Lestrade1983 3 Posted December 24, 2015 Hello, not an intrenet troll but i think this is a question i have been unwilling to ask for a long time but today is the day. Why are there so many Kenny Carter fans. This man went home shot his wife and then killed himself therefore leaving his children parentless i dont understand why he has a hero status, facebook groups especially. Please bear in mind i was 18 months old when this took please so i only have the below info from WIKIpedia ( On Wednesday, May 21, 1986, he shot dead his wife, Pam, and then killed himself, orphaning their two young children in the process.[2]) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Grand Central 2,654 Posted December 24, 2015 (edited) And can I take this opportunity TODAY. To wish all forum members a very Merry Christmas. And give myself the freedom to enjoy the festivities without this particular debate taking hold over the next few days We could all probably do without it. Again. . Edited December 24, 2015 by Grand Central 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
foamfence 2,917 Posted December 24, 2015 Hello, not an intrenet troll but i think this is a question i have been unwilling to ask for a long time but today is the day. Why are there so many Kenny Carter fans. This man went home shot his wife and then killed himself therefore leaving his children parentless i dont understand why he has a hero status, facebook groups especially. Please bear in mind i was 18 months old when this took please so i only have the below info from WIKIpedia ( On Wednesday, May 21, 1986, he shot dead his wife, Pam, and then killed himself, orphaning their two young children in the process.[2]) As a Speedway rider he was huge! In a very short space of time he was an international and World Championship contender. He also overcame some very nasty injuries in double quick time. I was at Halifax and Bradford for every match he rode in, the move to Bradford didn't favour him, whether it was the track or the fact that at Halifax he was the home town hero, I couldn't say. We can't judge him solely on his private life, there is already too much of that on this forum, including from someone recently suspended. 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lestrade1983 3 Posted December 24, 2015 And can I take this opportunity TODAY. To wish all forum members a very Merry Christmas. And give myself the freedom to enjoy the festivities without this particular debate taking hold over the next few days We could all probably do without it. Again. . Confused.com sorry i have nothing to do with past issues so i asked Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
waiheke1 4,295 Posted December 24, 2015 Type kenny carter into the search engine and you will find plenty of debate. I'd say minimum every two seasons this topic rears it's head. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
moxey63 1,785 Posted December 24, 2015 (edited) Hated him (as a Belle Vue and Peter Collins fan). Remember always looking forward to his usually really weak Halifax sides' visits to Hyde Road, just because he was there. Always capable of causing interest, as was the case his final visit to Belle Vue when he put Collins into the fence in 1986 and physically assaulted PC in the pits immediately afterwards. Two mohths later he was dead, along with his wife. Not just Carter, but people in general who carry as much interest are always remembered more than someone who went through life without a problem. Take away his final act, though I didn't like him at the time he raced... how the sport could do with him now. Edited December 24, 2015 by moxey63 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ray Stadia 1,071 Posted December 24, 2015 Hated him (as a Belle Vue and Peter Collins fan). Remember always looking forward to his usually really weak Halifax sides' visits to Hyde Road, just because he was there. Always capable of causing interest, as was the case his final visit to Belle Vue when he put Collins into the fence in 1986 and physically assaulted PC in the pits immediately afterwards. Two mohths later he was dead, along with his wife. Not just Carter, but people in general who carry as much interest are always remembered more than someone who went through life without a problem. Take away his final act, though I didn't like him at the time he raced... how the sport could do with him now. Totally agree with the last sentence. 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
fliss44 346 Posted December 24, 2015 I wasn't around at the time but I did read the biography. Mental health issues were prevelant Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bruiser McHuge 589 Posted December 24, 2015 Mental health issues were obvious throughout his racing career ...but hindsight is a great thing. You have to remember Carter was a Yorkshireman and Yorkshire folk adore one of their own....I've never really known any rider get such fanatical support from a teams supporters as Carter did from Halifax fans ...they really did adore him. From my opinion I thought he was a really fast rider , definitely one of the very best visitors to Hyde Road and probably for a couple of years he was the best visitor to Hyde Road for that spell. There was a period when I thought he would be world champion but if I'm honest those thoughts had long gone when he did what he did...I thought he'd missed the boat and injuries and Gundersen and Nielsen and other factors meant that I thought his world championship winning days had gone ..he was certainly good at bringing publicity to the sport though when riding and that would be a great asset today .. It does surprise me how many fans he still openly has though considering what he did which is unforgivable. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
highside 118 Posted December 24, 2015 Read Alan Carters book says it all . 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
f-s-p 832 Posted December 24, 2015 Read Alan Carters book says it all .Who's he? I've read the " tragedy" one. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fromafar 10,399 Posted December 24, 2015 Who's he? I've read the " tragedy" one.His brother who was a road racer . 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
stratton 1,491 Posted December 24, 2015 (edited) Mental health issues were obvious throughout his racing career ...but hindsight is a great thing. You have to remember Carter was a Yorkshireman and Yorkshire folk adore one of their own....I've never really known any rider get such fanatical support from a teams supporters as Carter did from Halifax fans ...they really did adore him. From my opinion I thought he was a really fast rider , definitely one of the very best visitors to Hyde Road and probably for a couple of years he was the best visitor to Hyde Road for that spell. There was a period when I thought he would be world champion but if I'm honest those thoughts had long gone when he did what he did...I thought he'd missed the boat and injuries and Gundersen and Nielsen and other factors meant that I thought his world championship winning days had gone ..he was certainly good at bringing publicity to the sport though when riding and that would be a great asset today .. It does surprise me how many fans he still openly has though considering what he did which is unforgivable. There were a few Halifax fans who never liked him never took to him certain things happened and were covered up he made some silly race moves.For me like you said he was a very fast rider at his best,and after 82 he took his eye off the ball had business dealings going on and injuries took its toll.He was a very good rider good anough to win a WC but it never happened i really enjoyed watching him though his BLRC wins were terrific. Edited December 24, 2015 by sidney Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
topsoil 2,498 Posted December 24, 2015 My dad was a huge Kenny Carter fan. My mum, on the other hand, was a huge Bruce Penhall fan. It made the 1981 and 1982 world finals interesting! I was still in single digits around that time but I can remember their rivalry being huge for the sport. To answer the opening point to the debate, maybe there are a lot of fans of Kenny Carter the rider rather than Kenny Carter the person? Carter the rider had extraordinary levels of bravery coming back from the injuries he suffered, just look at the Youtube video of him having to be carried on to and off the bike because of his broken leg. Carter the person? The one word that springs to mind is tragic. I consider myself lucky to have seen him live, one of the great speedway riders of his generation. But unfortunately a deeply flawed individual. 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Endeavour 684 Posted December 24, 2015 My dad was a huge Kenny Carter fan. My mum, on the other hand, was a huge Bruce Penhall fan. It made the 1981 and 1982 world finals interesting! I was still in single digits around that time but I can remember their rivalry being huge for the sport. To answer the opening point to the debate, maybe there are a lot of fans of Kenny Carter the rider rather than Kenny Carter the person? Carter the rider had extraordinary levels of bravery coming back from the injuries he suffered, just look at the Youtube video of him having to be carried on to and off the bike because of his broken leg. Carter the person? The one word that springs to mind is tragic. I consider myself lucky to have seen him live, one of the great speedway riders of his generation. But unfortunately a deeply flawed individual. I was a huge Bruce fan and no doubt his rivalry with KC was good for the sport. Don't agree with riders racing with broken legs, danger to others. Couldn't ride for their team in British league but "fit" to ride in world championships rounds. You declare yourself fit to ride in both or none. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
