Forty Years On

[KIRKYLANE 537]

5 th of September 1976 ;

 

My first visit to a foreign Speedway track ; the World Final at Katowice

 

A memorable experience where Peter Collins became the first British rider to be crowned World Champion since Peter Craven in 1963.

 

Watching Peter from his Rochdale days through to becoming World Champion was a pure joy to behold.

 

Both Peter and Chris Morton were wonderful to watch ... particularly at Hyde Road.

 

The second half finals at Hyde Road would often produced fantastic races to obtain the sponsor's trophies. It wasn't until much later that I found out that the riders's split the points money equally in those finals and rode for the glory of winning the Final !!!

 

I raise a toast to Peter Collins and Chris Morton on their wonderful careers riding for Belle Vue.

 

 

[RobMcCaffery 2,752]

One of my happiest speedway memories was being able to regularly watch Peter and Chris work their magic at Belle Vue in my student days in the late 70s.

 

Calling them great days is rather inadequate.

[Sidney the robin 4,735]

The best racetrack i ever visited a superb track Hyde Rd i was lucky to have the Abbey as a home venue but Hyde Rd how great it must of been going there every week.Was filling some of my Vue programmes in in the Mauger era in about 20 league meetings Ivan so far has only lost two races against Bob Paulson and Briggo he was a real LEGEND the Benchmark for others to aim at.

[Starman2006 2,354]

5 th of September 1976 ;

 

My first visit to a foreign Speedway track ; the World Final at Katowice

 

A memorable experience where Peter Collins became the first British rider to be crowned World Champion since Peter Craven in 1963.

 

Watching Peter from his Rochdale days through to becoming World Champion was a pure joy to behold.

 

Both Peter and Chris Morton were wonderful to watch ... particularly at Hyde Road.

 

The second half finals at Hyde Road would often produced fantastic races to obtain the sponsor's trophies. It wasn't until much later that I found out that the riders's split the points money equally in those finals and rode for the glory of winning the Final !!!

 

I raise a toast to Peter Collins and Chris Morton on their wonderful careers riding for Belle Vue.

 

 

Could never understand why Chris Morton was not world champion..

[Sidney the robin 4,735]

Could never understand why Chris Morton was not world champion..

He was a poor gater that really held him back on the world stage at his very best around Hyde Rd he was awesome his pass of Carter in the 83 Northern LRC was sublime a complete gentlemen as well.

[frigbo 518]

Could never understand why Chris Morton was not world champion..

Pretty obvious, he couldn't gate for toffee. Only an average rider at world level.

[Fromafar 10,358]

The best racetrack i ever visited a superb track Hyde Rd i was lucky to have the Abbey as a home venue but Hyde Rd how great it must of been going there every week.Was filling some of my Vue programmes in in the Mauger era in about 20 league meetings Ivan so far has only lost two races against Bob Paulson and Briggo he was a real LEGEND the Benchmark for others to aim at.

Looks like they have track to match Hyde Rd again.

[Sidney the robin 4,735]

Looks like they have track to match Hyde Rd again.

Love it you are spot on the new Belle Vue and Scunny are now my favourite tracks.

[RobMcCaffery 2,752]

Pretty obvious, he couldn't gate for toffee. Only an average rider at world level.

Obviously the World Pairs and World Team Cup wins were in my imagination. .

[frigbo 518]

Obviously the World Pairs and World Team Cup wins were in my imagination. .

The point referred to Morton as World Champion. He never got near winning a World Individual Final and had an average record at best. Many other riders can claim Pairs or WTC wins without being anywhere near top notch at an individual level.

[PHILIPRISING 7,298]

The best racetrack i ever visited a superb track Hyde Rd i was lucky to have the Abbey as a home venue but Hyde Rd how great it must of been going there every week.Was filling some of my Vue programmes in in the Mauger era in about 20 league meetings Ivan so far has only lost two races against Bob Paulson and Briggo he was a real LEGEND the Benchmark for others to aim at.

HOW about Briggo's six consecutive BLRC victories at a time when the standard was often higher than the World Final that preceded it. One of the all-time great speedway achievements.

[Starman2006 2,354]

Pretty obvious, he couldn't gate for toffee. Only an average rider at world level.

Mark couldnt gate either but he became WC..

He was a poor gater that really held him back on the world stage at his very best around Hyde Rd he was awesome his pass of Carter in the 83 Northern LRC was sublime a complete gentlemen as well.

 

He was a poor gater that really held him back on the world stage at his very best around Hyde Rd he was awesome his pass of Carter in the 83 Northern LRC was sublime a complete gentlemen as well.

Morton was as good as any on his day.

[Sidney the robin 4,735]

HOW about Briggo's six consecutive BLRC victories at a time when the standard was often higher than the World Final that preceded it. One of the all-time great speedway achievements.

To right Briggo is my stand out speedway hero great rider was so exciting to watch wish i had of seen his battles with Craven/Moore/Fundin in the 50s and early 60s LEGEND.

[Ommer Mon 381]

My favourite Chris Morton story.

 

He was excluded at Cradley in a first bend fall. He got up, picked his bike up, saw his exclusion light and started to march purposefully across the track, across the centre green, opened the gate in the fence by the starting gate, crossed the dog track, came up the steps to the Referee's Box, shaking the whole structure as he went and banged on the door.

 

The Ref (forgotten who it was) opened the door and with the crowd egging him on in anticipation of a massive punch up, all he said was 'You're not going to change your mind are you?' in his best Manc accent.

 

Superb theatre!

Edited September 7, 2016 by Ommer Mon

[Reviresco 708]

I don't know why this Thread has drifted to Chris Morton, but going back to Kirky's OP, I was at this World Final too and travelled there on the Warners train from London and to call it the trip of a lifetime is an understatement and hugely enjoyed then by a nineteen year old.

 

(And as an aside, today Billy Sanders would have been 61 if he hadn't taken his own kife aged 29. And tomorrow has been declared World Suicide Awareness Day.)