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Don't forget Cyril 'Squib' Burton! Steve

I first got to know Dave back in early 70's when ITV started covering the darts, although I obviously recall him from his speedway involvement during the 60's. With our common interest in the two sports, Dave - and his sons Russell and Phil - became great family friends. Of course, when Dave and Russell became involved with Wimbledon in the late 80's, it was wonderful, and we had some great times at Plough Lane. Then, spending those years competing in the PDC, we became even closer. At the tournaments, breakfast with my dad and Dave was usual. Before everything became computerised, I used to supply Dave, John Gwynne, and Sid Waddell with all the PDC stats for their commentary. It had been a while since we had talked, and in fact, I think the last time I spoke to Dave was when I called him to tell him that my dad had passed. However, let that not take away from the fact that Dave was a true giant in the world of journalism, a lovely, lovely man, and a great friend. The fact that he was heavily involved my two favourite sports was a bonus. R.I.P. Dave Lanning. Steve

A lot of people watch speedway for the racing... Steve

Not that he was dirty - or even wild - but Ron Mountford was known to race his team-mates! Getting back to the subject, Efkins has already been mentioned, although whether that could be considered as "luckless", I'm not quite sure... Steve

I'd already checked Stan's history, but there a few too many gaps for me to post anything accurate - I had a total of 56. However, I agree with your take on Rochdale. Steve

Of course, that same set includes Vic Huxley, pictured in plain red, and he retired at the end of the 1936 season. Steve

I have read elsewhere that 1937 was the first year, and certainly, there is clear evidence that the star was in use in 1937, In the famous set of John Player cigarette cards from that year, Eric Collins is pictured with the now familiar body-colour. Steve

So... Surprised to see a couple of names omitted from the list; the Templetons! What I have so far - and I'm missing some info - is this : Doug Templeton - 61 Barrow Holker St, Belfast Dunmore, Belle Vue Hyde Rd, Berwick Shielfield Park, Birmingham Perry Barr, Boston, Bradford Greenfield, Bradford Odsal, Bristol Knowle, Canterbury, Coatbridge, Coventry, Cowdenbeath, Cradley Heath, Crewe, Eastbourne, Edinburgh Old Meadowbank, Ellesmere Port, Exeter, Glasgow Ashfield, Glasgow Hampden Park, Glasgow White City, Hackney, Halifax, Hamilton Palace Rec Grounds (that's a new one to me!), Hull Boulevard, Ipswich, King's Lynn, Leicester, Liverpool, Long Eaton, Middlesbrough, Motherwell, Neath, New Cross, Newcastle, Newport Somerton Park, Newtongrange, Norwich, Oxford, Paisley, Peterborough, Plymouth, Poole, Rayleigh, Reading Tilehurst, Scunthorpe Quibell Park, Sheffield, Southampton, St. Austell, Stoke Loomer Rd, Stoke Sun Street, Sunderland, Swindon, Wembley, West Ham, Weymouth Radipole Lane (original), Wimbledon, Wolverhampton, Workington, Yarmouth. Anyone know if he appeared at Crayford, Mildenhall, or Rye House? Also, not sure what oddments might be found from 1955-1959. Willie Templeton - 61 Barrow Holker St, Barrow Park Road, Belle Vue Hyde Rd, Berwick Shielfield Park, Birmingham Perry Barr, Boston, Bradford Greenfield, Bradford Odsal, Bristol Knowle, Canterbury, Coatbridge, Coventry, Cowdenbeath, Cradley Heath, Crayford, Crewe, Eastbourne, Edinburgh Old Meadowbank, Edinburgh Powderhall, Ellesmere Port, Exeter, Glasgow Blantyre, Glasgow Hampden park, Glasgow White City, Hackney, Halifax, Hull Boulevard, King's Lynn, Leicester, Liverpool, Long Eaton, Middlesbrough, Mildenhall, Milton Keynes Groveway, Motherwell, Neath, New Cross, Newcastle, Newport Somerton Park, Newtongrange, Oxford, Paisley, Peterborough, Plymouth, Poole, Rayleigh, Reading Tilehurst, Rye House, Scunthorpe Quibell Park, Sheffield, St. Austell, Stoke Loomer Rd, Stoke Sun Street, Sunderland, Swindon, Wembley, West Ham, Weymouth Radipole Lane (original), Wimbledon, Wolverhampton, Workington. Not sure if he also rode at Reading Smallmead or White City. Steve Edited to include updates, thanks to compost and BL65.

Of course, there have been many bad - and very awkward-looking - crashes over the years, but I think there are two types of crash that stand out as far as appearing horrific : 1) When a rider clips the back of the man in front, straightens, and goes into/through the fence at full tilt. There have already been a few videos of this posted here, but here's another with some of the best camera work I have seen! He didn't "walk away", but obviously, there was little damage! It's that man Gollob... https://youtu.be/wCbZdDVWPJg 2) When a rider hits the fence on the straight, and comes to a complete and sudden stop. The worst I have seen were Tony Briggs doing that (and catapulting through the air) on the back straight at Wimbledon, Todd Wiltshire (almost the exact same thing at the exact same spot), and Martin Scarisbrick doing a similar thing at Reading. Steve

Without actually stating specifics, you brought up the point I was going to make. It's not so much about being an "experience motocrosser", but more the fact that such an exponent would - back in the day - have been in AT LEAST his early-to-mid-20's. While there were SOME special cases (from Ronnie Moore to Michael Lee), a good starting age for speedway was considered 25 or 26! At that age, a person is more mature, and probably a lot stronger than a 15-year-old schoolboy. Therefore, it was probably quite a bit easier to achieve a level of competitive mediocrity with relatively little effort. Again, I think a lot of that can be attributed to the machinery used, track surfaces, and the general style of riding back then, and is less of a indication of an inferior standard of rider as suggested by some. Steve

Thanks. Actually, after I made that post, I found yours! As as said, I'm just surprised that I had never known of the stadium,seeing it was that local. I know the stadium was demolished in 1955, but still... Steve

I believe he was actually a reserve at the Pride of the East... Sadly, Harry lost his after a crash at at Adelaide's Rowley Park in November 1967. Steve

This is new to me! I'm from Carshalton, my grandparents were from Wimbledon, and I worked in Mitcham - and I have never heard of this stadium! I just searched and found a pic of the stadium, and the footy ground. The site is now bordered by Sandy Lane, Priestley Rd, Eastfields Rd, and Fernlea Rd. Yup, I had no idea... http://www.britainfromabove.org.uk/image/epw055289 Steve

I would even miss my beloved Dons if it meant I could take in two or three meetings in a day! I think I managed three twice; one was Lynn, Ipswich, and then Hackney. I did two several times, including one venture outside the usual south-east circuit, taking in Wolves and Cradley. There was another time - I don't think it was a Bank Holiday - where I did Canterbury and Milton Keynes. The great thing i those days was that you would see a bunch of the same people at each meeting, as we all had the same idea! Those were the days... Steve

Thank you so much for all this! One thing I never really understood is why speedway has ALWAYS been popular in Argentina, but it never caught on elsewhere in South America... Steve

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

I know that Google translation isn't the greatest, but here is some additional information : http://skturbinabalakovo.blogspot.com/2013/06/25.html Steve

We just need someone with an account at ancestry.com! Steve

Gene Tella also competed (listed as an Abyssinian) in the 1936 Saxtorp 350cc GP in Sweden in 1936, so obviously, he did travel around Europe quite a bit... Steve Here is a photo of Gene Tella...

Funny thing is that I have always said, if the product is poor, people won't support it even if it is free... Picking up on a small off-the-cuff comment about people "passing by the gates; that actually is very valid to this discussion. In the old days, people WERE passing by the gates of a speedway stadium, so the public were more aware of its existence! Tracks like Wimbledon, West Ham, Belle Vue, Exeter etc, were in urban areas, so people knew. Now, the fact that we have to keep any kind of nasty motorsport stadium at least 100 miles away from the nearest resident means that most people don't have a clue what goes on... There is no ONE solution to the problems we are facing, and many of the issues aren't directly speedway related (being forced out of city centres, renting stadia from speedway-hating landlords, the wonderful British weather etc), but there are plenty that can be resolved - one at a time - with a little forethought and effort... Steve

Well, they both spoke with the same accent, didn't they? Steve

Again, it wasn't a problem - until a month ago... Steve

The closure of White City? Steve

And the National Front used the Union Flag. Make of that what you will... Steve

I hate to disagree, Rob, but while the Confederate flag has never been truly "accepted" by some Americans, the vast majority have never been that offended by it. Some may not like it, but there has never been any serious attempt to ban it. While there are obvious racist undertones, most - even black Americans - have accepted that it is a part of American history. Some of the stuff they show in TV these days can be considered genuinely offensive, yet it now becomes important to pull "The Dukes of Hazzard". Oh well, just another typical knee-jerk reaction, thanks to the efforts of lunatic activists... Steve