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Birmingham Speedway
Bordesley
Green |
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[The Wheels Project] |
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| Birmingham Wheels Project, Addereley
Road South, Bordesley Green, Birmingham, West Midlands, B8 1AD ran between 1984-1986 |
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These 3 Photos are courtesy of Chris
Wallett |
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| The wheels project is still used by
stock cars and could house speedway again, with very little work if the
"Greyhound Stadium" ever runs into trouble running speedway |
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| Numerous Birmingham
Tracks |
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| Chris Wallett says: The story goes that
there were 2 stadiums either side of the Walsall Road, Perry Barr,
Birmingham. |
The Greyhound Stadium I believe ran speedway in 1928 but then speedway
moved to Hall Green in Birmingham
until the War 1928-1938. After the war speedway returned to Birmingham but
at the Birchfield Harriers Athletic
Stadium or Alexander Stadium which is across the road from the Greyhound
Stadium. Speedway ran here in its boom years from 1946-1957 and also some open meetings in 1960 run by Doug Ellis later
of Aston Villa FC fame.
Speedway then closed and the stadium was used solely by the well known and
successful Birchfield Harriers Athletic team. |
Speedway then returned to Birmingham in 1971 back at the Greyhound stadium
now known as the Ladbrokes
stadium. It ran here very successfully until 1983 when the site was sold
for redevelopment. In the mean time also
in the early 80's the Birchfield Harriers had a new Alexander Stadium
built a mile or so up the road which was a
purpose built athletics stadium now often seen on the TV for top athletics
meetings. |
The old Alexander stadium now reverted to a dogs only stadium following
the closure of the Ladbrokes Stadium.
The now homeless speedway team tried in vain to return to the old
Alexander Stadium but found a new home at
the Wheels Project from 1984-1986. This proved a disaster due to poor
crowds. So speedway was lost to Birmingham and as the pictures show the Ladbrokes Stadium is now gone. In 2007
following heavy lobbying of the council
the Brummies were given permission to return to the old Alexander Stadium
along with greyhound racing. The main stand is the same although the track is very different from the 40's and 50's
track. It remains today and hopefully for
sometime to come. Very complicated but hope this makes it as clear as mud.
Glad to help. |
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| Birmingham v Long Eaton v Cradley
Heath & Stoke |
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| Brian Bott's Photos |
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.jpg)
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| Brian Bott took these 3 pics in 1985 the
first is of the track under construction and the others are of action at
the track |
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Arkansas Calling
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Dan Gibbs says:
Hello John, What a wonderful website. I am a Brummies fan who moved to
California in the 90's and got to see some great speedway there at Auburn
(Flyin Mike Faria, Billy Janniro, B Schwartz, Cowboy Cook) but now I live
temporarily in Arkansas with no speedway (oh no!! ) I have some team pics
of the Brummies at Bordesley Green if
 they
are of use to you.
Dan says: I have photos of 1985 and 1986 teams and also a very
fuzzy photo of the 1984 team that rode 3 or 4? challenge matches at the
wheels centre against (I think Oxford and Cradley and ??? in 1984).
Perhaps somebody could identify for me the rider kneeling on the right
hand side of the 1984 photo? They are I believe from left to right back
row - Linden Warner, Neil (not Paul) Evitts, David Bargh?, Simon Cross,
front row - John Grahame, Andy Grahame and who?????. I would be interested
in any info on this 1984 team and the matches they rode. With kind
regards, Daniel Gibbs
John says: I can confirm David Bargh is standing 3rd from left. |
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Steve Baker says: Hello John, I believe I can give you some more
information about the team Dan Gibbs has asked about. Firstly the
picture of that team is named correctly apart from John Grahame is
actually Alan Grahame and the mystery rider on the end is Rob Pfetzing. |
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This team rode as the Brummies on 23.9. 84
against Oxford in what was billed as the Grand Opening meeting but
was in fact the second speedway meeting held at Bordesley Green as
a four team junior event was held on 2.9.84.
However this was the first meeting as a
seven man Brummie side and they beat Oxford 41-37.
Scorers were,
Brummies Neil Evitts 9, Andy
Grahame 8, Simon Cross 8, Alan Grahame 7, David Bargh 5, Rob
Pfetzing 4, Linden Warner 0. Cheetahs Hans Nielsen 12, Simon Wigg
10, Mel Taylor 5, Jens Rasmussen 4, Nigel Sparshott 4, Ian Clark
2, Nigel De`ath 0.
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A second challenge match was held on
26.10.84, although it was a completely different Brummies team,
against Cradley Heath which the Brummies won 40-38.
Scorers were, Brummies Hans Nielsen 15 max,
Neil Evitts 7, John Jorgensen 6, Bobby Schwartz 6, Shawn
McConnell 2, Ari Koponen 2, Kym Mauger 2. Heathens Lance King 11,
Alan Grahame 11, Phil Collins 8, Simon Cross 5, Finn Jensen 3,
Steve Collins 0, rider replacement was used for Erik Gundersen who
was at an FIM dinner!
I attended both of these matches and I
believe they were the only two held there that year( apart from
the junior 4TT) ,although I could be wrong, it was a long time
ago!
I hope this helps
Regards
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| 1985 Brummies |
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1985: Doug Wyer, John Hough, Linden Warner, Paul Evitts (on bike), Paul
Stead, Phil White and Reg Wilson.
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Another
1985
Line Up |
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| 1985: Doug Wyer, Reg Wilson, John Hough,
Paul Evitts (on bike), his father Tom Evitts (co-promoter), Phil White,
Paul Stead and Linden Warner. |
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| Another Team Shot |
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| 1986 Team |
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| Early-Mid 1986: Reg Wilson, Mark Stevenson, Paul Evitts (on bike) Ian M.
Stead (not to be confused with Ian Stead with no middle 'M' who rode in
the same team at one point), Phil White, Steve Finch and David Cheshire
(kneeling). |
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| Pits 1986 |
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Chris Wallett says: Thanks for
putting my pics on your site. Hope it brings the stories up to
date. Looking through your page on Bordesley Green Birmingham I
noticed that one pic titled 1986 showing the pre match
introductions, the one with the large Gillette Contour advert in
the background, has my Dad in it. The man on extreme left with the
grey hair and brown shirt is my Dad: George Wallett, who was team
manager for Birmingham through most of 1986. The riders by the way
are Reg Wilson, Phil White and skippering Edinburgh Doug Wyer who
rode with Phil and Reg for Birmingham the year before.
Keep up the good work |
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| John says: Thanks for all of your help Chris. I hope the
current Birmingham track in 2013 operates for many years to come. I don't
want to start another Defunct Speedway webpage for it! |
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Programme Scans Courtesy Of
Dan Gibbs
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Only 3 meetings staged during 1984 and here we have one of the programmes
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1985 and 1986 programme covers
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The Problems At
Bordesley Green |
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| Brian Buck says: Bordesley Green received
a lot of stick for the poorness of the spectator facilities
and the roughness of the track, but although much of this was
justified, the place certainly wasn't all bad and I always
thought that if it could have survived for another year or two,
(until the City Council took over control of the Wheels Park
and it began to be run a bit more professionally). |
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| The track was a really good size and shape and received much
praise from the riders after the early meetings, but it
couldn't take the battering it got from the daily use of it
for the stock cars, and it wasn't long before the base was
wrecked and the riders wouldn't trust the surface, resulting
in a sharp deterioration in the quality of the racing. |
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| Attempts to reach an amicable understanding with the stock car
people looked like being successful, but the operators of the
site just wouldn't enforce any kind of rules and allowed all
and sundry to take cars on the track even when it was pouring
with rain. |
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| The spectator facilities were abysmal and access to the site
was only by an obscure entrance under a railway bridge at its
least accessible point, and the cart track that led up to the
track car park was littered with huge potholes as well
as great mounds of dumped rubbish. |
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| A very amateurish site management chose to erect various
amenities without bothering about planning permission with the
result that the spectator covering on the last two bends which
was "Heath Robinsonish" anyway but did at least give some
protection from the wind and the rain, had to be taken down -
convincing supporters that there was no intention to improve
things. |
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| A promotion run by two enthusiastic but far from wealthy
supporters - Tom Evitts and Les Powell really had no chance,
but my memories of Bordesley Green are of some very good
racing in primitive conditions and a feeling of regret that an
opportunity to establish speedway at a new venue which
definitely had some potential despite being in a very poor and
rundown part of Birmingham, was lost. |
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| In more recent years, both Tony Mole and Graham Wright tried
hard to interest the Wheels management in bringing speedway
back there on what would have been a separate track to the
original one which is now tarmacked for the stock cars, but
without success. |
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Have you anything to add to the Birmingham Bordesley Green page? send me
an email
John
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| The contents of the site are © and should not be
reproduced elsewhere for financial gain. The contributors to this site
gave the pictures and information on that understanding. If anyone has
any issue or objections to any items on the site please
e-mail
and I will amend or remove the item. Where possible credit
has been given to the owner of each item. |
