2ndBender

What's happened to the old Berwick track at Berrington Lough? Is it still there? Is it used for anything?

I went to Bydgoszcz with Travel Plus last year and Katowice the year before. They're not cheap, for sure, but the organisation is superb and it's definately the best way to do a foreign GP if you don't want any of the travel/ticket/hotel hassle. Everything is sorted for you, plus they always throw in a few local non-Speedway excursions which are well worth doing. I can highly recommend them. I think their brochure is in this week's Star. And everyone is right...Bydgoszcz GP is fantastic. Cardiff doesn't come close!

The first ever meeting at the Shay was Halifax v Yarmouth 06/04/49 and the last ever meeting was a three team tournament between Halifax, Belle Vue and Sheffield on 26/10/85. Ive got both the programmes.

I've checked the programme. There was one demonstration race with steel plates in the second half. Ken McKinlay and Bob Mark went off the standard concrete gate and Tommy Miller and Junior Bainbridge went off plates. The following week's programme describes the race as an unqualified success. Miller took over two laps to pass McKinlay and Mark finished third, even after rearing at the gate. It was also mentioned that demonstrations were due to take place on all Second Division tracks, so I'll check a few more from '53. Maybe other programme buffs on this forum could do the same?

I've got a Glasgow programme from 1953 in which this is mentioned. Apparently, there was concern that crowds were drifting away because of the frequency of huge home wins, so the intention was to handicap the HOME team with steel plates, so they got wheel-spin out of the starts! I don't know if it was adopted to any great extent, but I think it was trialled in the programme I've got. I would have to check to be sure.

Can any statistician out there provide me with the result and scorers of Belle Vue's tour match in Warsaw on 23/10/55? (Polish scorers as well as the Aces). I know it's a long shot - I've been trying to get onto the Belle Vue website without success!