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TonyMac

'They Retired Too Soon'

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2 hours ago, falcace said:

Tricky one...it's not a sport anyone should dabble in. If anyone's having doubts, then they are safer out.

Penhall is the obvious name. But the older I get, the more I see how he got his timing spot on. He was never going to top winning the title at Wembley and defending it in his home city. He got out healthy, wealthy and with a rare career opportunity in front of him. Anyone with half a brain would have done the same in his boots.

Ron Preston was a quality performer and seemingly had a fair few years left at world level. But I understand he had good reasons too.

Lewis Bridger, I think everyone can agree, could and should have done much more if he hadn't kept retiring!

Also, not the same level, but Jamie Luckhurst was a quality rider at NL level when getting out quite young.

Good call Ron Preston. Saw quite a bit of him at Eastbourne during his last year riding in the UK and he was a particular master around the first two bends.

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12 hours ago, salty said:

Eric Boocock could fit the bill for someone who retired too early ? 

Further to Falcace's point, you could no one who walks away fit and healthy from Speedway has retired too soon.

Funny thing is salty Eric rarely had a scratch in his career unlike Nigel  until he broke his arm at Newport in 1973.He came back and won a top class British Final in 74 great stylist hated watching him in his ill fated 1983 comeback.

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Does Andy Galvin qualify? Did injury curtial his career as I can't remember?

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Keith Millard and Rob Lightfoot, two guys that won the British Junior Championship and had retired within a year or two. 

Also, one I hadn't really clocked, but read in the Star in one of their features around past teams - David Tyler. Emerged from novice to key man for Long Eaton in 1984 and retired a year later. 

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14 minutes ago, falcace said:

Keith Millard and Rob Lightfoot, two guys that won the British Junior Championship and had retired within a year or two. 

Also, one I hadn't really clocked, but read in the Star in one of their features around past teams - David Tyler. Emerged from novice to key man for Long Eaton in 1984 and retired a year later. 

If I recall Rob Lightfoot picked up a neck injury which forced his early retirement after attempting to resurrect his career?

Edited by steve roberts
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6 minutes ago, steve roberts said:

If I recall Rob Lightfoot picked up a neck injury which forced his early retirement after attempting to resurrect his career?

Ouch. Can't argue with that. 

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On 7/9/2021 at 4:29 PM, falcace said:

Tricky one...it's not a sport anyone should dabble in. If anyone's having doubts, then they are safer out.

Penhall is the obvious name. But the older I get, the more I see how he got his timing spot on. He was never going to top winning the title at Wembley and defending it in his home city. He got out healthy, wealthy and with a rare career opportunity in front of him. Anyone with half a brain would have done the same in his boots.

Ron Preston was a quality performer and seemingly had a fair few years left at world level. But I understand he had good reasons too.

Lewis Bridger, I think everyone can agree, could and should have done much more if he hadn't kept retiring!

Also, not the same level, but Jamie Luckhurst was a quality rider at NL level when getting out quite young.

Have to agree, it’s not a sport dabble in,if your 100% committed your safer out of it,to many risk factors that you have no control over.Agree regarding Bridger totally wasted talent,if only he had half a brain .

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Marcus Bisson of Poole

Seemed be progressing mid 80's, 7ish average in the National League then disappeared.

Not sure if he picked up an injury but I did see him riding on a beach in Jersey early 90's.

Maybe he just didn't want to leave the Channel Islands too often.  Who can blame him.

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Bruce Penhall, Dag Lovaas, Ron Preston and Phil Collins all could have been around for much longer if they wanted to.

At the other end of the scale, Jim Brett of Belle Vue looked like he was about to make the breakthrough but quit as he had a good job lined up (in IT I believe, which in the late 70s would have been pretty well paid I imagine)

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Dave Mullett, one of those engine room types of rider .. i personally think his style held him back a bit

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How about Keith Anderson of Birmingham (1975)?

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Carl Askew (another with "Brummie" connections) ?

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Greg Bartlett,made his debut at reserve for Sheffield in 1994,rode at number one for the Tigers in the one big league in '95 beating some of the big names of the day around Owlerton and was making progress on the away circuits.Took a full time job as a miner back in Australia and rarely rode again.I always compared him to fellow Perth based rider Steve Johnston,who after a slow start,went onto have a solid British career and Barty was equally as good,if not slighty better than Johnno in his two seasons.

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