BUNBURY (WA)
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BUNBURY SPEEDWAY 1972
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previous year www.speedwayandroadracehistory.com/bunbury-blicks-raceway-1971.html
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5th October 1972 |
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November 1972
1972 - BUNBURY SPEEDWAY 11th November 1972 |
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14th November 1972
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BUNBURY SPEEDWAY 26th December 1972
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1972 - BUNBURY SPEEDWAY MANAGER TOM DILLON
Tom Dillon was one of the massive influences in steering the Bunbury Car Club from building a day time hot rod track, to building a world class night time speedway that would host some of the best competitors that the world had to offer.
Tom managed Bunbury Speedway through its opening 1972 1973 season with a massive amount of success, and at the end of his one year contract, Tom was made an offer by Rowley Park Speedway to relocate the family to Adelaide and run the Rowley Park Speedway, The offer was way to good to refuse so Tom moved east.
Tom Dillon recalls: I was an intense admirer of Ray Geneve, because i knew he was the manufacturer of his race cars, which were always presented in an impeccable state !
Ray always raced at Bunbury in our first season and his unforgettable duels with Alf Barbagallo brought fans back through the gates time and again.
On the night in the pic above, Ray had won the supermodified feature race and i was delighted to present him with the trophy, and to congratulate him personally, The good old days when most competitors ran on a domestic budget; today its almost prohibitive.
1972 - Bunbury Speedway Manager Tom Dillon welcome's USA sedan car ace Gene Welch, one of the constructor's of Bunbury Speedway Joe Catalano, Bert Harkins Solo champion from Scotland, Malcolm Simmons Solo rider from England and Shane Dillon, Toms son. Photo: South West Times.
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1972 - BERT HARKINS SOLOS
1972 - Mike the Bike Warren interview's Bert Harkins at the Bunbury Shopping Plaza on Saturday morning prior to the speedway meeting at Bunbury. Photo's South West Times newspaper.
Tom Dillon recalls: Bunbury Speedway commentator Mike Warren asked Bert Harkins, The great Scottish Solo rider, what is worn under his kilt.
His reply was nothing is worn under my kilt, Everything is in perfect working order, Don Creedy then editor of the South West Times newspaper like myself is in a fit of laughter, Don was a great supporter of Bunbury Speedway.
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1972 - ROD CHESSELL SOLOS
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1972 - Bunbury Speedway manager Tom Dillon presents Rod Chessell with his Golden Helmet Award along side Malcolm Simmons from England. right: Harold Brauhe take Rod for a victory lap in the Harlington King Dick with the wicker basket sidecar. Photos: South West Times newspaper.
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1972 - IVAN MAUGER SOLOS
1972 - Ivan Mauger. Photo's: unknown.
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1972 - PETER ECCELSTONE SOLOS
1972 - Peter Eccelstone in full flight at Bunbury Speedway in its opening year. Photo: South West Times newspaper.
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1972 - BUNBURY SPEEDWAY SOLO SLIDESHOW
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1972 - LEN BOWES & BOB SIERP SIDECARS
1972 - South Australian Sidecar Champion Len Bowes in the Claremont pits the night before Bunbury with his Mechanic Kevin, Tom Dillon from Bunbury Speedway and Lens swinger Bob Sierp. Photo: unknown.
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1972 - RON JOHNSON SIDECARS
1972 - South Australian rider Ron Johnson suits up while his swinger fills up the sidecars fuel tank in the Bunbury pits. Photo: South West Times.
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1972 - BUNBURY SPEEDWAY SIDECAR SLIDESHOW
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1972 - BILL BARR Stock Production
1972 - Bill Barr was a champion stock production driver from the blicks Raceway days who continued onto the Bunbury Speedway, Bills choice was a FC Holden ute, station wagons and utes' were quite popular up until the 1973 1974 season when they were banned. Photo: unknown.
1972 - COLIN HARPER Stock Production
1972 - Colin hailed from the Donnybrook club a club that boasted a lot of very competitive drivers, Colin won a lot of races in his S Series Valiant. Photo: unknown.
1972 - BUNBURY SPEEDWAY PRODUCTION SEDAN SLIDESHOW and others
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1972 - BUNBURY SPEEDWAY SPEEDCAR SLIDESHOW
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1972 - BUNBURY SPEEDWAY SUPERMODIFIED SLIDESHOW
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1972 > 1973 - BUNBURY SPEEDWAY PROGRAM SLIDESHOW
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1972 - BUNBURY SPEEDWAY TV SHOW
Community interest in Speedway was at a all time high after Bunbury Speedway opened in 1972, no longer did family's have to pack up the car at lunch time Friday's to make it to Claremont Speedway in time to watch the best the sport had to offer and then make the three and a half hour journey home, Bunbury embrased its new found attraction and everone wanted to be apart of it, so why not Television, Bunbury's Channel 3 put a weekley show to air hosted by Brian Kennedy, a past President of the Bunbury Club, the show was all about last week, next week and interviews etc
World champion here on Saturday
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Bunbury Speedway officials are confidently excepting a record crowd of more than 12,000 people at the North Boyanup Road track on Saturday night when four time world solo champion and current titleholder Ivan Mauger will compete in six match races against the top riders in WA.
Track manager Tom Dillon said yesterday, This will be World class racing never seen before in the South West.
Every effort has been made to ensure that spectators will see the stars in the best possible conditions, So that the riders will not be hindered by the setting sun, and to ensure latecomers will not miss Mauger in action the programme will start at 7.30pm
The opening minutes will be taken up with an official welcome and the presentation to speedway fans of Mauger and the other track aces The first race will be at 7.45pm
It will be an unforgetable night. Presenting a star of Mauger's calibre to Bunbury sport fans is the equivalent of a boxing promoter bringing Cassius Clay or George Forman here.
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Malcolm Simmons the British star is expectedto be Mauger's toughest opponent |
The New Zealand born Mauger (pronounced Major) is known as the Galloping Major because of his tremendous speed and skill on the track. He has a spectacular list of successes behind him. He first won the World Title at Gothenburg, Sweden, in 1968, again at Wembley, England in 1969 and once more the following year at Wroclan, Poland, to become the first rider to win the title three years in a a row.
In 1971, at Gothenburg, he finished 2nd to Denmark's Ole Olsen but regained the tital last year at Wembley when he beat Sweden's Bernt Perssen in a run off before a crowd of more than 80,000 people.
Mauger also was the European Champion in 1966, 1970 and 1971, The British titleholder in 1968, 1970, 1971 and 1972, with his partner won the World Championship pair for New Zealand in 1969 and 1970, and has captained his club, Belle-Vue, Manchester, to British league success for the last three years.
Because most of his work is in Europe, Mauger lives with his wife Rae and three children in a luxury $70,000 home in Cheshire, England, drives a Mercedies Benz, is a director of a merchandising company, the author of 2 books on speedway, and is a regular columnist for magazines and newspapers in England, the USA, Australia and New Zealand.
On Saturday afternoon Mauger and his wife will be givern a reception by the Mayor of Bunbury Mr PJ Usher.
Ron Johnson (left) and Neil Munro who with Len Bowes form Australia's three greatest sidecar drivers. On Saturday night they will be taking on the cream of WA sidecar stars in a series of five match races at the Bunbury Speedway. Aspecial weekend of entertainment has been arranged for the Australian aces by the Bunbury Car Club Inc. The visiting drivers and their sidecar passengers will be guests of honour at a party, will sample some of Bunbur's tasty crabs and will go water skiing, that will be something to see, for Johnson is 6ft 4ins tall and weighs 17 stone.
Track manager Tom Dillon said yesterday, We promised Bunbury enthusiasts the best in speedway entertainment, but to bring over stars of the calibre of Johnson Munro and Bowes is an expensive venture. It would not of been possible but for the generous gesture of many Bunbury business firms, too numerous to mention, who together have subscribed $700 towards expenses and prize money, A local car dealer is providing cars for the convenience of our star guests. On behalf of the club I offer sincere appreciation to all these good hearted people.
Neil Munroe on the curb under Dennis Nash. |
Ron Johnson heads down the back straight at Bunbury. |
1972 - RICHARD (THE SHAKER) HARTZER
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1972 - JUNIOR ROD RACING
Junior Rod racing had already taken of in Collie by the time the new Bunbury Speedway circuit had opened in 1972, big fields flocked to the new speedway under light venue at Bunbury.
Phil receives one of his many trophy's from juniors |
Phil BakerBunbury Car clubPhil had already started racing juniors at the new Collie Speedway track that had just opened in the previous year, his first car an Austin A40 was discarded for the more favourable Ford 100E Prefect.
Some older cars were racing at the time such as Jim Liddle and Greg Jones sharing an old grasshopper Ford Prefect and Peter May in an Austin A50, They struggled against the more modern 100E Prefects,
The 100E Prefect would domininate the results until the Triumph Herold arrived later,
Phil would later move into a Triumph Herald with success.
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1972 - PAUL HASTIE Junior Rod
1972 - Ford 100E Prefects were very popular within the Junior Rod drivers, 3J belonged to Paul Hastie from Bunbury. Photo: unknown.
1972 - JENNY TURNOR Junior Rod
1972 - PETER MAY Junior Rod
1972 - ROBBIE HARDING Division 2 Sedan
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Brian Moyle recalls: as the speedway was so far out of town the Car Club orginised for Coopers to run a bus service from Central Arcade in Bunbury to the track each night and return, other services also ran, I think for the Harvey area stopping at the Roelands mission, the problem with the service was it worked to a timetable and often on the big nights the race meeting would finish late, this meant leave before the features or walk, because of this the patronage fell away and the service ceased. as mad keen speedway fans in those day we would often walk.
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Memories of Bunbury facebook photo feature
Photo: Jim Bond / Dave Urquhart collection. |
On a good night we sometimes could hitch a ride home on the the back of S&R Wreckers tow truck or Fred Beauglehole would cram a heap of us in the back of the McKenzie Motors ute, other nights when we had to walk all the way the traffic was so heavy leaving the Speedway that the we could make it to the Ring Road turnoff before we ran out of car headlight to light up the road home.