The foundations of Motorcycle Speedway are one that is up for debate. There are hints of the sport in the pre-war era, where meetings were held on small dirt tracks in Australia and the United States. The concept of broadsiding a motorcycle also dates to pre-1914 when the American rider Don Johns became renowned for riding an entire racetrack with the throttle wide open, throwing showers of dirt up into the air at each turn.
The speedway scene really picked up in 1923 when the first official meet took place at the Maitland Showgrounds in New South Wales, Australia. The sport soon spread on a global scale, and in 1928 Britain staged its very first speedway meeting at High Beech in Epping Forest. Speedway clubs sprung up across the UK, including the Belle Aces in Manchester, a team that are still competing and are in fact the world’s oldest continually operating speedway club.
The scene exploded, and a multitude of motorcycle manufacturers were quick to see the obvious potential. Standard motorcycles were stripped of mod-cons and mudguards and a variety of Dirt Trackers were born. There was very little in the way of additional extras, except the knee hook which was required for the art of leg trailing. The electrics were modified to provide an ignition cut out. This enabled the riders to kill the motor and allow it to restart at the entry to the bends which often promoted the lurid slide. A number of the major players were soon involved, and no less than seventeen manufacturers exhibited their machines at the 1928 Motorcycle Show at Olympia.
OK, let us fast forward a few decades, and to an incredible collection of Speedway machines that have been acquired over the years by Ian Paterson and have been on display at the Cinders to Shale Museum in Edinburgh. Ian has made the decision to part with the world’s biggest collection of speedway bikes and memorabilia, which have been moved to the H J Pugh and Co. auction house in Ledbury. This was no simple task and involved two arctic lorries and six vans!
This is a handful of the 110 motorcycles that are available in the auction which takes place on 06th July 2024 (information obtained from H J Pugh and Co.).
A 1929 Scott 500cc which is believed to have been ridden by Wilf McClure in the same year. This was the first year of the water-cooled parallel twin two strokes in Speedway, and a small but devoted band of riders used them in the 1929-30 period.
A 350cc 1927 Indian DT (USA), which is believed to be an ex works machine. This bike was purchased by Ian Paterson in 1994 unrestored from Alan Forbes in Edinburgh. Ian was told that the bike was first ridden in Australia by Spencer Stratton who brought it to the UK, where it remained until it was purchased by an American collector in the 60s.
This is a 1930 500cc twin-port Norton fitted with Webb dirt track forks. Norton entered the dirt track racing scene at the beginning of 1930. The factory produced 50 or 52 of these machines, which included six prototypes that were given to favoured riders to iron out any minor problems. This is a standard model which was in production for one year only.
A 350cc 1929 Zenith-J.A.P which is believed to have been ridden by Harry Duncan. This is believed to be the only track bike of its model remaining. The Webb forks that Zenith fitted were centre sprung and laterally braced, similar to the BSA motorcycles of that period. The engine (which could be mounted vertically or inclined) sported stub or full length exhausts at the purchaser’s request.
A 1929 James 500cc V-twin super sports, believed to have been ridden by Norman Evans. 1929 Saw the first James dirt track motorcycles appear they were fairly successful, but too heavy so therefore discontinued at the end of 1929.
A 500cc 1930 Rex Acme-Python, believed to have been raced by Arthur Warwick. Rex Acme originally fitted their dirt track machines with J.A.P TT or Blackburne sports engines. This combination brought them a moderate amount of success.
A 500cc 1933 Comerford-J.A.P, believed ridden by Ginger Lees. 1933 Saw the introduction of the long four J.A.P. It now sported a double pilgrim oil pump, which provided a constant supply of oil to the valve stems and rocker assembly for the first time but as a belt and braces measure it still retained its auxiliary hand pump.
A 1935 Grosskreutz-J.A.P, that featured a Grosskreutz/Pinto frame and J.A.P 500cc long five. A great deal of confusion still exists over the “Pinto” name. Around 1935/36 Max Grosskreutz, in well documented interviews with the press, frequently referred to his bike as “Pinto”… whether he called his new machine a pet name or a trade name is unclear.
A later bike, this is a 1949 Langton-J.A.P. motorcycle which is believed to have been ridden by Joe Abbott. It features a Langton mk. 2 frame and the J.A.P. 500cc long five motor. Eric Langton was a speedway rider who won the Star Riders’ Championship in 1932, the forerunner to the Speedway World Championship, and earned 44 international caps for the England national speedway team. Langton went on to manufacture motorcycle frames for the industry.
Thank you to Henry at H J Pugh for the photos of these incredible old Speedway bikes. The auction will take place on 06th July 2024 from the auction house at Ledbury. Visit the H J Pugh website for the full catalogue of bikes.
Note: The Girder Club has no affiliation with this auction.
an article by The Girder Club
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