PS.
Hi Reg, how pleased are you to be a part of PottersPower.com?
RF.
Very pleased,
it gives me much pleasure to share some experiences and photos.
PS.
How in your opinion would the Sun Street track compare with?
RF.
Sun Street
was tricky and it was short of a good base in the track. A lot of
upgrading would have to be done to bring it up to 2009 regulations.
PS.
Do you think it would have stood the test of time if circumstances have
been different back when it closed in 1963 and do you think it would
have been a good venue in 2009?
RF . I'm sure the
venue would be ideal in the town centre of Hanley. It was in the prime
position in its day with all the buses coming into the town from
outlying districts. For the present day there was ample car parking and
it could hold in excess of 18,000 spectators.
PS.
You started promoting at Stoke in 1960 along with Mike Parker, what
other clubs did you promote?
RF.
Do you really
want me to list them!!!! Stoke, Liverpool, Newcastle, Middlesbrough
twice, Long Eaton, Leicester twice, Halifax, Reading, Rayleigh, Crewe,
Peterborough, Poole, Sunderland, Rye House. It would be fair to say
that I was not the actual promoter of them all, but had a financial
interest in them and was involved with other Directors and Shareholders
in policy making.
PS.
Who is the greatest ever rider in your opinion?
RF.
It depends
which era you pick on :- Tony Rickardsson of present times, Ivan Mauger
in his time, Ove Fundin in the 1950s and Vic Duggan in the late 1940s
early 1950s. I was too young to see speedway in the 1930s but several
stand out, Bluey Wilkinson being one of them.
PS.
Which modern day rider do you like to see the most?
RF.
The one who
comes from the back and is not a "trapper".
PS.
When did you retire from promoting?
RF.
In 1986.
PS.
How do you find the ever changing rules?? for better or worse?
RF.
I find them
confusing at times, especially the latest in 2009 regarding the winning
of match league points
PS.
How did you get involved in the promoting side of things at a relatively
young age?
RF.I met Mike Parker
through Dave Anderson regarding the Stoke (Hanley) venture. I was 26
years of age.
PS.
Why do you think there has been very few English world champions?
RF.It
is a very competitive business and perhaps the fact that the - excuse
the word - foreigners have to be more dedicated and focused when they
arrive in Britain - a strange country. I think the Brit by his very
nature is more laid back.
PS.
What is your favourite memory of Stoke speedway?
RF. There are so
many - as a rider in the 1951-1953 period and my promoting time 1960 -
1963. If I had to pick it would be racking up 5-1s with partner Ken
Adams in the 1950s. He was very good to me. I think seeing so many
people attend the first meeting on Good Friday 1960 and enjoying
themselves. It meant I had done a job.
PS.
Any regrets over your time in speedway?
RF. Yes, but they
remain private.
PS.
Who was the best Stoke rider under your promotion from your point of
view?
RF.
Probably
Colin Pratt who came as a beginner and rose to stardom. He lived with
Joan and me for some time in Burslem. He was a good listener and had
ambition beyond being a speedway rider. He is still involved with
speedway as promoter of Coventry.
PS.
You now live in the South of France, how does that suit you compared to
ol' blighty?!
RF. It suits very
well, the weather is so much better - we get less than 40 days of rain a
year and it's almost certain that the round of golf is not going to be
rained off!!!
