SCB 0 Posted February 21, 2004 I was going to post the story, of my first time ((.... I seen the SWAN!....PMSL whilst writing it, reliving the memories of that time! Go on, tell us the story again I remember reading it a while back and it was great, I'd love to read it agian Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Trackman 3 Posted February 21, 2004 PMSL! Good on Ya SCB. if Lioness was talking to me I could ask for a link! Sir Lunchy, is much too Serious for that sort of thing, maybe Shazzy, Gem or Pawprint might help? where is Lioness?? :.O.(.... Regards. PS. one each...XXXXX ;o)...... Sorry Lunchy! do you think the short time Cam had in the UK, will benefit him this year??..... I do! TinHat Time!!!!! .....())) Sorry Phil "off topic" as always! ))))) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dublin duke 0 Posted February 24, 2004 My dad used to bring me & brother from '65 into the '70's (and to the "steam pigs" HRLFC). I remember one meeting where Reider Eide went over the fence and into the crowd (his bike didn't....just him). The Shay was the best. My dad is still a HRLFC season ticket holder at The "new" Shay. We moved to Ireland in the '70's - NO SPEEDWAY!!! So, I'm probably one of the very few (if not the only) serious speedway fans in Ireland. I make the pilgrimage to Cardiff every year with my own son and go to Sheffield when visiting my father who now lives in Huddersfield. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Silver Fox 1 Posted February 29, 2004 Yes i remember Hennys 21 point maximum.In fact i have the leathers he wore in the meeting. I was a regular at the shay from 1967 until the ham brothers took over(1981ish . I used to help Dougie Adams (set up the pa play records) and have so many memories from the shay. Some fantastic racing and great charicters riders and referees and of course Dougie. I remember lots of incidents and the riders who took exception to a reffereeing decsion and climbed the dreaded ladder to vent there anger (Jimmy Mcmillan) for one. i remember Kenny Carter when he broke his jaw watching a meeting from the box he was the king. My personal favorite referee was John Rhodes. He was a big bloke with a personality to match. He once excluded Ole Olsen under the two minute rule when Ole tried to get some extra time for one of his team mates by siting on his bike outside the pit gates. On came the red lights on went the white and yellow and black exclustion lights. Olsen was quickly on the phone to protest he was ready to race and only waiting for his partner. John was haveing none of it the crowd where insensed pure theatre. The time when Kenny was rideing for England V Denmark and Erik Gundersun made the gate and pinned KC to the white line on bend 2 only for KC to take one hand off the handle bars and hit Erik on the shoulder that got him a good ticking off from John Whittaker. I could go on all night. Does anyone remember Mick Newtons bike setting alight at the tapes when Ivan Mauger was Lieing up for a second half race.Never seen Ivan leave in such a hurry. But i think Henny apart my personal duke was Mick Mckeon. That bloke had a heart has big has a lion. The crash at the Old Belle Vue when he and Mike Lohmann both recived very nasty injuries was the worst crash i ever saw. I remember Micks last meeting at the shay on completeing his race got a Halifax scarf from someone in the crowd and did a lap appaulding the fans. I was in tears. Great memories. So sad its lost forever. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lioness 1,455 Posted February 29, 2004 PMSL! Good on Ya SCB. if Lioness was talking to me I could ask for a link!Sir Lunchy, is much too Serious for that sort of thing, maybe Shazzy, Gem or Pawprint might help? where is Lioness?? :.O.(.... Regards. PS. one each...XXXXX ;o)...... Sorry Lunchy! do you think the short time Cam had in the UK, will benefit him this year??..... I do! TinHat Time!!!!! .....())) Sorry Phil "off topic" as always! ))))) Sorry Phil I completely missed this-had a bad couple of weeks of it. E-mail on its way in explanation mate Hate to think wot link your talking about tho Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Trackman 3 Posted March 5, 2004 Hate to think wot link your talking about tho LoL..... who has the whip, You, Gem or Shazzy? ()) It went somthing liker this Lioness. ())............. I remember, as a 4 or 5 year old lad sitting at side of me Dad, its Saturday night so its Speedway night. I’m in Mum’s chair at side of me Dad real glad its BelleVue at Halifax tonight. Me Dad parks near the pub and me hearts racing cos I can hear bikes warming up. It’s me second season now so I know where the pits are. So I’m running round the 3rd turn, just looking at that track and imagine the riders are going round, passing me cos now I’m within smelling range, the engines are echoing through the grandstand. The crackling and banging and the smell of the castor oil, I’m coming off the 4th turn and running behind the main stand. Got to get an autograph! Too late, they are all at the start line, can’t even see a rider and I’ve been here 5 minutes. I’ll have to run up to the riders car park and climb the embankment, just in time as both teams got a push start for their lap of honour. Now I can see the chrome on the spokes, they look like sparkers from the track lights. The shiny black leathers, just like me school shoes. There’s Kentwell all in red and Eric Boocock with his Man United shirt. Oh no! whats that! There’s no elephant, NO ELEPHANT! I got to go and tell me Dad, they’ve taken the elephant away. I like it up here near the bus depot, but I like sliding down the hill. I got to run all the way back round to the middle of the 3rd & 4th turn. But soon as you get out from behind the grandstand and I got to the 3rd turn, there was people everywhere, it was packed full. I don’t recognise any of them, where’s me Dad! I’ll have to go down near the fence so I can find where the middle of the corner is. Oh no I’ve already missed 2 races and I haven’t even got down to the fence yet. I wonder what they have done with me elephant cos we were called the Dukes. I don’t want to be called anything else, I want to be a Duke with me elephant on the front of me. I’ve found the fence, race has finished!! Wonder if one of them is going to come back around, I’ll wait. I can see some tear offs, I’m going to get a lot of them this year, I’m 5 now. Don’t have to stay with me Dad at turn 3, I can slide down the big hill where the bus depot is, jump fence and pick em up all way down front straight. When me Dad said I was 5, I could go from turn 4 to turn 1, so I can now. Oh here’s middle of corner, he’s just up here. Can’t see nowt now, oh there’s the bikes, there’s a race, I’m going down t fence. Lots of people, wish I was taller, got them bars that me Dad leans on and he usually lets me stand on that. It’s Boocock and Gaveross, wish it was Younghusband and Boothroyd cos that’d been the first race. Oops theres a crash in the second corner and they’ve stopped the race. Looks like Boothroyd’s got a swan on the front of his chest, oh no me elephants gone and they’ve got a swan!!! I don’t like that, what they got a swan for, got to go back to school and tell me mates that I’ve been watching the swans!! I’m not going to tell em swans, I’m going to tell me Dad they’ve got swans. I don’t like swans!! I like elephants. I can’t see nothing and there’s been 6 races or is it 8. I want the toilet too, I want me elephant, I don’t want swans, and where’s me Dad. Everyone is cheering and everyone is clapping and me favourite song is playing too, “Ha Ha said the Clown” There’s me Dad, its half time. Got to go to toilet before racing starts again. . . . . LoL SCB, & Lioness, "Pawprint had the post" ()) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Shoddy 1 Posted March 10, 2004 I went for a bit from near the start of 84 and through 85. Sad to lose it but Bradford was not a bad replacement track for the racing and was as near to travel for me! Kenny Carter Neil Evitts Steve Baker Steve Finch Eric Monaghan Rod Hunter Kurt Hansen etc... great memories. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Trackman 3 Posted March 11, 2004 2 of the best race track in the UK!...... Gone but not forgotten. (o( Regards. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Trevor 270 Posted March 11, 2004 I cannot understand why an area as big as West Yorkshire, hasn't even got a Conference track! Is the problem lack of a Promoter, or suitable land for a track? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
25yearfan 476 Posted March 11, 2004 I believe the Shay stadium was squared of with new stands a few years ago so it would be very difficult to accommodate a speedway track there now. I was watching Rugby League from Odsal on the Tv the other week. The old track is still there just the shale's been taken of and the Rugby corners just overlaping which they used to before anyway (they would be lifted up for speedway and car meetings). The old pit's area (which were probably the best speedway pit's anywhere) have been built over by a plush looking multi story executive suite. Interesting to note that the suite follows the contours of the old speedway track so the tantilising possibility remains of speedway one day returning to a stadium and track that ranked up there with the best in the world, though a new pit's area would be needed to be built. The problem with Odsal now is the Rugby club have got the lease to it now and do not feel the work involved in preparing for speedway and stock car events are not worth the financial rewards they would get. Such a shame when the perimeter track which the shale track was once on is now doing nothing. Surely rent fron speedway and stock cars events (both of which were staged smoothly alongside Rugby and even football for a short period in the mid 80's at Odsal up to 1997) is better than the present situation of no income arising from the perimeter track? A couple of years back the company that owns Sheffield stadium announced plans to build a similar facility with a spedway track the same size as that at Owlerton in Leed's. I've heard nothing for quite a while now, does anyone know what is happening on this one at present? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
razzer 1 Posted May 2, 2004 i was from 1976 through to sad demise , then to bradford , good but never quite the same Halifax and its banking was simply awesome - from chris pusey , henny kroeze , tormod langli, john louis , the brilliant kenny carter and people like alan graham how good was he at shay !! golden helmet races with carter and penhall , mike lee and the fastest bike we ever saw round there happy days Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bee 1 Posted May 11, 2004 As a Bees fan since 1960, I remember Halifax well visiting there on many occasions throughout the time the Shay was running, having moved from Middlesborough. Being a Boocock fan these were always fixtures we looked forward too. The two Brothers clashing. Great Days. The Stadium was never brilliant, but the track was good for good racing. The Shay Hotel was a good meeting place. I recall the days of Eric and the other Eric Mr Boothroyd, Dave Younghusband, Dennis Gavros, Bryan Elliot who you got from us! Greg Kentwell and a few others. I remember Henny Kroeze 21pt score, and other hero's there in the 70's as well like King Kenny, and Langli, Louis with his spell there. Ian Cartwright etc. Yes great days, sadly gone forever. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WATigerman 1 Posted May 11, 2004 The Stadium was never brilliant Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
