Take me back

[roogazza]

Hey Maha man,.
I've just found a calendar that your cousin Dave Hissy gave me in 1983 !
" Europe 83" it says !
Christ thats 24 yrs ago ! Gaz.

[Maha]

Are you 100% sure that you're not talking about the DANISH speedway world champ Ole Olsen who won the championships '71, '75 and '78?

Denmark!=Sweden

Back in the good old days Sweden was a part of Denmark - but the opposite has never been the case.

Yeah Ole Olsen....same same, spelt it wrong in post one so shoot me...
He and Ove' Funden (sp) were out for some championship i guess, i was 8-9 at the time and still after all these years, it rates right up there. To see those four guys in the same track at the same time....hell yeah.

Hey Maha man,.
I've just found a calendar that your cousin Dave Hissy gave me in 1983 !
" Europe 83" it says !
Christ thats 24 yrs ago ! Gaz.

Fathers cousin, but hey, we are all family right?....
Thats awesome Gaz, it great pulling out shit like that aye? even when it involves the memory bank for us.....more mature males....

[Swoop]

Keep the perks till after work?..

That is definately not Olly Olsen!

Ahh, those were the days.

[Maha]

That is definately not Olly Olsen!

Ahh, those were the days.

Yeah Billy T aye bro?

[Mikkel]

Yeah Ole Olsen....same same, spelt it wrong in post one so shoot me...
He and Ove' Funden (sp) were out for some championship i guess, i was 8-9 at the time and still after all these years, it rates right up there. To see those four guys in the same track at the same time....hell yeah.

Wasn't too concerned about the spelling - more the mistaken nationality. How would you feel if I postulated that Ivan Mauger was from Oz

It's Ove Fundin and he, sure enough, was a Swede (5 world championship wins).

I grew up when it was Erik Gundersen and Hans Nielsen who ran the show. Two danes took the top two of the world championships from '84 through to '88
Then Erik Gundersen broke his neck in a nasty crash in '89 He was initially paralysed and had to rely on a respirator unit - but made an amazing comeback and did a "farewell lap" at the venue where he broke his neck...

[Motu]

Can anyone name the two bikes in the other pic, note the gear shift on the tank. These were modified twin cylinder road bikes.

They will be Douglas's.

Chris Martin was talking about getting the Wall of Death going again a couple of years ago.....but I haven't been back to Rosebank since so don't know what he's doing with it.

As for how sideways can you get.....this is pretty radical.I suspect this is a grass track bike,although they usually have rear suspension.Notice the extra lever on the left bar - this is a 2 speed.

[FilthyLuka]

when i was a boy........................................

the spice girls released their first album?

[Swoop]

Yeah Billy T aye bro?

"Nice one Stewy, Stewy nice one!!!"

[pete376403]

They will be Douglas's.

Chris Martin was talking about getting the Wall of Death going again a couple of years ago.....but I haven't been back to Rosebank since so don't know what he's doing with it.

As for how sideways can you get.....this is pretty radical.I suspect this is a grass track bike,although they usually have rear suspension.Notice the extra lever on the left bar - this is a 2 speed.

Not a grass bike, thats a long tracker.
When I was riding (started at Te Marua 1973) there was a rumour that if you put a long track crank into a speedway motor (Jawa 2 valve) you ended up with a 600 or thereabouts. Which would have given enough power to make a difference but then the 4v Weslakes (and later the 4v Jawas) were developed and there didn't seem to be any point. Besides Merv Hodgson from Feilding was running a 2V JAP right up until I gave up in 1991 and he could still piss all over me regardless of which engine I was using. I'd still love to have another go, though...

[Motu]

I think it's a long track bike too (you are too late,I edited my thoughts about it being a long track bike from my post) Because the site I got the photo from said it was a grass tracker,you can just see some grass out on the outside,the turn looks too tight,and long track bikes don't get that radically out of shape.Nitpicking aside,I just love the shot.

[Maha]

You must spread some reputaion around before giving it to Maha Man again.

Cool thread Mark.

I remember all the big names and watched them race - mostly at the Templeton track just south of Christchurch. I still marvel at the skills I saw displayed.
I also remember Ronnie Moore touring all the A&P shows, doing a "wall of death" act in the sideshow area.

We are showing our age here mate, but fuck 'em, cos I think that's kinda cool too.

My first visits to speedway were at Aranui (?) in Christchurch in the early 50s. Ronnie Moore was a regular in his northern off-season.

Next speedway would've been Western Springs 1959, Don't remember anything about the speedway at all. I was at high school , and there were all these girls walking around...

Later, the Waiwhakaiho speedway in New Plymouth; immediate post-school days. Don't remember too much of that either, similar to the Springs. Most of the creative effort of the guys seemed to be applied to getting in without paying.

Somewhere in the house I may still have some period MotorCycle magazines with world Championship results (Moore 1959?).

They will be Douglas's.

Chris Martin was talking about getting the Wall of Death going again a couple of years ago.....but I haven't been back to Rosebank since so don't know what he's doing with it.

As for how sideways can you get.....this is pretty radical.I suspect this is a grass track bike,although they usually have rear suspension.Notice the extra lever on the left bar - this is a 2 speed.

Not a grass bike, thats a long tracker.
When I was riding (started at Te Marua 1973) there was a rumour that if you put a long track crank into a speedway motor (Jawa 2 valve) you ended up with a 600 or thereabouts. Which would have given enough power to make a difference but then the 4v Weslakes (and later the 4v Jawas) were developed and there didn't seem to be any point. Besides Merv Hodgson from Feilding was running a 2V JAP right up until I gave up in 1991 and he could still piss all over me regardless of which engine I was using. I'd still love to have another go, though...

For those who have never seen speedway here's a couple of pics from the (very) old days. One from 1929 before Johny Hoskins made the sport popular worldwide and the other showing just how far sideways you could get on an Excelsior framed JAP in 1946. Can anyone name the two bikes in the other pic, note the gear shift on the tank. These were modified twin cylinder road bikes. Edit for previous post. I said Hoskins was a kiwi. He was in fact an Australian.

Thank you all for posting, and some awesome pic's, the reading has been fantastic to say the least, cool stuff guys.....

[eliot-ness]

Just a last word to show how much things have changed since the 1950s. Been checking up on the net and found that crowds of 80,000 for a Saturday night meet were the norm until television became within reach of the working man. Nowadays most tracks in the UK are struggling to survive. A top rider in 1950 could earn up to 50 pounds a meeting in the UK, 20 times more than the average weekly wage.
In road racing Duke and Surtees were national heroes, motor cycling in general was considered to be quite respectable and sidecar outfits a safe family transport,,,, until the mini screwed it all up.

[Phil W]

Used to go to the speedway in the Uk. Was a Reading Racers supporter, Mad Welly and Per Jhonsen. Also used to go out with Ivan Majors niece. Speedway in the Uk was a blast. Huge crowds, all knowledgeable and having a ball. Was expecting some good speedway when I came to NZ 10 years ago but sadly disapointed.
Barry Brigs, I'm sure I know him or his son. Titarangi?