Moto Freako

Krasnikov returns to defend his title :)

2012-01-27T23:01:00.002Z

Nikolai Krasnikov has changed his mind and will be defending his World Ice Racing title after all.

Krasnikov won a record breaking 7th consecutive title last year, but then announced his intention to quit, or at least take some time out - see my previous report here - Krasnikov The Great

Taking his place in the recent Russian national championships, Krasnikov finished runner-up after a nail biting run-off with Danil Ivanov, and automatically became eligible for one of Russia's allocations in the World Championship qualifiers. Probably not too surprisingly, he will now take his place in round 2 of the competition at Sanok in Poland this weekend (Jan 28-29th).

Krasnikov , who will turn 27 in February, hails from Shadrinsk, which lies near the Russian border with Kazakhstan. He rides in the Russian Superleague for the Kadyrov club in Ufa, where he has won six league titles. Talking to photographer Ian Charles at Inzell last year he explained that had lost his enthusiasm for racing. The season had been one of ups and downs and it had drained him both physically and mentally.

Over the summer he has rested and not even done much moto-cross, but he has kept himself fit and as soon as he was back on his ice bike, his enthusiasm returned. He just wanted to race and more than anything, he wants to defend his title and win it for an unprecedented eighth time... and who's to bet he won't do it?

Dates for the 2012 FIM Ice Speedway Gladiators World Championship...

28th Jan - Q.Round 1 - St. Johann - Austria
Q.Round 2 - Sanok - Poland
Q.Round 3 - Lukhovitsy - Russia
4th/5th Feb - Final 1 - Krasnogorsk - Russia
11th/12th Feb - Final 2 - Ufa - Russia
16th/17th Feb - Final 3 - Assen - Netherlands
31st Feb/1st March - Final 4 - Uppsala - Sweden

The 2012 FIM Team Ice Speedway Gladiators World Championship Final will be held on 25th/26th February at Togliatti in Russia.

Hiromi Sakai - the 1st lady of Autorace - RIP

2012-01-22T22:36:00.002Z

Female motorcycle speedway racer Hiromi Sakai died on January 15th 2012 after crashing during a practice session at the Funabashi speedway in the Chiba Prefecture of Japan. She had fallem from her machine andf then hit the fence. Sakai was taken to the medical room at the stadium but died from serious head injuries soon afterwards. This is a very unfortunate accident, as Sakai had just become one of the first female racers to be allowed to race in competition since the late 1960s.

Hiromi Sakai who died at Funabashi speedway on January 15th 2012

Hiromi Sakai and Maya Sato were the first female riders to appear in Auto Race for over 40 years. Both of them had to overcome many obstacles, including the disapproval of their parents, to break into this uniquely Japanese sport, but they were hoping their efforts would inspire other women to enter this largely male domain.

Hiromi Sakai (No5) and Maya Sato (No10).

Auto Race, the Japanese version of speedway racing, is a gambling sport. There are currently six circuits operating in Japan and 465 professional riders take part. It can be a lucrative profession, with top riders earnig around 1 billion yen during a season and even the average professional earns around 14 million yen. The top prize for winning a handicap race can range from 15 million to 35 million yen. A lot of the prize money is invested back into their equipment, as all costs involved in Auto Race, including the motorcycles and their maintenance, are borne by the racers.

Auto Race is similar to conventional speedway racing in many ways, but rather than sliding on dirt, the bikes race on asphalt. The bikes are beautiful in their simplicity as well as being brutally powerful. The machines use identical 600cc twin cylinder engines made specially by Suzuki, whilst novices learn using a 500cc machine. The most striking feature of these spartan machines is their asymetrical handlebars, which are purposely bent upwards on the left hand side. This is to help the rider keep full control of the machine as they lean over around the big sweeping bends. The riders wear a steel shoe on the left foot, just like speedway riders, but this steel-clad left foot throws off sparks as it skims the track surface. Each rider is responsible for the maintenance of their own bikes too and any outside assistance is forbidden. Part of the riders’ training is spent in the workshops learning how to maintain and tune the motorcycles. Identical engines do not mean identical performance and every rider fiercely guards their tuning secrets. Even though bikes are routinely scrutinised for any sign of cheating, riders always find legal ways to achieve a competitive edge. Many racers believe that valve springs lose tension after even after just one race and replace them frequently, while some use worn valve springs when the track is slippery or wet.

Maya Sato

Maya Sato is only 19 and claimed her first Auto Race victory before a crowd of 5800 at the Kawaguchi Circuit on July 13, just one day after making her debut. Sato was born to be a motorcycle racer and has been riding motocross since she was 6 years old, but as soon as she was 16 (the minimum age to gain entry into the mandatory Auto Race training school), she quit college, turned her back on motocross, and turned her attention to track racing. She admitted that racing on an asphalt oval, without brakes, at speeds of up to 105 mph required some adjustment! Sato named her motorcycle Serena, after a leading character in the US TV drama Gossip Girl. “Serena is a strong-willed woman, and I want to be like her,” she said. Sato’s rookie win, however, earned her only 70,000 yen ($875), which is nothing compared to what she could earn.

Maya Sato in action on her bike nicknamed "Serena".

Hiromi Sakai was only 27. Her motorcycling pedigree wasn’t quite as rich as Sato’s, as she only took up the sport on a whim after going to a race three years ago. She quit her sales job as a travel agent and decided to become a professional Auto Race rider. “It was really difficult to convince my parents,” Sakai recalled. “But they eventually became really supportive". Sakai named her bike "J. Robinson", after Jackie Robinson, the first African-American to play Major League Baseball. She made her debut on July 30th 2011 and had claimed her first race victory within a few weeks.

Hiromi Sakai practicing on her bike "J.Robinson".

It has taken nearly 45 years for women to return to Auto Race. In 1963 there were 66 women competing on the Japanese speedway tracks, and there was even a competition class solely for female riders. Nanae Okamoto was probably the last female rider to race on the Japanese dirt tracks, which were outlawed in the early 1970s. Nanae celebrated her retirement by touring the Australian tracks in 1968 with Junichi "Jimmy" Ogisu and midget speedcar racer "Happy" Hirano.

Nanae Okamoto racing in Australia in 1968

Sato and Sakai were among just 20 shortlisted for traing camp out of an initial group of 986. The Japan Keirin Authority (JKA), Auto Race’s governing body, recognised the commercial value of having women back on the track and went full throttle to encourage them and give the sport a promotional shot in the arm. Sato and Sakai were revving up for the rebirth of the female motorcycle racer, and with her early victory, Sato provided some excellent inspiration. Let's hope that Sakai's untimely death on the track does not put a stop to this welcome piece of forward thinking from the Japanese federation.

Ice Racing - 1949

2012-01-12T20:09:00.003Z

I hope this link works - It shows some fantastic ice racing from the Olympic Stadium, Helsinki in 1949. The film is silent, which is a shame, I would love to hear those unsilenced JAP engines at full blat.
http://yle.fi/elavaarkisto/artikkelit/vauhtikoneet_jaalla_16449.html#media=16454

Dakar 2012 - A Titanic Effort from Alain Duclos.

2012-01-08T23:44:00.001Z

A wonderful story of endurance and total dedication from the Dakar website today

Alain Duclos arrives at the end of stage 7 on the bare bones of his bike

Alain Duclos' epic arrival at the finish of stage 7, arriving at camp on a "shell" of a motorcycle, is worthy of any Dakar legend. After stopping with a hose problem at the beginning of the stage, the Franco-Malian rider stripped his motorcycle to find the problem before setting off to get word to his assistance. He then returned to his motorcycle, only to find that the fairing, the seat and the main fuel tank had all vanished! It was the start of one of those adventures which can only happen at the Dakar.

"The entire motorcycle has been plundered, but it still works perfectly. As for the seat, a local guy lent me his motocross saddle and I had to make do with it. I continued the special at 5 pm and did all of it at night! But riding on the dunes at night, alone and off course, was a titanic effort and I came down hard a couple of times. But I did not want to give up, I am really looking forward to seeing Peru!"

Alain in action earlier in the 2012 Dakar with a complete machine!

A Passion For Speed

2012-01-08T10:01:00.000Z

Sunbeam (Brooklands 1927)

A new exhibition by young British figurative artist Alistair Little will be showing at Panter & Hall, Bury Street, London, from January 11th - 27th 2012. The show celebrates the achievements of Sir Malcolm Campbell and son Donald Campbell and the Bluebird legacy.

Sir Malcolm Campbell's attempt to push the boundaries of speed records on land and water are the stuff of school boy legend. The remarkable and tragic film footage of his son Donald's final fatal attempt to break the water speed record on Coniston Water has reached iconic status in the nation's psyche. More recently Donald Wales has been chasing and breaking speed records of his own and it was at his suggestion that Alistair embarked on this new series of works inspired by the achievements of his uncle Donald Campbell. In his collaboration with Donald Wales, Alistair has been granted unique access to the family archive and has used this wonderful opportunity to apply his distinctive narrative style to one of the great stories of motor powered speed in the twentieth century.

In The Zone (Ullswater 1955)

Alistair began his artistic career in the film industry in 1994, focusing on model making and design. After three years in the film and television industries he turned to two dimensional art to train and work as a freelance commercial illustrator. Early commissions included an underground comic and graphic design work along with storyboard work for the advertising industry. Here he learnt the true value of a strong knowledge of draughtsmanship and his ability to render credible accurate figure work is the backbone of his work today. In 2001, after four years almost exclusively working in markers and pencils he started experimenting with paint and hasn’t looked back.

Heading South (Utah 1960)

Alistair’s artistic influences are immediately evident. His great love of twentieth century cinema, particularly the Film Noir genre, dominates his style and his subject matter. His early experience in the film industry taught him the technique of capturing a wider story in the confines of one still image. Each of Alistair’s paintings burst with cinematic tension, his models are carefully posed and dressed to play a well choreographed role within a cleverly lit backdrop.

A Moment Alone (Lake Eyre 1964)

Immortalised (Coniston 1967)

British Riders on the 2012 Dakar.

2012-01-05T22:27:00.001Z

I love Dakar, the toughest race in the World, whether you are on on a bike, quad, in a car or in a truck. Four British riders started the event, Sam Sunderland, Tobias Younger, Jago Pickering and Stanley Watt. Sam started his debut rally in blistering style finishing 7th overall, but stage 2 saw his rallye come to an end with electrical problems on his bike and Stanley is having a steady start to the race, currently lying 43rd, but it's Tobias and Jago who have captured my imagination. They are a couple of those true amateurs who just want to enjoy the adventure and get to the end in one piece. Jago will be staying in South America after the event and intends to explore the continent with his wife and children in a Tatra truck. Here is a short story about Tobias' experience so far, taken from the official Dakar website .

Englishman Tobias Younger was amongst the last 20 bikers to reach the finishing line of the 4th special, soaked to the skin after having fallen for the umpteenth time, in the last stream of the day, scarcely 50 metres from the last time check-point! He was less concerned about drying himself, but more worried about emptying his boots full of water, sitting down and having something to eat. “I've been riding for 14 hours, including 5 hours to get through the last 30 kilometres in the fesh-fesh. Mind you, it seems that it's par for the course for an amateur rider like myself. It's the first time I've taken part, and I'm starting to understand exactly what the Dakar is about! Apparently, on each special stage, the major difficulties are grouped together at the end, when you're already really tired... You have to admit that, for an amateur, you have to be a bit of a masochist to attempt this rally”.

Dirt Track racing at Blackpool 1928

2011-12-23T23:06:00.000Z

ENGLAND: Motor-Cycle Riot-track racing at Blackpool. (Clip 1)

Merry Christmas...

2011-12-23T19:30:00.000Z

Motorcycles In Vietnam

2011-12-15T22:56:00.002Z

Former Rye House Speedway rider Karl Fiala often travels to Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos on holiday, He says it is a beautiful part of the world and the Asian people are so friendly and welcoming... and their food is wonderful too! But as a former professional motorcycle racer he also says that they are ingenious in their applications and usage of motorcycles. Karl has literally seen two motor bikes carrying a lampost, live pigs riding pillion, scaffolding strapped to the side of C90s and whole families on one bike. Take a look for yourself at this selection of images from Karl's facebook albums

This is Hanoi. Karl Fiala sat there at a cafe and watched for ages, totally mesmerised.
"The amazing thing is", he says, "nobody uses their brakes. No need".

Room for one more up front......

There is a bike under all those ducks and chickens....

Just look at all those bikers admiring themselves in the mirror :)

The reliable C90 is an ideal bike for carrying... tons of scaffolding????

Those crates must play hell with the drag efficiency... LOL

Fuel Efficiency !

For more motorcycle madness take a look at this great facebook page...

British riders denied their place in Ice Racing Championships.

2011-12-12T00:17:00.001Z

Do the ACU actually care about riders from their own country? Are they actually aware that there are British riders aching to represent their country at their chosen sport?

This rant is all about two riders... Kevin Rowand and Rob Irwin. Since Mark Uzzel's retirement, Kevin is arguably Britian's top ice speedway racer, with Rob Irwin not far behind, but neither of them will get a chance to ride in this years European Championships. The FIM has announced the allocations for each country in the competition, but GB has a grand total of.... zero places - that's right, nowt, bog all, nothing, nada!!!!

It appears that the ACU haven't bothered to put either Kevin or Rob's names forward to the FIM or UEM for selection - I despair! and so does Kevin... I recieved a message from him yesterday where he says that he is ".... going to ride for Ukraine next year - f**k the ACU!"

Kevin Rowand, Britains top racer, will not be representing his own country in the
European Ice Racing Championships at Assen in March.

The 1st European Hot Rod & Custom Show...

2011-11-30T00:18:00.000Z

If you just happen to be in Belgium in June next year....

Cars, Bikes, and best of all, they've got some Short Trackers on a dirt track oval...

Sergei Tarabanko - The 1970s Ice King

2011-11-30T00:05:00.001Z

Back in the days when Ice Speedway could still be seen on television, commentator Dave Lanning used to call Sergei Tarabanko "Sergei The Sure Guy".This softly spoken PE teacher was ice speedway's equal to Ivan Mauger... totally dominant at his chosen discipline during the 70s and guaranteed a place in the speedway history books. Away from the track, Sergei did not look like the tough guy he was taken for on the track... He was a quiet man who loved fishing and taught PE at a Moscow school for a living, but during the last half of the 70s decade, Sergei ruled the ice racing circuits of Scandinavia and Eastern Europe.

Ready to race... note the cut down tyres to protect his knees.

Tarabanko arrived on the ice racing scene in 1966 and was trained by Russian ice racing ace Gabdrakhman Kadyrov, who had won the World title an amazing six times. Tarabanko hit the headlines in 1975, when he won the World Championship in front of over 100,000 fanatical Russian fans in the Dynamo football stadium in Moscow. It was an emphatic display from the new Russian ace. A combination of talent, skill, nerve and training and technical advice from Kadyrov meant that Tarabanko was never beaten over the two days, racing to 10 straight race wins. It was mighty lift for the Russians, whose previous dominance of the World Ice Racing Championships had been broken in 1974 by Milan Spinka from Czechoslovakia.

In 1976, Tarabanko travelled to Assen in Holland in an attempt to retain his title. On day 1 he was invincible, scoring another maximum fifteen points. On day two, he scored thirteen points, but he was already home and dry by the time he dropped his first points of the meeting.

Sergei Tarabanko warms up his Jawa ice racer in the pits at Eindhoven in 1979

In 1977, the World Championship final was held at Inzell in what was West Germany. Tarabanko's attempt to win his third consecutive title suffered a setback when he had an uncharacteristic crash during the fist days racing, but another immaculate five ride maximum on the second day gave Tarabanko his hat-trick of World titles. Assen in Holland was the venue for the 1978 World final and another fifteen point maximum on the first day put Tarabanko on the way to a fourth title. Day two cemented his place in the history books as thirteen point were enough to give the Russian ace his fourth consecutive title.

Tarabanko leads Vladimir Subotin on his way to World tile No4 at Assen in 1978.

Tarabanko also played his part in the Soviet Union's dominance of the World Ice Racing Team championship, leading them to victory in the first ever competition in 1979 and again in 1980 and 1981.

Tarabanko's Double Over-Head Cam, 2-valve Jawa at Den Hagg in 1980.

(Text adapted from the "On Two Wheels" magazine collection... photos from Speedway Mail archives)

Summer Break...

2011-08-18T18:21:00.002+01:00

Hi guys and gals - I just wanted to apologise for the lack of posts recently. There's no reason other than it's summer time in the UK and I've been out making the most of the sunshine, relative warmth and longer daylight hours. There's plenty more material in the Moto Freako files and normal service will be resumed before long. Cya all soon.

Speedway Bikes for the Road - pt III

2011-07-12T23:15:00.000+01:00

If you read my recent post on Road Bikes with a Speedway Influenece then you will have seen the vintage Weslake that the guys at Flake Kings were attempting to ride on the road, well, I'm happy to tell you that it's nearly finished. The frame, forks and rims have been powdercoated, the aluminium has all been polished and all of the green parts were mega-flaked the "Flake Kings" way. Lots of special parts have been used such as the Teflon Speedway spoolhub and a hard-to-find 23inch slick front slick tyre. The speedway seat was covered in a matching flake vinyl by Miller Kustom Upholstery. Now all they need is some methanol and to get this bike on the road... Oh Yeah!

The excellent photographs were taken by Limpe Iven

A Welcome Visitor...

2011-07-12T20:39:00.000+01:00

I'm used to finding insects and bugs in my tent, but look what jumped out of it on Sunday.

The last time I used my Vango Trek 200 it got very muddy, so I decided to pitch it in the garden to get it cleaned up. My four year old son gave me a hand to wash it and we left it to dry while the young man used it as a den for the rest of the day.

Later that night I went to take it down, unzipped the door, picked up the bag and whaaaa.... A brown thing, the size of my hand jumped out from under it. Once my heart stopped jumping I looked down to see a regal looking Common Toad, who must have followed the bugs into the tent in the hope of a tasty feast. "Wow Dad, Look" said my son son as he knelt down for a closer look. "Shhh... Don't frighten him, he must be looking for his Mammy". The wee fellow stayed around for a while, took a rest behind the tubs of coriander before jumping away again in search of his next meal.

The common toad is a solitary soul and not really so "common" these days. I hope this one comes round to our house again sometime soon.

Leigh Adams Support Group

2011-07-07T21:49:00.007+01:00

Australian Speedway motorcycle legend, Leigh Adams, continues to do “better than expected” in the aftermath of the serious injuries he sustained whilst contesting the Finke off road event in Alice Springs, |Australia earlier this month. Adams, aged 40, from Mildura in Victoria, is making good progress following major surgery to strengthen his damaged spinal cord and this week he took a massive step on the road to recovery by leaving hospital and moving to a specialist rehabilitation centre. “Leigh is doing well and is continuing to make small improvements on a daily basis,” said Leigh's wifes Kylie today.

Photo courtesy of Mike Patrick

"He is remaining positive and upbeat. Doctors are very impressed with his progress and they feel he will continue to move forward in rehab. He has settled into his new environment and is enjoying the benefits of increased mobility, cruising outdoors in a wheelchair for short periods whilst enjoying the winter sunshine. Leigh is back to his old self in some ways and he is eating plenty (including scoffing plenty of chocolates that have been sent to him) and he’s been ordering freshly squeezed orange juice, home grown from his own hobby farm in Mildura. This is of course the biggest challenge of Leigh’s life and he realises it is only early days, particularly with the type of injury and trauma he’s been subjected to. He knows this type of injury can’t be rushed. That being said, I’m really proud of his attitude and patience in dealing with this. I am also proud of his determination to achieve his own personal goals. The support we have received from all around the world has been absolutely overwhelming and we welcome the continuation of further messages of support". Kylie concluded.

Immediately after the popular Aussie’s accident, the Leigh Adams Love & Support Group, was set up on the popular social internet network Facebook. The founder of the Group, retired speedway photographer Mike Patrick, states "I am amazed at the response the Group has had worldwide".

Photo courtesy of Mike Patrick

In Leigh’s twenty year International career, he not only touched the hearts of thousands of speedway fans, but was also an inspiration to many up and coming young riders. Underlining the high esteem in which the stricken speedway star is held in, a staggering 5700 plus people have already joined the group and left messages of support, photos and memories of the stricken star. The group is easy to join, but a new email address has been set up so that non members can also leave messages etc., by emailing them to: lasupport@gmail.com and they will be placed on the group pages. It has been realised that a previous email given does not work, so please send your messages again. (Pease leave messages in English if possible).

Mike Patrick is urging fans to keep their messages of support flowing saying, "Leigh does get to read the messages and the Adams family are so very grateful and overwhelmed by the warmth and love that everyone has showed, which will help him with the hard battle that he faces. In addition I’ll be posting any press releases or further news from Kylie as it’s received". Anyone can read the messages by going to the Leigh Adams Love & Support facebook page.

Kylie, Declan, Leigh and Casey Adams

photo courtesy of Mike Patrick

Further details can be found at www.leighadams.com

THE SPEEDWAY WORLD IS TRULY UNITED IN BACKING LEIGH AND

HIS FAMILY AS HE BATTLES TO OVERCOME HIS INJURIES

Match Race in colour; Graham Warren v Jack Parker

2011-06-22T22:27:00.001+01:00

TEAM GREEN BRITAIN BIKE WEEK IS HERE!

2011-06-19T22:02:00.002+01:00

Team Green Britain Bike Week is finally here! We hope you are excited about attending the forthcoming events. We have provided a few last minute reminders to help you make the most out of your Team Green Britain Bike Week experience: Check the status of the event online at www.bikeweek.org.uk Register your interest in your event and you be in with the chance of winning one of our fantastic competition prizes! Invite your friends and family to take part with you and encourage them to register online too! Send your event photos to hq@bikeweek.org.uk to be in with the chance of winning a Team Green Britain Bike Week t-shirt

BIKE SHOP VOUCHER
Cycle retailers across the country have teamed up with Team Green Britain Bike Week to offer participants a promotional voucher which will be available to download after the event week. The vouchers will allow you up to 10% discount when presented in one of the Team Green Britain Bike Week Retail Partner shops. To qualify for the voucher, please register your interest to an event today. Check the website regularly to see which shops have enrolled in your area.

ARE YOU A TEAM GREEN BRITAIN HERO?
Now in its second year Team Green Britain, founded by EDF Energy, are looking for heroes on and off their bikes. We're looking for 12 people who'll get green goodies and tickets to London 2012 events courtesy of EDF Energy. One person will also win £10,000 to put towards a sustainable community project. Become a Hero at http://www.teamgreenbritain.org/what-you-can-do

BIKE HUB
Bike Hub is a joint initiative of the Bicycle Association and the Association of Cycle Traders. The objective of Bike Hub is to generate funds from within the cycling industry to support the future of cycling in the UK. This year, Bike Hub is once again supporting Team Green Britain Bike Week, and in 2011 the cycling industry has increased its support of the event.
Find out more at www.bikehub.co.uk

Good luck and thanks for your support!

Bob McIntyre Memorial Races at East Fortune

2011-06-19T21:44:00.001+01:00

Ewen Nicolson has posted some great photos from the Bob Mac Memorial meeting...

... there are lots more great pictures at his Unofficial Scottish Classic Motorcycle Racing blog.

"Bob Mac" McIntyre - the Flying Scotsman (2nd Edition)

2011-06-05T23:38:00.011+01:00

Robert McGregor McIntyre was born to race motorcycles, he had all the right qualities to be one of the greatest motorcycle racers of all time, natural ability, clinical logic and outstanding race-craft. He was also a skilled engine tuner, mechanic and machine-builder, but "Bob Mac" was tragically taken from us while still in his prime. The "Flying Scotsman" was only 33 when he was fatally injured racing in the British Championship meeting at Oulton Park on August 6th 1962.

Bob McIntyre wearing his custom-made, one-piece leathers, Italian pattern goggles
and his helmet adorned with the emblem of the Mercury Motor Cycle Club.

Bob McIntyre was born in Scotsoun, a suburb of Glasgow, on November 2nd 1928. (He also had a younger brother, nine years his junior, who never raced bikes and later emigrated to Australia). His father worked on the Clyde in the shipyards and never wanted his son to follow in his footsteps, so when Bob left school at 14 years of age, he went to work in a motor garage in Partick to learn a trade. He started his apprenticeship on his 16th birthday and later bought his first motorcycle, a 1931 Norton 16H, which cost £12. He wasn't interested in racing at all at this time, the bike was nothing more than a means of transport and also something he could rebuild and tinker with. He soon had the bike looking as good as new and after six months he sold for £50 - a tidy profit in the 1940s. With the aid of a loan from his parents, Bob's next bike was a 1935 Ariel Red Hunter, a much faster machine than the Norton and the cause of one or two spills for young Bob. Shortly before his 18th birthday, a motor cycling club was formed in Scotsoun and Bob became one of the first half dozen members. The club was the Mercury Motor Club, whose emblem adorned Bob's crash helmet throughout his career.

At 18 Bob was called up for National Service and eventually found himself posted to Suez, where his experience on a motorcycle got him a job as a despatch rider. Once his service was done, Bob returned to Scotland and continued with his apprenticeship. The Mercury Club had grown during his abscence and some of the members were taking part in trials and scrambles. Bob went to watch one of the scrambles at Airdrie, where he was captivated by the legendary Bob Smith on his AJS and decided he'd like to have a go himself. His first ever race meeting was a scramble at Craigend Farm. not far from his home at Scotsoun, where he raced his own Ariel, minus the headlamp. As the months passed by, the Ariel was modified and tuned, and Bob got steadily better. His fascination with tuning motorcycles had grown too, so as soon as he had completed his apprenticeship, he found a job with Valenti Brothers, a motor cycle dealers in Glasgow.

Bob in his first ever official race on the Ariel Red Hunter - a scramble at Craigend Farm.

It was around this time that Bob witnessed his first motorcycle road race too. he went to Kircaldy and thought to himself that he could ride better than most of the guys he was watching, so decided there and then to enter a road race for himself and see how well he could do. Bob's biggest obstacle was not having access to a bike suitable for road racing, but Alan McKenzie, a fellow member of the Mercury Club, offered him the chance to share his BSA 350cc Gold Star at an event at Ballado Airfield near Kinross. The race was held on the old concrete runways, which had seen better days, but Bob's scrambling experience proved invaluable on the loose gravel and he won three events before falling off in his fourth race.

Bob and Alan entered more and more Scottish races on the BSA and Bob did reasonably well in his first season. The Ariel was sold to fund new parts, tyres and entry fees so the two of them would turn up at the races aboard the BSA with their spares and toolkit strapped to their backs.

One of Bob's rivals in those early days was Les Cooper, whose family owned Cooper Bro's of Troon. Les rode a brand new AJS 7R, a proper racing bike. Towards the end of the 1951 season, Sam Cooper, the senor partner of Cooper Bro's, asked Bob if he would like to race their Gold Star BSA in the 1952 Isle Of Man Junior Clubman TT. He also asked Bob if he would like a job, so in the winter of 1951, Bob switched jobs and started to ride his racing bike to and from work, choosing the most demanding routes he could find, just to improve his skills and get a better feel for the bike.

During practice for the event, Bob made an error which almost cost him his chance, He forgot to remove the centre stand and as he descended Hilllberry at speed, the stand hit the ground and threw Bob off, causing the bike some serious cosmetic damage. Sam Cooper was furious and threatened to pack the bike up and return home, but Bob protested and eventually Cooper calmed down and let him take his place on the starting grid, on the promise that Bob would ride with caution! This turned out to be a defining moment in Bob's racing career as he finished 2nd to Eric Houseley and also set a new lap record of 80.09mph, a remarkable feat considering his bike was struggling with carburettor problems, a blown head gasket and young Bob was supposed to be riding cautiously!

In September of that same year he took Cooper's 350cc AJS 7R and Manx Norton to the Isle Of Man. While he was there he was given the chance to ride a works AJS which he rode to victory in the Junior Manx Grand Prix. Two days later he rode the same bike to 2nd place in the Senior race. This was the beginning of a great career that would see Bob at the top of the road racing game for ten years.

Bob McIntyre took his racing very seriously and set standards that many still strive to achieve today. Not only did he make sure his bikes were always immaculately turned out, but he made sure his body was in peak condition too. He kept fit by playing badminton and swimming and spent the closed season climbing in the Scottish mountains. He was also teetotal, never smoked and watched his diet very carefully. He was equally concerned with his appearance too. He wore a custom-made one-piece leather racing suit which was snug fitting and unpadded. His boots were also custom made with a supple, fine grade leather and soled with rubber to aid quick push starts. His racing kit was supplemented with wrist length gloves, a white helmet featuring the badge of the Mercury Motor Club and a pair of Italian pattern goggles. If nothing else, Bob was always the fittest and smartest racer on the grid.

In 1953, Bob was invited to join the AJS works team, but he struggled at first. He had a disappointing TT, failing to finish in any event, but he finally scored his first international victory at the North West 200 where he won the 350cc race on a standard two-valve AJS 7R rather than the 7R3 "triple knocker". He also stood on the podium at the Ulster Grand Prix and recorded his first GP victory at Pau in France. McIntyre appeared to have had his best results on standard machinery and even in the senior class he preferred to ride the production Matchless G45 rather than the works E95 "Porcupine", which he described as "...most horrifying... a camel!"

Bob McIntyre on the AJS 7R3 "Triple Knocker" at Scarborough in 1954.
Despite finishing 2nd in the 350cc race, Bob did not like the 7R3 as much as the production two-valve 7R.

For 1954 Bob stayed with AJS, preferring to ride the standard 7R and G45 whenever he could. Once again, he was frustrated with his results and and had another disappointing TT. The 7R3 let him down in the Junior event and he could only finish 14th on the "Porcupine" in the senior race. AJS pulled out of Grand Prix racing at the end of the 1954 season, so Bob seized the opportunity, went back to his privateer roots, and beagn a famous partnership with Glasgow's ace tuner and sponsor Joe Potts, who provided him with 350cc and 500cc Manx models and also prepared a special 250cc Potts Special Norton.

At the Isle of Man TT Bob rode one of the greatest races of his career. His streamlined Norton had the beating of all the British factory entries and he even beat Surtees on the Moto Guzzi. He actually led the race for the first four laps only to be beaten by Bill Lomas on the last lap. Giulio Carcano was so impressed with his perfomance that he offered him a ride on the factory Moto Guzzi, but Bob stuck with his trusted friend and did not accept the invitation. Despite a brilliant domestic season in 1956, Bob could not repeat his success at the TT, retiring from both the senior and junior races with mechanical problems. 1956 saw the legendary tuner J "Pim" Fleming join the Potts team, adding another dimension to the preparation of Bob Mac's engines.

Bob Mac at speed on the Pim Fleming tuned Potts Norton at Silverstone in 1956.

1957 turned out to be Bob's big year. He was invited to join the Gilera works team and mounted on a 4-cylinder Gilera Arcore, he won both the Junior and Senior races at the Golden Jubillee Isle Of Man TT and also became the first rider to do a 100mph lap on the mountain circuit when he completed his third lap of the senior at 101.03mph. The fourth lap was even faster at 101.13mph! During the extended 8-lap race it is estimated that McIntyre reached speeds of around 160mph, so it came as no surprise that he actually caught and overtook the 1956 World Champion, John Surtees on the 500cc MV Augusta and won the race. It was this success that really cemented his place in history as one of the greatest TT riders of all time.

Bob later described the 1957 junior TT Gilera 350 as "the nicest machine I ever rode... smooth as silk". He also recalled how every time he passed the Guthrie memorial he imagined the fellow Scot urging him on to victory, but during the senior, on that fully streamlined Gilera, he reckoned Jimmy was shaking a finger at him and warning him to slow down!

One of my favourite Motorcycle racing photographs.
Bob McIntyre riding the Gilera Four to victory in the 1957 Junior T.T.

The 1957 World Championship also looked to be within his reach, but a crash in the Dutch TT at Assen put him on the sidelines for a couple of months. His record for the season was still excellent though, with a 2nd place in the 500cc Ulster Grand Prix and victory in the 350cc Nations Grand Prix at Monza. Bob finished 2nd in the 500cc World Championships and also took 3rd place in the 350cc World Championship. At the end of 1957 the Italian team also quit Grand Prix racing, but in November 1957, Gilera invited McIntyre to ride a 350cc racer around the banked Monza circuit in an attempt to break the one hour speed record. He averaged 141 mph on the bumpy Monza surface, a record that was not broken until 1964 when Mike Hailwood lapped Daytona at 144.80mph on an MV Agusta.

Bob McIntyre's 1959 350cc Potts Norton photographed at Knockhill in 1993.

With no works team place for 1958, Bob returned to his roots once again and was back on his trusted Potts Norton and AJS machines, but the TT races ended in disappointment again. He retired from the junior race on the second lap whilst in 2nd place and in the senior, it really looked like McIntyre would become the first racer to lap at over 100mph on a single cylinder bike, but he suffered valve gear problems whilst catching eventual winner Surtees. For the 1959 season Potts prepared a specially tuned 47bhp Norton engine for Bob, which took him to a great victory in the North West 200. He could only manage 5th place in the '59 senior TT and in 1960 it was becoming obvious that the single cylinder British bikes, although still hard to beat in domestic competition, were no longer competitive against the exotica from Germany, Italy and Japan in the TT or on the International scene.

Bob had a dream of starting his own motorcycle business, building a range of top quality, over-the-counter racing bikes in 250cc, 350cc and 500cc versions. The two smaller machines would be 4-cyclinder models like the Japanese, and the 500cc would be an 8-cylinder job, but partly due to a lack of capital, Bob's dream would remain just that.

Honda had always wanted to add McIntyre to their stable of talented works riders and they finally got their man when he signed to ride for the Japanese factory for the 1961 season. In the 1961 Isle of Man Lightweight TT Bob raised the lap record to over 99.58 mph but lost his lead when his engine seized. He did finish 2nd in the Senior TT, albeit on on a Potts Norton, becoming the first rider to lap the TT course at over 100mph on a single cylinder engine. Bob also rode 350cc Grand Prix races on Bianchi machines during 1961, gracing the podium in Holland, Sweden and East Germany. He had also breifly led the Junior TT on a Bianchi before engine problems forced him to retire.

Racing the 250cc Honda. (photo by J.M.Fyfe, Alloa)

During 1962 McIntyre was blessed with full works machinery from Honda. He finished 2nd in the Spanish, French, Dutch and German 250cc Grands Prix but had little luck at the Isle Of Man TT with a non-start in the Senior TT and mechanical problems in both the 250cc and 350cc events. His best perfomance of 1962 was probably the Belgium 250cc GP at Spa-Francorchamps, which he won in front of 100,000 spectators. A week later he finished 2nd to Jim Redman in the 250cc GP in West Germany and finished a credible 4th on a rare outing in the 125cc GP.

Bob McIntyre launches the 285cc Honda over BallaughTT during the 1962 Junior TT.

Then it was back to Britain for the British Championship meeting at Oulton Park over August Bank Holiday. Bob had already won the 250cc event and had briefly led the 350cc race on the 285cc Honda before it packed up on him. He entered the 500cc race on his Manx Norton and after a bad start in wet conditions, he fought his way up to 2nd place and was chasing leader Derek Minter at Clay Hill Corner when the bike appeared to go straight into the bank with Bob still on it! The front wheel hit a ditch and Bob was catapulted into the trees. He was taken to Chester Royal Infimary where he remained unconcious for nine days and eventually died from serious head injuries. Nobody was ever sure what caused the fatal crash, there was talk of a gearbox failure at the time, but when Pim Fleming stripped the bike nothing was wrong. Bob seldom made mistakes either, so we can only assume that the bike must have aquaplaned on the surface water

Earlier in the year, during the Isle Of Man TT, Bernard Howard had sat with Bob discussing his future plans. It was the day that Bob was attempting to take on the 500cc machines in the senior TT aboard a 285cc Honda. Things weren't going Bob's way that day, but he still wore his heart on his sleeve and gave it everything he'd got. Bernard asked Bob why he kept on racing, especially as his wife was expecting their first child and he'd achieved just about everything there was to achieve. Bob replied... "I may think of quitting at the end of the season". He never got the chance to quit. Bob passed away on August 15th 1962 having never regained consciousness. He left a widow, Joyce and a three month old baby daughter, Eleanor.

"Now you can brake" - (photo by Peter Roberts).

2011 Indy 500 - It's never over until you cross the finish line!

2011-06-02T19:18:00.004+01:00

Brit Dan Wheldon takes victory right on the line as rookie J.R.Hildebrand loses the plot on the very last bend - you just couldn't script this finish! Good to see Danica Patrick finishing in the top 10 too.

We Will never forget... 12 months on.

2011-06-02T12:07:00.001+01:00

June 2nd 2010 - a very sad day for the population of West Cumbria. This time last year we were left in shock and disbelief as Derrick Bird went on a shooting spree that left 12 innocent people dead and dozens more injured. West Cumbria will never forget them....
http://blackcountrybiker.blogspot.com/2010/06/we-will-never-forget.html

Darren Rewcastle
Jane Robinson
Michael Pike
Garry Purdham
Susan Hughes
Kenneth Fishburn
Jamie Clark
Kevin Commons
Jennifer Jackson
James Jackson
Isaac "Spike" Dixon
David Bird
...and to Derrick Bird too, may he have found his own peace.

I also want the World to remember Chloe Walker and Keiran Goulding, two young children who lost their lives in the tragic Keswick School bus crash in May 2010 and PC Bill Barker, who lost his life in the line of duty during the Workington Floods of 2010.

Northside Speedway Training Track

2011-05-23T22:43:00.003+01:00

Speedway fans, riders of the past and present and most definitely riders of the future. I bring the excellent news that the Northside Training Track in Cumbria is Under New Management!

A group of dedicated people, all connected with speedway in one way or another, have taken over the track, which is located in Workington. They have the ambition and plenty of ideas to get British talent back to the top. There is a strong team of local speedway fans ready to start work on improving the track and its facilities this week. They want to ensure that the best training is delivered and that everyone who visits Northside will want to come back. again and again.

Training sessions are set to resume in June this year and it is hoped that mini-matches can be arranged and all are hopeful that the popular a round of the British Under-15 Championships series will return to Northside in the future too.

There will be great incentives given to regular visitors, a choice of 125cc, 250cc and 500cc bikes for hire, riding gear for hire and expert guidance from experienced riders. Everyone can be catered for at Northside Training Track... first timers, old timers, youngsters, wannabes and of course the locals.

Max Clegg in action at Northside in 2010.
Photo courtesy of John N Miller photography

Please take a look at the new Northside Training Track website for details, photos, dates, events, sponsorship opportunities and contacts. The website is new too, so don't expect too much content yet, but keep checking back for regular updates .

Spread the word, this is the re-birth of something big!

Custom Speedway Bike for the road...

2011-05-21T22:46:00.000+01:00

With huge thanks to my internet pal Benny Ludolphy in Holland, here's a rockin customised speedway bike with loadsa chrome... I wouldn't want to pull a wheelie and land on that rear mudguard though!!!

Photo courtesy of www.BikerHotline.com

More street legal speedway bikes on my previous post here

1970s Ice Speedway

2011-05-21T22:07:00.000+01:00

There's some great speedway videos available at the SpeedwayOnDisc blog. Here's some nostalgic ice speedway action from the 1970s.

Bob Decker's mini dirt-racer

2011-05-21T21:59:00.001+01:00

How about this great little bike sent in by Bob Decker. Bob describes it as a "speedway/boardtracker" that is "lottsa fun!". It uses a stock simplex frame and parts and has been bobbed and stripped to resemble an old racer. Bob replaced the old 2-stroke engine with a 200cc, 4-stroke continental slant square port engine coupled to a Comet torque converter and geared at 6.8. Bob apparently has lots of other homebuilt projects too... Hey Bob, whatya waitin' for? Let's see what else ya got.

BSA AutoRacer

2011-05-21T21:55:00.000+01:00

From my friend Benny Ludolphy in Holland... a very sad looking, but highly unusual Autorace machine with a BSA B31/33 engine. This must be from the pre-tarmac days, when our Japanese friends were still allowed to race on proper dirt tracks....

Sammy Halbert Rides A Speedway Bike

2011-05-10T22:27:00.000+01:00

Joker Machine/JRM Landspeed Record Speedwaybike

2011-05-10T22:23:00.000+01:00

Cradley Heath legend and former Speedway World Champion attempts a land speed record on a modified JRM (Jawa Racing Motorcycle) speedway bike - awesome!

Rally Days

2011-05-06T23:32:00.001+01:00

My dear old late Dad was a bit of petrolhead, I guess it must run in the genes. Once he had settled in the Black Country, home to the British motor Industry in the 1960s and 70s, his fascination with football, music and cars was allowed to flourish. He worked for a company named Beans Industries in Tipton, they were famous for making cars and trucks in the 1920s and also built the record breaking Thunderbolt for George Eyston in the 1930s. By the early 1960s they were part of the Standard Triumph group (later to become British Leyland) producing automotive castings and components. They also had a great social scene, which included a car club, the B.I.A.C (Beans Industries Autombile Club).

My Dad got right into it, taking part in treasure hunts, social nights and days out, but he got his real kicks from driving in Rallies, especially night stage rallies in Wales. We used to have some trophies, but they have gone astray during house moves, so the only evidence I have of his rallying exploits are these photographs of him driving his prized Austin Cooper in Wales in 1967.

This was our first family car too, so it led a double life. Commuting in the week, racing at weekends and even the long journey down to Weymouth on the South coast during my school holidays, what a hard life that excellent little car had,

Tackling a ford in March 1967.

Once the Mini Cooper had served its purpose, it was replaced with this Ford Anglia. This car had an interesting life for a family car too. It was rallied at weekends, raced around Mallory Park race track on a couple of occasions and once ended up on its roof in a Welsh Forest. When Dad tried to get out he realised he was on the edge of a steep drop and could roll over at any time. One of the marshalls saved the car and occupants from danger by carefully wedging a can of soup under the roof while Dad and his co-driver got out and the car was put back on its wheels. I was about 5 years old at the time, but I can still remember my Dad coming home while I was having my sunday breakfast, and being fascinated by the big dent in the roof.

RMS St Julien

2011-05-06T00:33:00.000+01:00

This is the Steam Ship that my grandfather, Charlie "Skin" Pavey worked on. The SS St Julien was one of a pair of steam ships built by John Brown of Clydebank for the Great Western Railway's Weymouth to Channel Islands services. She was launched on the Clyde in Feb 1925. Her sister ship was the St Helier.

GWRSS St Julien just after launch with dummy funnel still in place.

St Julien was originally delivered with two funnels, but the second was in fact a dummy which was removed in 1928. When war broke out in 1939 she was put to use ferrying troops but very quickly converted into a Hospital Carrier. She took part in the evacuation of British troops from Dunkirk, Boulogne and Cherbourg in 1940. On May 29th 1940, during the Dunkirk operation, St Julien was deliberately bombed by the Luftwaffe for a considerable period of time. Although she never recieved a direct hit, she was damaged by shrapnel from numerous near misses, it was during this raid that my grandfather was hit in the chest by flying debris resulting in the loss of one lung. St Julien remained just off Dunkirk for half an hour waiting for an opportunity to land, but when the air attacks started again she sailed back to Dover with her injured crew before returning to Dunkirk next morning to pick up another 287 casualties.

RMS St Julien with dummy funnel removed.

As an aside, my family lived on Jersey during World War II. Charlie was recovering at home when the Germans began their invasion of the Channel Islands. He quickly arranged for his wife and children to get on the last ship to leave the Island before the German forces landed, but he couldn't find his youngest son David (my father). Eventually he was found on the beach watching all the activity, my Uncle Dennis grabbed him and dragged him to the ship with only the clothes he was wearing and they set sail for Southampton.

Grandad Charlie returned to his duties on the St Julien, which spent the remainder of World War II as a hospital carrier and saw service in the Mediterranean as well as the D-Day Landings in 1944 where she pressed into service for the US Navy. She was damaged by a mine on June 7th and had to be towed back to England with her bows well down in the water. Less than three weeks later she was back in service in Normandy assisting with American casualties at Arrowmanches.

HM Hospital Carrier St Julien clearing casualties from Arrowmanches in July 1944

SS St Julien in St Helier Harbour, Jersey 1955.

In 1946 St Julien was returned to the GWR at Weymouth and was passed on to British Railways on 1st January 1948 when GWR became part of the British Transport Commision (British Railways). St Julien made her last Channel Islands crossing on 27th september 1960 when the two sister ships were replaced by the new SS Caesarea and SS Sarnia. She was scrapped the following year and sold to Van Heyghen Freres, Ghent in March 1961. She was last heard of being used by Dockyard workers at Walcheren in late 1963.

St Julien with windows plated up on the sides of the main deck and a white forecastle.

Specifications:

Propulsion: 4 Parsons steam turbines SRG two shafts 18kn 4350bhp

Ship Type: Passenger Vessel

Ship's Role: Channel Island ferry

Tonnage: 1885gross tons.

Length: 282.2 feet

Breadth: 40 feet

Draught: 13 feet

Owner History:

Great Western Railway Co, London; 1925-1939 and 1946-1948

British Railways Southern Region; 1948-1961

One gear is enough...

2011-05-01T21:24:00.000+01:00

Finally got my Muddyfox Single Speed Special out on the dirt this week. Built around a Muddyfox frame from the late 1990s, the accessories are all spare parts that have been in my Mam's garage for years, plus a few vital componenets sourced from e-bay and freecycle. It was great to actually get the wheels turning at last and it's so light and easy to pedal. I might need to tweak the gearing though... there's a lot of hills round here! but so far so good...

Peter Koij - R.I.P

2011-04-13T21:16:00.000+01:00

Ice Speedway racer Peter Koij was killed in a racing accident on the evening of Wednesday March 30th 2011. The 48 year old Swedish rider was racing in the International meeting in Västerås, but suffered a punctured front tyre on the second lap of his first heat and hit the fence at high speed. He waved to the crowd as he was carried from the track on a stretcher but it was annouced at the end of the meeting that Peter had sadly died from his injuries. According to the obituary in Speedway Star, his tragic death is the first fatality on the ice in Sweden since Sven Renlund was killed at Ornskoldsvik in 1970.

Peter Koij had qualified for his first World Individual Ice Racing Grand Prix series this winter and finished 15th overall. Earlier in the month Peter had reached the B final of the indoors International at Rattvik and the A final of the Lelles Ice Trophy at Sandviken. The final round of the Swedish Elite league due to be held at Vasteras on thursday March 31st was cancelled in the wake of Peters's death and will not be re-staged.

The ice racing fraternity has lost one of its most enthusiastic and loyal friends. Our thoughts go to his relatives and family. He will be missed and never forgotten.

Clints Quarry - A Natural Playground.

2011-04-11T22:25:00.003+01:00

We've been out exploring again today, and despite the fact we were less than 2 miles from home, we could have been in a different place completely. Clints Quarry is a genuine hidden gem, situated between two main commuter routes that 1000s of nuclear workers travel every day, Despite its location and size, I wonder how many of them are even aware of its existence. We've never seen anybody else there on our visits.

Clints Quarry is situated between the busy A595 and A5086, just outside of Egremont.
It covers over 9 hectares but it so well hidden that anyone driving by will be unaware of its existence.

Clints Quarry has been the site of quarrying for over 450 years. In the 1600's it was the source of agricultural lime for use on farm land around Egremont. In the 1800's both limestone and iron ore mining were increased to supply the emerging steel industry in Egremont and nearby Cleator and Cleator Moor. The name "Clints" is taken from the blocks of lime stone left in the quarry basin, which were traditionally known as "Clints" or "Clintz". Quarrying ceased in the 1930s and nature slowly recolonised the remains turning it into a self-enclosed wildlife haven. During the 1970s, the exposed rock faces were popular with climbing clubs as was the nearby Clints Scar, but the landowners weren't happy with their intrusion and made the climbers unwelcome, even going as far as pouring slurry down the cliff faces. In the early 1980s, the quarry was threatened with a landfill proposal, but in 1984, the Cumbria Wildlife Trust purchased the Quarry from Lord Egremont and British Steel to safeguard its future as a nature reserve and a Site Of Special Scientific Interest (ASSSI).

The exposed rock faces at the head of Clints Quarry are around 20m high.

Our 4 year old loves the place almost as much as his Mam 'n' Dad and he had his usual hands-on education today - this time it was geology, history and nature. About 350 million years ago, Clints was under a tropical sea and today fossils of creatures such as coral can be seen in the quarry walls and in the boulders that line the quarry floor. The cliff faces at the head of the quarry also reveal the distinctive bands of silt and rock giving a natural timeline of the geological history of West Cumbria. The spoil heeps, screes and ponds have also been colonised by flowers, plants and wildlife, which make it a natural playground for our family.

Tracks between the overgrown spoil heaps.

Crystalised rocks on the quarry floor

Moss growing on the limestone "clints".

The quarry is filled with quaking grass, wild strawberries, oat grass, oxeye daises, the spectacular bee orchid with its unusually shaped flowers, and the vivid pink pyramidal orchid, a Cumbria rarity. On the rock face and between crevices grow many ferns including hart's tongue. In damper parts of quarry the pale pink common spotted orchid and the deeper pink northern marsh orchid are present. Sedges and rushes are common here, as are tufted hair grass and hemp agrimony. Bluebell, dog's mercury, enchanter's nightshade, early purple orchids and common twayblade orchids populate the woodland. Many mosses, fungi, lichens and moulds can be found growing on the trees, spoil heaps and rock faces.

Wild Strawberries are everywhere... but you have to look hard to find them.

Moss covers the ancient tree roots and rocks.

These derelict ponds are now filled with newts, sticklebacks, frogs and beetles... and they're very deep!

The wildlife includes beetles and common blue, meadow brown and gatekeeper butterflies. Robins, goldcrests, long-tailed tits and sometimes treecreepers inhabit the quarry whilst kestrels and ravens nest on the quarry face. Stickleback, palmate newt and common frog can be found in the derelict concrete lined ponds and pools along with water beetles and "water-boatmen". It also gives me plenty of scope to take a few photos and get my boots muddy! Clints Quarry nature reserve is open at all times and is on the Egremont to Whitehaven cycleway (National Route 72). It lies on land seperating the main A595 and A5086 routes but is only accesible from a minor road just off the A5086.

Masters of the Tarmac; pt2.

2011-04-07T22:40:00.000+01:00

Barry Sheene & Ron Haslam:

Kork Ballington & Graeme Crosby

1980s Motor Cycle Race Tracks

2011-04-07T22:34:00.002+01:00

Donington Park, 1981

Brands Hatch 1981

Oulton Park, Cheshire - the New Circuit, 1981

We do live in a beautiful place....

2011-04-03T23:21:00.003+01:00

...that is something my wife can often be heard telling the children, and she's not wrong! We had a few hours to waste one recent afternoon, so we took off to the beach at St Bees, less than 3 miles away and gave our four old son some practical lessons in science, geography and the arts. We showed him examples of surface tension, erosion, natural history, pond life, geology, how tides work and how to make big splashes with your wellies! Dad even got to take some photographs too. Who needs expensive holidays abroard when you've got locations like this right on your doorstep.

Erosion is a real problem at St Bees. Over 40m of cliff face collapsed recently and here's another recent landslip.

L'aal boy walks on water.... (A beautiful photo of a beautiful boy - taken by my wife)

Welcome back to Leicester Speedway

2011-04-03T14:43:00.000+01:00

It's great to see the Leicester Lions back on track again. The old Blackbird Road track was one of my favourites back in the 70s and 80s and my last visit there was in sept 1983, shortly before the site was sold for housing. Here's some great action from heat 13 of the Leicester v Sheffiled match on April 2nd 2011, watch Richard Sweetman in the blue helmet, how the hell does he stay on that bike?

Welcome back to Leicester Speedway - long may you keep it sideways!

Krasnikov The Great! (...but has he quit at the top?)

2011-04-01T22:06:00.001+01:00

Nikolai Krasnikov was crowned World Ice Speedway Champion for a record breaking seventh consecutive time last weekend, but it could be his last! This was an amazing achievement for the 26 year old Russian and he becomes only the second rider ever to record seven consecutive FIM World titles. The other record holder is Britain's Dougie Lampkin, who won seven consecutive FIM Trials World Titles between 1997 and 2003.

Nikolai Krasnikov celebrates his seventh consecutive Ice Speedway title

The Russian ice racing superstar put a below par performance at Assen behind him to storm to victory in the 4th Grand Prix round at the new Max-Aicher-Arena in Inzell, Germany last weekend. Krasnikov only dropped one point all weekend, but then admitted that this is probably his last year as a full-time ice racer.

Krasnikov told the press that... "I am very pleased to win as it has been a very hard season for me. I had a few disappointments and didn't win meetings that I should have won. I have decided that this is going to be my final professional season. I will probably ride next year, but not full-time, and I may enter the World Championship, I don't know, but this is my final season".

2011 FIM Ice Speedway World Championship Overall Classification:

1st. Nikolai Krasnikov / Russia - 176 pts.
2nd. Igor Kononov / Russia - 153
3rd. Daniil Ivanov / Russia - 152
4th. Dmitri Khomitsevich / Russia - 145
5th. Vitali Khomitsevich / Russia - 108
6th. Dmitri Bulankin / Russia - 97
7th. Sergei Karachintsev / Russia - 89
8th. Ivan Ivanov / Russia - 85
9th. Frankie Zorn / Austria - 73
10th. Harald Simon / Austria - 72
11th. Stefan Svensson / Sweden - 68
12th. Günther Bauer / Germany - 64
13th. Antonin Klatovsky / Czech Republic - 54
14th. Grzegorz Knapp / Poland - 35
15th. Peter Koj / Sweden - 26
16th. Stefan Pletschacher / Germany - 20
17th. Mats Järf / Finland - 9
18th. Johnny Tuinstra / Netherlands - 7
19th. Max Niedermaier / Germany - 7
20th. Jan Klatovsky / Czech republic - 5
21st. Rene Stellingwerf / Netherlands - 3

Action from the first day at Inzell

British Speedway - It's a Mad World!!

2011-03-17T13:50:00.007Z

After a farcical winter of clubs and committees throwing their toys out of their prams, the league champions not being able to defend their title and riders being left in the dark as to whether they have a club to ride for in their own country, it looks like an 11th hour compromise may just have saved our sport for another 12 months. Although the Peterborough and Coventry web sites have been "down" for a while and there has been no official announcement on the official BSPA site, Sky Sports and the SGP site have both revealed that Coventry and Peterborough will be riding in the 2011 Elite League. Not only that but Peterborough will have the spectacular Nicki Pedersen at No1. I don't know about you but I'm not holding my breath yet. In my opinion, speedway in the UK is run by a bunch of egotistical muppets who have lost their grip on reality... The only thing they have succeeded in doing is alienating fans by making a simple sport far too complicated. This saga ain't over yet by a long way yet, Take a look at the link on the Speedway GP site for the latest gossip from Nicki Pedersen himself.

The closed season has still thrown up some more surreal moments. We now have a situation where one of Englands top riders, Lee Richardson, has said that he doesn't want to ride for his country anymore, mainly because he can't afford it, fellow rider Scott Nicholls may also refuse to ride for similar reasons and the Team GB manager has stepped down because he was only being offered a contract for the duration of the Speedway World Cup. Apparently there is no funding available for any further involvement and his plans for coaching young British riders for the future are not cost effective either. At this rate I really can forsee a point when UK speedway will struggle on the international front and there will be no professional British riders at all... but who has the answers? certainly not me. Read more abouth these stories on the SGP website. Lee Richardson; GB Boss Quits; Scott Nicholls;

Finally, you couldn't write a script for this alleged incident. There is a brief mention on the clubs website, which only alludes to this incident, but I heard a rumour that the Police were called to the Press and Practice day at Rye House Speedway in Hertfordshire after a fracas between the riders. Allegedly, the Rye House No1, Steve Boxhall was stabbed by one of his team mates and is now in hospital with serious arm injuries!!! Rumour or Truth? Bizarre or what? Can any of my readers enlighten me or pass comment on any of these stories - Can't wait for the new season to catch up on all the gossip, let alone the racing.

Speedway Riders from the 1930s. (Newspaper Card Collections)

2011-03-13T12:06:00.000Z

Harry Skirrow - "The One-Armed Lakeland Wonder"

2011-03-12T22:28:00.006Z

"Perhaps the least known and most underrated racing car constructor in this country". That is how author Derek Bridgett described Henry (Harry) Skirrow in his book "Midget Car Speedway". That statement is very true. Without a doubt, it was Harry's skill, drive and initiative that produced the UK's most successful midget speedway cars, but there was so much more to this great man than has ever been published before.

Born in Bradford in 1906, Harry was raised in Westmorland (now part of Cumbria). Harry began his working life as a banker, but he soon became bored with the mundane occupation and opened his own motor garage on Lake Road in Ambleside, close to the shore of Windermere in England's Lake District.

During their teenage years, the brothers had both been bitten by the motorcycle bug and competed in sand races, speed trials and grass track events and they were both founder members of the reformed Westmorland Motor Club. Harry and Geoffrey were pioneer speedway riders too. Harry had finished 2nd to his brother in the 350cc event at the first Whitehaven meeting in July 1930 and they were both winners of the Silver Goblet and Silver Rose Bowl at Barrow-In-Furness speedway during the same year. At one stage Harry was a promising novice at the Preston speedway track, but then he lost his left arm in a shooting accident and everyone presumed his motorcycle racing days were over - everyone except Harry that is! With the aid of an artificial forearm and a hook, Harry started riding again and even amused himself by riding speedway again, albeit behind closed doors at the famous Belle Vue track in Manchester. He was such a fan of the sport that he would drive down to Manchester to watch the "Aces" most weeks and it was here that he first saw Midget Car Speedway. On May 16th 1935, Belle Vue Speedway presented an "All Car Meeting", which was reported as a failure, but it obviously caught the imagination of some and fired a new enthusiasm in Harry Skirrow.

Harry returned to Ambleside and built his own midget racer based on the wreck of an old BSA Scout. He returned to Belle Vue as a competitor and despite having the fastest car around the Manchester track, he was still not satisfied. With the help of Walter Mackereth, a blacksmith from Kendal, they built a new car and took it to Flookburgh Sands for testing. They experimented with front wheel drive, rear wheel drive and different wheelbases until they eventually produced a car that they were both satisfied with and turned their attentions to domination of the UK midget speedway car scene.

Harry Skirrow's first attempt at a commercial Midget Speedway racing car.

The fully developed "Skirrow Special" from 1936
(Photo courtesy of Malcolm Skirrow)

I have a copy of a letter drafted by Harry on various scraps of paper and intended to be sent to Michael Ware at the National Motor Museum in Beaulieu that tells the story of how the famous Skirrow Special developed...

In the letter Harry describes how, with more enthusiasm than judgement, he sold his garage at Ambleside and put all his resources into producing a car that fulfilled the rules of midget car racing in the USA. He then relocated to London and rented a workshop from Victor Martin in Tottenham. Harry had asked the neighbouring firm of J.A.Prestwich to produce a 1000cc air-cooled v-twin engine based on two 500cc speedway J.A.P. units. The two cylinders were mated to a common crankcase and each cylinder had its own twin monobloc Amal carburettor and ran on methanol. This engine became known as the 996cc J.A.P. 8/80. The chassis and pressed steel disc wheels were produced by Rubery Owen and Harry also persuaded John Bull to produce special tyres using the same tread pattern and compounds as the larger 20" speedway bike tyres.

996cc J.A.P. 8/80 engine.

A cutaway showing the 4-wheel drive chassis of the Skirrow.

By the Spring of 1936 Harry had produced his first few complete cars and presented them to Eric Spence at Belle Vue Speedway. At first he wasn't interested as he wanted to produce his own cars based on the American Elto design, so Harry became a partner in Liverpool Speedway which allowed him to race and demonstrate his cars to his hearts content. It wasn't long before the Skirrow was recognised as the best car for the job and Harry eventually joined forces with Jim Baxter and the Belle Vue management to form a national midget car racing league with Harry and his wife promoting their own tracks at Lea Bridge in London and at Coventry in the Midlands.

Action from Coventry in 1937.
Ginger Pashley in an Elto leads Walter Mackereth in a Skirrow.

Not only was Harry a talented designer, fabricator and a budding businessman, he was also an exceptional driver. In his book "Coventry's Two Speedways", author Colin Parker describes how Harry managed to turn his car onto its side during a meeting at Wembley. He scrambled out, pushed it back onto four wheels with his single arm and carried on racing. The same book also describes how the cars had to be transported from their Tottenham workshops to the Brandon track at Coventry, either on the back of a truck or being towed behind it, with the "driver" exposed to the elements in all kinds of British weather.

Harry sitting at the wheel of the final development of the Skirrow Special.
(Photo courtesy of Malcolm Skirrow)

In his letter Harry continues to describe the diffficulties he faced. Despite being totally under capitalised and running into severe financial difficulties during the recession of the 1930s, Harry did not give up on his dream and persevered with developing his Skirrow Special and promoting racing or "Doodle Dicing" as it had become known, at more venues. He had plans to introduce his "Doodle Bugs" to the Moorville Speedway in Carlisle in partnership with Roland Stobbart and Jimmy Baxter, but the venue never recovered from the financial disaster of its one and only motorcycle speedway meeting and the proposed project never materialised.

Coventry driver Frank Chiswell in his Skirrow No 77.
(Photo courtesy of Roy Chiswell)

Walter Mackereth and his Coventry team were crowned League Champions in 1938 and Harry was just beginning to reap the rewards of his dogged determination. Crowds were increasing and Harry had been invited to tour Australia over the winter of 1939/1940, but the events that followed were completely out of Harry's hands. Poor summer weather in 1939 had caused a lot of meetings to be rained off and combined with gathering war clouds, the midget car league was abandoned in July 1939. Consequently, the trip to Australia was also cancelled. Fate dealt another blow in 1940 when Harry's house was completely demolished during an air raid, destroying all of Harry's records, drawings, photographs and press cuttings. At this point Harry sold his business to Victor Martin, paid off his debts and relocated back to the North West to join his son Malcolm, who had already been evacuated from London and was living with an Aunt in Bowness-On-Windermere. The family eventually settled into a house just south of Lancaster and Harry turned his attentions to producing aircraft parts for the war effort. He joined forces with William "pops" Kitchen, a former partner of his at Liverpool speedway and the father of Belle Vue speedway star Bill Kitchen, in a small factory unit in the village of Galgate.

After the war had ended there was no immediate resumption of midget car racing and Harry found that he had lost touch with his associates and his cars. More importantly, Harry wasn't willing to take any more financial risks having lost everything in the 1940 air-raids. Bill Kitchen and his brother Jack were due to be demobbed from the Army and would be returning to the family business, so Harry decided it was time to move on again, this time to Devon.

The family bought a house in Maidencombe, just outside of Torquay and Harry persuaded his brother Geoffrey to join them. The two brothers bought a market garden and then sold it for a hefty profit in 1947. Their next venture was to buy the Loughton Motor Company in London together with some war surplus Nissan huts, which were erected next to the garage and rented out as storage.

Harry had managed to recover three badly damaged Skirrow cars from the remains of his garage at the bombed out house in London and had taken them to Devon where he rebuilt two and sold them. The third chassis became a donor for a single-seat sports car that Harry built in order to travel to London and back whilst overseeing his business. The car was described as looking like a miniature Allard. It used the same 996cc 8/80 J.A.P. engine as the midget racers with the addition of a 4-speed motorcycle gearbox, which Harry modified to give the car a reverse gear. Unlike the racing cars, this road legal Skirrow was front wheel drive, ran on petrol and could return 70mpg at a steady 60mph.

Harry with his home-made sports car, which he drove to London and back on a regular basis.

Eventually a compulsory purchase order was put on the garage to allow for the construction of a new road and harry and Geoffrey were out of a job. Geoffrey found some part-time work helping out at the local service station at Chudleigh and Harry spent most of his time indulging in his new hobby - sailing, but they both became bored without regular work and bought the Maidencombe Service Station in 1952.

Harry sailed a 14 feet redwing yacht with the Babbacombe Corinthian Sailing Club, where he built and installed a motorised winch to haul the boats up the beach and also built trailers for other club members. Harry still had a strong competitive streak too and was awarded the prestigious Sir Reginald Leeds Trophy in 1959 after nine consecutive race wins in the Torbay Regatta and two race wins at Falmouth.

Harry out sailing in 1953.
(Photo coutesy of Malcolm Skirrow)

When Geoffrey died, Harry sold the garage and gave half the proceeds to his widow. He then went to work for his son Malcolm at his garage in Babbacombe, travelling to work and back every day on a 90cc Honda Cub. Even though Harry always said he never wanted to retire, his Doctor had other ideas and in 1984 Harry finally went home for a rest aged 77 and eventually passed away in 1991 at the age of 84.

He was once asked in a newspaper if having only one arm had made life difficult... "Oh no" he said, "If I had another arm I just wouldn't know what to do with it, I can do most jobs and if I'm beaten I just ask for help. With this hook I can hold a welding rod right down to the last bit without burning my fingers, but there are some things that are on the official list of things I can't manage, like the washing up".

Shortly before he died Harry said to his wife... "I think I've done just about everything in life that I wanted to", to which his wife replied... "Yes - You bloody well have!".

But what became of the Skirrow cars? Victor Martin continued to provide service and spares after the war under the name of "Skirrow Special Cars Ltd" and his friend and colleague Walter Mackereth continued to race with great success in Hamburg and Paris. Most of the remaining cars were purchased by David Hughes, a midget car racing enthusiast from the East Midlands, who had built his own racing track in 1949 at Brafield in Northamptonshire. Hughes then took the Skirrows on tour in 1950 followed by the formation of the Midlands Midget Speedway Car League in late 1951. Sadly, the league featuring teams from Birmingham, Cradley Heath, Coventry and Leicester was short lived and was abandoned before the year was out. By the end of the 1950s the cars were beginning to wear out and Victor Martin was no longer able to provide back-up. Some of the cars were cannibalised to keep others going but Hughes eventually had to admit defeat. Thankfully a few Skirrows have survived and are now in the hands of enthusiasts and collectors who acknowledge the historical importance of the Skirrow Special.

A preserved 1938 Skirrow Midget Speedway Car. Originally from Canada, this car was recently sold at auction and is now in Australia. Although not completely original, it does represent Harry's later development of the Skirrow vey well. This particular car has been discussed at length on Midget Car Panorama (see link at foot of page).

Massive thanks to Harry's son Malcolm Skirrow for letting me have copies of Harry's letters, photographs and giving me a potted history of Harr'y life. Thanks also go to Derek Bridgett, Colin Parker and Roy Chiswell, and also to Percy Duff and the late Bernard Crabtree for sharing their memories of Harry.

References:

Midget Car Panorama - A Forum for Midget Car Racing.

Midget Car Speedway by Derek Bridgett

Coventry's Two Speedways by Colin Parker

Speedway In The North West by Adrian Pavey

and various Stock Car Racing articles by John Hyam.

Icy Racers - 1994

2011-02-28T22:53:00.002Z

Action photo's from an Ice Speedway meeting;
St Johann, Austria, 1994

Antonin Klatovsky (Czech) - Winner.

Franz Schiefer and Joachim Wartbichler - the two "home" riders in action that day.

Masters of the Tarmac; pt1.

2011-02-28T22:45:00.003Z

This picture used to be on my bedroom wall when I was young and these guys were my heroes.
Back Row; Bob Smith, Keith Heuwen, Ron Haslam.
Front Row; Graham Wood, Roger Marshall, Mick Grant, Barry Sheene, Rob McElnea, Mark Salle.

Paul Smart. Can you remember when he won the Imola 200 on a Ducati?

This guy has a lot to answer for!! He made motorcycles and smokin' look cool and the girls in my class loved him. Barry Sheene had a bad influence on me when I was younger.
I finally got to meet the man a few months before he died and got him to pose for this photograph.
I bet you have never seen him riding a Triumph Tiger Cub before.

1970s Motor Cycle Race Tracks.

2011-02-28T22:34:00.000Z

Oulton Park, Cheshire 1970

Oliver's Mount, Scarborough; 1975.

Knockhill, Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland: 1979

Mallory Park, Kirkby Mallory, Leicestershire; 1978.

Barrow Speedway - A (very) brief illustrated history

2011-02-27T23:09:00.001Z

The origins of speedway and dirt-track racing on the Furness peninsular can be traced back to he beach races organised by Barrow & District Motor Club in the 1920s. The club later held a grass track meeting at the Little Park Rugby Ground in Roose on May 26th 1928. The winner of the unlimited races at this meeting was local hero and future Belle Vue and Wembley star Frank Charles , who literally lived over the road from the stadium on North Row, Roose. In 1930, the Northern Motor Sports Club introduced Speedway racing to the Holker Street football stadium. A track made of rolled ashes from Vickers Shipyard was laid around the football pitch and a total of seven meetings were held before the Football club needed to re-turf their pitch in readiness for the new season. The winner of the opening meeting on 12th June 1930 was Eric Airey from Lancaster and over 7000 spectators watched the final meeting on July 28th.

Frank Charles and Eric Airey get ready for a match race at Holker Street in 1930

Not sure of the rider in the white jersey, but the other 2 riders are Roland Stobbart and Frank Burgess.
A rare action shot from Holker Street in June 1930

During the 1950s, Cliff Hindle, a local motorcycle enthusiast, built his own private circuit where he and several other enthusiasts could practice prior to riding at Belle Vue and Sheffield, but it wasn't until 1972 that speedway racing returned to Barrow-In-Furness. A new track was constructed around the pitch at Holker Street and Barrow enjoyed three unsettled seasons of league racing at the football stadium, firstly with the Barrow "Happy Faces" who finished 9th in the 1972 second division, and then the Barrow "Bombers" who finished around mid-table in the 1973 and 74 seasons. The football and speedway clubs were uneasy partners though and talks broke down right on the eve of the 1975 season and Holker Street closed its doors to speedway again.

Mike Watkin - 1972

Bob Coles - 1972

Local rider Ian Hindle - 1972

Tom Owen - 1973

Terry Kelly - 1973/74
(Photos above all by R.Spencer-Oliver)

Sid Sheldrick in action at Holker Street 1974.
(Photo by Roy Dixon)

Chris Pusey of Belle Vue leads Chris Roynon at Holker Street in 1974
(Photo by Roy Dixon)

Cliff Hindle enters the scene again in 1977 by building a brand new track and stadium at Park Lane on the outskirts of Barrow. After a season of challenge matches, the "Furness Flyers" entered the 1978 National League, but a weak team finished bottom of the league with only 18 points to their credit and the track did not reopen in 1979. Speedway did make a brief return to Park Lane in 1981 when the temporarily homeless Berwick "Bandits" used the track for 5 league matches and 1 KO Cup match.

Chris Roynon and Andy Reid - 1978
(Photo by R.Spencer-Oliver)

Geoff Pusey - 1978

Chris Robins - 1978

In 1983, Chris Roynon purchased the derelict stadium from Cliff Hindle and rebuilt it. Throughout the year he ran monthly stock car meetings and occasional speedway training sessions. A series of seven "open" meetings were then staged in 1984, four of the matches featured the Barrow "Blackhawks" racing in challenge matches and another featured the Barrow "Braves", a team comprised of junior riders. The "Blackhawks also competed in one away fixture at Edinburgh. The Barrow "Blackhawks" entered the 1985 National League, but this was possibly the weakest team ever seen in National League speedway and they were expelled from the league in May. Roynon continued to promote challenge matches and individual trophy meetings at an intermediate level, culminating in the Cumbrian Open Championship on Sept 24th 1985. The last ever speedway meeting to be held at the venue. Stock meetings continued until 1987 when the track was covered over with a greyhound track. Prior to demolition in 1994, local motorcycle dealer Martin Crooks and teenage prospect Grant McDonald used the old track for practice session, but the bikes have remained quiet ever since.

Rob Grant of Berwick leads Kevin Armitage and Gary O'Hare - Park Road 6th May 1985

Jim Mcmillan and Rob Grant lead Gary O'Hare and Paul Price - Park Road 1985
A Fabulous view out into Morecambe Bay too

Eric Broadbelt, Rob Grant, Bernie Collier, Bruce Cribb - Park Road 1985
(Park Road photos by Philip Haynes)

Road Bikes with a Speedway Influence

2011-02-23T22:40:00.000Z

For some unknown reason, speedway motorbikes have always evolved outside of mainstream motorcycle culture, and likewise, speedway still doesn't appeal to many mainstream motorcyclists, but I'm different, I don't wear dayglo leathers or Wulfsport pyjamas, I ride bikes that aren't fashionable and I love speedway!. In my last post I showed you the Yamaha XT that former Danish speedway rider Ernst Bogh had built using an old 1990s upright GM speedway engine. That post has led me to hunt out some more speedway influenced road bikes.... either based on the speedway style or using speedway components.

The functional and simplistic look of a speedway machine does have an influence on the custom scene, just compare some of the best looking Bobbers with the early dirt track bikes of the 1920s and 1930s and you will see a startling visual similarity. It's a look that I love though and from my recent Internet trawls, it looks like I'm not alone. I came across this bike on Chris Barber's Crossbreed Cycles website, unfortunately I haven't been able to contact him so I can only give you the information from the website.

This bike was built using an assortment of parts including a 1940s Matchless G3 frame, a Brooks bicycle seat, an upright GM speedway engine, Burman gearbox, Suzuki RM125 front wheel with a magnesium hub, and the rear wheel is actually a Husquarvana front rim with an alloy Bultaco hub. All efforts went into making this machine as light as possible, hence the choice of components, even the rear mudguard stays are hollow tube. This machine is road legal in the UK but for daylight use only. Chris says that 55bhp + 205 lbs dry weight = FUN!

Here's another road legal bike, a Triumph that looks just like a real dirt-tracker. We really don't see this look often enough on the UK scene, but I'm a firm believer in the simplistic "form and function" style - it's killer... and with the amount of potholes littering UK roads, the hard-tail back end really would be a killer!

Over at the Flakekings' blog they are currently trying to get a couple of vintage speedway racers ready for the street. Oh yes, you did read that correctly... road legal speedway bikes!!! As they say, the design and bare bones look of these bikes just can't be beat! I totally agree so keep stopping by the Flakekings blog to see how they're coming on.

FlakeKings Weslake project

FlakeKings Jawa project.

Finally on this post a Speedway Jawa Streetfighter from Finland which I found on the JL Meccanica blog.

ERNST BOGH's MAD GM/XT...

2011-02-23T18:40:00.002Z

Ernst Bogh had a short spell riding speedway for Leicester and Sheffield in 1976, but he never really made the grade and returned home to Denmark where he continued to ride for many years. Today he has a small collection of vintage speedway bikes and tells me that he is always interested in seeing what other people have in their garages Ernst would love to add a Street Mk2, a 4-valve J.A.P. and a Briggo 4-valve conversion to his own garage, so if you should hear of any for sale, please leave a comment for me to pass on to him.

Here's a couple of my favourite machines from Ernst's collection. The first is a Yamaha XT600 chassis fitted with an upright GM speedway engine, Norton gearbox, an NEB belt drive and 17" SuperMotard wheels. Ernst describes it as a "..fun bike to ride on sunny afternoons". The second machine is a fantastic J.A.P speedway machine that Ernst built from scrap parts. It now lives in his office along with some of Ernst's speedway trophies.

Yamaha XT with GM speedway engine, Norton gearbox and NEB belt drive

Speedway JAP built from scrap parts and now living in Ernst Bogh's office in Denmark.

"FROM CINDER TO SHALE" - Open Days 2011.

2011-02-21T23:22:00.002Z

I've been talking to my friend Ian Paterson this week. He has collected and restored what is probably the finest collection of dirt-track and speedway bikes in the country and as a treat for all the dirt track junkies out there, Ian is very kindly throwing open the doors of his magnificent collection for some open days this year. The collection is based just outside of Edinburgh. If you are interested in taking a look, give Ian a call on (+44)131 440 0864, leave your contact details and Ian will call you back. This is a once in a blue moon opportunity and I promise that you will not be disappointed.

Here's a few photos to give you a flavour of what's in store... (Photos are all copyright of Ian Paterson).

1929 OEC - duplex steering, long wheel base and suicide shift - Now that would really be something to get sideways!

1930 James V-Twin - lovin' that fancy exhaust.

1930 Norton.
This famous British Marque produced a dirt track bike based on their famous road racing machines.
You can see more about the bike here.

1934 Crocker - painted in the colours of Manuel Trujillo.
You can read more about the history of the Crocker in my previous post here

1934 Harley-Davidson CAC.
The Harley-D Cinder Racer is a rare beast but there are more on my previous post here.

The Vampire! 1947 Vincent with copper plated frame.

1957 Meguro - Japanese Autorace bike with asymetrical handlebars.

The Day I Met "Foggy"

2011-02-13T23:15:00.001Z

This happened about ten years ago and was a complete surprise at the time. I lived very close to the Rowrah Kart Track in West Cumbria and I'd heard there was a CCM SuperMoto track day on this particular day, May 22nd 2001 to be precise . With nothing better to do, I cycled over hoping to take some racing photographs and got the surprise of my life - sitting on the pit wall right next to me was recently retired, 4 times World Superbike Champion Carl Fogarty. Now, whenever I'd been near him before he was always a bit arrogant and totally focussed on his racing, today was completely different though, he was relaxed, chatty and very funny. It wasn't long before he started to mock some of the guys out on track and you could tell he was itching to get out there and show them how it's done... and that's just what he did. He jumped into the back of his van and just like superman, re-appeared wearing his famous Dainese Ducati racesuit. He grabbed one of the spare CCM supermoto bikes from the pits and took to the track, drifting the back wheel effortlessly and within three or four laps he'd lapped everybody.... When he came back in I said to him - "Did you enjoy that?"... "Aye lad - I hate being beat, even on one of these bloody things".

Foggy watching from the pit wall.

The tempatation gets too much -

Drifting the CCM into the bends...

...and accelerating out again. The style of a real World Champ!

I just had to get his autograph - on a bit of grubby card from my camera bag.

Photographs Copyright - MotoFreakoFoto.

1950s Vintage Japanese Motorcycles

2011-02-09T23:50:00.004Z

Now, not many people realise that the Japanese motorcycle industry is actually over 100 years old. Technically, it can be traced back to the first powered bicycle that was imported into the county back in 1896, but within 10 years, there were a number of talented engineers building powered two-wheelers in backyard workshops, notbaly Shimazu Narazo, who had built his own chassis and engine in 1909. By the end of the 1930s, contrary to most motorcycle history books I have read, Japan actually had a thriving motorcycle culture with over 50 manufacturers producing everything from 20cc motorised bicycles to licensed Harley-Davidsons. There was a need for cheap, reliable transport outside of the cities, where the road infrastructure was poor at best. Within the cities, there was also a growing band of motorcycle hipsters who loved posing, touring (tonori) and racing and to satisfy demand from the Imperial army, Harley-Davidson had been exporting bikes to Japan since 1917! There was also a growing Motorcycle Riding Club scene, in fact there were over twenty active clubs by 1920 and at least three specialist motorcycle magazines. The Japanese had also witnessed motorcycle racing similar to the events being staged in Europe, America and Australasia - racing on horse tracks and cycle tracks, road racing on unmade roads and path racing around parks and lakes were all popular and there were also some purpose built stadiums like the Tamagawa Speedway. Motorcycles at the time were known as Tetsuba (Iron Horses) or Nirinsha (simply two-wheeled vehicles), A later slang term used to describe motorcycles was Tansha, derived from the word jidojitensha meaning powered bicycle.

The motorcycle scene virtually stopped as soon as Japan forced their way into World War 2, although one or two companies did continue to supply the military during the war. Unfortunately, one of them, Kuro Hagane, had their production plant in Hiroshima.

Following their surrender, Japan had to slowly rebuild itself. The occupying American forces began to entertain each other (and the locals) by staging amateur motorcycle races and a new motorised bicycle industry began to emerge as the nation started to mobilise itself once again. Some of the pre-war names like Meguro and Miyata returned to motorcycle manufacture and many new names joined the scene, some drawing inspiration from British and German designs, others, like Honda and Bridgestone, started slowly by buying up small capacity army surplus engines and fitting them to bicycles. By the end of the 1940s, Japan had entered its 2nd Transport Revolution, but this time, the only war on the horizon was a motorcycle war! - With over 100 manufacturers producing powered two-wheelers, there were bound to be a whole load of casualties, and as the history books have proved, less than a dozen companies survived the 1950s and of those, only the "big four" of Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki and Yamaha have survived to this day.

Motorcycle Racing at the Tamagawa Speedway, November 1949.

The following photographs are from the Asama Memorial Cottage, at the foot of Mt Asama, the home of the legendary dirt road races which were the Japanese version of the Isle Of Man TT. The bikes are all from the 1950s and were produced by companies that will be virtually unknown in the West, and as you can see, the Japanese were producing some tasty wheels at the time, so much for Edward Turner's famous gaffe - "We have nothing to fear from the Japanese".

ASAHI FA-II / 1954 - 250cc; 7.6bhp; 4200rpm.
The Asahi was manufactured by Miyata Seisakusho of Tokyo, who had been producing motorcycles since 1933.
The Asahi AA of 1933 was the first mass produced motorcycle in Japan.

CABTON RBH / 1954 - 350cc; 16bhp; 5500rpm.

COLLEDA ST5 / 1957 - 123cc; 7.5bhp; 5500rpm:
Colleda and SJK were both names used by the Suzuki Loom comapny, later to become Suzuki motorcycles.

HOSK DB / 1958 - 498cc parallel twin; 26bhp; 5200rpm:
The Hosk was very closely based on the German Horex 500 and was produced to very high standards.

LILAC LS18II / 1960 - 247cc V-Twin; 19.5bhp; 7800rpm:
Lilac produced some highly advanced v-twin machines and also produced the 500cc Marusho Magnum which was exported to the USA in the early 60s.

MEGURO Z7 / 1959 - 498cc; 20bhp; 4400rpm:
Meguro eventually became part of the Kawasaki empire and their designs were the basis of the first 4-stroke motorcycles produced by Kawasaki. Thev Meguro Z7 and Z97 were very popular because of their European styling and relatively high-performance.

RIKUO / 1958 - 750cc OHV V-Twin:
Harley-Davidson licenced Sankyo Nainenki to produce HD Flathead VL models in Japan in the early 1930s in response to a request from the Imperial Army. By 1937 the company had been rebranded as Rikuo - (loosely translated as Road Kingor King of the Road). At the outbreak of WW2, the Americans were sent home and the Japanese continued to produce the VL as the Rikuo. Between 1937 and 1942 over 18000 Rikuo machines had been supplied to the army. Rikuo ceased production in 1958.

TOHATSU PA55 / 1955 - 80cc; 3.5bhp; 4800rpm:
Tohatsu produced some very high spec, small capacity machines, including the famous Tohatsu Runpet racer.
Tohatsu are still producing engines today, mainly for agricultural use and boats.

YAMAHA YA1 / 1957 - 125cc; 5.6bhp; 5000rpm:
Yamaha are one of the "big four" companies to have survived Japan's "Motorcycle Wars".
This is their first attempt at a production off-road racer. The history books usually tell us that the DT1 was their first proper off-road bike, but this factory produced special known as Akatombo (Red Dragonfly) with modified head, telescopic forks and alloy guards was raced at Asama in the mid 1950s.

SPEEDWAY RIDERS - A John Player Cigarette Card Album from 1938

2011-02-07T23:04:00.001Z

Joe Abbott; Arthur Atkinson; Phil Bishop:

Gordon Byers; Dicky Case; Frank Charles:

Eric Chitty; Bill Clibbett; Eric Collins:

Tommy Croombs: Billy Dallison; Jack Dixon:

Stanley "Acorn" Dobson; Frank Goulden; Stan Greatrex:

George Greenwood; Max Grosskreutz; Morian Hansen:

Bob Harrison; Vic Huxley; Ron Johnson:

Walter "Nobby" Key; Wally Kilmister; Bill Kitchen:

Gus Kuhn; Billy Lamont; Eric Langton:

Harold "Ginger" Lees; Walter Lloyd; Cordy Milne:

Jack Milne;John Glass (aka Mick Murphy); George Newton:

Jack Ormston; Jack Parker; Cliff Parkinson:

Tommy Price; Geoff Pymar; Claude Rye:
This card of Tommy Price has caused confusion and discussion amongst speedway fans for over 70 years. The description is of the Lancashire born Tommy Price who raced for Preston and Liverpool, but the picture is of a different Tommy Price who rode for Wembley and later became World Champion.

Jack Sharp; Harry Shepherd; Dicky Smythe:

Harold "Tiger" Stevenson; Fred Strecker; Lionel Van Praag:

Frank Varey; Colin Watson; Arthur "Bluey" Wilkinson:

George Wilks; Dicky Wise:

YAMASAKI...

2011-02-05T00:15:00.002Z

The builder of this street-tracker was possibly ahead of the game. I found this one at the Vintgae Japanese Motorcycle Club rally at Kettering back in July 1993. The bike is a lowered Kawasaki KX400 frame with a Yamaha RD400E engine. I wonder if it's still around today?

Photograph Copyright - MotoFreakoFoto

British Riders On The Ice - Pt2

2011-02-04T23:54:00.004Z

Since my first post on British Ice Speedway Riders I've had quite a few e-mails and comments from fans and former riders either asking to see more or copying me in on some more photographs. Here's a second selection of riders, including some who were not featured in my first post.

Richard Greer in action at the 1972 World Championship preliminary round at Grenoble, France where he finished in 11th place with 9 pts. He rode again at Assen in February 1973 and also netted 7 points in the World Championship Semi-Final at the same Netherlands venue in 1974.
This photo was given to Terry Stone by Richard himself, and was posted on the yahoo oldtimespeedway forum in response to a query of mine.

Mark Uzell used to work in Swindon for Steve over at the SteveStockers blog, but he was forever taking months off in the Winter to go Ice Racing. Mark now lives in Sweden where he can ride his ice bikes whenever he wants.

Mark Uzell shows off those deadly spikes.
Photo's kindly supplied by Stevestockers

This action shot of Ian Pratt was taken during the 1983 World Championship Qualifier at Alkmaar, Netherlands. Ian scored 3 points and finished 13th. Ian was also an accomplished road racer having ridden in the 500cc World Championship Grands Prix from 1987 to 1990 and also raced on 4 wheels, competing in the British Ford Championships and FVL Championships from 1990 to 2006 and the Spanish F3 Championships during 2001. He was last heard of living in Sayalonga, Spain where he is now a singer/songwriter and signed to the Catabult label and Paramount of Nashville U.S.A.

Ian Pratt (GB) and Bruce Cribb (NZ) on parade at Alkmaar in 1983.

Reg Thomas and Shane Hearty looked after the British riders interests in the 1980s.
Here they are in the pits area at Assen in 1985.

Graham Halsall, Shane Hearty and Lee Pavitt at the 1988 World Championship preliminary round at Madonna di Campiglio, Italy. Lee finished 8th with 14 points and Graham finished 12th with 9 points.

Bruce Cribb in conversation with German ace Michael Lang.

Graham Halsall (yellow helmet) makes a blast around the outside.

Paul Evitts waiting to take to the ice at Eindhoven in 1986

LET'S WORK TOGETHER....

2011-01-24T21:57:00.003Z

Everywhere that motorcycles are raced, you can be sure someone will have a go with a sidecar... just look at some of these excellent images from the past hundred years....

Grand Prix Sidecar Racing, France, 22nd June 1913

Flexi-sidecar outfits racing on American dirt-tracks in the 1920s

Programme for a beach race at Silloth, Cumbria in 1928.
The Sprint Sidecars featured on the cover have the passenger looking backwards -
Is that so the passenger can let the driver know when someone is catching them up?

Harold Jackson and J.W.Hackett at a Beach Race, Ernse Bay,Barrow-In-Furness, circa 1928.

Sidecar Scrambles in the 1940s

Grass Track racing from Warton Crags, Lancashire, 16th Sept 1956:
l-r: Jim & Millie Baybutt, Tom Parkinson & Eric Croft, Roy Cunliffe & P.Spencer.

How low can you go? Sidecar Grand Prix action - 1950s?

Sidecar Ice Speedway - Germany 1971.

Sidecar Trials

Paul Bickley & Paul Silvera on a 1000cc Grass Track Sidecar outfit - Southfields Farm, Appleby. October 2000.
(Photo by - MotoFreakoFoto)

500cc sidecar racing - Appleby-In-Westmorland, October 2000
(Photo by - MotoFreakoFoto)

This is Sidecar Ice Racing Canadian style Looks like a skateboard rather than a sidecar!

Sidecar Ice Speedway in Germany

Sidecar MotoX - survival of the fittest!

Sidecar Speedway from the Sidecar Supercup, Workington 2002.
(Photo by - MotoFreakoFoto)

TOWNELEY SPEEDWAY - BURNLEY. A very short lived venue...

2011-01-23T00:44:00.010Z

The speedway at Burnley opened to a huge 12,000 crowd on March 30th 1929, but faded away less than four months later... Despite the fact that the club had Frank Charles, Joe Abbott and "Ginger" Lees (three of the biggest names in the North) spearheading their team, a fabulous stadium and over 40 riders at their disposal, it just wasn't to be.

Only six speedway meetings were ever held at the Towneley track before it closed for good and although the Burnley team completed five of their English Dirt-track League matches, only one of them was at home. The home match on April 27th was cancelled due to "building work",the match against Leicester on June 29th had to be abandoned and the proposed match against Leeds on June 6th was cancelled due to a shortage of riders! They also had to change the team when the format and rules of the league were changed (some things never change in speedway!), and the original promotion went into liquidation by the end of May and sold out to Percy Platt from Rochdale speedway. Platt's first match in control was really the nail in the coffin of Towneley Speedway as it only lasted 3 heats before it was abandoned due to the excessive dust. The hot weather had brought water rationing to Burnley, so there was no water for the track. The league match against Leeds was quickly re-arranged as yet another Individual Trophy meeting and although it was another successful day for Golden Helmet winner Frank Charles, it was a financial disaster for the new promotion and speedway was never seen in Burnley again. The Towneley stadium continued to host greyhounds until 1933 before it closed down completely.

Newspaper Reports of the Towneley Speedway due to open at Easter 1929
Team photo l-r; Ernest Ingham, E.Thistlethwaite, Jack Lund, Joe Abbott, I.Sanders, J.Rushworth, and Les Martin.
Joe Abbott practising on the Burnley Track and Frank Charles poses with his Douglas

The Mayoress of Burnley cuts the tapes to open Towneley Speedway
The bottom photo shows Arthur Wilcock broadsiding around a fallen rider.

The Burnley Team who beat Salford Albion 41-22 at Towneley on May 11th 1929.
"Ginger" Lees, Arthur Wilcock, Cyril Wilcock, Billy Howard, Jack Lund, Frank Charles, Ernie Ingham and Joe Abbott

Harold Riley "Ginger" Lees was the Captain of the Burnley team.
Ginger went on to find fame and fortune with Preston, Wembley and England
He was also a big star at Hamburg.

Frank Charles won the Golden Gauntlets on April 13th, and the Golden Helmet on July 6th.
Frank Charles eventually became a huge star at Belle Vue and Wembley and finished 4th in the very first World Final. He was eventually killed in a gliding accident in 1939.

Joe Abbott was another local lad made good. apart from his free scoring for the Burnley team he went on to become a star for Preston and Belle Vue, and eventually lost his life on track riding for Odsal in 1950.

Burnley Speedway Team 1929
l-r Frank Charles (kneeling), Arthur Taylor (manager) , Arthur Wilcock, Ginger Lees, Jack Lund, Cyril Wilcock (on bike), Ernest Ingham, Joe Abbott and Percy Platt (promoter).

Programme for the EDL match against Leicester on June 29th.
The match was abandoned after heat 3 due to excessive dust. Burnley were leading 13-8.

1929 Map showing Towneley Stadium, the home of Burnley Speedway

...and this what the site looks like today.
The pits were just about where the white arrow is and the footpath running across the centre of the photo is the same path that runs across the back of the pits wall in the 1929 map. The track is now under part of the municipal golf course.
The road running down the right hand side is the drive to Towneley Hall.

POORLY KLE - What progress?

2011-01-22T21:31:00.002Z

Since the last instalment, I have managed to clean up all of the parts, replace the camshafts and followers, fit the new rectifier, regulator and solenoid and clean years of "white fur" from the alloy. I also had a new black vinyl cover fitted to the replacement seat (Not quite so garish as the original pink item). But then winter kicked in and I lost the incentive to work in a sub-zero garage. Then today, I was looking through some old documents and photographs and came across this original 1991 brochure for the old KLE, with a photograph of my own bike taken on Cold Fell about 5 years ago... I suddenly felt a pang of guilt and a need to get the old gal running again. There's a tank to respray, some plastics to clean up and there's still that front brake to get working again.

...and this is my bike, looking all clean and tidy on Cold Fell in 2005

So, guess what I'll be doing tomorrow?

Grass Track Bikes

2011-01-21T23:31:00.003Z

Sorting through my boxes of photographs I found these "almost forgotten" images taken at a Grass Track meeting organised by the lamented Lakes Grass Track Racing Club back in October 2000. If I remember correctly, the venue was Southfields Farm, near Appelby and Jason Handley was on fire, winning just about everything in the solos. I loved the intimacy of these grass track meets - wandering round the pits, having the craic with the riders and sticking my nose into the bikes.

Eddie Rouse's Pre-75 Jawa 500.

Antig/Jawa
Hans Zierk tuned by the look of the markings on the head

Pre-75 Jawa #2

RMS/Jawa

Photographs all Copyright - MotoFreakoFoto

"SMOKY" STRATTON - Speedway Trailblazer...

2011-01-19T23:53:00.002Z

I have a fascination with the pioneer dirt-track riders of the 1920s and 30s, some of whom have featured in previous blog posts, but there are three in particular who have really captured my imagination - Frank Charles, Clem Beckett and "Smoky" Stratton. They all led wildly different lives and were much more than just succesful speedway riders. My interest in Stratton was awakened when I discovered he was killed in a road accident just a few hundred yards from my first home in the Lake District. I then discovered that he was buried in a local cemetry and have continued to research his career and visit his grave ever since.

Spencer Charles Stratton, just after his arrival in the UK in April 1928.

Spencer Charles Stratton was a true speedway pioneer and a real-life motorcycling free-spirit, always searching for a new and exciting challenge. He left his New Zealand homeland in 1923 aged just 19 to go racing in Australia. Less than 12 months later sailed half way around the World to the USA to try his luck on the American board tracks and eventually landed in Britain in 1928 to join the speedway revolution and quickly became one of the sports first international superstars. He risked his life racing motorcycles on every type of circuit, grass, board, cinders and even concrete, so how ironic that he was tragically killed in a road accident, driving home from a speedway meeting in rural Northern England.

Born in 1904, Stratton spent his early years on the family sheep farm at Colyton, just outside of Palmerston North, New Zealand. He was a bright kid, did well at school and was training to be a lawyer when the excitement of motorcycle racing lured him away from the bar and onto the grass tracks where he was an instant success. Notable victories included the North Island Grass Track Championships and the 1923 New Zealand Middleweight Championships at Stockton. At the age of 19 he travelled to Australia to race and was soon bagging trophies, titles and records virtually everywhere he appeared. One Australian newspaper described him as "the most promising rider of the season" and predicted that Stratton "... will be the leading figure in motorcycling ... next season."

On 7th May 1924, he left Sydney aboard the SS Ventura arriving in San Francisco on May 26th. The challenge? To try his luck on the infamous board tracks of the USA. I have not discovered how he fared on his first visit to the USA, but he was back in Australia by August 1925, winning the 15mile Championship of Queensland and set 6 World Records over 1 mile, 3 miles and 5miles at Brisbane on August 24th using both his 350cc and 1000cc Indian motorcycles. Stratton was also quite an exponent riding his Indians on the fabulous 1 mile banked concrete Olympia Motor Speedway at Maroubra, in Australia.

The infamous Maroubra Speedway in New South Wales, known locally as the "Killer Track".

Following this second succesful spell in Australia, Stratton returned to the USA in 1926 with another New Zealand racer, Cecil Brown. Their destination was Springfield, the home of Indian Motorcycles. Stratton obviously made a big impression as was soon riding with the Indian Works team and recorded some notable performances on the Altoona, Rockingham, and Fresno Board Tracks. In September 1926, Spencer was to be found racing at the famous Rockingham Speedway in New Hampshire where he was racing against the likes of Art Pechar, Eddie Brink, Reggie Pink and Chuck Remington. He returned down under before the year was out and it was reported in the Canberra Times dated 2nd December 1926 that "... Speeding Stratton registered 95mph on his Indian across the Bredabane Plains". Always pushing himself and his bikes to the limit, Stratton survived an horrific crash at the Hamilton Speedway in Newcastle, NSW, promoted incidentally by another New Zealander, the legendary Johnnie Hoskins. He remained unconcious for 23 days but eventually recovered, got right back on his bike and continued to set records and win titles at tracks in both Australia and on the 1 mile grass tracks in his homeland.

Dirt-track racing (soon to be re-christened Speedway) had arrived in the UK amid a blaze of publicity in 1928 and a flood of Aussie riders made their way to Britain to try and earn their fame and fortune. Smoky was amongst the first to join the exodus, joining promoter and good friend Johnnie Hoskins aboard the SS Oronsay as it set sail from Sydney bound for Southampton, arriving here in February 1928.

350cc Indian single, similar to the one used by Smoky Stratton

Smoky loved his 1000cc V-Twin Indian Daytona

At this stage of his career Stratton had been exclusively racing two Indian motorcycles, a 350cc single and a 990cc Daytona Indian Chief, but he switched to riding the famous dirt-track Douglas bikes when he rode in the UK. He was one of the first real "Broadsliders" to appear on the British tracks and his name adorned the billboards all over the country - from Stamford Bridge in London to Marine Gardens in Scotland - "Smoky" Stratton as he was now known, really was thrilling the millions. Like many of the Aussie stars though, Stratton never really got to grips with the tighter tracks in the UK and he soon spread his wings onto the continent where he also ran his own track in Cologne in front of crowds in excess of 75.000!

Smoky aboard his Douglas in 1929

Motorcycle historian Cyril May described the spectacular German venue in an article in the Speedway Star and News dated 17/12/1967. "Stratton's track gave a lap of 400 yards and was built immediately inside a concrete cycle racing track. The cycle track was banked almost vertically on the bends and on top of this banking, the front rows of spectators stood and looked down. ... Quite a lot of trouble was experienced in the matter of obtaining a permit from the police, who then controlled everything in Germany. Two weeks elapsed before they would give permission for a private demonstration and when some of the boys were at last allowed to put it over, the police ran for cover! It was only when things had been going on smooothly for about ten minutes, free from any slaughter, that they could be induced to spectate. In the end they were all for it."

Stratton had also became a partner in Provincial Dirt Tracks Ltd, the company that built the Owlerton Speedway Stadium at Sheffield in the UK and the White City Speedway at Cardiff in Wales. His partners included fellow riders Clem Beckett and Jimmy Hindle and a businessman named Edgar Hart. Even though his weatlth and business portfolio were starting to grow, Smoky still had a thirst for speed and danger and continued to race all over the World, never settling in one place for too long and always looking for the next big challenge. As well as being part owner of Sheffield, he also rode for the Yorkshire team in the 1929 English Dirt Track League and competed in the beach races at New Brighton near Liverpool. At the end of the British season he returned to the USA where, reunited with his beloved Indians, he continued his excellent form racing on the board tracks.

Another portrait of Smoky on his Douglas. This looks like the pits area at Sheffield.

Back in the UK in 1930 he joined the Nottingham speedway team and by December of that year he had returned to Australia where he set another World speed record at the Ashfield Autodrome, covering a quarter mile in 17.8 seconds. Whilst in Australia he could often be found riding on the same bill as his younger brother, Ken Stratton. In one meeting they were in the same race when Smoky suffered one of his serious injuries that dogged his racing career.

Howard Kenneth Stratton was born in 1908 and followed very much in his elder brothers tyre tracks, starting on the New Zealand grass tracks before heading over to Australia where he became very succesful on the speedway tracks around the Hunter Valley. Ken favoured a Douglas machine, just as Spencer did when he came to the UK.

Spencer Stratton returned to the UK again in March 1931 and signed for the Plymouth speedway team. He continued to ride on the continent too, one such meeting was the very first dirt-track meetingto be held in Vienna, Austria on September 1st 1932 and in 1933 he made a brief visit to his home in New Zealand. Despite the fact that he raced motorcycles all over the World, I have found no records of Smoky ever riding on a New Zealand Speedway track at any time in his career.

"Smoky" (sitting on the bench), tends to his bike in Vienna 1932.
(© Artur Fenzlau/Technisches Museum Wien - www.technischesmuseum.at )
.

"Smoky" eventually found his way back to the UK and teamed up with his old pal Johnnie Hoskins once again. In 1938, Hoskins reopened the track at Brough Park, Newcastle Upon Tyne and appointed Stratton as his manager. The Newcastle squad included eight Canadian riders at the time and also featured Roland and Maurice Stobbart from Cumberland. Roland was also promoting speedway at the Lonsdale Park track in Workington and had invited some of the Canadian riders to participate in a challenge match at the non-league venue on June 4th 1938. "Smoky" came along as team manager for the night and also acted as driver for the three Canadians, but on the journey home, driving along the Workington to Cockermouth Road, their car was involved in a head on collision with another car near to the village of Brigham.

Stratton was killed instantly, he was only 33 years old. The three Canadian riders, Bruce Venier, Ellwood Stilwell and Robert Sparks all suffered head and facial injuries, as did the occupants of the other car, driver John Roan of Cockermouth and his passenger, George Smith of Whitehaven. Ironically, another Canadian rider was also injured in a car accident that very night. George Pepper, the Newcastle captain, had turned down the chance of riding at Workington as he was due to ride at Edinburgh on the same night. He was involved in a head on collision on his way to Edinburgh and suffered cuts to his leg. The meeting he was due to race in was subsequently cancelled.

Maurice Stobbart had the sad task of identifying Smoky's body at the inquest, which was led by Inspector Woolcock. As "Smoky" had no family living in the UK, it was decided to bury him locally at the cemetry in Cockermouth.

The Inspector and one of his officers escorted the funeral courtege out of town and along the Lorton Road to the cemetry. The whole population of Cockermouth lined the streets to pay their last respects to this great sporting legend. Riders, officials and supporters from the Newcastle and Workington speedway tracks attended the funeral, along with Mr Ivison, the secretary of the Speedway Control Board, Jimmy Fraser, director of the Edinburgh Speedway and his great friend Johnnie Hoskins was there too. Hoskins played a big part in Smoky's life and it was only fitting that he should be there at the end too. Hoskins also had a gravestone erected to commemorate his freind and colleague.

Whenever I visit Smoky's grave I am always pleased to see fresh flowers laid there, but my inquisitive mind wanted to know who put them there as he had no family in the UK to my knowledge. Questions in the newspapers, on the internet and through the speedway fraternity had led nowhere, but a chance remark by Johnnie Hoskins in a 1967 edition of the Speedway Star and News gave me a clue. Hoskins said... "I still often think of Smoky when he was with me at my Newcastle track in Australia, riding the big Indians in the mid twenties and also of his exploits on the big concrete track of Marouba. Neither have I forgotten those two devoted speedway supporters that corresponded with me for quite a time after the Stratton tradgedy ... they were the ones who so kindly tended 'Smoky's' grave in the little town of Cockermouth"

Then. out of the blue, I received a reply to a note I had left at Smoky's grave, which gave me all of the answers. Inspector Woodcock, the man who had led the inquest and escorted Smoky's coffin to the cemetry, was a speedway fan from the Workington track. His young daughter was also a big speedway fan and felt so sorry for Smoky being buried so far away from his family and homeland that she promised to care and tend to his grave. Both of them wrote to Johnnie Hoskins and thro him they traced his family in New Zealand and began to correspond with them too - This young lady kept her promise and laid flowers at the grave every weekend until she passed away herself a few years ago and now her daughter and grandaughter are carrying on the tradition.

Johnnie Hoskins paid for a headtone to be erected on Smoky's grave. Fresh flowers are placed there every week.
The inscription reads...

TO THE MEMORY OF
SPENCER CHARLES STRATTON
SPEEDWAY RIDER
FROM NEW ZEALAND
WHO WAS KILLED AT BRIGHAM
4th JUNE 1938 AGED 33 YEARS

So Spencer Charles Stratton is not alone and I too will continue my little pilgrmage to the quiet, lonely grave of "Smoky" Stratton and pay my respects to a true motorcycling Trailblazer.

(With huge thanks to Dave Gifford, Ross Garrigan, Nigel Bird and relatives of Spencer himself for their input, research and information).

Harry Hawker - Racing the Boards...

2011-01-16T00:02:00.003Z

I've just finished reading an excellent biography of Harry Hawker, the famous Australian aviator who flew the Atlantic in 1919 and was also the co-founder of the Hawker Aircraft company. He had moved to England in 1911 and ended up working for the Sopwith Aviation Company who were based at Brooklands. Inevitably, with some spare time on his hands he also raced cars and motorcycles around the legendary banked track.

Like so many people obsessed with machines and speed, Harry also had a love of motorcycles and built two of his own in a small workshop in Melbourne. His favourite project was a high-powered motorcycle which used a v-twin engine that Harry built himself in 1909. The design was based on the British J.A.P v-twin engine with a few Hawker modifications. I was interested to read that Harry raced this bike on a board track in Australia, just like the great board tracks of America at the time. The biography says that...

"Harry raced against his friends Harry Busteed and Cecil De Faga who also built their own machines. Busteed's machine had enormous cyclinders but used a simpler side valve design. They raced on a steeply banked wooden track which was built for racing pedal cycles... The track was only an eighth of a mile and the high powered motorcycles soon started to shake the wooden structure to pieces"

They were eventually barred from using this track and took to racing on the country roads around Melbourne instead. Here's a few photographs of Harry Hawker and his friends with their homemade racing motorcycles at the Princes Park track, Melbourne, Australia.

Harry Hawker and Cecil De Fraga racing on the Princes Park board track in 1910 (Bob Chamerlain)

Cecil de Fraga with his v-twin Bouchet at Princes Park in 1909 (Bob Chamberlain)

Harry Busteed with his home made racing motorcycle. The engine was so large that Harry had to sit over the rear wheel and use long handlebars (Bob Chamberlain)

Information and photographs taken from "Hawker" A Biography of Harry Hawker by L.K.Blackmore. Published in 1990 by Airline Publishing Ltd. ISBN 185310437X.

Click the link for more information about the fascinating life and times of Harry Hawker.

Masters Of The Ice...

2011-01-13T22:12:00.021Z

This week I have mainly been watching some old films of Ice Speedway and reliving the Ice Speedway World Finals of years gone by - this sport must be the most dangerous and intense type of motorcycle sport known to man and I love it. To learn more about the sport there is a brief overview of what it's all about here and you can read a history of Ice Speedway on the FIM site right here.

Now to share some of my photographs of the Ice Speedway World Champions of the past 40 years.

GABDRAKHMAN KADYROV - USSR:
An Ice racing legend and the very first World Champion in 1966.
He won another 5 titles in 1968, 1969, 1971, 1972 and 1973. He also won the FIM Cup in 1964.

BORIS SAMORODOV - USSR:
Another legendary Ice Racer - Winner of the FIM cup in 1963, European Champion in 1965 and World Champion in 1967.

ANTONIN SVAB - Czechoslovakia:
Celebrating victory in 1970.

MIROSLAV "MILAN" SPINKA - Czechoslovakia:
World Champion in 1974.
This photo shows the rostrum at the 1982 qualifier at Eindhoven (Holland):
1st - Milan Spinka, 2nd -. Boris Bratchikov (USSR) and 3rd -
Vladimir Posrednikov (USSR).

SERGEI TARABANKO - USSR:
Four consecutive victories in 1975, 1976, 1977 and 1978.
This picture was taken at Eindhoven in '79.

ANATOLI BONDARENKO - USSR:
The 1979 and 1980 World Champion flanked by Vladimir Ljubitsch (2nd) and Zdenek Kdruna (3rd)
(Photo by Stephan Jarivik)
* Anatoli's nephew Iliya Bondarenko will be seen on British shale in 2011 having signed to race for the new Premier League Leicester Lions team. Watch out for this exciting Russian rider over the course of the new season.

BONDARENKO in action leading Hasse Johansson at Assen.

VLADIMIR LJUBITSCH - USSR:
Made it to the top of the rostrum in 1981

SERGEI KASAKOV - USSR:
Champion of the World in 1982 and 1983.
(Photos of Kasakov are copyright of John Hipkiss)

ERIK STENLUND - SWEDEN:
The first rider to break the Soviet domination. A worthy World Champion in 1984 and 1988.

YURI IVANOV - USSR:
Three times a winner 1986, 1987 and 1992.
(action photo by David Lowes)

NIKOLAI NISHENKO - USSR:
The 1989 World Champion sadly lost his life racing on the ice in 1993.
(Photo by Norbert Ockenga)

JARMO HIRVASOJA - Finland:
This Thrill-Merchant was Top of The World in 1990

SERGEI IVANOV - Russia:
Keeping it in the family, like his brother Yuri, Sergei became World Champion in 1991, but only after a thrilling run-off with Sweden's Per Olof Serenius. (photo by Klaus Goffelmeyer)

ALEKSANDR BALAZHOV - Russia:
Three times a Champion - 1994, 1996 and 1998
(Action Photo by Jan Janu)

ALEKSANDR BALAZHOV talks to
VLADIMIR FADEYEV of Russia: World Champion 1993 and 1999.
Five World Titles between them!
(Photo by Norbert Ockenga)

PER OLOF SERENIUS - Sweden:
Posa finished runner up 1982, '91 and '94 before taking his first title in 1995 He won again in 2002 at the tender age of 54!
(Photo by Jan Janu)

KYRIL DROGALIN - Russia:
An exciting rider who has been World Champion on three occasions - 1997, 2000 and 2001.
(Photo by David S Lowes)

VITALIY KHOMITSEVICH - Russia:
On his way to the title in 2003

DIMITRI BULANKIN - Russia:
World Champion in 2004

NIKOLAI KRASNIKOV - Russia:
The new breed of Ice racer - Won his first title in 2005 at the age of 19 and has dominated the sport ever since. He has won 6 consecutive titles between 2005 and 2010 and will no doubt be there or thereabouts again this year. Nikolai comes from Shadrinsk near the Kazakhstan border. He rides for the Kadyrov Club in Ufa, the home of 60s legends Samorodov and Kadyrov
(Photo from Motor Sport Aktuell)

British Riders On The Ice...

2011-01-12T23:38:00.007Z

Ice speedway has long been the preserve of the Russians and the Scandanavians with occasional German and Dutch riders thrown into the mix, but there have been one or two notable attempts by British riders to make their mark on the ice too.

Bruce Semmens raced in the Swedish League between 1949 and 1952 becoming the top British Ice Racer of his era and Andy Ross made quite a name for himself in the World Championships during the late 60s, culminating with a joint 5th place finish in the 1970 World Final at Nassjo, Sweden. During the 1980s and early 90s, Great Britain also entered teams into the World Team Championships. They never scaled the heights of the all conquering Russians, but they were never disgraced in what is arguably the most dangerous motorcycle sport in the World.

Here's a few photographs of some of the riders who have worn the Union Jack on the ice speedway tracks in the past 30 years or so...

Team GB at the 1985 World Cup semi-final, Grenoble, France.

Paul Evitts, Bruce Cribb, John Walmsley and Neil Tuxworth.
Yes, that Neil Tuxworth! Former TT rider, road racer and the current Honda Road Racing manager.
(Copyright Photo Courtesy of John Hipkiss)

Paul Evitts from Dudley, West Midlands.
Paul was born near to the Cradley Heath speedway track and is still racing in veteran grass track events today
(Copyright Photo Courtesy of John Hipkiss)

John Walmsley from Millom in Cumbria. John also raced conventional speedway for his local track in Barrow
(Copyright Photo Courtesy of John Hipkiss)

Martin Goodwin scored 8pts in the World Championship preliminary round at Frankfurt in January 1983.
(Photo - Klaus Goffelmeyer)

Bruce Cribb - "The Worlds fastest Maori"... and one of the most prolific "British" ice racers in recent history. Although he was originally from New Zealand, Cribby has lived in the West Midlands many years now and raced on the ice using a British licence. This photo was taken at Eindhoven in 1993 (Photo - Norbert Ockenga)

Graham Halsall - like Cribby, Graham never knew when to give up and raced on the ice for around 20 years.
(photo - Norbert Ockenga)

Finally, a mystery photo. Can anyone identify this British Ice Racer please?

Thanks to John Hipkiss for allowing me to reproduce some of his photographs on this post.

John Hipkiss Photography Ltd hippopix@blueyonder.co.uk Tel - 07836 386169 Fax - 0121 421 2237.

ONCE A JOLLY SWAGMAN

2011-01-06T21:19:00.013Z

After years of waiting and having to make do with a dodgy pirate copies hastily recorded when it makes an all too rare appearence on TV, the classic speedway film "Once a Jolly Swagman" finally gets an official DVD release this month.

The storyline may be a bit flimsy, but this largely forgotten film captures a real slice of British speedway history and shows just how popular the sport was at that time. The racing scenes are the highlight of the film for me and were filmed at London's famous New Cross stadium, which was home to speedway from 1934 to 1963. New Cross Rangers' stars Ron Johnson and Ron Howes are amongst the riders performing the action scenes, Howes being the stunt double for Bogarde.

Staring Dirk Bogarde, Bonar Colleano, Thora Hird, Sid James and Bill Owen, this British gem was nominated for a BAFTA in 1949. Bogarde, in only his second film, plays the role of Bill Fox, a bored factory worker who becomes a famous speedway star. He meets a glamorous society woman who introduces him to a new and exciting social circle and Bill quickly forgets his working class roots. Bill eventually becomes disillusioned with the Mayfair scene and marries Pat, the sister of his team mate, Lag Gibbon. Back at the track, he tries to form a riders union to ensure families are financially secure should an accident occur on the track. Pat tries to get Bill to pack up racing and open a garage, but Bill refuses and she leaves him. WW2 arrives and Bill enlists as a motorcycle despatch rider but after the war Bill is left with a dilema, should he make a racing comeback or get back together with his one true love?

Some trivia about the film - The original novel was written by Montagu Slater; The film was released as "Maniacs On Wheels" in the USA: Dirk Bogarde did not like motorbikes; a speedway track complete with pits was built at Pinewood Studios as a replica of New Cross Stadium; the title of the film refers to the charachter Lag Gibbon (played by Bill Owen in the film), an Australian rider who is heard whistling the tune. He is the rider featured in the clip above who crashes and has to retire from racing.

MotoFreako gives this film the thumbs up just for the nostalgic racing scenes and the sound of 500cc JAPs at full blat. The DVD is due to released on January 24th and you can pre-order your very own copy right here.

JAWA-CZ MOTORCYCLES

2011-01-02T22:30:00.032Z

I have a real soft spot for most Eastern European motorcycles, even if they do have a reputation for being a bit like grey porridge; you know what I mean, stodgy, bland and even ugly in some peoples eyes. This may be the case when it comes to the simple commuter machines that have always been designed to be affordable and utilitarian, but when it comes to competition machines, the Czech machines have a record to be proud of.

The Ceska Zbrojovka factory in Strakonice began production of armaments in 1918 diversifying into bicycle production in 1930. It wasn't long before engines were added to these bicycles, progressing to complete motorcycle production within a couple of years. The CZ98 of 1934 was the first machine to go into mass production and continued to be produced for many years. Over the next 5 years 125cc, 250cc and 50cc machines were produced and 1938 saw the first appearance of CZ sidecars.

Can this really be James Dean on a CZ?

The German army took control of the factory during WW2 and no motorcycles were produced at all, but production did resume in 1946 with the CZ125 2-stroke twin. In 1949, CZ was brought under the control of the CSAZ (Czech Auto Industry) which brought the Czech motorcycle industry together under one banner.

Included in this new organisation was JAWA, a company formed by Frantisek Janecek in 1928 to produce a motorcycle based on the German Wanderer machine. The name JAWA is taken from the first two letters of JAnacek and WAnderer. The machine proved to be overly expensive though and Janecek had to re-evaluate his business and design a new, more cost effective machine. Ironically, it was Englishman George.W.Patchett who set him on the path to success, designing a 175cc machine that used a British Villiers engine and an Albion 3-speed gearbox. This was quickly followed by a 250cc version and the JAWA quickly became the most popular motorcycle on the Czecoslovakian roads.

George Patchett on a JAWA at the 1932 Isle of Man TT

Taking the Villiers engine as a model, JAWA began production of their own 175cc 2-stroke engine in 1932 and by the late 1940s, JAWA were producing their own 175cc and 250cc 2-strokes and also a range of 175cc, 250cc and 350cc 4-stroke models. In 1946, JAWA designed an advanced 250cc 2-stroke engine that was to become the basis of JAWA motorcycles for many years to come. When CZ and JAWA were joined together in 1949, both factories were able to utilise each others best design features, including this engine design and CZs proven forks, suspension and brakes. The iconic JAWA-CZ design was more or less set during this period and even today, many JAWA-CZ models retain some element of that classic 50s look.

Sporting success has always been important to the Czech manufacturers and the ISDT (International Six Days Trial) models and motorcrossers produced throughout the 1960s and 70s were pure "form and function" in their design and very successful they were too. CZ had taken the Silver Vase in the 1947 ISDT and during the next 15 years they had added 7 Gold Medals to their trophy cabinet. JAWA-CZ machines also came 1st in the 500cc World MX championships in 1966, 1967 and 1968 and the legendary Joel Robert won his first World title on a Czech machine too. JAWA-CZ machines were also at the forefront of road racing in the 60s, the most famous example being the highly advanced 350cc R67 ridden by Bill Ivy.

JAWA 4-cylinder 350cc racing machine

The third manufacturer to become part of CSAZ in 1949 was the ESO factory from Divisov. ESO were well known in Czechoslovakia at the time for their 250cc, 350cc and 500cc 4-stroke motocross and speedway machines. The 500cc ESO DT5 speedway engine was quickly gaining a reputation outside of Czechoslovakia too, especially in the hands of riders like the legendary Barry Briggs. In spite of its sporting success, the ESO name was not internationally recognised, so in July 1966, CSAZ re-branded the ESO DT5 as the JAWA type 680 and a legend was born. The JAWA has become synonymous with success in speedway at all levels and has won numerous World Championships in speedway, longtrack and ice speedway.

1972 JAWA Speedway Racer

1980 JAWA Ice Speedway racer

The modern day JAWA speedway engine has recently had another name change and is now known as JRM (Jawa Racing Motorcycles) to differentiate it from the JAWA roadsters.

IT'S DAKAR TIME

2011-01-01T14:50:00.002Z

Craig Bounds in Dakar action

For the next two weeks I will mostly be watching Dakar Rally highlights on Eurosport. The bike class looks really good this year with all teams on 450s for the first time. I'll be looking out for the brave Brits, the luvly Annie Seel (No56), American warrior Jonah Street (No7) and the two Chinese guys, Su Winmen (No81) and Han Baohua (No149) on their Jincheng bikes, just because I like unusual machines.

Annie Seel - Swedish Dakar Princess

The British riders this year include newcomer Jenny Morgan on a Yamaha 450, Craig Bounds who caused a few upsets last year before he had to withdraw and our old Aussie friend Simon Pavey (who must be at least part Brit by now). Good luck to all of them, stay safe and here's to a great Dakar.

Simon Pavey with his 2011 Dakar BMW

Jenny Morgan gets prepared for her first Dakar Rally

If you don't know what the fuss is all about look out for the excellent highlight shows on Eurosprt with Carlton Kirby's unique and entertaining commentary.

Weslake 500 on Bike EXIF

2010-12-13T19:59:00.002Z

One of the most beautifully restored Weslake speedway bikes I've ever seen has been posted on Bike EXIF. To see more photographs and read more about this particular bike follow the link to Bike EXIF.

Interesting reading...

2010-12-07T21:29:00.001Z

If you're a fan of British Speedway, this post on the excellent Keep Turning Left blog may be of interest... KTL's forthright views and the comments that follow probably echo the frustrations of speedway fans all over the UK. Click on the caption below the picture...

KEEP TURNING LEFT - SPEEDWAY IN CRISIS!

Speedway News - Gollob and Ward win Major FIM Awards

2010-12-05T09:36:00.002Z

Darcy Ward - FIM Rookie Of The Year 2010

Australia and Poole "Pirates" speedway star Darcy Ward was named FIM Rookie of the Year at a gala award ceremony in Portugal. Ward received his award having retained his World Under-21 Championship title - only the second rider ever to win the competition twice. In a double celebration for speedway, Polish superstar and 2010 World Speedway Champion Tomasz Gollob won the Personality of the Year award, with the duo beating off strong competition from several motorcycle disciplines.

Tomasz Gollob - FIM Personality Of The Year 2010

Ward said: "That was cool. I didn’t think I would get the award, let alone Tomasz. It was pretty cool for both of us to get it.... This should elevate me in some ways, but it was good just to come here and see Jorge Lorenzo, David Knight (MAXXIS FIM E3 Enduro world champion), and Toni Cairoli (FIM MX1 Motocross world champion). It was a good experience."

Original 1929 Douglas Dirt-Track Bikes for sale

2010-11-18T10:00:00.028Z

The OldTimeSpeedway group has just highlighted these incredible and totally original 1929 Douglas dirt track bikes for sale. They were originally sold at Sotheby's in Australia in April 2010 and it looks like they're both up for grabs again. I've pasted in the original description from the Sotheby's catalogue which really brings the bikes to life.

1929 Douglas DT6 600cc

Manchester born Reg Hunt came to Australia in 1949. His Grandfather, notable speedway and Isle of Man champion Pa Cowley and his daughter Dot being an integral part of speedway and dirt track track racing world in the UK between the Wars. Reg first rode the 600cc bike (lot 104) when he was 9 years old, then raced it at Charnock Richard near Manchester when he was 14 years old. He had lied about his age to the race officials saying he was 17 in order to get the entry. He won that race. This was the beginning of his extraordinary life in motor racing achieving a spectacular career in hill climbing, trials and in Grand Prix Racing becoming a household name in Australian sporting history.

The two motor cycles offered are dear to Reg’s heart having been with him since the 1960s when he acquired the two Douglas machines in the UK bringing them back to Australia where he and his son Graham have enjoyed club level racing together.

Douglas DT5 speedway bike

The Douglas Motor Cycle Company founded in Bristol, England in 1907, was at the forefront of innovative design right through to the 1950s. Its first success at the Isle of Man came in 1912 with Bill Bashall winning the ‘Junior TT’ at 39.65 mph. In 1920 Douglas introduced over head valves for racing bikes but the real technical advances came in the winter of 1922-23 when the Douglas designers, urged on by the famous Brooklands’ race, Freddie Dixon, introduced many major changes. The most significant change perhaps, being the now famous dropped frame providing many advantages for the TT machines and the yet to come dirt trackers. Most new TT models were also fitted with a front disc brake designed by the British Research Association, which also led to a model being called an R.A.

With this style of Douglas bike Tom Sheard won the 1923 500 TT, and Freddie Dixon won the first Sidecar TT, his machine also being fitted with a revolutionary banking side car. Many more TT and G.P. road racing successes followed, but it was in the new sport of “Cinders” or dirt track racing that the Douglas motor bikes really excelled. The low weight of the Douglas (approx 250 lbs) and low centre of gravity made this bike the machine to have. Ridden by stars such as Australian, Vic Huxley and the great American showman, “Sprouts” Elder, the Douglas dominated the world circuits in Australia, America, Argentina and England.

The Douglas is a machine held in such reverence amongst the cognoscenti that they rarely become available on the open market and more often than not most change hands between private collectors

The Douglas DT5 that may have been ridden by Lloyd "Sprouts" Elder

Reg Hunt purchased the 500cc ‘Cinders’ dirt track bike on the understanding that it had once belonged to Sprouts Elder himself, distinctive by its silver frame a Signature of Sprouts’ bikes. It is highly original and in its dirt track form. The Ex-Pa Cowley 600cc Douglas has been fitted with alloy rims, Amal concentric Carbs and front drum brakes for road use. This engine was put together by Colin Clifford and Len Cole in England 20 years ago and has not been used since.

The same auction also had a Douglas DT5 Long-Stroke engine for sale. The engine was originally used on a 1929 dirt track bike and bears the engine number EL1013

1929 Douglas DT5 Long-Stroke Engine