SPEEDWAY
Swindon's Jimmy Nilsen finished second in last Saturday's German GP. Jimbo is now in joint second spot overall with Billy Hamill.
John Jorgensen returned to British speedway last Thursday and the 'Robins' hope he will give them a boost. John now 35, was a popular team member in 1996. The 'Robins' plans for a double swoop failed when they were unable to agree terms with Australian star Todd Wiltshire, who was the target of no less than six Elite League clubs and is believed to have already signed for Oxford. Todd, a former world number three has been missing from British speedway since 1991 after a severe back injury.
Poole stepped up their search for a new rider this week after injured Marvyn Cox revealed he would be sidelined for the rest of the season. The 33-year-old former England international broke his left femur in an crash against King's Lynn last week and the injury has threatened to end his racing career.
England will have a record four riders on parade in this year's World Under-21 Final. And that number seems certain to be boosted even further with Leigh Lanham a red-hot favourite to join Lee Richardson, Scott Nicholls, Andre Compton and David Howe in Poland in August.
The One-Off World Final is not dead and buried - despite the new-look World Championship. And there is even a chance that it will be back on the international calendar, as a dramatic finale to a season long Grand Prix competition. Ole Olsen has revealed that he is currently considering a proposal that would see the six Grand Prix rounds serve as a qualifying competition for a dramatic 16-rider old-style World Final.
GRASSTRACK
Peter Jones was found to be dead on arrival at Torquay Hospital, from injuries sustained at the British Masters Challenge near Exeter, when the outfit he was passengering, driven by Craig Cheatham, hit the safety ropes and somersaulted, throwing Jones into the path of Peter Goodwin and Carl Pugh, who had no chance of avoiding him.
Peter, aged 29, was a popular figure on the grasstrack scene, he often stepped in as emergency crewman and on this occasion was standing in for Clive Reynolds.
Peter will be sadly missed by all in the grasstrack world.
Trevor Banks triumphed in a double victory at the unique, 1.25 mile Teterow circuit in Germany, winning both the Golden Helmet and Bergring Cup events and setting a new five-lap record speed of 118.56 km, before a crowd of 35,000.
Simon Wigg suffered leg injuries in a grasstrack event in Germany on Sunday - and has been told he could be out of action for several weeks. He crashed in the handicap final of the Teterow meeting and damaged ligaments in his right leg. Wigg turned down the chance of an immediate operation saying he wanted to see his own specialist in this country.
Simon Cross stormed into the finals of the world Longtrack/grasstrack championship through a hard fought victory in the first of the two semi-finals, at St Macaire, France on Sunday. While Paul Hurry, British Masters champion zoomed through his world Longtrack/grasstrack qualifier at Stadskanaal, Holland on Monday. He scored a maximum 20 points in the qualifying heats, winning some by nearly half a lap. Then in the final, already assured of going through, he rounded Robert Barth on the first bend and although Barth tested him for a couple of laps there was never any real doubt about who was going to be the winner.
Roger Measor has qualifying as an international clerk of course. He will now be officiating at the British "grand prix" world Longtrack/grasstrack championship round at Abingdon on July 19.
HI THERE!
This is one sport I really do love. We go most weekends through out the season March/October. Our local track is at Swindon (U.K). The team are called the Robins.
In 1997 the Robins finished 3rd in the Elite League. In 1996 they finished 4th in the British Premier Leaque.
This year the Robins celabrate their 50th Season.
If you've never seen speedway before I will try and tell you a little bit about it.
Speedway is a very exciting family spectator sport where motorcycles race around an oval track, laid with shale. Most UK tracks are about 350 metres long. The bikes have no brakes, no rear suspension or gears. Its nucleus is a lusty, ferocious 500cc single cylinder, four-stroke motor, that gulps draughts of methanol fuel at the rate of six miles per gallon and possesses a mulish 15-to-1 compression ratio, with an output of over 50bhp. Each machine weighs approximately 190 pounds, and is endowed with frighteningly brutal accelerative powers.
When the steward switches on the green light, the riders crouch low and take a fresh grip of their handlebars, poising themselves, heads down, with highly-revving engines, clutches in and front tyres nudging the tapes.
When the tapes fly up and the clutch levers are quickly released. The immense power of their highly-tuned motors is immediately let loose which pitches the intrepid riders into a mad battle, spraying the shale, broadsiding wildly into the corners, nudging elbows even machines sometimes.
The bikes race anti-clockwise around the track. Races are run over four laps with four riders in each race,two from the home team and two from the away team. They score 3 points for first place, 2 for second place and 1 for third place. A rider does not score when finishing fourth, when failing to finish or when excluded from a race.
The Elite League will run with NINE teams in 1998.
Oxford return to the top flight, but Bradford and Peterborough go out.
Bradford have pulled out because of stadium redevelopment, making it impossible to use the track in either 1998 or 1999.
Peterborough drop to the Premier League because of the combined problems with Grand Prix commitments and the unavailability of their stadium, and were faced with having to miss around a dozen Friday nights.
So its - Belle Vue, Coventry, Eastbourne, Ipswich, King's Lynn, Oxford, Poole, Swindon and Wolverhampton.
This is my daughter Kay with Former Swindon Robin Jason Crump
Winner of the 1996 British Grand Prix at Hackney
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pages design & layout by Marc Farmer:
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Disclaimer: These pages, and anything I may say on the 'speedway-l' mailing list, reflect *my* views and not those connected with Swindon Speedway.
Thanks to my Wife Sue for taking me to my first speedway meeting 25 years ago.
Thanks to my son Paul for the drawings of Jimmy Nilsen & Brian Karger.
Thanks to Rod Leverton for the use of his Robins Match Reports
Thanks to Ian Lewis for the use of the Robins photos.
Thanks to Acorn for making such a great computer.
The Motorcycle Speedway Web Ring is maintained by John Stoneman
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