levels. Selwyn was extremely proud of the 'Life Time Achievement' Award presented to him by the Canterbury Vintage Speedway Enthusiasts Club in 2006 and mores the pity that his nomination for national recognition was unsuccessful...but to be fair- he was always happy with his lot. |
| Allan Batt |
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John says:Selwyn was the brother of, Murray Burt, who rode in England, for the Newcastle Diamonds in the late1960's |
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Dog Tracks In London |
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Dog Track In
Tahuna NZ |
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| Construction underway at the Greyhound track at Tahuma NZ. Ron Johnston at the controls of one of his earth moving machines. |
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Speedway Bike Transportation |
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| A comfortable van big enough to transport the rider and pit crew, at least two bikes and all the spare parts and equipment for use in the pits is what top riders use in 2015. Some even have motorhomes! It wasn't always this way as you will see below: - |
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The Chiswell Bro's
Model T Ford &
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| Courtesy of John Spoor |
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| The Chiswell brothers are seen here with a very collectible car of indeterminate make, I captioned it as a Model T Ford but I have doubts as it looks to be larger than Henry Fords supercar. They appear to have 3 bikes on the trailer. I think the bike in view is a Rudge which places the photo at approx 1931 |
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| Motorcycle & Sidecar Combination |
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| Local Newcastle rider John Hunter transporting his bike to Newcastle's Brough Park in 1948: Making the short trip from his home (Wallsend) to Brough Park for an evening's racing. John Hunter is driving his unwieldy looking combo with his mate on the back seat. The guy on the solo on the left was another rider Stuart Robson. The combination was a1923 Harley Davidson. I don't know what the other road bike was. The speedway machine in the sidecar was I am told a Rudge with a JAP engine. The other speedway bike has it's chain removed so the back wheel could revolve freely on the road. It was common to see speedway bikes transported in this fashion before car ownership did away with the motorcycle combination. |
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| Transporting A Speedway Bike By Pushing It! |
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| Pushing a speedway bike to a Railway Station & putting it on a train. In years gone by we had railways stations in most areas. Here is an account of Newcastle's John Hunter who travelled this way to practicing riding his speedway bike on the sands at nearby Tynemouth. |
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| Tynemouth Sands |
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| Geoff Mardon Bike on Running Board |
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| New Zealander Geoff Mardon in the early 1950s. The bike on the car's running board is a novel way of motoring around the UK and would be quicker than towing a bike trailer |
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Reg Trott & His
Small Van |
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| Courtesy of Jim Henry |
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| I like this photo of Reg Trott unloading his bike from his van. I don't know anything about this photo, the year and team Reg was riding for, so help me if you can, any info would be appreciated John |
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| Bike In The Boot! |
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| Transporting Speedway Bikes In1968 |
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| Few riders even in the 1960s had 2 or more bikes, a van and a mechanic. This is Oxford rider Ronnie Genz in 1968 showing how it was done 40 odd years ago. Car fans will note Ronnie's Mark 1 Ford Cortina, now a classic. |
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| John says: Please email pics to me of "modes" of transporting speedway bikes around the countryJohn |
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Norway |
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John says: |
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| National League Select Side v The "Aussies"1989 |
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| Steve Baker says: Kenny McKinna riding for the British National League Select side against the Aussies 1989. Mick Poole and Craig Hodgson are in the background |
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| John says: Steve's ability of naming riders and officials is second to none, he should go on Mastermind with his specialist subject speedway 1980's onwards . In the above photo he has been able to name the background Aussie rider Craig Hodgson from the "Ho" on his leathers, which is all he had to go on! You are my websites greatest asset Steve, keep it going mate, you have qualified for a special bonus prize of nothing Ha! sorry I have no cash for prizes. |
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Photographs of Jack Winstanley's steel shoe and helmet were supplied by Jack's son George Winstanley.
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New Zealand Postage Stamps |
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2009: The above picture of Ivan Mauger appears on the $1.50 New Zealand postage stamp. The full set is shown below: |
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Ivan Mauger
At Redcliffe Longtrack |
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John Abel helping Ivan Mauger at Redcliffe Longtrack, Brisbane Australia, during the match races with Phil Crump. 2002 -2003? |
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"Nederland v Engeland"At Amsterdam1954 |
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The Dutch programme with 3 of our riders names misspelled. If anyone has a completed programme please send it to me |
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Mike Parker's
"International Speedway" |
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Rimini Italy |
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| Newcastle Diamonds promoter, Mike Parker took a party, mainly of his Newcastle riders and machines to Italy in 1966. |
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John says: The "Mike Parker Speedway International" tour truck which appears to be a 1950's removal van. No idea who these 3 are? Either speedway guys or midget car men.
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The Italian programme cover from Mike Parkers trip to Rimini 1966 |
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The programme was translated into Italian, English and German |
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The inside of the programme showing Mike Parker's English riders: Jack Winstanley (Newcastle), Graham Beattie, Maury Robinson (Newcastle), P Harris, Alan Paynter, B Oliver, P Sharples, Milton Caisley (Newcastle).
I think all of these riders had a Newcastle connection. Mike Parker must has taken his lesser light Newcastle Diamonds riders to Italy with 1966 Jack Winstanley as the star. |
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3 of our lads larking about in the Italian sunshine, Maybe all 3 were midget car men and not speedway riders. If you know who they are please email John
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Jack Winstanley enjoying the Rimini sunshine |
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Jack Winstanley right wearing hat. The rest may be Newcastle riders in Rimini
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Use a tractor! seems like hard work in the Italian heat. Jack Winstanley on the left.
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| Speedway Action At Rimini |
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Rimini 1966 |
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| John says: The trip looked a bit like a circus or maybe an episode from Auf Weidersen Pet, with boss Mike Parker conspicuous by his absence when the lads were working hard on the track etc. Jack Winstanley had a reputation for getting stuck in to everything he was involved in, he wasn't afraid of hard work. |
| I wonder what impact the Parker visit to Rimini had on the locals? Did they flock in their thousands to watch the racing? |
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Sweden's
Olle Nygren |
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| Harald-Olof Ingemar(Olle) Nygren (born 11 November 1929 in Stockholm, Sweden) The above picture shows two road bikes was that Olle too? |
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| Olle Nygren second from left with the 1960s Norwich team |
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| Ken Le Breton |
| The White Ghost |
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Ken Le Breton at home in Sydney, Australia. Ken was fatally injured in an Australian track crash in 1951. Older fans in Newcastle and Glasgow remember the White Ghost. |
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| Miny (Minard) Waln An American Great |
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Minard H. Waln, aka Miny Waln was known the length and breadth of the short track racing world as the "Mighty Mite,” was born in Cedar Rapids , Iowa November 20, 1901. Miny spent most of his school and boyhood days on his
family country estate, taking long courses in the art of hunting, fishing, hiking and the like. After finishing school, Waln began travelling and visited Richmond, Virginia during the first world war. |
| His racing career began in 1918 at the age of 16 and in his firstyear racing he took the Iowa State Championship. |
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| "I rode a Pope at Cedar Rapids my first race" Miny said. John says: Pope motorcycles were around in the early part of the 20th century. This old v twin looks like a dirt bike, maybe Miny rode one like it? |
Miny says: "The favorite was a scrappy guy named Peanuts Spurgeon, of Marion , Iowa . He was taking bets he
would lap me. I chased him down to the finish line and almost nosed him out." |
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| After winning in the American East, he came to Los Angeles , California in 1924 and raced on the 5/8 mile Ascot track along with other venues at The Beverly Hills 1¼ mile *board track, Long Beach, Emeryville, San Diego and numerous other tracks. He rode primarily Indian, JAP, Douglas, Crocker and even threw his leg over a Harley-Davidson Motorcycle during his brilliant racing career. |
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| *John says: Board Tracks were an American phenomenon. Large oval tracks made of wooden boards with steep banking. Board track bikes were more or less the same bikes used in dirt track racing. |
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The biggest crowd Miny ever appeared before was at Syracuse , New York where 90,000 fans saw him take the
nationals in 1930. Syracuse was then the Indianapolis for bike racing. The major factory teams were there, men like Jim Davis, Joe Petrali, Freddie Ludlow and Andy Hader. Miny had won there in 1929 also, but in front of a smaller than the 90,000 1930 crowd. |
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In 1931 at the Breakfast Club, was the night when short track racing started in Southern California. Miny, with his experience, was a natural winner over the kids at the new sport. Only Sprouts Elder stood in his way. They ran nip and tuck as top scratch riders for a while, and then Miny took the lead. Sprouts retired and for a couple of years Miny ruled the roost. When the Breakfast Club shut down, Waln retraced his steps to Richmond.Virginia. There he won two national
championships at the Richmond Decoration Day race meet and returned to California shortly thereafter, where he continued to thrill speedway fans. |
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Waln, was the first USA rider to introduce the British Comerford JAP machine into the United States, he held records at
practically all tracks of the western circuit. Some of the records were Oakland , California 4-lap handicap record,
Fresno , California. 4-lap scratch, Gilmore Stadium, 4-lap handicap, Atlantic Stadium 2-lap, San Diego, California.
1-lap title and Bakersfield Ca., he held the 5 mile record on the big track. |
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In all Miny held 15 national title medals and was a 3 time USA National Champion from 1930-1932. He retired
from racing speedway in 1938 aged 37. |
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| The late 30’s brought Miny onto a different form of racing. He built midget cars and stacked up prize money with Louie Foy behind the wheel of the Dale Drake Special. |
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| He went to work for Lockheed in 1938 where he was in charge of a hydraulic crew for years and then went on to be a supervisor on final assembly and finally a test mechanic. |
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| Through out his career his pretty wife Gwynie was ever present at the races. She was immensely popular with the motorcycle fraternity. The great tragedy of Miny’s life was when Gwynie succumbed to a brain tumor in 1963. They had traveled the country and had been inseparable for 37 years. |
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| Joe Walker, of Santa Ana , former Sprouts Elder Mechanic, who watched Waln race for years, observed,“Miny was one of the all-time greats. He was such a mild mannered, soft-spoken gentleman, nobody would suspect he was such a tiger in action and tough enough to take such a battering over two decades and quit in one piece.” |
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| Miny purchased some land in a small town about 100 miles east of Los Angeles, known as Hemet, California. There he owned property that consisted mainly of apricot orchards. He raised his two daughters and retired, being close to them and his grandchildren. Miny would frequent the local tracks at the time and shared in many reunions, seeing his old friends and fellow racers at tracks that continued to prosper such as Costa Mesa Speedway. Miny passed away in 1991, but I am sure he is riding faster than he ever dreamed. A true legend in his time, he was always looking for a way to do whatever he could to outrun the competition. Godspeed Miny! |
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Miny Waln
Racing Stateside |
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| John says: I had this photo on one of my Name The Rider pages for quite a while.This sender of this scan has had the photo for years despite not knowing who the riders are, the track or the year. I would guess it is 1931-1933 and possibly foreign? Please email if you can helpJohn |
| American Bob Fricker says: |
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More American Riders1934 |
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| John says: I am always looking for pictures and stories of the early pioneers in the USA or Australia so if you have items please email meJohn |
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Tyburn Gallows |
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Londoner Raymond Sidney Humphrey aka Tyburn Gallows was born 7th September 1934 and died 1994. Ray changed his name to Tyburn Gallows to catch the promoters attention. It was rumored he was an assistant hangman turned speedway rider. Well changing his name did the trick of getting him noticed as here I am writing this piece about him fifty years on. |
| Tyburn's talent was obviously in self promotion as he struggled as a rider and never made the grade despite his willingness to travel the country for rides and a team place. It was never on the cards for a world class rider bearing the hangman's name! |
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Stoke's Tyburn Gallows hanging an effigy of the rival Cradley team assisted by Reg"hang 'em high"Fearman in 1961 |
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| Geoff Pymar's Secret Weapon, Ovaltine! |
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| John says: Geoff Pymar had an incredibly long speedway career. Maybe that was thanks to his wonder drug, Ovaltine! I am going out now to buy a tin. |
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Jack Young Advertising Cigs |
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| Some Foreign Stadia |
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Brisbane Exhibition Ground |
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Always of interest. Stadiums in other countries. Send me your pics pleaseJohn |
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Amsterdam |
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Waikaraka Park
New Zealand |
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| Sydney |
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Sydney October 2002 |
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The contents of the site are © and should not be reproduced elsewhere for financial gain. The contributors to this site gave the pictures and information on that understanding. If anyone has any issue or objections to any items on the site pleasee-mailand I will amend or remove the item. Where possible credit has been given to the owner of each item.
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