Long Eaton Stadium - Stock Cars and Speedway


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Yep.. I too remember the roof colour coding and the gold top.. but I can't recall the rest of it either.

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Waaaaay back in the mid 60s I used to go to the speedway to watch Long Eaton Archers. I think the managers name was Ron Wilson. They moved to Leicester I think in about 67.Does anyone rememb

!hand! Stock cars! My lifelong favourite spectator sport. If you went to Long Eaton, you will remember seeing the Pavilion Hotel in the background, from the pits. Here's a photo that just shows it:

I got into stock racing from 1964to1966 seasons enjoyed it but very expensive hobby i raced with the best Ellis Ford the intrepid Albert Griffin Nev Hughes who helped me out getting started a few loca

The ratings for the different colour roofs were based on points scored during racing 1place to 6th place the gold roof was awarded to the winner of the world final the silver was for 2nd place.The red roof was for star drivers,blue tops were next then yellow tops and then white tops was the bottom grade,the racing always started with white tops at the front followed by yellow blue red and gold,the only time this changed was for the world final when it was based on points earned from the qualifying round regardless of roof colour.

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Yes i remember the fastest lap contest quite a few cars got damaged dont know if your car insurance would cover it.Can anyone remember Reg Saul and Fred Strecker driving the car through the wall of fire with Reg Saul laying on the bonnet.

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I don't recall that Ian, but I do recall a wheel coming off a stock and flying into the public car park, where it proceeded to bounce about over a number of car roofs.

 

When I look back to those days, I didn't even consider that I might one day own a car.  In our street on Bestwood, there were maybe 3 or 4 cars owned across 40 or so houses, with a couple of motorbikes.  Interestingly back then, it was perfectly normal for a couple of older blokes to leave their motorbikes parked up on the opposite side of the road.. which had no houses.  Nobody touched them.

By 1968 or 9 I'd had a few motor bikes and was onto my first car...

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Around the same time - late 60s - I remember the appearance of what was called Banger Racing, which was a bit less sophisticated than Stock Cars and more a case of bang-and-crash racing.

 

Instead of single-seat Stock Cars with big American V8s, Banger Racing was recognisably bog-standard British saloons which had come to the end of their lives, and they were just thrashed around the course with the aim of pushing every other car out of the way.

 

I ended up preferring watching Bangers to Stock Cars; it was crude but more visual.

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There was always one race, usually at the end, inevitably  called " Demolition Derby". No holds barred. Last man standing and all that.

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With a bit of 'control' they could still have banger racing, using the vehicles impounded by the police instead of sending them straight to the crusher. £20.00 a car, then off to the crusher !!

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2 hours ago, philmayfield said:

I think the nearest tracks are out in the wilds of Lincolnshire. In the backwoods where men play banjos and marry their sisters. A bit like "Deliverance!" :biggrin:

I think you have that mixed with Norfolk Phil !!

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Ouch, just had a dig in the ribs from the missus, reminding me that her and her family come from lincs (Bourne)

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On 12/22/2019 at 3:15 AM, IAN FINN said:

Hi swe62 if i remember right Ian Barkers girl friend of the day drove a bomber car can you remember this at Long Eaton i think her name was Cheryl.

You were thinking if Cheryl Hyde, of Breaston, Derbyshire. She was the first female Bomber Driver to be registered.Daughter of Ken Hyde (a teacher at Wilsthorpe Secondary School, Long Eaton).

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On 3/16/2006 at 8:11 AM, mick2me said:

I went to Long Eaton Stadium to see 'Banger Car Racing' around 1970.

The stadium is now long gone, though the land has not been redeveloped.

I had a job there, I should say I paid a call there, mid 90's in the Ramshackle stadium. Lacking maintenance for many years. There may still be buildings there but I have not been on the site for many years. The Pub (name?) was knocked down a few years back, and that land also stands vacant?

You still get the programs for the Stock car meetings offered on Ebay

The pub was The Pavilion, on Station Road. (backed directly onto the track and served refreshments ... near to the pits) .... now demolished also.

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On 11/29/2012 at 1:17 AM, david kipling said:

Thanks for people's welcome messages, and for fixing my link. I am no good at computers.

A couple of Long Eaton based stock-car racers were 180 Laurie Hooton and 355 Brian Carter. Red-top racer Nottingham's Nev Hughes #69 was promoter there, too.

As for speedway-versus-stock cars, it has unfortunately always been an insoluble problem, but both sports needed shale tracks (even though stock cars are also happy on concrete).

I remember from many many years ago an ARCHERS radio episode in which a young lad was spending time at a stock car track to the dismay of his parents ---- happily the story went on to prove it was "a good way for a lad to get his hands dirty and learn something".

Brian Carter(white top No.355) was the manager of Kennings Motors - Car sales and repairs ... on Nottingham Road (near the race track).

A Long Eaton lad.

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Hi Monica i raced a stock car 64-65 season at Long Eaton, Belle Vue and Coventry knew Brian Carter,Nev Hughes and Bill Jackson. I brought a trailer off Fred Ball 139 he was the shop foreman at Cripps commercial shop on Triumph rd. Too bad it has all been demolished including Belle Vue and Coventry my favourite driver was Albert Griffin 178 his car was sold to Stuart Wildcat Smith who became a legend,great days.

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On 12/22/2019 at 10:41 AM, swe62 said:

yes you are spot on Ian,Ian and Richard ,john Finn ,Eric Smith  and myself used to pal around we went to Le Mans  for 29 years on the trot All except me passed on , I can,t remember Cherrys surname for the life of me  though ,

 

 

Would this be Ian and Richard Barker?    I met up with Ian about 20 years ago and he gave me some Long Eaton Stock Car memorabelia.     Priceless!

Bob Beams    ex Toton   South Africa since 1983     

 

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On 9/11/2022 at 10:07 AM, IAN FINN said:

I raced a F1 stockcar there in the early 60s does anyone remember Nev Hughes from West Bridgeford and Ian Barker from Toton his girlfriend Cheryl Wilson was the first woman to race a banger.

I can't remember any names and sadly none of the programs survived to look them up but I do remember it was a great night out.

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I remember banger racing and Mr Onion with his big Austin and the giant plastic onion on the roof. His suspension was totally cream-crackered and he bounced rather than drove round the track.

There was much moaning when it closed but to be honest it was a bit of a dump.

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We took our lad there once so he could watch the banger racing. The thing I recall most was the car parking. There was no lines or organised runs, it was one car behind another till the feild was full. One big mass of cars. When the event finished I had absolutely no idea where my car was, so had to wait until nearly every bugger had gone home before I could get to my car. Good job our son had his wheelchair to sit on.

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