00:00:00:04 - 00:00:13:10 Speaker 1 This is Ingrid Holtz conducting interview for the Speedway at Wimbledon Stadium Oral History Project on 20th April 2026. So we'll start with some biographical questions. Simple ones. What is your name? 00:00:13:12 - 00:00:15:10 Speaker 2 Ian Perkin. 00:00:15:12 - 00:00:17:10 Speaker 1 Where were you born? 00:00:17:12 - 00:00:19:03 Speaker 2 Streatham, London. 00:00:19:05 - 00:00:20:17 Speaker 1 What year were you born? 00:00:20:20 - 00:00:22:11 Speaker 2 1951. 00:00:22:13 - 00:00:25:16 Speaker 1 What did your parents do for a living? 00:00:25:18 - 00:00:31:09 Speaker 2 My father was a company director. My mother used to work in a laundry. 00:00:31:11 - 00:00:40:06 Speaker 1 Thank you. We'll just talk about some early days when you first started getting interested in speedway. What years did you go to speedway at Wimbledon Stadium? 00:00:40:10 - 00:00:42:06 Speaker 2 1962. 00:00:42:08 - 00:00:49:23 Speaker 1 That's when you started. Did you? Can you tell us about your first visit to Wimbledon Speedway and who you went with? 00:00:50:00 - 00:00:52:13 Speaker 2 Yeah, I went with my parents. 00:00:52:15 - 00:00:57:08 Speaker 1 And what were your early impressions? Sights. Sounds. Smells? 00:00:57:10 - 00:01:03:13 Speaker 2 Yeah, the sound smells. I thought I'd never witnessed anything like it. 00:01:03:15 - 00:01:09:21 Speaker 1 And can you tell us about the team colors and just the atmosphere? 00:01:09:23 - 00:01:16:04 Speaker 2 Team colours with red and yellow. And the atmosphere was fantastic. 00:01:16:06 - 00:01:22:02 Speaker 1 You said you had your parent. You went with your parents. Was there a family history in speedway? 00:01:22:07 - 00:01:26:08 Speaker 2 My father went before the Second World War. 00:01:26:10 - 00:01:28:13 Speaker 1 And as a fan. 00:01:28:15 - 00:01:30:05 Speaker 2 Yes, as a fan. 00:01:30:07 - 00:01:37:21 Speaker 1 Okay, so if we could talk about the what it was like to go. Can you describe the stadium? 00:01:37:23 - 00:01:47:22 Speaker 2 Yeah, the stadium was around Stadium with like a athletics circuit, but because it wasn't, it was. 00:01:47:24 - 00:01:55:23 Speaker 2 It was graded all the time. So it was in first class condition for speed by racing. 00:01:56:00 - 00:01:59:17 Speaker 1 And was there a particular place you like to watch from? 00:01:59:19 - 00:02:03:06 Speaker 2 Yes, from the main stand. 00:02:03:08 - 00:02:11:13 Speaker 1 Okay. So how often did you go? Was this a regular. Every week. Oh. Every week. So what day of the week was that? 00:02:11:15 - 00:02:12:18 Speaker 2 Usually Thursday. 00:02:12:20 - 00:02:18:21 Speaker 1 Okay. And how affordable was it to get in, you know, for a family? 00:02:18:23 - 00:02:25:17 Speaker 2 It wasn't that expensive, but it wasn't that cheap. So it was. 00:02:25:19 - 00:02:33:08 Speaker 2 Cheap of children to get in. So that was which my father picked up. 00:02:33:10 - 00:02:38:20 Speaker 1 Right. Can you tell us about any merchandise or programs that were available? 00:02:39:01 - 00:02:43:13 Speaker 2 Yes, I had a program. Still got it from the first meeting I went to. 00:02:43:14 - 00:02:50:01 Speaker 1 Oh, right. And did you fill in the program? Yes. What people used to do. 00:02:50:06 - 00:02:51:15 Speaker 2 Yes. 00:02:51:17 - 00:02:54:11 Speaker 1 And what food and drink was available there? 00:02:54:12 - 00:02:56:17 Speaker 2 Hamburgers. 00:02:56:19 - 00:02:57:17 Speaker 1 Just hamburgers. 00:02:57:22 - 00:03:10:18 Speaker 2 More or less. The most thing I remember. Hamburgers there was. So I had a restaurant there, but that was more upmarket. Right. So if you were just going for the evening, you wanted a hamburger, and then you got a hamburger on the cheap. 00:03:10:24 - 00:03:15:22 Speaker 1 Okay. Can you describe a typical race night? 00:03:15:24 - 00:03:36:00 Speaker 2 Yes. We have the parade of the riders when the racing was just about to start and they parade around the track and they'd be introduced by the by the MC for the evening, who they were. And. 00:03:36:02 - 00:03:44:15 Speaker 2 That was, that was, that was then lined up. The teams were then lined up and the racing started. 00:03:44:17 - 00:03:54:09 Speaker 1 Okay. Can you tell us about generally about being a fan? Tell us about any particular riders or teams you followed. Was it just Wimbledon or other teams as well? 00:03:54:12 - 00:03:57:18 Speaker 2 I wasn't really. Ronnie Moore. 00:03:57:20 - 00:04:00:15 Speaker 1 Okay, so Ronnie Moore was your favourite? 00:04:00:16 - 00:04:03:09 Speaker 2 Yes. Twice. World champion. 00:04:03:11 - 00:04:07:22 Speaker 1 And so you were watching when he was at his peak? 00:04:07:24 - 00:04:27:16 Speaker 2 Yes. Well, I got to know him afterwards because when I was chairman of the club then he was still he wasn't active at that time, but he used to come over from New Zealand frequently and sort of. Talk to everybody about what they ought to be doing. 00:04:27:21 - 00:04:29:19 Speaker 1 Oh, so do you travel from New Zealand? 00:04:29:20 - 00:04:33:08 Speaker 2 Yeah. New Zealand. 00:04:33:09 - 00:04:38:11 Speaker 1 Can you tell us about different teams in Wimbledon like the juniors and seniors? 00:04:38:12 - 00:04:42:08 Speaker 2 Yeah, there were two teams. 00:04:42:10 - 00:04:48:09 Speaker 1 And how as a fan, how accessible were the riders in terms of talking to them or getting autographs? 00:04:48:11 - 00:04:52:15 Speaker 2 They're pretty accessible more than most sports. Okay. 00:04:52:17 - 00:04:59:16 Speaker 1 And what was the general democratic demographic of the fans in terms of gender, ethnicity, age? Families? 00:04:59:18 - 00:05:12:00 Speaker 2 Families, really? Yeah. Yeah, it's a good night out. You know, if you want to take your wife and your children. And it was it was a place to go. 00:05:12:02 - 00:05:22:17 Speaker 1 Okay. So did you keep going? Once you had family of your own? Yes. To what extent did foreign riders bring their own fans to Wimbledon, like Polish riders or Swedish riders? 00:05:22:18 - 00:05:36:19 Speaker 2 Yeah, they bring their fans when they when their teams were running. So as International Speedway developed, it was more likely to get the foreign fans come and support the foreigners. 00:05:36:21 - 00:05:41:24 Speaker 1 Can you tell us about any rivalries with other teams? 00:05:42:01 - 00:05:49:01 Speaker 2 Yes. I mean, there was a big rivalry with Hackney, for instance, which was another London team. 00:05:49:05 - 00:05:55:00 Speaker 1 And why was. What was the rivalry about? Were they equally good? 00:05:55:02 - 00:06:00:07 Speaker 2 No, they weren't as good as we were then, but they weren't far off it. 00:06:00:09 - 00:06:03:14 Speaker 1 All right. So that's where the dislike came from that there were. 00:06:03:16 - 00:06:20:09 Speaker 2 No I don't think it was a dislike. I mean, it was this set up was quite good. They weren't set up well as women then. But what happened was a lot of the riders then switched to riding Hackney. Period. 00:06:20:11 - 00:06:23:11 Speaker 1 Oh, okay. 00:06:23:13 - 00:06:28:21 Speaker 1 So how important was Wimbledon Speedway in your social life and how often did you go? 00:06:28:23 - 00:06:33:13 Speaker 2 Well, I mean, every week. 00:06:33:15 - 00:06:37:02 Speaker 1 And did you have a lot of friends and. 00:06:37:04 - 00:06:40:00 Speaker 2 Friends who went. Yeah. 00:06:40:02 - 00:06:49:12 Speaker 1 Can you tell us about with other people in the Speedway community? You said you were friends with Robby Ronnie. More later. Like pubs. Did people go the pub beforehand? 00:06:49:14 - 00:06:57:10 Speaker 2 Yes I did. 00:06:57:12 - 00:07:01:18 Speaker 1 Can you tell us about any fan clubs? Did Wimbledon organise fan club? 00:07:01:19 - 00:07:04:01 Speaker 2 Yes. Organisers? Fan club for any more? 00:07:04:03 - 00:07:06:12 Speaker 1 And what did that involve? 00:07:06:14 - 00:07:15:16 Speaker 2 People paid a subscription to it and became members. And that, you know, they would have events, dances at the end of the year and that kind of thing. 00:07:15:17 - 00:07:17:12 Speaker 1 Oh, okay. Did they get a magazine? 00:07:17:15 - 00:07:18:04 Speaker 2 Yes. 00:07:18:05 - 00:07:24:18 Speaker 1 Okay. Can you tell us about your personal Wimbledon speedway heroes? 00:07:24:20 - 00:07:33:17 Speaker 2 Yeah. Ronnie Moore. Ron. How split Waterman. 00:07:33:19 - 00:07:37:13 Speaker 2 They were. 00:07:37:15 - 00:07:40:01 Speaker 2 The McAuliffe. 00:07:40:03 - 00:07:41:09 Speaker 1 Were they all Wimbledon? 00:07:41:11 - 00:07:42:07 Speaker 2 Yes. 00:07:42:09 - 00:07:46:13 Speaker 1 And what about internationally? Were there other riders that you liked? 00:07:46:15 - 00:08:01:06 Speaker 2 Yes. There was a good one as it came over to ride for the national team, and they were quite good. Trevor Hedge. 00:08:01:08 - 00:08:03:07 Speaker 2 Some of the others. 00:08:03:09 - 00:08:06:00 Speaker 1 Okay. 00:08:06:02 - 00:08:13:06 Speaker 1 Can you tell us about a particularly memorable night of watching Speedway? 00:08:13:08 - 00:08:25:20 Speaker 2 Yes. The big speedway meeting held each year when we called the international. And. 00:08:25:22 - 00:08:37:08 Speaker 2 That brought 16 of the world's best riders into the stadium. And it was very competitive set up and won. The whole new speedway bike. 00:08:37:10 - 00:08:39:03 Speaker 1 Is that annual event. 00:08:39:05 - 00:08:48:06 Speaker 2 Annual event? Yes. So they get a whole new speedway bike if they. If they won. 00:08:48:08 - 00:08:49:22 Speaker 1 That sounds like a good price. 00:08:50:02 - 00:08:51:09 Speaker 2 It would. 00:08:51:11 - 00:08:55:12 Speaker 1 Can you tell us about any other entertainment on speedway nights like music? 00:08:55:13 - 00:08:58:01 Speaker 2 Yeah, they used to be music there at times. 00:08:58:03 - 00:09:02:16 Speaker 1 And were there any other? I don't know. Entertainment for children maybe. Or. 00:09:02:18 - 00:09:06:08 Speaker 2 Yes. Kids were entertained there. 00:09:06:10 - 00:09:15:09 Speaker 1 Okay. And did you ever travel to away or overseas? 00:09:15:11 - 00:09:22:13 Speaker 2 I didn't go to any of these events, but I went to other events in Britain. 00:09:22:15 - 00:09:33:06 Speaker 1 And what was the role of Speedway, along with the other sports in the area, like the Greyhound and at Wimbledon Stadium? 00:09:33:08 - 00:09:42:19 Speaker 2 Yeah, it was it was a competitive sport. It tended to be more popular than most of the others. 00:09:42:21 - 00:09:47:20 Speaker 1 Did they get bigger audiences than greyhounds or. 00:09:47:22 - 00:10:08:10 Speaker 2 A different sort of audience? I mean, greyhounds, essentially a betting sport? Yes. So, you know, it was it was dependent on how the how the meeting went with they made money or not. The greyhounds whereas Wimbledon Speedway, you know, you got the racing every week. 00:10:08:12 - 00:10:11:17 Speaker 1 So was there any betting involved with Speedway. 00:10:11:19 - 00:10:31:00 Speaker 2 No not not not in my early years ago. And there was towards the end when I was chairman, we put in the right to local betting shop. People could come in and stand and. 00:10:31:02 - 00:10:34:08 Speaker 2 And challenge people if they wanted to put a bet on the race. 00:10:34:09 - 00:10:37:23 Speaker 1 So what sort of years was that that you were chair. 00:10:37:24 - 00:10:45:22 Speaker 2 That was. 00:10:45:24 - 00:10:47:10 Speaker 2 2020. 00:10:47:14 - 00:11:00:16 Speaker 1 Oh, okay. So quite late on. Yeah. Okay. I've got some questions for you because you worked in the sport. So how did what was your job and how did you get it? 00:11:00:18 - 00:11:04:07 Speaker 2 Well, there was the. 00:11:04:09 - 00:11:24:16 Speaker 2 The job was one that was became available. And members of the board, I wanted a new board to govern the sport. Wimbledon. And so I was given the job of chairman. 00:11:24:18 - 00:11:27:11 Speaker 1 Okay. Was that a paid job or a volunteer job? 00:11:27:16 - 00:11:29:05 Speaker 2 It was. It was job. 00:11:29:08 - 00:11:35:04 Speaker 1 Okay. And how did you work at the stadium? Progressed. What was your first job at the stadium? 00:11:35:06 - 00:11:38:07 Speaker 2 Well, it was the first one was actually tearing the board. 00:11:38:08 - 00:11:45:09 Speaker 1 Oh, it was okay. So you never worked for the for Speedway as a rake or. 00:11:45:11 - 00:11:59:11 Speaker 2 Well, you ended up doing that at times. You know, the there's a rainy night and I've been out on the track at 3:00 in the morning, you know, helping with the, with the staff to level it out. 00:11:59:13 - 00:12:00:17 Speaker 1 Okay. Okay. 00:12:00:18 - 00:12:07:13 Speaker 2 Because you get on, a rain becomes uneven, then meeting gets canceled. 00:12:07:15 - 00:12:15:03 Speaker 2 Then you've got all that money. Yes. So they better if you start again. If you got the opportunity. 00:12:15:05 - 00:12:19:01 Speaker 1 Okay. So the chair had to do all sorts of whatever was required. 00:12:19:03 - 00:12:20:10 Speaker 2 Yeah. 00:12:20:12 - 00:12:28:08 Speaker 1 And can you talk about, talk us through what you would do on a typical race day in terms of your job? 00:12:28:10 - 00:12:34:14 Speaker 2 Well, I'd come down in my car getting the pits. 00:12:34:16 - 00:12:41:24 Speaker 2 Talked to the riders, talked about what was going on that evening, and that would be a typical evening. 00:12:42:01 - 00:12:52:21 Speaker 1 Okay. And how did you have to, I suppose you had to deal with when things, when things went wrong. You know, injuries or. 00:12:52:23 - 00:12:57:16 Speaker 2 You're not in the injuries. Yeah. And it's a danger, sport, because then no brakes. 00:12:57:22 - 00:12:58:15 Speaker 1 Yes. 00:12:58:19 - 00:13:10:18 Speaker 2 So when they're going at 70, 80 miles an hour in the stadium and there are no brakes, it's not unusual that they come across. 00:13:10:20 - 00:13:15:17 Speaker 1 And how did that affect the other riders when there were accidents? 00:13:15:19 - 00:13:25:20 Speaker 2 Well, they were upset by it. I mean, they were accidents all the time. So, you know, they would get away with it for several weeks. 00:13:25:22 - 00:13:26:17 Speaker 1 Right. 00:13:26:19 - 00:13:30:15 Speaker 2 And then the one where you get a bad week. 00:13:30:17 - 00:13:33:08 Speaker 1 Doesn't happen in terms of insurance. And did that. 00:13:33:13 - 00:13:36:20 Speaker 2 And they were in short we showed them. 00:13:36:22 - 00:13:39:16 Speaker 1 Oh. So if they had an injury they would get. 00:13:39:18 - 00:13:42:23 Speaker 2 They'd get so much money a week. 00:13:43:00 - 00:13:45:09 Speaker 1 From the stadium or the team. 00:13:45:11 - 00:13:47:12 Speaker 2 Oh yes, from the team. 00:13:47:13 - 00:13:51:07 Speaker 1 Okay. 00:13:51:09 - 00:13:55:02 Speaker 2 From the insurance company that the team would set up. 00:13:55:04 - 00:14:13:02 Speaker 1 Okay. Can you tell us a bit? I've got some more questions about the closure of the changes at Wimbledon over time, because you would started going in the 60s, he said. How did Wimbledon speedway change over time? 00:14:13:04 - 00:14:19:15 Speaker 2 Well, the stadium changed. It became the stadium. 00:14:19:17 - 00:14:28:10 Speaker 2 The riders were insured for any injuries, which was which was good for good for them. 00:14:28:12 - 00:14:31:08 Speaker 1 And did the safety change over time? 00:14:31:10 - 00:14:35:03 Speaker 2 Yes. I mean we were always looking to improve safety. 00:14:35:05 - 00:14:36:12 Speaker 1 What changes were made. 00:14:36:13 - 00:14:44:03 Speaker 2 To the fence was risen. It was increased so that people didn't come sailing over the fence. 00:14:44:05 - 00:14:52:03 Speaker 1 Oh, it's made it higher. Yes. Okay. How did the closure of Wimbledon Speedway affect you? 00:14:52:05 - 00:14:53:11 Speaker 2 Devastatingly. 00:14:53:13 - 00:15:00:01 Speaker 1 This is the first that closed in 91 and then in 2000. Again in 2000. Were you involved both times? 00:15:00:07 - 00:15:02:20 Speaker 2 Both places? Yes. 00:15:02:22 - 00:15:10:10 Speaker 1 So you would, devastated by it both times? I mean, the second time you were chair. 00:15:10:14 - 00:15:17:00 Speaker 2 Yeah. So we I had it within my power to do things to rectify that. 00:15:17:02 - 00:15:21:18 Speaker 1 And why were you not able to stop it from closing? I mean, it was it. 00:15:21:20 - 00:15:26:17 Speaker 2 Well, because I wasn't the closing. You're talking about 1981. 00:15:26:23 - 00:15:31:02 Speaker 1 I'm talking. Oh, I'm talking about when you were chair happened. 00:15:31:03 - 00:15:36:24 Speaker 2 Why? Well, I hadn't had the ability to make changes so that the thing continued to run quite successfully. 00:15:37:01 - 00:15:39:18 Speaker 1 Right. 00:15:39:20 - 00:15:44:01 Speaker 1 And how did it feel to go the last time you went to Speedway at Wimbledon? 00:15:44:04 - 00:15:54:21 Speaker 2 Very sad. But the team was shifted to be spoon by then, so it wasn't the end. It wasn't the end of the club. 00:15:54:23 - 00:16:00:21 Speaker 1 So they went to Eastbourne. For how long were they at least? 00:16:00:23 - 00:16:02:02 Speaker 2 Eight months. 00:16:02:04 - 00:16:08:20 Speaker 1 Okay. So who was riding when Wimbledon stopped? Who was riding? 00:16:08:21 - 00:16:09:24 Speaker 2 Eastbourne riders. 00:16:10:00 - 00:16:15:13 Speaker 1 Okay. So they were called Eastbourne. By the time they were, they stopped. 00:16:15:15 - 00:16:21:04 Speaker 2 No, no, they still called Wimbledon, I think. 00:16:21:06 - 00:16:26:15 Speaker 1 Okay. Looking back, what did Wimbledon Speedway mean to you? 00:16:26:17 - 00:16:32:13 Speaker 2 Well, I thought there was one of the better sports. There was no there was no. 00:16:32:15 - 00:16:49:03 Speaker 2 There's very little violence amongst the crowd for a kickoff, which I mean, if you live around here in the time at that time, you know everything about Millwall Football Club and other football clubs. You know, there was an awful lot of Ireland going on. 00:16:49:05 - 00:17:02:09 Speaker 1 So was that a few people have said that it was not a violent, violent months of fans. So how important was it to your life? You know, just Wimbledon Speedway. 00:17:02:11 - 00:17:10:02 Speaker 2 You know, it's very important. I'm very interested in it. And, you know, it was something really good to be involved in. 00:17:10:04 - 00:17:16:24 Speaker 1 And last question for now, is there anything you'd like to tell us that we haven't yet covered? 00:17:17:01 - 00:17:19:02 Speaker 2 No, I don't think so. 00:17:19:04 - 00:17:27:24 Speaker 1 Do you have any questions? 00:17:28:01 - 00:17:40:14 Speaker 3 Yeah, I suppose I always want to ask about. We've heard a few people talk about various shenanigans that might have happened. And if there's anything you can tell us to about that. 00:17:40:16 - 00:17:54:02 Speaker 1 Oh, yeah. So? So yes, everyone uses this word. Skullduggery. Shenanigans. Skullduggery. So were you aware of any cheating or. 00:17:54:04 - 00:17:57:12 Speaker 1 Losing going races or anything like that? 00:17:57:13 - 00:17:59:03 Speaker 2 No I wasn't. 00:17:59:05 - 00:18:05:04 Speaker 1 You didn't know of any of that? No. Okay. And do you have any. Thanks. Yeah. 00:18:05:05 - 00:18:10:04 Speaker 3 I think I'd like to sort of go back to the atmosphere thing, maybe a bit more about. 00:18:10:04 - 00:18:11:07 Speaker 1 What it was like when you. 00:18:11:08 - 00:18:18:22 Speaker 3 When you were a child and you were coming with you, you know, your dad or whoever, you know. Well, you know, what did it feel like to be a child? 00:18:18:24 - 00:18:20:17 Speaker 2 It was really exciting. 00:18:20:23 - 00:18:22:02 Speaker 3 If you could talk to. 00:18:22:04 - 00:18:32:23 Speaker 2 So it was really, really exciting because, you know, it was moving into an environment which I never, never witnessed before. 00:18:33:00 - 00:18:34:08 Speaker 1 Did you live locally? 00:18:34:09 - 00:18:36:06 Speaker 2 Yes. 00:18:36:08 - 00:18:37:24 Speaker 1 Okay. So it wasn't too far to travel? 00:18:38:00 - 00:18:38:14 Speaker 2 No. 00:18:38:19 - 00:18:42:18 Speaker 1 And did you have brothers or sisters that went? 00:18:42:20 - 00:18:43:20 Speaker 2 No, I didn't have any brothers. 00:18:43:20 - 00:18:48:12 Speaker 1 Sisters and. 00:18:48:14 - 00:19:03:23 Speaker 1 I mean, some people talk about the smell, that it's the fuel that's used that has a special smell. What's that fuel called? Castrol. 00:19:04:00 - 00:19:08:19 Speaker 1 And I should think that. What about the noise? 00:19:08:21 - 00:19:17:17 Speaker 2 Well, the noise could, I suppose, upset people who lived in the area. But there weren't there weren't many complaints about noise. 00:19:17:19 - 00:19:22:18 Speaker 1 Okay. It was it was it exciting as a as a fan, though? 00:19:22:19 - 00:19:28:15 Speaker 2 Yeah. Exciting as a fan. I mean, these guys were putting their lives on the line. 00:19:28:17 - 00:19:31:21 Speaker 1 Was that part of the excitement? Yes. The danger? 00:19:31:23 - 00:19:38:23 Speaker 2 Absolutely. I mean, the danger was something that, you know, everybody was aware of. 00:19:39:00 - 00:19:39:17 Speaker 1 Okay. 00:19:39:20 - 00:19:47:07 Speaker 2 I mean, Peter Craven, the world champion, 1962. I mean, he he was killed racing. 00:19:47:09 - 00:19:48:21 Speaker 1 Did you know him? 00:19:48:23 - 00:20:12:21 Speaker 2 Well, I, I knew I knew him in terms of, you know. Yes. I get my autographs from him and chat to him. And, you know, there was the other thing with speedway riders. They put their lives on the line, but they were really nice guys to talk to the to the fans. Not like a lot of sports where they don't give you any feedback. 00:20:12:23 - 00:20:27:18 Speaker 2 They were, you know, really top of their game. They'd they'd welcome you sort of into their community and you share with them their fear of getting hurt badly. 00:20:27:20 - 00:20:33:12 Speaker 1 Yes. And you will never a rider. Were you. Did you ever do any riding? 00:20:33:14 - 00:20:37:12 Speaker 2 The only writing I did was at Chessington. 00:20:37:14 - 00:20:38:20 Speaker 1 Did they do speedway? 00:20:38:22 - 00:21:04:20 Speaker 2 Yeah. They put a training track in there, so I had to go around there. But I hurt my, my, my hand because they had a wooden fence going round. Right. And so when the clutch out I went to wide. And so my fist banged on the post as it went along. 00:21:04:22 - 00:21:06:01 Speaker 1 So you didn't do it again? 00:21:06:02 - 00:21:10:01 Speaker 2 No. 00:21:10:03 - 00:21:11:21 Speaker 1 Okay. 00:21:11:23 - 00:21:17:14 Speaker 2 Oh, no. I was involved all the time, but I didn't want I didn't want to be hurt badly. 00:21:17:16 - 00:21:28:16 Speaker 1 Did was it really when you first went there. Was it very busy. And then it did become less busy as the years went by. 00:21:28:18 - 00:21:39:06 Speaker 2 It was. It was very busy when I first went there. And I suppose when we took over it was the numbers were dwindling. 00:21:39:08 - 00:21:42:07 Speaker 1 So sort of numbers we had. 00:21:42:12 - 00:21:48:08 Speaker 2 I suppose we had about 1200. 00:21:48:10 - 00:21:52:13 Speaker 2 They went up to 2000s of times. 00:21:52:15 - 00:21:58:11 Speaker 1 So that was that for the special events? Yes. The internationals. Yes. 00:21:58:13 - 00:22:01:03 Speaker 1 Okay. Do you have any. 00:22:01:05 - 00:22:08:01 Speaker 3 There's people who told us that. I think the fans can go and meet the riders in the certain time before the races start. 00:22:08:02 - 00:22:09:05 Speaker 2 Yes. That's right. 00:22:09:11 - 00:22:15:00 Speaker 3 Talk us through being a young person and being, you know what? What that felt like to go and do that. 00:22:15:01 - 00:22:37:00 Speaker 2 Well, it was good. It was added to the excitement of the fair to say, I mean, some of the people, you know. Well, I mean, Peter Craven, I mean, he was he was known all around the country, I mean speedway, it's very big then. And so he was the world champion and he came and talked to you. So there are not many sports where, you know, the world champion would come over and talk to you. 00:22:37:00 - 00:22:45:06 Speaker 2 And he was a really nice guy. And that was the thing. We see most of them really nice guys. 00:22:45:08 - 00:22:49:03 Speaker 2 I mean, we had we had our home and we had times. 00:22:49:05 - 00:22:49:21 Speaker 1 Yes. 00:22:49:23 - 00:22:52:11 Speaker 2 Most of my wife's excitement. 00:22:52:13 - 00:22:56:13 Speaker 1 So you need to keep looking at me. 00:22:56:15 - 00:22:59:15 Speaker 2 So. 00:22:59:17 - 00:23:27:20 Speaker 2 That was good to having that kind of contact with the people that you you wanted to watch. I mean, when Ronnie Moore was riding and sometimes he would he'd be long way behind at the beginning of the race. I mean, I take them all and, you know, the stadium would go up to the wild people standing out the seats and, you know, shouting and carrying on, you know. 00:23:27:22 - 00:23:29:18 Speaker 2 They called Ronnie. 00:23:29:20 - 00:23:34:16 Speaker 1 That was exciting to become a friend of his later personally. It must have been. 00:23:34:18 - 00:23:48:05 Speaker 2 Yeah. It was. Yeah. I've got I've got a big picture and indoors of him on his bike, which he, which he signed for me. I've had all ever since. 00:23:48:07 - 00:23:52:18 Speaker 1 Were you involved with doing that sculpture outside? Did you. Were you involved. 00:23:52:18 - 00:23:54:21 Speaker 2 With donated hurt? 00:23:54:22 - 00:23:56:04 Speaker 1 You donated it? 00:23:56:06 - 00:23:57:18 Speaker 2 Donated to. Great. 00:23:57:23 - 00:24:00:00 Speaker 1 Yeah. 00:24:00:02 - 00:24:08:12 Speaker 2 I put 5,050 pounds towards it. 00:24:08:14 - 00:24:21:14 Speaker 3 Yeah. I'm kind of interested to hear because you mentioned when you were chairman, you just had to get down there and do everything. Could you tell us a bit more about that, about the sort of things you might have to do on the spur of the moment to make it work? 00:24:21:16 - 00:24:45:08 Speaker 2 Yeah. I mean, we had we had teams of people that we were getting involved to do some of the work. But, you know, if you're not paying people, you tend not to be able to rely on them. Sometimes, you know, they don't want to. They come the next week and they don't want to actually do it. So it's it was that was how you had to turn your hand to anything. 00:24:45:09 - 00:25:03:19 Speaker 2 Otherwise the thing wasn't going to going to work, you know. But it wasn't just me. It was the people that were employed in there who would change their mind from doing one piece of work to the next place, and based on what was necessary to keep the speedway going. 00:25:03:21 - 00:25:09:15 Speaker 3 Did you rely entirely on volunteers or were there some sort of paid workers? If you look after the track and. 00:25:09:17 - 00:25:22:12 Speaker 2 It's it was, I would say, 50% people who were not paid. 00:25:22:14 - 00:25:31:21 Speaker 3 So what what do you think was the main reasons? I'm sure there's more than one of the decline of the sport in one would. Why did it struggle? 00:25:31:23 - 00:25:38:10 Speaker 2 I think because it didn't get the coverage in the press. 00:25:38:12 - 00:26:09:00 Speaker 2 In the 1960s. And so it started to get a lot of a lot of press coverage and world of sport. And then if, you know, World of Sport, that used to be very pretty, pretty intensively. And the time on a lot of these things dropped out so that that didn't encourage people to come. So when we when we went in, we did more. 00:26:09:02 - 00:26:17:14 Speaker 2 Public press work, the time getting the crowd back, which we had quite a good guy. Actually. 00:26:17:16 - 00:26:22:12 Speaker 1 So do you advertise in Wimbledon or or further afield? 00:26:22:15 - 00:26:38:10 Speaker 2 Further afield. You see it paid and you know people to take the finding the routes to people who are willing to pay to have their own sport publicized as well as the speedway. 00:26:38:12 - 00:26:40:19 Speaker 1 Okay. 00:26:40:21 - 00:26:46:02 Speaker 3 So financially, where does speedway, where did speedway's money come from? 00:26:46:04 - 00:27:03:04 Speaker 2 Well, from the from the from the people who were paying to come in. So we had some big crowds at times with them. And so that's where the money was. 00:27:03:06 - 00:27:05:10 Speaker 1 Did you make any money from the food and drink? 00:27:05:11 - 00:27:08:11 Speaker 2 Was that went to the stadium. 00:27:08:13 - 00:27:11:22 Speaker 1 That you were? Were you tenants not in the stadium? 00:27:12:03 - 00:27:15:23 Speaker 2 Maybe we were. We were renting it. 00:27:16:00 - 00:27:18:04 Speaker 1 Were you able to make a profit? 00:27:18:06 - 00:27:24:18 Speaker 2 Yes. Yeah. We agree with them. We would sell so much and we'd get some of that returned to us. 00:27:24:20 - 00:27:30:02 Speaker 4 Okay. 00:27:30:04 - 00:27:32:12 Speaker 1 That. 00:27:32:14 - 00:27:38:18 Speaker 3 I'm wondering if there was other merchandise that, got sold and brought in a bit of cash. 00:27:38:20 - 00:27:58:08 Speaker 2 I mean, postcard books, you know, films. There were all sorts of things that were sold during the, during the season, which people wanted to remember their memories and, you know, so they were anxious to buy this stuff. So that was quite good for business. 00:27:58:10 - 00:27:59:23 Speaker 3 Do you have, like, team scarves and things? 00:27:59:24 - 00:28:04:09 Speaker 2 Yes. 00:28:04:11 - 00:28:12:04 Speaker 3 I've got one more. For when you were a fan, what was the where was your favorite place to watch it from or the best place? 00:28:12:06 - 00:28:25:09 Speaker 2 Best place? Well, the worst place really was on the first corner because that's where they used the first come together. So, you know, you could see the danger in it. 00:28:25:12 - 00:28:29:02 Speaker 1 So you weren't. Is that the same as the pit bin loonies? 00:28:29:08 - 00:28:35:07 Speaker 2 Yeah. Well, they were given they were given a. 00:28:35:09 - 00:28:45:03 Speaker 2 Area behind by the second bend. So they were able to sort of held their events there. 00:28:45:05 - 00:28:49:11 Speaker 1 Were you ever a pit bend loonie. 00:28:49:13 - 00:29:02:20 Speaker 2 When I first started to go. Yeah, shortly after that. But then I got involved in running it. And so that went for me because I was too busy making it, making the thing work. 00:29:02:21 - 00:29:11:13 Speaker 1 Yeah. Can you give us a brief overview of how speedway works in terms of the type of bike, the tracks, the rules scoring. 00:29:11:15 - 00:29:23:23 Speaker 2 500 cc motorcycle, no brakes, and they run on ethanol fuel. So there's no pollution in the atmosphere. 00:29:24:00 - 00:29:28:00 Speaker 1 And can you tell us the origins of speedway in Wimbledon? 00:29:28:02 - 00:29:35:10 Speaker 2 Yes. The Wimbledon started about 1930. 00:29:35:12 - 00:29:41:19 Speaker 1 Can you tell us about the origins of the colors? Any ideas about why they chose those colors? 00:29:41:21 - 00:29:56:03 Speaker 2 No, but they stuck with them for a long, long period of time. So there was something that was there when I went first. Went there to Speedway. It was the they were they were using and they stuck with it to the end. 00:29:56:05 - 00:30:02:14 Speaker 1 Can you tell us generally about the population popularity over the years and how much media coverage you was getting? 00:30:02:16 - 00:30:21:10 Speaker 2 Well, the times when they went through media coverage saying in the postwar days they got quite a lot of coverage and that was quite good getting a crowds. But then the. 00:30:21:12 - 00:30:34:23 Speaker 2 Publicity dried up and the sport and wasn't really treasured. And so, you know, we went to the went to the war. 00:30:35:00 - 00:30:40:15 Speaker 1 Can you tell us about the legends of Wimbledon, local and international. 00:30:40:17 - 00:30:45:11 Speaker 2 The tabloid and Ronnie Moore? 00:30:45:13 - 00:30:58:12 Speaker 2 But Tommy Jansson was the writer that wrote for the team was almost in the money more category. But. 00:30:58:14 - 00:31:06:05 Speaker 2 Was riding in Sweden and lost his head. 00:31:06:07 - 00:31:15:20 Speaker 1 Yeah, he was killed in Sweden, wasn't he? 00:31:15:22 - 00:31:23:04 Speaker 1 Can you describe the relationship between different activities of the stadium? Because there was also stock cars and greyhounds. 00:31:23:05 - 00:31:50:05 Speaker 2 And so was easier because they didn't have to do very much with it. They ran on a concrete oval, whereas speedway has shale track, which has to be, you know, sifted and sorted and up to the standard that the bikes can could race on. But the stock car circuit was a much easier thing to bring to the stadium. 00:31:50:07 - 00:32:03:12 Speaker 2 In fact, I remember when I turned out the first time the guy who got his name now with the guy who was in charge of stock cars said, we've got another guy turned up here. Guys lose his money, lose his wedge. 00:32:03:14 - 00:32:10:03 Speaker 1 So was there gambling on stock cars? Was that a team sport like speedway? 00:32:10:05 - 00:32:17:07 Speaker 2 That was a team sport, like speedway. But they were gambling on the speedway at the end. 00:32:17:09 - 00:32:19:05 Speaker 1 And that you said that was approved. 00:32:19:05 - 00:32:19:15 Speaker 4 It was. 00:32:19:16 - 00:32:22:23 Speaker 2 Yes, we approved of that. Yes. 00:32:23:00 - 00:32:28:03 Speaker 1 And did they did the stadium get money from the betting? Did you get a cut? 00:32:28:05 - 00:32:29:11 Speaker 2 They were. We didn't. They would have. 00:32:29:11 - 00:32:31:16 Speaker 4 Done okay. 00:32:31:18 - 00:32:35:04 Speaker 1 I mean okay. 00:32:35:06 - 00:32:38:21 Speaker 2 We were just we were just leasing that stadium for a short period of. 00:32:38:21 - 00:32:40:18 Speaker 4 Time, right? 00:32:40:20 - 00:32:42:22 Speaker 2 Or it was over. We had a four year contract. 00:32:42:22 - 00:32:43:11 Speaker 4 With them. 00:32:43:12 - 00:32:45:14 Speaker 1 Okay. Was it still once a week at. 00:32:45:14 - 00:32:49:10 Speaker 4 That stage? Yes. 00:32:49:12 - 00:32:57:19 Speaker 1 Can you tell us about any technical changes through the years, like safety, the the bike? How did the bikes change? Or the stadium. 00:32:57:21 - 00:33:08:10 Speaker 2 Night in change? Very much. The stadium changed a bit and it was. It was probably safer as the time went. Went on. 00:33:08:12 - 00:33:10:23 Speaker 1 Did they change the helmets and. 00:33:11:00 - 00:33:21:06 Speaker 2 Yeah. They brought new helmets in which was really done by the riders themselves externally and then the helmet and brought it in. 00:33:21:08 - 00:33:26:11 Speaker 1 So it wasn't imposed to get a new helmet, would they. Were they made to get a new helmet or they just wanted. 00:33:26:11 - 00:33:26:24 Speaker 4 To be safe? 00:33:27:04 - 00:33:43:23 Speaker 2 They would have they would have had to have had the, the the helmet approved from, from basic level. So they weren't forced to buy a new helmet, but the helmet they did was properly investigated to make sure that it was up to the job. 00:33:44:00 - 00:33:47:05 Speaker 1 And what about what they were wearing? Did they wear leather. 00:33:47:05 - 00:33:56:23 Speaker 2 Or used to be leather? But it turned out to be latex and. 00:33:57:00 - 00:34:02:15 Speaker 1 Can you describe pivotal events at the stadium? You know, like the international? 00:34:02:17 - 00:34:15:16 Speaker 2 Yes. I mean, we held the international there every year, which was 16 of the world's top riders, and that used to bring a huge crowd in on Bank Holiday Monday. You couldn't get a ticket. 00:34:15:17 - 00:34:16:15 Speaker 1 Was that in May? 00:34:16:18 - 00:34:19:01 Speaker 4 May bank holiday? Yes. 00:34:19:03 - 00:34:28:06 Speaker 2 And the crowds came in the form of all champions. And that was race and the AlphaGo. Crazy. 00:34:28:08 - 00:34:32:00 Speaker 1 What do you think of the importance of speedway to the local area? 00:34:32:02 - 00:34:52:06 Speaker 2 Well, I think it's very important because it's a relatively safe sport and, you know, it's very friendly sport and it's a very exciting sport. And so it's not a difficult sport to to like and enjoy. 00:34:52:08 - 00:34:58:03 Speaker 1 Can you tell us about the demise of speedway at Wimbledon. You know what caused it. 00:34:58:04 - 00:35:09:10 Speaker 2 Well, because there wasn't enough investment made in the stadium so that the team that they had, they couldn't sustain because they didn't have the money. 00:35:09:12 - 00:35:11:10 Speaker 1 So did the riders go elsewhere? 00:35:11:15 - 00:35:12:13 Speaker 4 Yes. Got more money. 00:35:12:14 - 00:35:17:23 Speaker 2 Somewhere to spawn and others went to other tracks around the country. 00:35:17:24 - 00:35:24:18 Speaker 1 So did those other track. Other tracks pay better? 00:35:24:20 - 00:35:32:06 Speaker 2 In the longer term, they must have paid better, I suppose, because that's why people went to them. But. 00:35:32:08 - 00:35:37:08 Speaker 2 It really depends on how many people come through the door. 00:35:37:10 - 00:35:44:00 Speaker 1 And a question about the future. What does the future hold for Speedway today? 00:35:44:02 - 00:35:45:21 Speaker 2 Well, nationally or nationally? 00:35:45:22 - 00:35:48:03 Speaker 1 Yeah, internationally. 00:35:48:04 - 00:36:08:04 Speaker 2 Internationally it's pretty pretty good. I mean, the number one country speedway in the world is the Poland, the massive crowds. And they hold the world championship now. So all the big moments that used to be at Wimbledon and now are taking place at Poland. 00:36:08:05 - 00:36:10:24 Speaker 1 And did you ever go to Poland to watch it? 00:36:11:04 - 00:36:12:13 Speaker 4 No. 00:36:12:15 - 00:36:14:03 Speaker 2 What's it on the TV? 00:36:14:04 - 00:36:14:16 Speaker 4 Oh, right. 00:36:14:22 - 00:36:16:09 Speaker 1 So they do show it on television? 00:36:16:10 - 00:36:16:21 Speaker 2 Yeah. They do. 00:36:16:22 - 00:36:18:21 Speaker 4 Yes. Okay. 00:36:18:23 - 00:36:23:18 Speaker 1 And so, do you think there's any chance of Wimbledon? Wimbledon having speedway again? 00:36:23:20 - 00:36:33:01 Speaker 2 Yeah. I hope so. I mean, there was a lot of talk about Speedway getting other chance in the last couple of months. 00:36:33:03 - 00:36:33:20 Speaker 4 Okay. 00:36:33:21 - 00:36:34:15 Speaker 1 Well, in Wimbledon. 00:36:34:15 - 00:36:35:19 Speaker 4 Or just in Wimbledon. 00:36:35:24 - 00:36:38:01 Speaker 1 Because there's none in London anymore, is there. 00:36:38:02 - 00:36:40:23 Speaker 4 No. 00:36:41:00 - 00:36:45:09 Speaker 1 And who's discussing this? Who's making these? 00:36:45:11 - 00:37:00:07 Speaker 2 Well, that was to do with the that came from the from the football club and that conversation from the chap who does the. 00:37:00:09 - 00:37:04:16 Speaker 2 I think the curator. 00:37:04:18 - 00:37:17:23 Speaker 1 Okay. Do you know who that is? Is it John Lynch? John. Okay. Okay. Do you have any other comments about the history that you haven't mentioned? 00:37:18:00 - 00:37:19:22 Speaker 2 Not really. 00:37:19:24 - 00:37:21:12 Speaker 4 Okay. 00:37:21:14 - 00:37:34:21 Speaker 3 I've got a sort of technical question about the smell now because the fuel burns completely cleanly. So there's a smell from the oil in the engine. You said you mentioned Castrol just trying to get this picture of what was. 00:37:34:22 - 00:37:35:11 Speaker 4 Yeah. 00:37:35:15 - 00:37:45:24 Speaker 2 Well they dropped the Castro some extent now and they use the methanol feel. 00:37:46:01 - 00:37:47:09 Speaker 3 So the few has changed. 00:37:47:10 - 00:37:49:07 Speaker 4 Yes. Okay.