Top Ten Promising Grasstrackers Lost to Speedway

Words: Gareth Bemister
Images: Alan Whale

Grasstrack Banter, along with Alan Whale Photography, take a trip down memory lane with this Grasstrack Banter Top Ten List...

Top 10 Promising Grasstrack Riders Lost to Speedway

Right or wrong, for many years now, Grasstrack has been seen as Speedway’s little brother, constantly feeding the sport with precious track racing talent. Whether that is due to the money involved, the lure of permanent purpose built venues or, more recently TV exposure, it is hard to say. But time and again Grasstrack has seen some of its most promising sons fly the nest and enter into the dog-eat-dog world of speedway racing...and in some of these cases, to great success!

Here is Grasstrack Banter’s Top 10 racers who began their careers as fantastic Grasstrackers, but spent the majority of their career plying their trade on the shale...if only we could have kept them a bit longer!

Who have we missed? Let us know either in the comments or on Grasstrack Banter Facebook group.

10. Tom Perry

For a time, Tom was the youngest competitor of the British Masters, competing in the 2009 event in Cornwall and finishing 5^th. Since then, Perry has gone on to become a very good speedway rider and this year lines up for Glasgow Tigers in the newly formed SCB Championship. He does still keep his hand in, however, and proved once again that he is a fine solo Grasstrack rider in 2016. After a ‘warm-up’ meeting in Bridgwater the week before, Perry managed to retain his British 350cc title. However, Grasstrack appearances are rare for the Midlander as he carves a career in speedway. Hopefully, we will see a little more of Perry in 2017, perhaps on board a 500cc machine when time allows.

9. Leigh Lanham

Lanham launches at the start during the 1995 Ace of Aces

The Suffolk racer has only just announced his retirement from speedway racing where he became a Premier League legend. But before turning his full attention to speedway, Lanham was an excellent Grasstrack rider. Several British Masters appearances led to a European Solo Semi Final appearance in 1996, but not long after, he placed his full attention on his speedway career. We wish Leigh all the best with his retirement, and hope that he may consider a return ‘home’ to the Grasstrack world. As always, he will be greeted with open arms!
 

8. Paul Fry

Fry leads at the 1997 Burn-up

This Herefordshire legend was a tremendous Grasstrack racer during the early 90’s and duly made a very good speedway rider. ‘Fryer’ raced at the very top level in Grasstrack before turning full-time to speedway. Sadly, we lost Paul in 2010, but he left a huge mark on both the Grasstrack and Speedway worlds in a career that spanned nearly 30 years. Rest peacefully, Paul.

7. Jason Bunyan

Bunyan actually looked like he was going to go to speedway full time but made a return to Grasstrack in the late-nineties, and this decision gave Grasstrack fans a real treat. Clad with high-visibility, fluorescent racing leathers, Bunyan was a Grasstrack mainstay during the 1999 season, winning at both club and national level. But Grasstrack appearances became rarer and rarer as Bunyan’s speedway profile grew. As a frequent visitor to New Zealand (and 10x National Champion), Bunyan was to be selected as a Wild Card for the inaugural New Zealand Speedway Grand Prix. Jason has made several one-off appearances back on the Grass, including a low-key appearance at Wimborne in 2014, but who knows what he might have achieved on the Grass if he was able to continue in both disciplines.

6. Lee Complin

This Yorkshireman burst onto the Grasstrack scene having won nearly everything through his Youth racing career. His much anticipated adult Grasstrack career began in 2000, and he put a stamp on his potential with some memorable rides at the Inter Centre Championships in Bridgwater that year. The following season, however, Complin really began to make in-roads in the sport. It was at the 2001 Bonfire Burn-up that he showed his full potential with a breath-taking ride from the back to get himself on the rostrum, and against world class opposition. It wasn’t long before speedway clubs recognised the potential of this absolute natural. However, not long after, personal issues led to Lee retiring from all racing and he was lost to the sport for several seasons. He has since returned, but has only ever appeared on the speedway circuits. Wouldn’t it be fantastic to see Complin, once marked as a potential World Longtrack champion, back on the Grass once again?

5. Chris Harris

Before winning multiple British Speedway championships, becoming a regular Speedway Grand Prix rider, representing his country in the Speedway World Cup, and of course, THAT win at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium, Chris ‘Bomber’ Harris was a sensational Grasstrack rider. Harris, from Cornwall, rose through the youth ranks of both Grasstrack and Speedway. At a time when his local team, the Trelawny Tigers, were competing regularly in the Premier League, Harris was able to balance both Grasstrack and Speedway. Bomber’s Grasstrack career had it’s most successful season in 2003, where he competed up and down the country in meetings, and took the British Under 21 Championships at Rhodes Minnis. Whenever tracks got rough and choppy (some would say a ‘real’ Grasstrack), Bomber seemed to prosper. So it was a surprise that his style was so equally suited to smooth speedway circuits. Anyone who has seen Bomber on TV will know that when the track gets tough, his Grasstrack roots come to the fore. Since that 2003 season, Chris has gone on to achieve great things in world speedway, and to the excitement of many, he returned to Grasstrack in 2015 and looked like he’d never been away. Let’s hope for more from the Cornishman.

4. Joe Screen

Throughout the early 90’s, Joe Screen was the hottest prospect on the Grasstrack circuits. He burst into adult Grasstrack racing as a fearless 16-year-old in 1988 and by 1992, he was already a British Masters champion. He followed this up with two more British Masters titles in 1995 and 2003 and always ‘dabbled’ with a bit of Grasstrack racing when time allowed. But very early in his career, his talent on a speedway machine was clear, and Polish Speedway soon replaced Sunday Grasstrack racing. Many believe that if Joe had competed regularly on Grasstrack and Longtrack, he would be a multiple World Longtrack champion. However, Grasstrack appearances since the mid-nineties were rare and Joe became something of a special attraction for Grasstrack fans. No doubt though, this hugely popular, crowd-pleasing rider left his mark in the Grasstrack world.

3.  Scott Nicholls

Nicholls lead during the 1995 British Championships

Another Grasstrack talent that has gone on to great things in the speedway world, Scott Nicholls began his Grasstrack adult career in the 250cc class before moving up to the 500cc class. Nicholls never actually won a big Grasstrack title, but came so close so many times. During his 250cc career, he very nearly won the British Championships in 1995, only to be defeated by Carl Wilkes in a tremendous day’s racing. And again in 1999, he looked set to win the British Masters title, only to have victory snatched from him due to mechanical problems. He actually won the final that day, beating Kelvin Tatum convincingly. With today’s winner-take-all final rules, Nicholls could call himself British Masters champion, but in 1999, dropping a heat (it was actually in the semi-final, whilst leading where he suffered mechanical problems) was enough to lose the title. Since then, Grasstrack appearances have been limited to very rare occasions as Nicholls has gone on to become one of the finest speedway riders in the world, not to mention a TV analyst and pundit. Such was Nicholls’ legend, that when it was announced in 2016 that he would be racing at the British Masters Championships, social media lit up. Lack of time with his machine meant that he couldn’t mix it with the world class riders, but surely with more track time, we could see him back on the top of the Grasstrack world again? It would be a great sight to see.

2. Mark Loram

Mark Loram began his career on the Grasstrack circuits. And the reason he features so high on our list is due to what he went onto do, that none of the others did; Mark Loram is a World Champion. Before that memorable win in 2000, Loram made a world class Grasstrack and Longtrack rider. As a young man, in 1991, Loram won his first of two British Masters titles. A crash in 1992 lost him the title, but he managed to regain it again for the 1993 season. Whilst competing in the National and International Grasstracks (he is a 5 time World Longtrack Final competitor) of the time, Loram was beginning to make waves in the speedway world. He’d already earned himself a regular slot in the Kings Lynn team, and was gaining interest in Poland. The next stage of his career was inevitable. Loramski was lost to the sport. Grasstrack’s loss really was Speedway’s gain as he went on to win the World title, captain Team GB and win 3 British Speedway crowns. Many cite him as the culmination of the last ‘golden generation’ of track racing stars. But always remember, before he did any of that, he did so much on the Grasstrack scene. Loram made a strong appearance at the 1998 Bonfire Burnup and was due to appear as World Champion at the event in 2000, but rain forced the meeting to be cancelled. This was the very last time that the World Speedway champion was to appear at a British Grasstrack event (as champion). Loram’s career was cut short due to a horror crash at Ipswich in 2007, but his name continues to conjure up fond memories of a golden class of young British riders.

1. Tony Atkin

Tony may not have gone on to achieve some of the world-beating feats that Harris, Nicholls, Screen and Loram have, but his Grasstrack pedigree secures him at the top of this list. The 2000 British Championships proved to be Tony’s final British Grasstrack title, in a career that saw him collect 4 British 350 crowns. His memorable battles with fellow 350 legend Jason Handley became Grasstrack folklore and are still talked about today as one of the greatest rivalries ever seen. Atkin had a unique, natural style on a Grasstrack bike. His tough, no-nonsense racing style earned him fans across the country. Atkin was a dedicated Grasstrack racer, and was fundamental in the success of the world-renowned Nu-Trak frames. Tony didn’t just limit himself to 350 racing as he was a tremendous 500cc rider also, with highlights included a sensational rostrum spot at the 1996 Bonfire Burn-up in treacherous conditions. But it was aboard his 350 machine that he is best remembered. Between 1993 and 2002, Atkin was only off of the British Championship rostrum twice. Throughout this time, Atkin had been competing in speedway at National League level and speedway appearances became more and more frequent until he almost disappeared from Grasstrack altogether. For a rider with such club racing pedigree, this came as quite a shock. In the last 10 years, Atkin has been seen on the Grasstrack very rarely. One can only speculate on how many more British Championships (and perhaps even a Masters title) Tony Atkin might have won if he had been able to continue his highly successful Grasstrack career.

So there you have it...Grasstrack Banter's Top Ten Riders who left the Grasstrack world to go on to glittering speedway careers. Don't forget to add your comments, telling us who we've missed. Before we go, here's another image from Alan Whale showing three of the greatest of all time, two of which are included in this article, and the other always made sure Grasstrack and Longtrack stayed part of his calendar.