Speedway back at Odsal ?

Great track,but in the wrong place,speedway will never return to Odsal,the stadium would swallow up huge amounts of money,and sadly,the crowds for speedway nowadays could not support it.

 

If Odsal is too big back to the Shay then? Is it still there?

 

Dave,you are correct in that Eric Boothroyd moved the Dukes from Halifax because the money,but I think he was also keen to move to the refurbished track at Odsal,as he had more flexibility there regarding practice and training sessions.The Shay was also in a poor state of repair,it had never been great even when the Dukes 're-opened in 1965,but it was getting worse.Of course,there is no way the Shay could accommodate speedway now,but with the best track in the country just over the hill in Manchester,and with Sheffield moving in to the top league,things could be worse for speedway fans in this area.

 

I remember going to the Shay to watch the Dukes in the late 60's and early 70's. Riders from that era that spring to mind that rode for the Dukes were Eric Boocock, Dave Younghusband and Dennis Gavros.

I believe the attendances for the Dukes in that era were larger than what Halifax Town were getting?

My family seemed to lose interest in the sport, and being too young to travel over by myself, I never renewed my interest when they moved to Odsal in the 80's

 

It was a bottle of pop and crisps for me back then Bronco!

 

I got into it a bit later during the Kenny Carter era, but sort of lost interest after that and never really went to Odsal

 

I remember Ray from his time at Greenfield,and he rode for the Dukes in their first match back at the Shay in 65,replacing Bryan Elliott,who i think was injured.Lovely bloke,but never a prolific scorer.

 

https://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/sport/18512416.promoter-says-speedway-return-april-odsal-visit/

 

I think the stock cars would work,as it looks like Belle Vue will be lost as a venue,but the state speedway is in at the moment,it would be a brave man to take on the promotion.However,best of luck to anyone prepared to give it a go,it would be great to have speedway back in the area.

 

It would be good to have it back. But, When I lived in Wyke as a kid, you could hear the roar of the engines, or even smell the fumes (lovely smell) if the wind was strong enough, and that’s 2 or 3 miles away. They might get a bit of opposition from the local population, probably more so from the new builds up there that were built well after the motorsport went, and they’d have a point.

 

Found the Speedway a bit boring TBH but the Stock cars were great, They offered to put a huge amount of money in to Odsal in return for half the lease for security, Typically Bradford Norther turned it down even though the council were in favour and maybe a sweetener.

 

Tickets now on sale for the first 2 stock car and banger racing meetings in April

 

Is John Lund still racing?