Since its arrival in Britain in the late 1920s, speedway has established itself as a hugely entertaining sport. It has enjoyed a particularly devoted following in Bristol, a city that first witnessed the thrill of dirt track racing in 1928, inside the greyhound track at Knowle Stadium.
Speedway first came to Bristol in August 25th 1928, and the Kingswood based Douglas factory dominated the early years with their Dirt Track model bikes. Speedway circuits opened all over the country and the thrills and spills of this exciting new sport captured the imagination of thousands.
Team racing gradually evolved, and Bristol Bulldogs first took to the track in 1936. Just two years later, the team had ascended to Speedway's top division and stars such as Cordy Milne, Vic Duggan and Morian Hansen graced the Bulldogs' colours of Orange and Black.
After the Second World War, the Bulldogs competed with a team in which local talent was prominent. Names such as Billy and Johnny Hole, Roger Wise, Mike Beddoe, Eric Salmon and Dick Bradley were headline makers on the local sports pages. However, in 1961 Knowle Stadium was demolished to make way for a housing development and the Bulldogs were homeless.
Knowle. Bristol's pioneer stock car circuit on the A37 in the southern suburbs was also a speedway and greyhound venue and fell victim to housing development in about 1960. It was less than half a mile from Whitchurch Airfield (the former Bristol Airport which once held circuit racing) almost opposite the HAPPY LANDINGS pub and near the old SPORTS GROUND where first class cricket was played until the 1980s. No signs remain of the stock car stadium today but as you drive along Wells Road the older style houses give way to a section of newer(1960s) ones. That's where it stood.
The first period of racing came to an end in 1930, but speedway returned to Knowle in 1936, when the club acquired the nickname 'Bulldogs'. Supporters flocked to Knowle in this period to make Bristol the best-supported team in the Provincial League and, before the intervention of the Second World War, they spent a season in the top division. After hostilities ceased the Bulldogs were in the National League Division Two until the on-track heroics of riders such as Billy Hole, Jack Mountford, Eric Salmon and Mike Beddoe gained the club promotion to Division One in fine style in 1949.
After the Second World War, the Bulldogs competed with a team in which local talent was prominent. Names such as Billy and Johnny Hole, Roger Wise, Mike Beddoe, Eric Salmon and Dick Bradley were headline makers on the local sports pages. However, in 1961 Knowle Stadium was demolished to make way for a housing development and the Bulldogs were homeless.
When the name “Fay Taylor” was on the programme in Australia and New Zealand, the interest aroused was incredible. The appearance of a female on the track was somewhat of a novelty. During one of her visits to the Western Springs track in Auckland during the 1929/30 season, Fay walked round the terraces chatting with the spectators.
The welcome she received was extraordinary.
Fay Taylor was the first British speedway rider to travel to Australia to race on our tracks following the introduction of speedway to the United Kingdom in 1928. Born in Southern Ireland in 1908, Fay first appeared on Australian and New Zealand tracks during the earlier months of 1929.
After leaving College, Taylor went to England and started to race motorcycles. During the 1920s, she took up motorcyle trials and grass tracking and became a major attraction. Then she changed track, going for speedway racing, which was more spectacular and paid better. She was already travelling the world, becoming a familiar speedway competitor and a big attraction for the crowds in both England and Australia.
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