NEWS: Crisis Meeting for Norfolk Cycle Speedway

A special meeting has been called to discuss the future of cycle-speedway in Norfolk.

While the two established Clubs (Hethersett Hawks & Norwich Stars) have hard-working Committees, tracks that stage British events and sufficient members to support them in Regional Leagues and some national events, the overall picture for the County is not so good.

The main tracks at Hethersett Memorial Playing Field and Harford Park are currently supplemented by Eaton Park and Spixworth, neither of which has had teams based there for a couple of years or more. Local riders are indebted to Lee Grange and Shaun Dyball in particular for keeping the tracks in racing condition and both the locall Association and the Regional League have tried to keep events going on these tracks. This is becoming increasingly difficult as the membership’s appetite for ad hoc completions wanes.

This has been borne out by the competitions organised by the Norfolk Association in recent years – the Norfolk Championships (now running to seven categories) and the season-long Grand Prix series. Numbers attending have dropped consistently over the last four years to the stage that most events are embarrassingly short of competitors and are not financially viable to run. A combination of older riders no longer willing or able to commit regularly and new recruits reluctant to race outside their own Club Nights seems to be the cause.

So the meeting to be held at the Harford Community Centre off Ipswich Road in Norwich on Thursday February 19th from 7 p.m. will look at understanding the problems currently faced and look at new initiatives to move the sport forward and expand it in the County.

Anyone with an interest in the future of the sport in Norfolk is more than welcome to come and make a positive contribution.