Hackney 1988

[Terry 1,319]

Whose leathers is Andy Galvin wearing in that team photo? They weren't his, I'm almost sure.

 

I think he's wearing his 87 leathers. He wore plain white with orange flecks when the season started.

Just noticed a young (and slightly tubby) Paul Hurry in that photo!

[iris123 20,997]

 

 

Of course Arlington and as you say, the days of Gordon Kennett, Colin Richardson (lovely bloke), Steve Weatherley and co. For some reason, remember seeing Arthur Browning riding there. His legs seemed to reach from the white line to the fence. A push bike? Wow. Must be some stories there.

 

Used to travel quite a bit with the bike.Like I said,it was fairly easy from work to Hackney and Arena.They used to let me in with the bike.I'd also ride over to Croydon and then down to the station near Eastie and ride to the track and from inside I could keep an eye on my bike.Sometimes when the weather was good I would ride from South London all the way down and back.Remember Eddie Toogood would pass me going over the hills before East Grinstead.Would also do Rye House on the bike.

 

Then I got a motorbike,but was a bit reluctant to go to hackney as one of my work mates told me he had his battery nicked from his bike at Hackney and also had his car broken into in the car park as well.....

Edited April 16, 2016 by iris123

[Reviresco 708]

Used to travel quite a bit with the bike.

 

Great stuff. No lycra riding suit and crash hat in those days I guess. Different times. Must have clocked up a few miles. KIds with ordinary pedal bikes - a thing of the past?

 

And as for having stuff nicked and broken into, you could never trust those tricky East Enders. Though I always felt safer there than some other parts of the country. Maybe just because it was closer to my home patch. There's always the story of parking your van up somewhere and the local lad asking for a couple of quid to look after it (There's an attack dog in the back of the van - Can it put out fires?, etc,)

 

Talking of cars, just thought of Station Road, Long Eaton and parking my car on a hill overlooking the track. Or is my memory playing tricks again...

[June01 270]

Remember buying the Kestrel News every week with my pocket money from the guy with the money belt. Bryn something, I think his name was...

[norbold 7,116]

Back in the late 60s/early 70s I used to go to speedway three times a week most weeks. Hackney and West Ham regularly plus Wimbledon probably 2 or 3 times a month. And when Wembley re-opened usually got in one a month there as well. Do supporters go travelling round the country these days following their team or get in say 10-12 meetings every month?

[Reviresco 708]

Back in the late 60s/early 70s I used to go to speedway three times a week most weeks. Hackney and West Ham regularly plus Wimbledon probably 2 or 3 times a month. And when Wembley re-opened usually got in one a month there as well. Do supporters go travelling round the country these days following their team or get in say 10-12 meetings every month?

 

if they do, then not many I would estimate. In my speedway 'heydays', 1975 - 87, I regularly attended over 80 meetings a season and 100+ a couple of years. My 'home' meetings were a round trip of 130 miles each Thursday (200 mile round trips every Saturday to King's Lynn in 1982 and to Boston in 1986) and I wouldn't think twice about travelling to away meetings, which were sometimes closer than my 'home' fixtures. Then, of course, there was a lot more 'top flight' speedway staged on a Saturday in those days, so that made away trips easier. Less traffic and cheaper petrol. Used to go and watch the junior and attached riders in their meetings too, taking in BL1 and BL2 matches all over the country. I'm sure we all have them, but my list of defunct tracks that I have visited is a lot longer than my list of current tracks.

 

There appear to be some speedway aficionados on here, whose posts indicate they they do travel the country taking in meetings at different venues, but they would be a dying breed these days.

 

Would I do it all over again? Yes. Would I do it now? No. (Would I have travelled to a match on a pedal bike like Iris? Again, No.)

Edited April 17, 2016 by macca56

[Sidney the robin 4,735]

if they do, then not many I would estimate. In my speedway 'heydays', 1975 - 87, I regularly attended over 80 meetings a season and 100+ a couple of years. My 'home' meetings were a round trip of 130 miles each Thursday (200 mile round trips every Saturday to King's Lynn in 1982 and to Boston in 1986) and I wouldn't think twice about travelling to away meetings, which were sometimes closer than my 'home' fixtures. Then, of course, there was a lot more 'top flight' speedway staged on a Saturday in those days, so that made away trips easier. Less traffic and cheaper petrol. Used to go and watch the junior and attached riders in their meetings too, taking in BL1 and BL2 matches all over the country. I'm sure we all have them, but my list of defunct tracks that I have visited is a lot longer than my list of current tracks.

 

There appear to be some speedway aficionados on here, whose posts indicate they they do travel the country taking in meetings at different venues, but they would be a dying breed these days.

 

Would I do it all over again? Yes. Would I do it now? No. (Would I have travelled to a match on a pedal bike like Iris? Again, No.)

In 1979 i did about 60 plus meetings alot of NL racing Oxford/Milton Keynes but the period between 1984/ 87 i did a couple of 130 plus meetings Reading/Swindon/Oxford everyweek i enjoyed every moment of it.So every year since 1968 i have been going loved it as a young un now at times i go more on habit i don't enjoy the sport as much as i used to.But every now and again i see a great race and the memories come flooding back would i do it all again a big Yes.My greatest memory was seeing a different away team everyweek,with a star no1 and often two cracking heat leaders as well the BL was a very good product indeed. Edited April 17, 2016 by Sidney the robin

[Terry 1,319]

My first speedway memory is a rider in yellow leathers flying from the tapes. I'm pretty sure it was Dag Lovaas in 74.

Being born in 68 I'm sure I was taken to the 'Wick' before then by my speedwaymad father (who used to tell me you could watch speedway at a different track in London every day of the week just after the war.)

 

I think I can count on the fingers of one hand the amount of meetings I missed between then and 91. (I went to most matches in 96 at the new track but it just wasn't the same.) I didn't used to go to many away meetings, maybe three or four a year.

 

Always used to go to Rye House too, Sunday at 4:30. It always seemed to be sunny there in those days!

I remember the year we nearly did the double, with the Rockets winning the NL and the Hawks coming second in the BL, (curse those pesky Racers!)

 

I read something quite interesting in Kelly Morans book 'a hell of a life' (great read by the way) Reading had a tough away match coming up at Halifax and Dave Lanning told Jiri Stancl to stay at home and he booked Kelly as a guest. He top scored and Reading got a draw. So I claim a moral victory for the Hawks

[norbold 7,116]

you could watch speedway at a different track in London every day of the week just after the war.

Not quite, but you could just before the War: Monday - Wimbledon; Tuesday - West Ham; Wednesday - New Cross; Thursday - Wembley; Friday - Hackney; Saturday - Harringay. No Hackney just after the War, though Walthamstow ran for a short time, but on a Thursday, same as Wembley.

[Terry 1,319]

Not quite, but you could just before the War: Monday - Wimbledon; Tuesday - West Ham; Wednesday - New Cross; Thursday - Wembley; Friday - Hackney; Saturday - Harringay. No Hackney just after the War, though Walthamstow ran for a short time, but on a Thursday, same as Wembley.

 

I bow to your greater wisdom. My dad was a Harringay fan before Hackney re-opened in the early sixties.

Wasn't there speedway at Stamford bridge at one time?

[Reviresco 708]

 

I bow to your greater wisdom. My dad was a Harringay fan before Hackney re-opened in the early sixties.

Wasn't there speedway at Stamford bridge at one time?

 

I wasn't around then Terry, but believe that speedway meetings were held at Stamford Bridge between 1928 & 1932 and that the team that rode there, the Pensioners of course, were champions of the inaugural Southern League in 1929.

[chunky 6,102]

It's so great looking at a thread like this, and seeing how many didn't just follow our local team, but went wherever we could! I could always be found at Plough Lane, but was a regular visitor to Hackney (poxy journey on Friday night, but coming home, I could judge the traffic lights, and could get from the Green Man to London Bridge without stopping), Crayford (another miserable drive!), Oxford, Reading, Eastbourne, Rye, Arena, Canterbury, MK, Mildenhall, Lynn etc Used to love tha bank hols, taking in three in one day!

 

Great memories...

 

Steve

[Sidney the robin 4,735]

It's so great looking at a thread like this, and seeing how many didn't just follow our local team, but went wherever we could! I could always be found at Plough Lane, but was a regular visitor to Hackney (poxy journey on Friday night, but coming home, I could judge the traffic lights, and could get from the Green Man to London Bridge without stopping), Crayford (another miserable drive!), Oxford, Reading, Eastbourne, Rye, Arena, Canterbury, MK, Mildenhall, Lynn etc Used to love tha bank hols, taking in three in one day!

 

Great memories...

 

Steve

Chunky off the subject i know,did you ever see Scott Autrey and Mike Bast practice at Plough Lane.?At different times of course Autrey was it 71/72 ? Bast was going to sign i believe but it never happened it would of been a great home track for him if he had of done.

[Reviresco 708]

It's so great looking at a thread like this, and seeing how many didn't just follow our local team, but went wherever we could! I could always be found at Plough Lane, but was a regular visitor to Hackney (poxy journey on Friday night, but coming home, I could judge the traffic lights, and could get from the Green Man to London Bridge without stopping), Crayford (another miserable drive!), Oxford, Reading, Eastbourne, Rye, Arena, Canterbury, MK, Mildenhall, Lynn etc Used to love tha bank hols, taking in three in one day!

 

Great memories...

 

Steve

 

Used to love that little trick of trying to judge the traffic lights to get a clean run through. Heading back from Wimbledon, Hackney, White City, Crayford, or driving along the Embankment after a trip to Reading, Oxford, Swindon, and through London - great fun. Always thought that using the bus lanes (or whatever they were called in those days) back then was a good way of speeding up your journey - wouldn't get away with it these days though. Remember one night, must have been 1982, scooting in and out of the bus lane. looked in my rear view mirror and saw Mel Taylor dive in behind me and he followed my example all the way back to the Eastern Avenue. Of course he had a trailer hooked up, so it got a bit hairy at times. Thanks for bringing back another memory, Steve.

[steve roberts 9,246]

Remember visiting Hackney in 1973 and the third and fourth (no fifth in those days) gears packing up on the hired car! Managed to crawl to Waterden Road and after the meeting phoned the hire company to explain our dilemma. We had collected around a phone box somewhere around the East End waiting for a call back. Next a police car arrived...apparently we had been reported as acting suspiciously (this was during the height of the IRA bombings) After explaining our situation we eventually got back to Oxford using just the first and second gears...imagine that around the North Circular and the A40! But what memories!