Coventry Bees Speedway - Brandon Stadium

I dont know how long you went up to the Bees for, it was our Saturday night out, the reason I mention it, my brother Neil Campbell and father Noel Oliver both worked up there, but this would be going back to the time when the Boocock brothers were there and Ivan Mauger etc, also if I remember rightly there was a Kiwi who used to race

Hi Ollie I don't remember Neil or Noel specifically, although we probably knew each other - I first went as a spectator in 1951, but worked there from the 1962 season through to around 1969. These were some of Nigel Boocock's best years, as well as Ivan Mauger's. The Kiwi you're remembering was probably Mitch Shirra - he still rides occasionally here in Australia in the veterans' classes - and still goes well. Apart from those mentioned in earlier posts, other good people I remember from the stadium staff include Pat Walker (no relation - in the restaurant), Alf Groves (Pit Marshal), and Mick Pimlott (assistant to Phil Storey, track manager). Hello to any of them, if they tune into the site!!

Tom Shirra, father of Mitch, passed away peacefully this morning, October 12, in a nursing home at Buderim, Queensland

Thank you for your mention of my father passing; he will be missed by many.

Taking the thread a little wider than "Bees" (which weren't invented until 1948!) I've just downloaded some photos of a Coventry-built Rudge-Whitworth dirt-track (speedway) bike on display in the Coventry Transport Museum

The freehold for Coventry Stadium, Brandon, has been advertised for sale However, it is believed that speedway, together with stock-car and greyhound racing, are secure for the time being Avtar Sandhu has issued the following statement : "This decision was taken after careful consideration, and after a lot of hard work over the last ten years we now feel the time has come for new owners to take over the stadium freehold. It is my decision and my decision alone to put Coventry Stadium up for sale. The stadium is 100 per cent owned by the Sandhu family. We do not have any partners in the ownership. Two of the three businesses operating out of the stadium are currently leased out, and the possible sale of the freehold does not affect either speedway, stock cars or greyhounds. They will all continue as normal, hopefully, for a long time to come. At no time have we applied for planning permission, nor are we seeking to apply for planning permission at this time. It is not the right time for planning and no development is in place. It is my decision and nobody else's to put the freehold on the market, but the businesses that run at the stadium will carry on as normal." It is believed that any imminent development of the stadium site, and also the derelict garden centre directly opposite, is highly doubtful as Rugby Road in its present state is not suitable to deal with such development, and would require widening as far as the A46 roundabout for additional traffic and for line of sight So Bees appear to be safe for the time being - in fact, they are entering a team in the National League (the third tier of British Speedway) in 2013 in addition to the Elite League team What is does mean however, for Bees followers and fans, is that Sandhu has no intention of returning as speedway promoter

It's over 100 degrees in the old money here at the moment, so I'm hiding indoors in the airconditioning, doing a bit of research on noise testing at speedway tracks. Some of you might know I'm trying to find land suitable for a track in Canberra - Australia's capital city - as a first step towards bringing real speedway back to this part of Australia, and eventually to holding an SGP here. You will appreciate that this is ambitious in these days when complaints about noise are commonplace, even against established tracks, so I need to present a watertight case. I wondered if any of you, with your knowledge of the mysteries of town planning in Coventry, are able to find reports on such testing from recent years. I have contacted the club, along with other clubs around the country, and I may get some help from them, but since these reports must at some stage become public documents, I thought I might also ask for your help. We have the assistance of architects and town planners who would be able to translate the results of tests around Brandon into the sites that we have in mind, to determine how much noise-damping earthworks etc we must expect to provide. Any ideas welcome!

Good luck with your plans JW, as a former BB's fan I hope it will be in the winter and not the summer. Ooooo this heat. I am sympathising with you.

Here's two speedway greats, both of them installed in our "Famous Coventrians" list - Nigel Boocock and Jack Parker (see also my Coventry Speedway gallery here)

I remember going there in the early 70's, mainly because the youth club I went to had members who went every week. It was very enjoyable then. I must say it seems really scruffy now!

Why? It's still four blokes on 500cc bikes turning left with no brakes - and the smell is still the same

Hi JW, Every time you talk about the BB's I can smell the track from here. All the best to the new 'kids' on the block and to their future. (Bring back the 50's)

Hi Dreamtime Can you get out to Pinjar Park? - They're doing a great job for W.A. kids. My wife and I are off to Auckland tomorrow for the first Speedway Grand Prix of the season (Go Chris Holder!!) - grandstand seats and pits passes - should be good!

Hello, That must be at the Pine forest north of Perth. I have not long moved from there and passed the lads having a 'Scramble' most weekends. Have a great time in Auckland JW.

Well, I've just watched the Bees match on Sky and frankly they were an embarrassment. They looked a beaten team from Heat 1. And this was against Wolverhampton, who were usually the whipping boys, although they have started this season well. A 31-59 defeat at home is totally unacceptable. I can rarely recall a team looking so dispirited and poorly prepared. The team they have put together looks woeful, and the new manager seems utterly clueless. Brandon looked almost deserted too. I can remember when the place was packed every Saturday, but the main stand has a couple of hundred scattered around, and the bends and back straight were virtually deserted. Unless there are some drastic changes I really fear for the future of this once great club.