BrizHeathen

Good luck Ozy. The Queensland Under 16 Title is on at Pioneer park next Saturday night, with a full field of sixteen riders. We've got five coming up from the South with the locals filling the other places, and there are a few sitting it out too so things looking pretty good for the future in North Queensland. Keep us informed of happenings on the Junior scene in the West. Chopper, So what's happened in SA? You were the strongest State by far not so long ago.

Pioneer Park speedway hosted a Mick Poole training day yesterday (Saturday 24th September). The activities commenced at 10am with around a dozen junior (Under 16) riders taking their seats in a classroom environment where Mick talked to them about racing licences, the importance of having the correct safety gear, bike preparation, the need to gain a good education, fitness and warming up before riding. He then went on to talk about what can be achieved in the sport, the traveling, lifestyle, etc. Everyone then moved on to the pits area where Mick had a look at the machinery, giving a few little tips on bike setups on the way, the kids then got dressed ready for action. The first part of on track activities saw riders going out in pairs with Mick talking to each rider individually after a couple of laps. Then after a short break they progressed to starts and putting in a couple of fast laps. The benefits of Mick’s expert advice was clear to see with some tidy riding from plenty of the newer riders. It was a fantastic day for the youngsters and I could see that they clearly benefited from listening to the advice of a rider held in such high regard. Around mid afternoon the attention turned to a handful of senior riders with Mick giving one on one tuition. Thanks to Pioneer Park promoters Shelly and Rhino Ryan, Troy Dennis and Mick Poole for putting on such an enjoyable day.

He had a few bike problems over the weekend too.

Same place same riders and very similar results to the previous nights meeting in the second solo teams challenge at Pioneer Park. There really was nothing between the two sides. Once again Scott Smith started off with a win and with his partner James Holder following home the visitors took the early lead. Then followed a succession of shared heats until the brilliant Chris Holder led his team mate Ricky Barney over the line to even the score in heat five. The Southerners hit straight back with another Smith/J Holder maximum in heat six but there was no opportunity for the visitors to pull away with the dominant Chris Holder being used to good effect. There was never more than five points separating the two teams and that margin would have been even less if it hadn’t been for an unlucky heat nine for the home side, both home riders failed to finish the race, with the unlucky Jeremy Linton touching the tapes first then his partner local teenager Scott McKenna taking a fall on the pits bend during the re run, the race was awarded. With two races remaining only one point seperated the two sides with the visitors leading 39-38 but it was all decided in the penultimate heat after Scott Smith came from behind to beat local youngster Ricky Barney, Barney did separate Smith and his partner James Holder but the 4-2 gave South Queensland a winning cushion going into the final race. Unofficial Scores NQ Rhinos 43 1. Roy Stout----------3 2. Steven Reid-------8 3. Chris Holder------18 4. Ricky Barney ----8 5. Scott McKenna--5 6. Jeremy Linton ----1 SQ Solo Stars 46 1. Scott Smith-----12 2. James Holder---7 3. Dave Booth------12 4. Jon White--------4 5. John Oliver-------6 6. Tim Chilcott------5 New South Wales hot shot Chris Holder again finished the night unbeaten, he was a class above this field and showed his undoubted ability again after the teams meeting, taking out a series of one lap dashes winning all four starts ahead of Dave Booth, Scott Smith and Ricky Barney. In the Junior event the local kids were in fine form and took a comprehensive overall victory despite a top showing by Darcy Ward. Despite the score the racing was close and the visitors can be proud of their efforts. The Junior scene in the North of Queensland is really booming right now and competition like this will help move things along even further. NQ Rhinos 56 Josh Grajczonek------16 Nick Morris---------------9 Clinton Dennis----------15 Mitchell Weismandle--11 Tyler Moon-----------------5 SQ Solo Stars 37 Darcy Ward-----------20 (7 rides includes 6 points for tac sub) Bryce Brigden--------0 Jake Moore------------10 Matthew Day-----------0 Harley Brigden--------7 The sidecar field provided top shelf support races with the Sewell combination taking the final. This series now moves south with the return fixtures taking place in Brisbane on Friday 4th November and Gold Coast on Saturday 5th November.

The first of two consecutive solo State Challenge matches was held at Pioneer Park in North Queensland last night. The two teams dubbed the North Queensland Rhinos and the South Queensland Solo Stars competed in some very close Junior and Senior competition with the senior Southern Side just winning the opener after the locals took it to the wire. The action got underway with a shared heat with Scott Smith looking lightning quick out in front, his partner James Holder was not so lucky blowing his engine, but the meeting really hotted up in the following race when Dave Booth led Australian Under 21 Champion Chris Holder until the very last turn, Holder timed his move to perfection sneaking under Booth to take the victory. In heat three Scott McKenna was excluded after ploughing through the tapes whilst John Oliver showed no ill effects of the very nasty eye injury he suffered recently, making a winning return. There was never more than a couple of points overall until the locals were hit with a 5-0 in heat 9, first time out Jeremy Linton took a very heavy fall on the back straight, Linton careered into the concrete at high speed, and after a very worrying few minutes was helped to his feet suffering concussion and a very battered motorcycle, Linton took no further part in the meeting, in the re run local youngster Scott Mckenna also wobbled to a halt leaving the visitors to take full advantage giving them a seven point lead the largest of the night.. The Rhinos weren’t finished though, taking advantage of rider replacements for the unlucky Linton. The teenage partnership of Chris Holder and Ricky Barney took maximum points for the second time in heat 11 and with four races to go the match hung in the balance. The final race saw the visiting team holding a narrow three point lead, this proved enough despite another impressive victory by Holder, his partner and team captain Roy Stout was unable to help coming to a halt whilst trailing Smith and Booth. Unofficial Scores NQ Rhinos 43 1. Roy Stout----------5 2. Steven Reid-------6 3. Chris Holder------18 4. Ricky Barney ----11 5. Scott McKenna--1 6. Jeremy Linton ----2 SQ Solo Stars 46 1. Scott Smith-----10 2. James Holder---6 3. Dave Booth------12 4. Jon White--------7 5. John Oliver-------10 6. Tim Chilcott------1 The Junior challenge was a keenly contested affair with Australian number two Darcy Ward keeping the visitors within striking distance until the final few heats. Ward was beaten twice on the night by Queensland Champion and local captain Josh Grajczonek, but the locals strength in depth was the major factor in what turned out to be a comfortable victory in the end. NQ Rhinos 52 Josh Grajczonek------13 Nick Morris---------------9 Clinton Dennis----------16 Mitchell Weismandle--9 Tyler Moon-----------------5 SQ Solo Stars 38 Darcy Ward-----------19 Bryce Brigden--------0 Jake Moore------------10 Matthew Day-----------3 Harley Brigden--------6

There is that about it Lunchy. I guess the point I was trying to make was the amount of time it takes to get through a meeting in the UK is probably too long considering the relatively small number of races. You are right the mixture has to be just right, my idea would be to run juniors (Under 16's) before the main event, give people the option of turning up early if they want, then put the learners on after the main event, again giving people an option whether to stop and watch or not. Having said that my boy rides Junior speedway and loves being part of the main program, a few Junior races do not take a long time to run. I guess its easy with the small infield tracks we have in OZ.

Pioneer Park is in Brandon which is one hour's drive South of Townsville in North Queensland. They most certainly do run all year round, see my previous post under Queensland news (International world of speedway).

Some pretty good racing at Pioneer Park on Saturday night, the clashes between the top three of Ricky Barney, Scott Mckenna and Steven Reid were very competitive. First race of the night saw Kevin Anderson flip his bike at the start, his bike was quite badly damaged and he withdrew from the meeting leaving only three division one riders. Race of the night was the penultimate race when Barney was leading Mckenna, Mckenna very bravely roared around the outside of Barney, using the deep stuff, to gain the extra speed. Barney is a rider in fine form at the moment so it was a top effort by young Mckenna to get past. In the final Steven Reid gated the top two but was then passed first by Barney then Mckenna, this time Mckenna couldn’t make up ground on Barney, but it wasn’t for the lack of trying. Shane Reid (Father of Steven) was unbeaten in the B grade events. I must mention a superb race in the Junior sidecar events, the Moon combination (Gary’s Son’s) fought neck and neck with Junior solo whiz kids Josh Grajczonek and Clinton Dennis, with Grajczonek piloting the youngsters to a hard earned victory, there was nothing between the two outfits throughout the race, top notch stuff. The two young Junior solo riders doubled up and were also dominant in the 125cc solo division. Another cold night in Brandon but still a reasonable crowd despite the VP60 celebrations in Townsville. Unfortunately I don’t have any sidecar results due to being rather busy with my Son in the pits. A raffle was held to assist with a Junior training day which will be held at Pioneer Park on September 24th, NSW legend Mick Poole will be on hand to offer his expert advice to around a dozen Junior solo riders.

Greg, You can view plenty of photos from the first two meetings at http://www.nqsport.com/speedway%20events.htm I took a few myself which I can email if you are interested.

The second of three tests between interstate rivals Queensland and New South Wales took place at Pioneer Park speedway Brandon last night. A very large crowd was in attendance despite the chilly conditions, the temperature dropped dramatically after a beautiful warm winters day. The visiting New South Wales team won the first meeting by ten points so in an effort to strengthen the local team top Gold Coast youngster John Oliver was drafted in to replace the unlucky Jeremy Linton who had suffered mechanically recently. Townsville based Roy Stout took on the captaincy. The opening heat once again saw the Holder brothers taking it to the locals, with Ricky Barney having to slow after being filled in on the first lap. In the third heat John Oliver stopped at the start, he got going again but trailed in last after suffering fuel problems. The NSW top guns soon built up an eight point lead before Steven Reid and Oliver hit back with a fine ride in heat five however the combination of the Holder duo and the individual performances of Michael Slade and Luke Gough continued to thwart the locals attempts to creep back into the match. Brisbane based Dave Booth led a mini revival leading his teammate Scott McKenna over the line in heat eleven. Whilst in the very next race Oliver fell whilst challenging Michael Slade for the lead. The next few races were shared with the solid half of the NSW team taking wins. The visitors held an eight point lead going into the penultimate heat and with Barney and Stout hitting the front local hopes were raised before a determined Luke Gough passed the battling Stout giving New South Wales the overall victory. The final race was shared, with Michael Slade finishing the night unbeaten along with NSW number one Chris Holder. This was another fine meeting, the locals pushed hard but couldn’t quite make up the difference due mainly to the top end strength of the NSW team. . Unofficial Scores Queensland 51 1.Roy Stout © 5 2.Ricky Barney 11 3.Scott McKenna 6 4.Dave Booth 13 5.Steven Reid 10 6.John Oliver 6 7.Jeremy Linton ® dnr New South Wales 57 1.Chris Holder 18 2.James Holder 6 3.Luke Gough 13 4.Grant Davies 0 5.Michael Slade ©18 6.Luke Slade 2 7.Ricky Wallace ® So New South Wales go into the third and final meeting with an irreversible lead, the Queenslanders aren’t giving up though with reports of more changes in the hope of finishing on a high. In support events the Munck/O’Brien pairing won the sidecar final, comfortably beating Australian Champions Scott Christopher and Trent Koppe. The unlucky Jeremy Linton bounced back by dominating the solo support program.

Main Man, I spoke to Olli and John at Pioneer Park last night, they have both changed mobile numbers, Olli asked if you could send him an email.

Shaggy has replaced Jeremy Linton in the Queenland side that will face New South Wales at Pioneer Park on Saturday. New Queensland Captain is Roy Stout. Further changes expected for the third meeting at Rockhampton on the 23rd with Scott Smith a big possibility.

Not sure what John Oliver is up to. The Queenland team was made up of local Townsville/Ayr based riders with the exception of Dave Booth who is up from the Gold Coast staying with the Barney's.

For the first time since 1989 Peter White brought a touring New South Wales team to Tropical North Queensland, this was the tourists first ever visit to the Brandon Sports Reserve in what was the first of three scheduled meetings between the interstate rivals. The New South Wales team had an average age of just 18, the youngest senior team ever to venture North. Before the meeting White commented on the popularity of this venue and its surrounds amongst his riders, the track was superbly prepared, consistent and fair for both teams. The action got underway with the first appearance of the highly rated Australian Under 21 Champion and World U21 Semi Finalist Chris Holder, and the younger Holder didn't disappoint with a very impressive first up win, partnering his brother James to a 5-1 and giving the locals a glimpse of what they were up against. However this meeting was certainly not the one sided affair some people expected, led by local boy Ricky Barney and with good backup the Queensland team were going to make it a difficult night for the visitors. In heat two Barney hit back partnering Jeremy Linton to a 4-2 and then split the impressive Holder partnership in his next ride. It was the Holders who held the key though, they scored heat wins in all six of their rides being unbeaten by a local in four of them and showing some impressive team riding along the way. . The NSW team had a second set of brothers in team captain Michael Slade and his schoolboy brother Luke. Michael was in fine form being beaten only twice by opposing riders, whilst Luke picked up some minor placings. For the Queenslanders Captain Dave Booth and the impressive Steven Reid chipped in with two wins each and Roy Stout had a consistent night ensuring a close encounter with never more than ten points separating the two teams. Eventually though the combined strength of the NSW big guns proved too much for QLD but this sets the scene for a very exciting series. Scores; QUEENSLAND = 49 1. DAVE BOOTH 1,3,3,1,2,1 = 11 2. SCOTT McKENNA 0,0,2,0,1,2 = 5 3. RICKY BARNEY 3,2,2,2,2,3 = 14 4. JEREMY LINTON 1,0,0,1,0,1 = 3 5. ROY STOUT 2,1,0,2,2,1 = 8 6. STEVEN REID 0,3,1,1,3,0 = 8 7. MICK O'CONNOR (RES) dnr 8. KEV ANDERSON (2ND RES) dnr NEW SOUTH WALES = 59 CHRIS HOLDER 3,3,2,2,3,3 = 16 JAMES HOLDER 2,1,3,3,1,2 = 12 LUKE GOUGH 2,2,1,3,1,3 = 12 GRANT DAVIES 0,0,0,0,0,- = 0 MICHAEL SLADE 3,2,3,3,3,2 = 16 LUKE SLADE 1,1,1,0,0,0 = 3 RICKY WALLACE (RES) -,-,-,-,-,0 = 0 Support Events In support solos Mick O'Connor the Queensland reserve was unbeaten with Darren Stout second and Kevin Anderson third. Darren is the brother of Roy Stout which means there were an amazing three sets of brothers riding on the same night. The sidecar part of the program was dominated by Australian Champions Scott Christopher and Trent Koppe, this pairing broke the track record when they comfortably beat the Aldridge/Cohen partnership in their third heat. Once again Josh Grajczonek was unbeaten in the 125cc Junior solo class, Josh was only .53 of a second outside Troy Batchelor's Junior Solo track record of 43.38 set back in November 2002 a possible sign of things to come from the youngster in his last year of junior racing. With the lack of domestic racing in Australia this time of year particularly in New South Wales these meetings are a breath of fresh air, giving a group of youngsters some much needed competitive action. It is ironic then, that with such a shortage of motorcycle speedway tracks in Australia that the next meeting in this series takes place just a few hundred metres up the road at Pioneer Park next Saturday night.

Blimey Bryn don't put the mockers on us, its been overcast all week and drizzling for two days here in Tropical North Queensland. Alas it seems to be clearing very slightly. Picture the scene, the NSW Guys have travelled a similar distance as London to Moscow, they have a rainoff tomorrow night and no other speedway for a whole week....I wonder if they'd be pissed off?

Queensland Roy Stout Dave Booth Jeremy Linton Ricky Barney Scott McKnenna Steven Reid Mick O'Connor Reid stepped up for the injured Heathcote, I believe Kevin Anderson is reserve. NSW Michael Slade (20) Captain Chris Holder (17) Luke Slade (16) Grant Davies (19) James Holder (19) Luke Gough (18) NSW have a much younger side however there are also three teenagers in the Queensland lineup (Barney, Mckenna and Reid)

I have the new owners contact details and calender for the next 12 months, email me at lwmorris@iprimus.com.au and I'll pass on any info you require.

I believe the Queensland Under 16's will be held at North Brisbane this year. (Northgate) Aussie Titles at Sidewinders in Adelaide. Haven't got the dates on me at this stage.

Thanks Anth, The main thing is he's improving at a reasonable rate, doing much better than I could of wished for. There's a bit of a gap between Nick and the top two but thats to be expected they have a lot more experience both rode in last years Aust U16 Championship. We are aiming for gradual improvement and a Queensland Championship spot this year. The new track at Pioneer park should help him get used to the smaller tracks.

Another first class night of racing took place in front of a large Brandon crowd. Many of the riders on show had practiced at Pioneer Park earlier in the day, this was highlighted with some improved performances by some of the young up and coming riders. Youngsters Steven Reid and Scott McKenna were in fine form, the pair produced some fast elbow to elbow racing along with the flying Jeremy Linton, whilst the fast gating Englishmen Kevin Anderson kept them on their toes. There was also some spirited riding from the ever improving teenage pairing of Matthew Pilcher and Kurt Palmer, these two are visibly improving with each ride and making steady on track progress. In the Junior 125cc Under 16 class Josh Grajczonek once again showed his pedigree going through the programme undefeated, whilst Clinton Dennis was only deafeated by Grajczonek. Eleven year old Nick Morris also produced another spirited performance claiming third overall, Morris was unlucky not to claim the scalp of Grajczonek leading the top local for three laps in their third heat. As a sidenote two of the youngsters who ride in the 125cc Junior speedway class at this track (Grajczonek and Mitchell Davey) brought home a pile of honours in the recent Junior Dirt Track Titles on the Gold Coast another indication of the quality of motorcyclist this area is producing. Results Senior Solos 1st Scott McKenna 2nd Steven Reid 3rd Kevin Anderson Junior 250cc Solos 1st Robert Moore 2nd Ashley Cathcart 3rd Matthew Deambrosis Junior 125cc Solos 1st Josh Grakczonek 2nd Clinton Dennis 3rd Nick Morris Next meeting at this venue is the eagerly anticipated Queensland V New South Wales shootout on the 9th July. Whilst up the road at Pioneer Park new owners Shelley and Rhino Ryan have their track opener next Saturday night 25th June.

You'll be welcome up here in July. Give us a yell if you are thinking about making it up this way H. I can assure you the action will be fast and furious, the locals won't want their colours lowered by those Southerners. Its amazing isn't it, a couple of weeks ago in North Queensland the meetings were coming thick and fast, now its gone quiet we don't know what to do with ourselves.

Thanks for this info, looks like we'll be able to get a ride at Sheffield at least. I'm very interested in any others, especially where a bike is supplied as we'll bring riding gear over, just no bike.

The GP's are usually shown a couple of weeks after the actual staging on pay TV (Fox/Austar), although the last two final rounds have been delayed telecast (only a few hours after the event). These are the one hour highlights not the full sky coverage. Fox/Austar and free to air also have mixed motorsport programs which regularly show speedway. At this stage there is no Elite League racing shown.

Personally, I think restrictions between the UK and the likes of Australia, New Zealand and Canada are ridiculous, but I guess that's politics for you. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I agree totally, the above mentioned countries surely have more of a bond than the EC brigade. I think the Aussies are being given a rough deal.

Former Crusader Steve Koppe lives near me, I'll pass this on. Steve is now the Suzuki dealer in Townsville and I've seen him at all the recent local meetings.