NEWS

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Walkerville & S.A. News, 2017

( 2016 News )

3.12.2017, Walkerville Race Day.
Speedway riders Neil Pettit, Marcus v.d. Merwe, Bobby Devine, Peter Buck and Kian Lawrenson featured in 3 speedway heats, Flat Track racing again dominating this final meeting of the year. Pettit raced off his usual 150m. Handicap, with young Lawrenson on his 250cc. machine being awarded first prize. Three British visiting speedway followers were in attendance for the event and their report was published in the UK's Speedway Star, attached.
Results:
Race#1: K.Lawrenson, M.v.d.Merwe, N.Pettit, B.Devine,(P.Buck n/f.)
Race#2: N.Pettit, K.Lawrenson, M.v.d.Merwe, P.Buck, (B.Devine n/s.)
Race#3: M.v.d.Merwe, N.Pettit, K.Lawrenson, B.Devine, P.Buck.

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26.11.2017, Walkerville.
The Legends of the Past meeting scheduled for this date was cancelled.
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4.11.2017, Walkerville: Syndicate Day, Sidewinders Bash.
   No information known.
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29.10.2017, Walkerville: “2 x 4 Bash” (Flat Track & Quads)
   The Walkerville meeting scheduled for this date was cancelled.
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24.9.2017, Walkerville: No information known,
    The Final round of the Regional Speedway Championship was scheduled for this date. but it is considered likely not to have been staged.
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Sat. 26.8.2017, Walkerville: Monarchs “Race to Remember”
    The one big speedway meeting of the South African season so far at Walkerviille was held on Saturday August 26. This featured a speedway team challenge match between two sides of four riders. Two of the 'big guns', Byron Bekker and Mac Magill, came out of semi-retirement for the Southern Rebels, to make their first track appearance of the year, while the Walkerville side was led by Neil Pettit. The Rebels team defeated the local side by 23-12 over six heats. Brothers Ashley and Robin Brill clinched the trophy for the Rebels with a match-winning 5-1 in heal 5, which was followed by another 5-1 for the Southerners, with Bekker finishing first and Magill second in the final heat.
    Sidecar Speedway and Flat Track heats were also raced at this meeting, with Mssrs Britz snr, Britz jnr and Derrick Hillier included in the 3-wheel class. CW/CCJ
Heat results, Rebels v. Walkerville:
H1; Robin Brill, Byron Bekker,
     Marcus v.d. Merwe, Peter Buck. 1-5
H2; Neil Pettit, Mario v.d. Merwe,
     Ashley Brill n/f, Mac Magill n/f. 5-0 - 6-5
H3;Byron Bekker, Marcus v.d. Merwe,
     Ashley Brill, Peter Buck. 2-4 - 8-9
H4; Mac Magill, Mario v.d. Merwe,
    Robin Brill, Marcus v.d. Merwe. 2-4 - 10-13
H5; Ashley Brill, Robin Brill,
    Peter Buck, Marcus v.d. Merwe. 1-5 - 11-18
H6; Byron Bekker, Mac Magill,
    Mario v.d. Merwe, Neil Pettit. 1-5 - 12 – 23.
Points scorers:
S.S.Rebels: B. Bekker 8+1,
      R. Brill 6+1, A. Brill 4, M. Magill 5.
Walkerville: N. Pettit 3, Mario v.d.Merwe 5,
      Marcus v.d.Merwe 3, P. Buck 1.    Byron Bekker and Mac Magill take a 5-1 in Ht.6.
Sidecar Speedway and Flat Track heats were also raced, with Mssrs Britz snr, Britz jnr and Derrick Hillier included in the 3-wheel class.

09.07.2017, Leszno, Poland: Team GB Flop as Poland Excel
   Home team Poland cruised to their 7th. Speedway World Cup win, (the Team World Championship,) this afternoon as Team GB, euphoric after a first round win at Kings Lynn, collapsed and trailed in last behind one-man team Russia with a mere 15 points.
    In Rd.1 on home soil a week ago Team GB led by Craig Cook topped 53pts to push Australia (44pts) into the last-chance Race Off along with Hancock-less USA. (GB were without Woffinden and the Aussie without Doyle.)
    In Rd.2 in Sweden the home side led Russia while Denmark came last with 28pts: in the Race-Off Russia surprised Australia and claimed the 4th. slot in today's final, thanks to a 15pt unbeaten maximum from Emil Sayfutdinov.
    Defending champs Poland, seeded to the Final on home soil, proceeded to win or come second in every heat until the trophy was secured, when Patryk Dudek was then content to sit back and watch 3 other riders chase the last points of the day.   CCJ   Video Highlights

Rd.1 @ K.Lynn, UK: GB 53, AUS 44, USA 15, CZ 13;
Rd.2 @ Vastervik SW: SW 37, RUS 30, Latvia 28, DK 28;
R-Off @ Leszno PL: RUS 46, AUS 33, LAT 30, USA 15;
FINAL @ Leszno Poland:
Poland = 50
Maciej Janowski 14, Piotr Pawlicki 13, Bartosz Zmarzlik 13, Patryk Dudek 10,
Sweden = 42
Antonio Lindback 20, Fredrik Lindgren 11, Andreas Jonsson 7, Linus Sundstrom 4,
Russia = 18
Emil Sayfutdinov 11, Vadim Tarasenko 3, Gleb Chugunov 3, Andrei Kudriashov 1,
Great Britain = 15
Chris Harris 7, Steve Worrall 6, Robert Lambert 1,Craig Cook 1
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25.6.2017 Walkerville, Gauteng: Pettit Retains Golden Helmet
With no serious competition Neil Pettit retained the Golden Helmet trophy once more. The Junior helmet prize was won by Brandon Herbst, as top scoring junior Flat Track rider.
Lyle Kotze lined up in the Flat Track 'A' events and once more proved to be unbeatable, while Lance Curtis was awarded the 'B' class first prize after he and Roehan Strydom tied on 64 pts. and 2 heat wins each. CCJ Full results

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28.5.2017, Walkerville: Pettit and Herbst both unbeaten in Golden Boot
   Neil Pettit rode unchallenged in a limited field to score full points from 4 rides and claim the Boet Strydom 'Golden Boot' trophy for only the second time, his last win being in 2011. The junior Boot trophy, awarded to the top scorer amongst Flat Track Juniors, went to Brandon Herbst who was also unbeaten with 60 points.
    In the senior Flat Track races newcomer Andre Ackhurst took a couple of heats to familiarise himself with the Walkerville Oval before twice stealing the chequered flag from the Norris boys and take overall second place prize behind top scorer Keith Norris on a day when brother Nick was suffering engine problems and unable to finish in his last 2 rides. Roehan Strydom took the 'B' class prize money, and Jake Pretorius the Peewee top spot. CCJ   Full Results

          Brandon Herbst                              Neil Pettit chases down Marcus v.d.Merwe and Kian Lawenson
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Hansie Kleynhans,   5.7.1944 - 9.5.2017 R.I.P.
   News has been received of the passing of Hansie Kleynhans at the age of 72.
   Hansie was a lifelong speedway enthusiast but only switched from spectating to racing in his late fifties. He started watching speedway as schoolboy in the 1950's at the original Wembley Stadium, when his heroes were the likes of Henry Long, Neil Mortimer and visiting Europeans including Olle Nygren and Ken McKinlay, (whose autographed photos he still retained after 60 years.)
   Initially a member and later president of the Thunder Valley Speedway Club (TVSC) based at the Brakpan Oval, his early riding career spanned a difficult time for SA speedway, - the disbandment of the National Speedway Association, withdrawal of Motorsport South Africa affiliation in 2004/05, and loss of the Brakpan Oval to speedway that ultimately led to the folding of the Thunder Valley Club in late 2007 and subsequent retirement of many of its riders.
    Notwithstanding these setbacks, Hansie battled for a revival of the TVSC with attempts to introduce racing to his home town of Vereeniging, being frustrated by various logistical problems as well as striving to expand the sport elsewhere in the country. For instance he was influential in the re-introduction of the sport to George in March 2009 after an absence of over 5½ years, supplying the machinery for the novice riders of the Southern Cape at that meeting.
   Hansie returned to racing at the Walkerville Raceway and was a stalwart at that venue for many years before his retirement for medical reasons in 2013. Never a top ranker he was nevertheless a loyal club man and staunch advocate for the sport. D.A. 19.5.2017

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NEXT MEETING

Racing This Monday, May 1st 2017,
'Tour De Walkerville'
Come walk around Walkerville . . .
. . . .or just come enjoy the racing
SPECTATORS FREE
Racing starting 12md, why not come and
join in on the walk through Walkerville in the
morning, help out local charity's, and then
watch some great racing in the afternoon.

Lt > Rt: Neil Pettit, Jason Cole, John Sullivan, Ant Pettit, Gio Nunes

Click images below for slideshow.

9.4.2017: Monson & Summerhayes Clean Up in Sidecar      Bonanza of FIM World Cup and Oceania Championship
    It was another bonanza week for Sidecar Speedway fans in Australia as the 1000cc World Cup and the Oceania Championship were staged at Undera, Victoria and Gillman, near Adelaide, South Australia to round off the season.
     Aussie pairing of Warren Monson & Andrew Summerhayes clinched the 1000cc World title on Saturday evening in Adelaide, winning the Final after 3 crews, including last year's champs, Treloar & Blake Cox, tied on 13 pts after 20 qualifying heats. The former champs came in 2nd, ahead of Kiwi Andrew Buchanan & Denny Cox.
1st: Warren Monson/ Andrew Summerhayes (Aus) 13 (2-2-3-3-3)+3,
   2nd: Darrin Treloar/ Blake Cox (Aus) 13 (3-1-3-3-3) +2,
      3rd: Andrew Buchanan/Denny Cox (NZ/Aus) 11 (2-3-1-2-3) +1.
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     The previous weekend Undera Speedway, in the north of Victoria, staged Rd.1 of the Oceania Championship. Monson & Summerhayes looked fair to claim top points, going into the Finals top scorer but when they spun off the track on the exit of turn one they could add nothing to their 14 pts. Andrew Buchanan & Denny Cox took the chequered flag and carried 17 pts through into Rd.2 at Undera.
     In round 2, the Gillman leg of the Oceania Championship staged today, the day after the World title, Mssrs Monson & Summerhayes this time made no mistakes and went through the card unbeaten for a score of 19 pts and a total of 33 for the competition overall and the Championship crown. Rd.1 winners Buchanan & Denny Cox amassed 30 pts for 2nd place, with last year's champions Treloar & Blake Cox in 3rd spot on 29 points, the Gillman runners-up.
Overall Top 3:
     1st Warren Monson / Andrew Summerhayes (AUS) 33 points.
       2ndAndrew Buchanan / Denny Cox (NZ/AUS) 30 points,
        3rd Darrin Treloar / Blake Cox (AUS) 29 points.
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           Action from Undera, Oceania Championship, Rd.1                         Monson & Summerhayes celebrate their World Cup win at Gillman

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Sidecars Racing on Ice - If you ever wondered about combining the two forms of racing seen above and below, - then, Yes, they do race sidecars on ice in Europe, - spikes an' all ! - see here :
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2.4.2017, Heerenveen, Holland: Dmitri Koltakov is Ijsspeedway World Champion again.
Russia again swept the board in the 2017 Ice Speedway World Championship, taking the top five places with Dmitri Koltakov coming out overall leader and World Champ for the second time. At the tenth and final round of the 'Ice Gladiators Championship' in Heerenveen, Holland, he secured the title in his fourth ride, a fortunate situation, as he fell on the last bend of the day's Final while leading, but was uninjured, the gold medal already his, - his total, 185 points. Second place went to Igor Kononov with 170pts, and last year's winner Dmitri Khomitsevich was third. Highest placed non-Russian was Franky Zorn of Austria, (104pts,) with Stefan Svensson, Sweden, in 7th place on 78pts. CCJ
You can watch full meeting IceGPs videos from Russian and Kazakhstan, with English commentary, incl'g explanation and demonstration of an ice bike's special features, (Almaty video @ 23 mins,) and the the riders' protective clothing, against both the 200 spikes in each wheel, and against temperatures of -23 deg.C, ( yes, MINUS 23 C,) - chain-mail vests and armadillo gloves: Sharansk video @ 26 mins.):

       Togliatti, RUS, Rds 1&2     https://www.youtube....VWxrmHJXY8&t=6s
       Sharansk, RUS, Rds 3&4    https://www.youtube....7_ubS1W4Y&t=41s
       Almaty, KAZ ,    Rds 5&6      https://www.youtube....5oqjMOROY&t=16s

Action from Heerenveen on Sunday; Koltakov's Final fall.

26.3.2017, Walkerville, Gauteng: Regional Championship, Rd.1
    The first round of the Walkerville Regional Speedway Championship was won by Neil Pettit (right) with 3 unbeaten rides. Second place went to brother-in-law Gio Nunes, and Grant Frank was third with 5 points. The Norris clan once more filled the Flat Track top 3 positions, Nick grabbing first place with 57 pts, having conceded his third heat to brother Keith.
   Newcomers to the PeeWee and Junior Flat Track classes, Jake Pretorius and Dumel du Plessis, took to the Walkerville Oval with ease, each riding unbeaten in their respective groups on their debut appearances. 13-year old Dumel (left) was therefore slotted into rides with the adult FT 'B' class, and after a cautious 2nd place behind veteran Rob Whiting he took the chequered flag in the next two 'B' heats, and overall second place class position on the day, - a debut to remember! CCJ Full Results.
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      PeeWee lin-up      Junior Flat-Track class    The Norris trio, L-R, Keith, Nick, Daniel.

UK League Speedway 2017
     Further to the news article of 15.11.2016 outlining changes to the structure of league speedway for 2017 in the United Kingdom, the following teams will line up in the current season: -
SGB PREMIERSHIP: Belle Vue, King’s Lynn, Leicester, Poole, Rye House, Somerset, Swindon, Wolverhampton.
SGB CHAMPIONSHIP: Berwick, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Ipswich, Newcastle, Peterborough, Redcar, Scunthorpe, Sheffield, Workington.
NATIONAL LEAGUE: Belle Vue II, Birmingham, Buxton, Cradley, Eastbourne, Isle of Wight, Kent, Kings Lynn II, Lakeside, Mildenhall, Plymouth, Stoke.
   In the senior league, (formerly known as the Elite Lge,) the inclusion of Belle Vue, Leicester and Coventry was under threat for all three clubs throughout the winter, but whilst intensive and sometimes protracted and acrimonious discussions finally saved the day for the former two, the sport has lost the famous Coventry Bees speedway team, established in 1948. The Brandon Stadium is due to be redeveloped for housing. Plans to race the Bees' first month's meetings at nearby Leicester were refused by the BSPA, (the promoters association.)
    The Championship league, (former Premier Lge,) operates as reported; the National League has been joined by   Lakeside and Plymouth, both stepping down from the EL and PL respectively, but has lost the junior club team Rye House II.
Cradley Heathens, established in 1947, are still without a home track and will alternate weekly Monday evening meetings with Wolverhampton Wolves in a track-share for the majority of their home meetings at Monmore Green, but will stage a limited number of matches at Perry Barr, Birmingham where fixture restrictions necessitate. CCJ
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NEXT MEETING: Walkerville Oval,
This Sunday, 26.3.2017 at 1pm
Speedway Regional Championship, Rd. 1,
plus Flat Track, Quads, Sidecars.
Admission only R25 pp

Come and join us,
Track GPS co-ordinates are:
S26 24 17 E27 57 48

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5.3.2017 Walkerville, Gauteng: Pettit wins Buddy Fuller Challenge

Neil Pettit rode undefeated in the Walkerville club's delayed start to the 2017 season to claim the Buddy Fuller Challenge prize. Starting together off a 80 metre handicap, Pettit's one serious challenger, Mario van der Merwe, without his own bike because of engine problems, was forced to withdraw from the meeting after following the former SA champ home in their first ride on brother Marcus's machine.
In the Flat Track class, Nick Norris rode unbeaten for 45 points, with newcomer Brandon Franco splitting the Norris trio for second-place prize money, while Gareth Francis, another new face at Walkerville, scored maximum points in the Flat Track 'B' class heats. Angeline Swanepoel took 2 wins from 3 rides to head the Quad class, with Xander Moe, switching from 2 wheels to 4 this season, taking 3 second places and the runner-up cash. Full results CCJ
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21.2.2017 : South African Speedway International Test Matches, 1930 - 1996
      The results of Speedway Test Matches between South Africa and other nations, plus international club team challenge matches, from the first international at Ellis Park, Johannesburg in 1930 against England, up to the Polish tour of the Republic in the '90s, have been added to the website, along with an all-time points scores table.
An article on the 1951 tour of Europe, lead by Buddy Fuller across 6 countries, starting in London where all new machines from the JAP dealership were collected, is also reproduced. CCJ
    Test Matches     1951 European Tour
              Below: Seen together, South African and English riders of the 1948/49 Series.

NEWS 2016