OzVMX Forum
Clubroom => General Discussion => Topic started by: DR on April 25, 2009, 10:32:12 am
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I grew up in a street where I was blessed to have neighbors who built and raced midgets just like in the vid below back in the 70's. Glynn and his lady friend at the time Leone both raced short circuit at Tivoli on methanol burning TM and TS125's and I suppose it stands to reason if you bought your methanol in bulk you would run it in everything including the ol' toecutter Victa as they did ;) They also owned 1 of the first genuine HO's in QLD which was used as a push car on Saturday arvs in the warm up for the Ekka speedway Saturday night. Saturday night speedway followed my Sunday at Tivoli. The midget was run on the black stuff at Surfers a few times also but it tended to fall over at speed with lots of bent and broken bits..now these people knew how to live!
I was surrounded by this mechanical stuff and through people like my Father and Glynn, his wife Leone and brother Russell (he had Neville Sutherlands old Sprintcar engine in his HT uterunning thru a 2 speed glide and 9 inch :o) I was in the thick of it all as a kid and how could any kid not be influenced bigtime.
I stumbled onto this little video the other night of a Holden Grey powered midget pretty much the same as Glynn's and also crossflow falcon powered midget which has the history of being the first ever built with this type engine. Just seeing a little of this stuff brings the memories the sounds and the smells flooding back. Why in all the dust and fumes I even shed a tear from my eyeball but then again maybe that was shed for the nostalgia trip it took me on. What I'd give to turn back time or to have one of these vintage racers gracing my space. I find them as cool as any vintage bike period and I HATE cars! ;D no reason for this post other than sharing the sounds of these classic 60's 70's pieces of Australian enginuity 8)
http://vintagespeedway.homestead.com/AVIDSPEEDMASTER256K_Stream001.wmv (http://vintagespeedway.homestead.com/AVIDSPEEDMASTER256K_Stream001.wmv)
V8 are nice but there's nothing like a screaming Aussie inline 6 be it a Ford, Holden or Valiant ;D
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there's nothing like a screaming Aussie inline 6 be it a Ford, Holden or Valiant ;D
At first I thought it was crap, but obviously they were just tooling around warming up at the start.
Once they got going though.............. :o
I can see it now........ The "Inline 6 Supercars Series"? :D
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sounded like me on the way to work in the FX ;D
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Yep that does it for me Doc, 8) the note reminds me of my HR ute i had,with a home brew straight through muffler and twin side pipes, :) the neighbors hated it, ;D
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The old sixes have a distinct note thats for sure. I have an xu1 that i do some club days in and it sounds nearly identical with the open exhaust on it.
Remember V8s are a tow car 6s are a race car! ;D
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And I bet they run a hose clamp on the holden 6 oil filter to stop it spinning off ;D
Yama, Ah but theres no subtitute for horse power than cubs
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my brother kerry very successfully raced an xu1 in Q,land [ask dick johnson what its like to be beaten by your own old car] cheers wally
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Thanks Doc that was fantastic.
It reminded me of the battles at the Brisbane Ekka on Saturday nights. My favourite racing was the sidecars and remember clearly the two top teams at one stage in the 1970s were riding Ducati vee-twin and Suzuki waterbottle powered outfits and the memory of the noise of them racing close together still makes the hair stand up on my neck
8)
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my brother kerry very successfully raced an xu1 in Q,land [ask dick johnson what its like to be beaten by your own old car] cheers wally
Wouldnt of been the Zupps of Mt Gravatt yellow torana would it wally?
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in the era I frequented the Ekka speedway the saloon car heroes were Alan Butcher in his Camaro, Mal Hulme in a 'yellow XU1' ,Barry Harrison, Merv Dixon in the big Falcon, the late Phil Jackson and Ian Marshall in the little mini coopers, Rob Hennessey in the XU1 and many others. The main local solo stars of the day were, Brian Loakes, Steve Reinke, Jack White, John Titman, Bob Gourlay, Kev Torpie, Ron Henderson etc. The speedcar guys wereRob Gardner, Alf Stanaway, John Booth, Gus McClure, Danny Davidson, John Baldcock, Cec Steinhardt, Eric Mitchell and Aurthur Sollitt to name a few. The super moddified heroes were Ron Wanless, Bob Kelly, Nev and Bruce Sutherland, John Bell and Eric Davidson. The sidcars were also one of my fav and the guy I really looked up to (literally!) was big Ron Johnson on the black Vincent and the father and son team who wore matching blue and white leathers but unfortunately their names elude me at present. Peter Tokesi, Ray Warnes, Alan McVinish were also local sidecar names. It was mainly the bikes we went to see and I got to witness many many world champions and great riders. If I were to start naming solo names the list would be a mile long and from near every continent on the globe. Those were the days alright and best part..kids were admitted FREE!! ;D
Oldfart, the old greys never had the oil filter problem cause they never had an oil filter ;D though Glynns sideplate used to run a remote oil tank due to the next to non-existant modified sump it still wasn't filtered except for a piece of metal gauze on the pickup. I loved the simplicity :)
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Yeah Doc, I remember the Ekka Speedway! 8)
As a kid you want to be close to the action so I'd stand against the fence.
Learned quickly to duck when the roost came over the fence, but eventually settled for watching the whole thing from the safety of a few rows back. ;D
My faves were the bikes though - both the solos and the sidecars.
And do you recall Speedway was shown on the telly every week?
Only the World Champs series is shown on the 'pay telly' nowadays... pity.
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My Liverpool years are still glowing in my brain ;D We trundled out there no matter how cold it was. The whiff of methanol and the plop of dirt onto your shoulders sitting down in the front rows meant another great night!
Sid Hopping,Gary Rush,Patterson,Brian Callaghan,Peter Graham,Peter Crick
Ivan Mauger,Ole Olsen,Billy Sanders,Torpie, John Boulger, John Titman.
Maybe a bit obscure was Russell Amundsen - lived around the corner from me at the time and I recall being wide-eyed at a tough green/yellow XU1.
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Like Doc and others i too have a fond memory of speedway in that era and was introduced to it my my dad a year or too before he passed away. i lived in a small town near Ipswich called Mt Crosby just a few K's down the road from Tilovi in 1970' - 72' when i was 7 years old. he used to take me to the Ipswich speedway (anyone remember that one? was it at ipswich showgrounds? ) as he was a bike fan and loved the sidecars, these early memories is what started it for me.
later on after many years i used to go to the ekka when on holidays in Brisbane in the Troy Butler era. Do they Still Run at the Ekka or is it like Melbourne and gone for good?
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that was great, my brothers back in the 60`s had a TQ, Noton 850 engine in it, its a shame its not around anymore.
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they do a special vintage demo event when the EKKA itself is on, no actual racing though. There was also a demo at the Mt Gravatt show last year.
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Those TQ's are pretty small and really hard to get into the seat. I do regular work on a Matchless/AJS 500 powered car. There is a regular racing around SA for the TQ's and the Formula 500's
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there is a stack of this speedway stuff online though not all of it vintage but worth a look all the same.
follow your nose with this link ;)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iz19xLw_r58 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iz19xLw_r58)
this video below is supposedly a flash media file (.flv) it should open in real player once you save it. Causes a few problems on occassions but I can't host it any other way. It's from the 2002 Ekka A main final. Typical of the racing I witnessed countless times. Sam Ermolenko had the neat drag your leg ice racing style that suited the loamy outside lines he prefered. These guys have the biggest gonads of all disciplines I'd reckon..not that I persoanlly want to know but one could assume pretty safely I guess :D
http://cid-86267c09a3452a71.skydrive.live.com/self.aspx/Misc%20Videos.%20Most%20will%20open%20with%20Real%20Player/Speedway%20Solo%20A%20final%20Ekka%20Speedway%20Brisbane%20Australia.flv (http://cid-86267c09a3452a71.skydrive.live.com/self.aspx/Misc%20Videos.%20Most%20will%20open%20with%20Real%20Player/Speedway%20Solo%20A%20final%20Ekka%20Speedway%20Brisbane%20Australia.flv)
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Photos of John Titman from the 2008 Vintage Speedway Spectacular held by the VSAQ can be found here:
http://www.jtr.com.au/john_titman/john_titman_photos_2008.htm (http://www.jtr.com.au/john_titman/john_titman_photos_2008.htm)
General information on John and his career can be found here:
http://www.jtr.com.au/john_titman/index.htm (http://www.jtr.com.au/john_titman/index.htm)
Career highlight photos can be found here:
http://www.jtr.com.au/john_titman/john_titman_photos.htm (http://www.jtr.com.au/john_titman/john_titman_photos.htm)
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And I bet they run a hose clamp on the holden 6 oil filter to stop it spinning off ;D
Yama, Ah but theres no subtitute for horse power than cubs
talk to my brother kerry about that!
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luke,me and my parents went to liverpool every weekend for about 13 years.ive been for a lap around liverpool in it was barry graham or gorden smee #24 hq 2 door monaro,garry rush and son have bought a couple of trucks and cars from a dealer i worked for when in sydney.got carried out of parramatta speedway by sid hopping when he owned it.and you cant forget brian callahans supercharged 6 cylinder torana.the usa vs aus 100 laps,and my uncle used to race a red fj and later a blue xr ford at liverpool,he even used to test them on some back streets around mortdale and not get harrased by police.thanx gary
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The Sydney Showground in the sixties was my stomping ground and the foundation for my appreciation of all motorsport.
Who could forget midget speedcar heroes like Johnny Stewart, 'Leadfoot' Lenny Brock, The Cuneen brothers, Barry Butterworth, Jeff Freeman, the great Bob Tattersall and many more and the two wheeled racers like Jim Airey, Bob Sharp, Cec Platt, John Langfield and a bunch more.
In my 59 years I've never experienced another atmosphere as electric that of the 'Showy'. When those lights went on and the first white overalled pit pusher would push his rider and bike out the big wooden gate of the pit area my skin would tingle and not stop until I got off the 394 La Perouse bus after the ride home.
My lady and I went to the Fox Studios craft markets a couple of Sundays ago and while devouring a tasty double shot skinny mocha latte and blueberry muffin on what used to be the infield of the old track I found my head being flooded by some great memories of a time in Speedways history that will never be repeated. Even Diane who has no interest whatsoever in motorsport fondly remembered the excitement of spending Saturday night at the 'Showy Speedway' with her brothers when she was a kid.
I'm so glad I lived during an era that hosted the worlds greatest speedway.
(http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2005-8/1062154/aireycollinscurtis.jpg)(http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2005-8/1062154/aireycollinsharp.jpg)(http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2005-8/1062154/airey%20platt.jpg)
l-r Jim Airey,Brian Collins, Geoff Curtis l-r Airey,Collins, Bob Sharpe Cec Platt
Today, Klub Kevlars Chris Ellis owns the Jawas ridden by Jim Airey and Geoff Curtis. The Airey bike is distinctive as it ran McGee fuel injection and the machining to accept the Hilborn fuel pump is still evident on the end of the camshaft housing. Curtis was killed on his bike (liverpool?) and still has the damage from it's final ride and Curtis's name plate on the rear guard. Both bikes will be ridden for the first time in 30 years at the Broadford Bonanza next year by both Chris and Jonesy. Cec is a good mate and is a regular at Nepean speedway and dirt track days. He was a stalwart of the 2 valve vintage long track in the 90's and his dices with John Langfield at the early Bathurst Long Track events showed that Cec was one of the best riders never to achieve his full potential. When most riders who showed a bit of potential went to England to further their trade, Cec took a different tack and went to America and was an early star at places like Costa Mesa and San Bernadino. His son Ty followed in his dads footsteps and also raced solos both here and in the USA where he actually held the lap record on the tight Costa Mesa track for a while.
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Ah the memories 8). Remember the solo Test Match races between the Aussies and Poms - some of the best crowd atmosphere and crowd participation I have ever enjoyed. They gave it to us and we gave it straight back. Just great rivalry and no malice. Every race, every point was important and appreciated. The appreciation was shown with the roar of the crowd followed by the equally passionate hissing and booing from the rival camp. Ah, all good stuff :D.
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I'm so glad I lived during an era that hosted the worlds greatest speedway.
Ah, yes, you are obviously referring to The Mile at Port Pirie. I remember it well :D :D :D A bit fast for the NSWelshmen tho ;D
(http://i566.photobucket.com/albums/ss106/pirie593/No42.jpg)
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Ah, yes, you are obviously referring to The Mile at Port Pirie. I remember it well A bit fast for the NSWelshmen tho
Cheeky prick ;D
I attended the dear old Morgan Mile during its latter years and have to admit it was a pretty spectacular event in a laid back South Aussie way. I can't imagine the insurance company driven authorities approving a permit for such a race these days, more the pity. Come to think of it, I doubt the Sydney Showground would pass muster today, with it's wooden fences, railway line uprights solid lightpoles hanging over the track and drains on the inside edge of the track. Unless you ever attended a Sydney Showground meeting in the sixties (the pre roll cage midget era) it's hard to comprehend just how spectacular and dangerous it was. Just ask Curley, who became a bit of a legend when he shook hands with the pit wall in a most spectacular way.
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Rode the Morgan Mile one year. It came into being after the Pirie Mile was reduced to the half mile track because of lack of riders.....too many expensive engine failures. I remember Phil Franklin wrestling his Triumph around the chopped up track; but it didn't really take off and never reached the heights of the Easter Speedway at Pirie.
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A legend, I wish, probably for the wrong reasons, although I did manage to walk away some 3 months later.
Your 100% right Firko the Royal had an atmosphere all its own. The tall grandstands held the sounds ( & smells ) in the arena and spectators felt part of the action. I loved to stand on the infield and soak it all in, the sound came back at you. The methanol fumes in the pits used to get caught under the big concrete grandstand and brought tears to your eyes.
I had a long conversation with Les Burdiss and Jim Airey at Nepean on the weekend just gone as they both rode my fathers bikes at some stage as did G.C. I also found out that Jim actually swung for my uncle Harold at the old Moorebank scrambles track before his Legend begun on Speedway.
Sorry Firko I have to question your cred, G.C. was killed at the Showground.
Or were you testing me.
Those midgets are awesome.
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Hey there pirie593--bit more history of the Morgan Mile.Cowboy (nic name and life member) has been at the Morgan track since God made sand and still maintains the track . :)
Do you have any pics of the Morgan Track you could share ? ;D 8)
http://ozvmx.com/community/index.php?topic=4828.0
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Sorry Firko I have to question your cred, G.C. was killed at the Showground.
I was fairly sure it was the showground but that Liverpool niggle threw me off. Of course it was the Showground, in fact I was there. The creds getting worse..... :-[
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VMX247,
Sorry, haven't got any from that era. But you might be able to help with this one (plus Firko and others). Is that Gerry Hussey in the middle?
(http://i566.photobucket.com/albums/ss106/pirie593/IMG_0008_NEW.jpg)
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I've just re-read this thread and you're right Firko, the old showground would be banned by today's standards. The fence was mostly concrete when I rode there except the pit gates and the famous Bullpens.
It would be a bit like the Isle of Man ( now they're brave ) for Speedway these days, with the HP from the current Laydowns I can't imagine it being deemed safe enough to ride.
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Just reading through this thread again and thinking about all the old names that keep popping up from the nepean nsw champs event, and thinking of all the old aquaintances that were there. We should have all been forced to wear big name tags. Probably i was talking to some blokes without realising that we had rubbed shoulders 'back when' and then i read here of all these names! Three cheers for oz vintage dirt! wally.