LATEST NEWS JANUARY 2008

REDCAR 'CUBS' ARE BORN
By Redcar Speedway ~ Tuesday 29th January 2008
Having confirmed that in addition to Premier League racing at the South Tees Motor Park with the Redcar Bears next season - there will be the continuation of Conference League racing with the aim of producing young British talent - new club owner Glyn Taylor has announced that he is rebranding the operation. Formerly known as the Cleveland Bays the junior team will now be known as The Redcar 'Cubs'. Explained Glyn: 'In the first seasons we kept the original name as there might have been confusion but now the fans know who's who. By having the same name we project ourselves as one club and with a youth development policy.'

That policy saw novices Greg Blair and David Wallinger win the 'Rider of the Year' and 'The most improved rider of the year' awards respectively for the Conference League team at the 2007 presentation evening. The policy has also allowed the slighty older but relatively inexperienced local riders Martin Emerson and Rusty Hodgson to appear for the Bears senior team on occasions. The bulk of home fixtures are again to be staged on Saturday afternoons at the Motorpark with Jason Pipe returning as team manager. Adult admission has been reduced to £7.50 with a special price of £5 for season ticket holders.

So far confirmed as being in the Conference League are: Boston Barracudas, Buxton Hitmen, Plymouth Devils, Redcar Cubs, Rye House Raiders, Scunthorpe Saints, Sittingbourne Crusaders, Weymouth Wildcats.

Meanwhile the senior team - the Redcar Bears - will be opening their campaign in the Premier Trophy against the Stoke Potters on Thursday March 20th at 7.30pm. Full news updates on the build-up to the new season via 09068 664 665.
 

MAKING TRACKS BACK HOME
By Martin Neal, Evening Gazette ~ Friday 11th January 2008
FOR the first time in nearly two decades, a familiar figure will be missing from Gary Havelock’s corner of the pits this season. For Havvy’s long-serving mechanic Scott Trigg is heading back to his native New Zealand. He’s been at the Redcar Bears skipper’s side for almost all his illustrious career, including when he won the World Championship and was captain of England. After staying with Brian and Marge Havelock in Yarm for several years, he set up home in Eaglescliffe. But now he’s decided to head back home with his family and he’ll be missed - not just by Havvy either.

A surprise going away party at Marton Country Club - organised by Havvy himself - attracted a huge turn-out of friends, among them former England stars Andy Smith, Andrew Silver and Carl Stonehewer plus Cleveland Park favourites Martin Dixon, Paul Bentley and Russ Hodgson among others. “It all started when we went on tour to Australia with the England Lions in the winter of 1987/88,” explained Havvy. “Neil Evitts had been over to New Zealand the year before and stayed with Scott’s family because Scott’s dad, Roy, used to ride himself. Neil asked Scott to help him on the tour - but within the first week me, Sean Wilson and Paul Thorp kidnapped him from Neil! He spent the next three months with us - helping us and partying with us. The following year he came over to England to help Neil, who I was riding with at Bradford - but because we’d got on so well in Australia he came to stay with us, and started helping me. I asked him to come and work for me the following year and the rest is history!"

“I can’t put into words how much he means to me. The amount of times he’s driven me across Europe is incredible - a lot of people don’t realise that one of the most important jobs a mechanic does is driving. I’ve been his boss, but in truth he’s more like a brother and a best friend rolled into one.”
 

A SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP
By Redcar Speedway ~ Thursday 10th January 2008
Britain and America have always enjoyed a 'special relationship' and this will be personified by the marriage on Saturday January 12th at Stourbridge Registry Office in the West Midlands of American racer and mechanic Merle Craven and Sophie Hill who runs the Cradley Heath Speedway on-line merchandising operation. Best Man will be Redcar Bears' Director of Operations Gareth Rogers.

The pair met when New Yorker Merle came over with the 2006 American Dream Team Tour as a mechanic and Sophie chauffered the young riders around from their Midlands base. Merle was invited to stay on as part of Team Enzville's backing of Redcar Bears' Californian Chris Kerr that season before starting the 2007 season at the South Tees Motorsport Park as mechanic to the Bears' flying Frenchman Mathieu Tresarrieu. When Matty received a serious knee injury - Merle was invited by Team Enzville Principal Martin Morley to assist his compatriot again. Meanwhile romance blossomed back in Cradley Heath where the couple are based.

With Chris Kerr likely to be based in the West Midlands for the 2008 season then the Americans will be in tandem again and working much more closely in facilities that Sophie has assisted to set up locally. A special relationship indeed!

Any messages for Gareth to read out at the wedding reception can be sent to him via enquiries@redcarspeedway.co.uk
 

SPEEDWAY EXCLUSIVE
REDCAR BEARS ARE TO HANG OUT THE 'UNDER NEW OWNERSHIP' SIGNS
By Martin Neal, Evening Gazette ~ Monday 7th January 2008
Co-promoter Glyn Taylor has completed a deal to buy out current owner Chris van Straaten’s 100% stake in the Premier League club over the next year and will assume on February 1. Van Straaten who, along with director of operations Gareth Rogers brought speedway back to Teesside when they opened the South Tees Motorsports Park stadium in South Bank two years ago, will continue as co-promoter this season. However he will remain in the background and his involvement with the Bears will cease completely once the buy-out has been concluded. Taylor, a former Australia international whose British clubs include Reading, Bradford, Hull and Berwick, designed and built the STMP track and initially stayed on as track curator before accepting an offer from van Straaten to become co-promoter.

Now he’s the boss and he’s already agreed to keep things pretty much as they were with Rogers continuing his existing role and Brian Havelock staying on as team manager. Even the team will have a familiar look. Gary Havelock (who remains as skipper), Chris Kerr, James Grieves, Dan Giffard and Josh Auty will all return this year after agreeing terms with the club. Arlo Bugeja, who filled in during Giffard’s injury-enforced absence last season, will fill the second reserve spot, leaving recent signing Ty Proctor as the only new face.

“I have taken over the controlling share of the club,” confirmed an excited Taylor, “and over the next 12 months I will buy the club outright. Chris van Straaten and Gareth Rogers have done a fantastic job in bringing the sport back to Teesside and it will be sad to see the main man go. But I’m really looking forward to my new role. It’s something I’ve always wanted to do. I ran meetings in Australia and I did 13 indoor meetings a few years ago. I’ve always been interested in the promoting side because there are a lot of people in speedway who don’t promote their track. Too many of them just put a sandwich board outside the track and then wonder why they only 500 people through the gate!”

Taylor is already enthusiastically talking about changes and improvements to the stadium – including opening a spectator area on the third bend and bringing in additional toilet facilities – and has promised more exciting announcements shortly. He’s also confirmed that the Cleveland Bays will again run in the Conference League with most meetings scheduled to take place on a Saturday afternoon or evening - and he’s promised to cut admission prices for CL meetings too.

Outgoing supremo van Straaten, meanwhile, has no doubts that Taylor is the ideal man to lead the Bears. He admitted to the Gazette a year ago that he found it difficult running the Bears as well as Elite League club Wolves, especially as he is based in the West Midlands and, on top of that is vice-chairman of the British Speedway Promoters’ Association and sits on an ACU committee too, which takes up even more of his time. “I’m not the youngest of people and I took on too many commitments last year,” he said. “I didn’t want the same to happen this year. This year, with promotion and relegation coming into effect, you can only be named as the up-front promoter of one club. When I read that I could see where they were coming from, and I also thought perhaps it was time to do something. I approached Glyn because he’s the ideal guy to take it on as a full-front operation. He’s based closer to the area than me and he’s a hands on sort of guy. I’ll still be there or thereabouts and I’ll be on hand to offer advice, but I don’t have to go to every meeting and that makes a huge difference. It’s like the top has been taken off the bottle - the pressure has gone. I’m proud of what we have achieved at Redcar. I really love the set-up there and the people I have met but, with everything else going on in my life, I’ve found it quite stressful and it needs more involvement than I can give it. Glyn, however, can do that.”

Taylor will meet fans at the next Bears Supporters’ Group meeting at Dr Brown’s in Middlesbrough tomorrow night (8pm start). Meanwhile PL newcomers Scunthorpe have been added to Redcar’s group in the early season Premier Trophy competition. They join Sheffield, Newcastle and Stoke in lining up against the Bears.
 

TAYLOR-MADE FOR REDCAR BEARS
By Redcar Speedway ~ Monday 7th January 2008
Glyn Taylor, the Redcar Bears Co-Promoter and track curator, has acquired a controlling interest in the speedway club based at the South Tees Motorsport Park. Previous club owner Chris Van Straaten will remain as co-promoter for the 2008 season with Glyn taking full control thereafter. A former rider with the Newcastle Diamonds and the Berwick Bandits, the new boss will be able to confirm the Bears' complete line-up in the near future.

Club skipper Gary Havelock, Daniel Giffard and newcomer Ty Proctor from Australia have already signed with former Bear Arlo Bujega agreeing terms in the early hours of Monday morning to fill the vital number seven spot in the line-up. Glyn has also spoken to the other senior members of the Bears management - Director of Operations Gareth Rogers and Team Manager Brian Havelock. Both are keen to remain and are supportive of Taylor's elevation.

The Bears will compete in an expanded Premier League in 2008 with the Scunthorpe Scorpions and the Reading Racers as new members of the 17-strong division. Glyn has confirmed that Press and Practice day will be Thursday March 13th with a 'Meet the Riders' social that evening. The first home fixture will be against the Stoke Potters in the Premier Trophy on Thursday March 20th followed by the Newcastle Diamonds on Thursday March 27th and the Sheffield Tigers on Friday April 4th in the same competition.
 

IT'S TY-RIFFIC!
By Martin Neal, Evening Gazette ~ Saturday 5th January 2008
NEW Aussie ace Ty Proctor says riding for Redcar Bears in the Premier League this year is a dream come true. But, while he’s confident of being a hit at South Tees Motorsports Park in 2008, he’s urging fans to give him a little time to settle in. The 20-year-old from Victoria is the first member of the Bears team to be officially confirmed, and he’s determined to make the most of his big chance to ride in the UK. “It’s a dream come true to come over,” said Proctor as he prepared for the next round of the Australian Championships at Mount Gambier this evening. “I can’t wait.”

His only previous experience of riding over here came three years go when he combined a holiday with rides at several British tracks. “I loved it,” he admitted. “I wasn’t much good then, but it taught me what I needed to do to be able to ride in England. “It made me realise I wasn’t as good as I thought I was, so I went back to Australia and put in the time and effort that I needed to. “I’ve been travelling thousands of kilometres a week to get myself ready for this chance. “My closest track is two-and-a-half hours away but I’ve been going as far as the Gold Coast to ride, and that’s 25 hours away! “I want to get as much experience as possible. That way hopefully when I come over I’ll go to a track and think ‘I’ve ridden somewhere like this, so I’ll be OK’.”

Proctor arrives on an assessed five-point average, and co-promoter Glyn Taylor has already said he believes his exciting young signing can put a point on that figure by the end of the season. But Proctor - who plans to share a Midlands base with Chris Kerr and Dan Giffard - will obviously need time to adapt to his new environment and the new challenge.
He’ll go into the British season race sharp after racing in Australia over our winter and he said: “I feel I’m ready for it - but I hope the fans don’t put too much pressure on me.

“I’m going to take it week by week, day by day, and hopefully by the end of the season I will be really flying. “My brother comes over in May to mechanic for me, so I’m looking forward to that.” Nicknamed ‘The Showman’, Proctor has earned a reputation Down Under as an exciting racer and a crowd pleaser. His arrival has captured the imagination of Bears fans and he gave an insight into his racing philosophy by saying: “If you don’t entertain the crowd, you don’t get to ride!”

Proctor confirmed he had a good offer from Glasgow, who are tracking no fewer than five Aussies this year. But he said: “People in Australia have told me that Redcar are really going places. “It’s a good club and I’m sure that once we are all firing, we can show what we can do. I’ve been delighted at the comments from people on the net and I can’t wait to come over.”

:: CO-PROMOTER Glyn Taylor has revealed that Gary Havelock, James Grieves, Dan Giffard and Chris Kerr have all agreed terms to remain at South Tees Motorsports Park this year. Josh Auty has yet to commit himself to the Bears but Taylor says he is “90% certain” that the teenage crowd pleaser will be back.
 

AUSSIE ACE TY SIGNS TO RIDE FOR BEARS
By Martin Neal, Evening Gazette ~ Wednesday 2nd January 2008
EXCITING new signing Ty Proctor can make a big impact in his first season of Premier League racing. That’s the message from Redcar Bears co-promoter Glyn Taylor after winning the race for the young Aussie’s signature. The 20-year-old Victorian - currently competing in the Australian Championship - is the first member of the Bears’ 2008 team to be confirmed. He arrives on an assessed five-point average and Taylor said: “I think he will probably end the season on a six-point average. He comes highly recommended from the likes of Leigh Adams and Jason Crump. I think he’ll be the next young Aussie on the scene - he’s an exciting prospect.”

Proctor, nicknamed ‘The Showman’ tested the water in Britain as a 17-year-old when he had a handful of rides at various tracks during a holiday over here. Taylor has kept tabs on him since then and is delighted to have got his man. “Quite a few teams were chasing him, Glasgow being the main one,” revealed Taylor. “He said he wanted to ride for us, which is great news. He’s a flat out, full gas rider and our track will suit him. He wanted a track with connections to an Elite League club, so we were the ideal choice.”

Although Proctor is the only rider to be unveiled as a Bears rider for 2008, work on building a team has been gathering pace. “We’d wanted to reveal our team as a bulk,” explained Taylor, “but news that Ty had signed for us appeared on an Australian website. It was an insult to our fans to find out from another source, so we decided to announce he had signed.”

The Bears management have already revealed that they want to keep five of last year’s team together - the exceptions being Jack Hargreaves, who has joined Birmingham, and Mat Tresarrieu who will not be fit until mid-season after suffering a serious leg injury. Chris Kerr is on a three-year contract and assured of a place so, assuming Gary Havelock, James Grieves, Josh Auty and Dan Giffard agree terms, Proctor would effectively take Tresarrieu’s place in the septet.

THE Premier League Pairs will be on June 27 next season - once again at Somerset on the night before the British Grand Prix.