LATEST NEWS ~ JULY 2006

RIDEWELL 2006
~ Friday 21st July 2006

This year the seventh Annual Ridewell event presented by Cleveland Police and Stockton on Tees Borough Council is to be held on Sunday July 30th at Preston Hall and Museum, Yarm Road, Stockton with the fun starting at 10am. For those not familiar with the event, this primarily is a Two Wheeled Road Safety Day with the emphasis on enjoyment and to that end apart from the usual things you would expect to see at a Road Safety Show there will be Traders and Dealers from both the Motorcycle and Pedal Cycle World in attendance together with a stunning stunt display from International stunt ace Sonnie Ferguson.

This year we are pleased to announce that one of the Countrys most popular and successful Race Teams will be at Ridewell, Virgin Mobile Yamaha Racing will be here so come along and meet the team and take a close look at some of the Race Bikes which will be competing in this years British Superbike Championship and Virgin Yamaha R6 Cup.

The award winning Handle it or lose it team will be providing Handle It taster sessions consisting of an observed ride out where the best candidates on the day could win some prizes donated by local dealers.

And talking about prizes, pay a visit to the Fentons Solicitors stand who will be running a competition to win a Yamaha R6, you never know it could be your lucky day.

Since 2000, Guisborough Motor Club have been hosting the Ridewell Trials Competition with riders from all over the North East and beyond competing for the trophy, it goes without saying that this will again be centre stage on the show field.

We will be having motorcycle competitions with lots of prizes donated by local dealers up for grabs and a cycle competition for the younger members of the community with prizes of Mountain Bikes and associated items to be won.

There will be fairground rides, simulators, food courts and if you have never ridden a motorcycle before we will be giving people the opportunity to ‘Have a Go’ in safety under expert tuition from Instructors from the Cleveland Motorcycle Training Scheme

Last year saw an attendance in excess of 15,000 and we hope to top it this year so hopefully the weather will be kind to us - as it has been since year one !

So come along and have a fun day, and with entry and car parking free there can’t be any reason not to.

More Information can be obtained from Steve Darby or Kevin Keay located at Cleveland Police Motorcycle Section on 01642 301574 or email: ridewell@cleveland.pnn.police.uk

REDCAR SPEEDWAY PROUDLY PRESENT

SO YOU WANNA BE A SPEEDWAY STAR COMMUNITY DAYS

SATURDAY AUGUST 12 & SUNDAY AUGUST 13

FROM 12 NOON ONWARDS

OPPORTUNITY TO RIDE A SPEEDWAY BIKE NO CHARGE! MINIMUM AGE 8 YEARS

* PARENT/ GUARDIAN MUST BE IN ATTENDANCE FOR PARTICIPANTS UNDER 18 *

TELEPHONE BOOKING(S) MUST BE MADE 07796 441850

REDCAR BEARS WOULD LIKE TO ACKNOWLEDGE ASSISTANCE OF THE FOLLOWING IN MAKING THIS POSSIBLE

MEDICS (UK) LTD ~ ~ ROY WILSON (SHEFFIELD SPEEDWAY)

PERSEVERANCE PAYS OFF
~ With Keith McGhie of SPEEDWAY STAR magazine
Perseverance paid off as Tomas Suchanek left it until the last lap of a rerun final race to make the move that secured his first ever paid maximum in the Premier League. The rapidly rising Czech had missed out by a whisker on a full house seven days previously despite climbing all over Mark Lemon throughout heat 15 against Stoke. However Suchanek made no mistake when the opportunity arose in a thrilling finale against a Mildenhall outfit short on depth but boasting a potent double spearhead of Jason Lyons and Daniel King.

The Fen Tigers duo had already shown their liking for the Redcar raceway with notable victories over Gary Havelock and King’s tactical ride six-pointer – diving under Kevin Little on the last lap of heat seven – was out of the top drawer. But, having already ridden three abreast with Mat Tresarrieu for a lap before Lyons fell in the first staging of heat 15, King and Suchanek embarked on an epic scrap for honours in the rerun. King barged Suchanek ruthlessly out of the way on the first bend to gain an advantage that was never more than a bike’s length before the Bears’ favourite tigered through the tightest of gaps exiting the second bend for the last time to earn a deserved ovation and the bumps from his team-mates. The race was typical of the closeness of competition although the match points were rarely in doubt after Redcar roared to three successive 5-1s in the opening four races.

Lyons, who beat Havelock in heat one, stemmed the tide with four points in the black and white helmet behind the unstoppable Suchanek in heat five, while King’s superb success in the same helmet colour two races later narrowed the gap to just five points. But heat advantages in six of the remaining eight races eased the Bears to a commanding final margin of victory. King was involved in another corker in heat eight – allowing Chris Kerr through on the first lap then stalking and wresting back second place, behind Dan Giffard, on lap three.

Havelock missed the start completely in heat 10 but battled back to second, while Jack Hargreaves won an enthralling scrap with over-worked James Brundle for the odd point in heat 11. And Havelock and Little’s team-riding over four laps for maximum points in a compelling heat 13 was a joy to behold, unless you were the repeatedly frustrated Lyons and trying to prise any tiny gap between them! The ever reliable Havelock, a revitalised Little and inspired reliable Giffard joined triple-race winner Tresarrieu on ten points going into the nominated race, while Fen Tigers’ boss Mick Horton had fewer selection headaches than counterpart Brian Havelock, as Lyons and King accounted for over two thirds of the East Anglians’ points.
 

BEARS SAVAGE TIGERS
~ By Martin Neal, Evening Gazette Friday 28th July 2006
There was plenty of entertainment on offer for a bumper crowd as Redcar Bears raced to an emphatic 57-38 victory over Mildenhall Fen Tigers last night. The majority of heats saw close racing on the banked South Tees motorsport circuit, with passing the order of the evening. It takes two to tango and Mildenhall riders Daniel King and Jason Lyons were in the thick of the action. Lyons stormed to a heat one victory over Bears skipper Gary Havelock and with James Brundle in third place, they led 4-2. This was to prove the only time the visitors would get their noses in front.

Three consecutive 5-1 heat wins for the Bears in heats two, three and four saw the hosts take control. But in heat seven Daniel King, taking a tactical ride for double points, fought his way through to record six points and with his brother Jason third, recorded a 7-2 heat win for the Fen Tigers. However, reliable reserve Daniel Giffard defeated King in heat eight and normal service was resumed. Tomas Suchanek and Mat Tresarrieu were proving a strong anchor pairing for the Bears and kept the crowd on their toes with their overtaking. As the match reached a climax, the racing just got better and better.

There was a vintage display of team-riding from Havelock in heat 13 as he shepherded partner Kevin Little around, despite the close attention of Jason Lyons. Tresarrieu pushed his way through the pack to take heat 14 with Bears' reserve Jack Hargreaves squeezing home third after a battle with a fellow young Englishman James Brundle at the back. Heat 15 had to be re-run after Jason Lyons took a tumble at the back of the field. In that re-run, Tomas Suchanek cut brilliantly under Daniel King on the back straight, coming out of bend two on the third lap, to record his first paid maximum for the Bears. He duly received the bumps from his team-mates at the pits entrance after his lap of honour. The Bears also took the bonus point with a 102-83 aggregate victory, having drawn 45-45 in Suffolk in early July.
 

TIGERS TO BE TAMED
~ Tuesday 25th July 2006
After an epic battle away in Suffolk on July 2nd which ended in a 45-45 draw -the Redcar Bears and the Mikdenhall Fen Tigers shape up to each other again at the South Tees Motorsport Park, Dormor Way, Middlesbrough on Thursday evening at 7.30pm.

The Bears gained their first away point of the new speedway era on Teesside that afternoon and will want to keep their recent respectable position in the Premier League - where they have appeared in the top three - by gaining the two league points on offer plus the bonus point for the team which finishes with the highest aggregate score.

The Fen Tigers will prove tough opposition having a more than creditable heat leader trio. Australian Jason Lyons has spent the bulk of his British Speedway career riding for the Belle Vue Aces in the Elite League as well as being a former Grand Prix rider and World Team Cup winner. American Brent Werner has been a prolific scorer with several leading Premier League clubs and captained the Rye House Rockets to the Premier League title last season. He has also ridden for his country at test level and in the Elite League with the Eastbourne Eagles. 19-year-old Englishman Daniel King reached his first World Under-21 Final in 2005 as well as doubling-up effectively with Elite League Ipswich Witches and enjoying Premier League and Premier Trophy winners' medals alongside Brent Werner at Rye House.

Although Gary Havelock is still finding his right ankle sore after a crash in Russia last week - it has not prevented the Redcar captain from returning a programmed maximum at home last Thursday and a double-figure score at Berwick last Saturday. The latter match bringing the Bears a further league bonus point. Tomas Suchanek is also focused on maintaining his previous home performance - a career best so far with the Bears of 14 points.
 

STAR INTERVIEW PAUL PICKERING
~ With Keith McGhie of SPEEDWAY STAR magazine
The reception that you – the fans – gave Paul Pickering when he joined Gareth Rogers on the centre green microphone during last week's match against Stoke proved to be as good a medicine as could have been prescribed for someone whose entire life has been turned upside down by a horrific crash in March 2005.

For those who are newer to the speedway – former motocross champion Paul switched sports and was an incredibly popular member of the Bears’ team at their old Cleveland Park home back in 1992 and 93. The following year he was snapped up by Division One Bradford and later went on to have a long and successful association with Stoke.

Paul’s career was tragically cut short by the injury – a badly twisted and smashed left arm with a dislocated shoulder compounding the damage – and, although still living just across the river at Hartlepool, he admits: “My health was so ‘one step forward and two steps backward’ that I never felt able to come down and watch a meeting. I don’t know how much more it’s going to improve or whether I’ll ever get full use back but I’m still getting advice from the physiotherapist and the surgeon who did the operations on what I can do to improve it. There’s still a way to go but I’m a lot further down the road than I was six months ago.”

Complications set in during the early healing process and Paul has undergone three traumatic operations which have left extensive scars. For months he wore an external brace with screws into the bones which, despite the discomfort, he admits he almost got used to. “It’s not until it gets taken off that you realise how much pain and discomfort you were in!"

Paul’s crash at Hull came at a time when his wife Rachel was expecting their first child – daughter Emily, who celebrates her first birthday next Saturday. He recalls: “The accident was in March and she was born in July so her birth was something to look forward to and focus on – it took my mind off the injuries but it’s been very hard for Rachel. I knew immediately after the crash that it was going to be a long-term but Emily’s birth has acted as a diversion. It’s two months now since I had the metalwork removed and I’ve probably made as much improvement as expected but no more. I had hoped it would be a lot more mobile and comfortable and that I might be getting someway back towards working but, when the metalwork came off, I seemed to have a month or six weeks when things went backwards. I’m heading in the right direction but can’t make any definite plans or put any dates on anything. It was difficult at first but I feel I’ve gone through a sort of barrier now regarding speedway.”

Paul, a plumber by trade, was involved in advising Glyn Taylor on drainage when the Redcar track was build last winter but last week was his first sight of the venue in action. “I really enjoyed it,” he enthused. “At first, after an accident like that – I had to take a step back and evaluate things but now the batteries seem to have recharged and I’m getting enthusiastic about speedway again. I’m really keen to get involved once more, although I don’t know what role I could fulfil, so for now, I ‘m happy just to come along and watch.”
 

BEARS STUMBLE IN BORDER RAID
~ By Martin Neal, Evening Gazette Monday 24th 2006
They came away with the bonus point, but manager Brian Havelock couldn't help but think his Redcar Bears side could have achieved more on their border raid on Berwick. The Bears were beaten 50-41 at Shielfield Park in a Premier League match which was close in the early stages and never completely out of their reach until the death. They took an early lead after Gary Havelock and Chris Kerr scored an opening heat 4-2 but the home side were in front after heat four and, though Havelock's men briefly got back on level terms, they rarely looked like winning the match. By and large they looked sharp out of the gate but the home side used their knowledge of the track to full effect by coming from behind on a regular basis.

The last corner in particular proved the bane of the Bears' night with the Bandits riders making repeated sweeps round the outside to snatch points on the line. One example was heat four when Dan Giffard and Kevin Little were overtaken by Craig Branney and Michal Makovsky respectively on the final lasp as a 4-2 heat win suddenly became a 4-2 defeat.

Captain Gary Havelock was still feeling the effects of his crash in Russia last week yet he still won twice and scored a pair of seconds. Amazingly, reserve Danny Warwick was the first rider to lower his colours, but by that time the bumpy track was beginning to have an effect on his damaged ankle. Tomas Suchanek came out as a tactical substitute from a 15 metre handicap in the penultimate race and battled his way past Warwick to finish third.

With Mat Tresarrieu leading them all home it meant the Bears needed a 5-0 in the final heat to force a draw and that was never going to happen. Havvy sat out the nominated riders' race because of his injury and didn't mince his words afterwards. "The track was so bumpy it was like a motocross track," he said. "It's a nice shape and could be a good track but it was atrocious. If I had to ride here every week, I'd retire."

Dad Brian, the team chief, agreed that the conditions were not good but said: "We can't keep on blaming the conditions. We were always on for the bonus point after the margin of our win at home, but I felt fairly confident about going there and getting something more too. So I'm disappointed we didn't win, especially as we lost five or six points on the line, but satisfied that we came away with something."

One of the big disappointments for the Bears was that reserve Jack Hargreaves was off the pace all night and failed to score a point. "He's got a thing about away meetings and the moment," said team boss Havelock, "and if he doesn't have a good first race it plays on his mind. He lost a footrest in one race but that was down to bad maintenance and I told him so."

Berwick: Michal Makovsky 12+1, Stanislaw Burza 11, Lee Smethills 9, Andreas Bergstrom 8, Craig Branney 5+1, Danny Warwick 5+1, James Birkinshaw R/R, Maurice Crang (No 8) DNR.
Redcar: Gary Havelock 10, Tomas Suchanek 9+1, Kevin Little 6+1, Mat Tresarrieu 6+1, Chris Kerr 5, Dan Giffard 4, Jack Hargreaves 0.
 

BEARS DETERMINED
~ By Marrtin Neal Evening Gazette, Saturday 22nd July 2006
Redcar Bears head into Bandit country tonight - and boss Brian Havelock is determined not to leave empty-handed. Fresh from their win over Stoke which hoisted them up to third in the Premier League table, the Bears hit the road this evening to face Berwick Bandits at Shielfield Park. The Nothumberland side won 49-41 on their home patch when the sides clashed in the Premier Trophy three months ago. But Havelock's magnificent seven have improved considerably since then and blazed to their record win when they crushed the Bandits 64-26 earlier this month. A third bonus point in four matches looks a certainty after that victory, but Havelock is aiming higher and believes his side can win.

Berwick are stuck at the bottom of the league table and the Bears boss said: "I'm fairly confident because lesser teams than us have gone there and won. A lot will depend on how the track is prepared but we must be in with a chance. We didn't have Mat Tresarrieu in the team when we went there last time and the track will suit him - it will suit Tomas Suchanek too."

The Bears were left deflated by their shock home defeat by struggling Newport nine days ago but responded well, taking the bonus point at Edinburgh 24 hours later, almost doing the same at Newcastle last Sunday, then scoring a commanding home win over Stoke on Thursday. "Everything that can be said about the Newport match has been said," insisted Havelock. "It's in the past now. Our confidence is back up again now."

Berwick are expected to be without the luckless James Birkinshaw who crashed in last Saturday's win over Stoke and injured the same ankle that had just healed after a previous injury and ruled him out of last night's 53-43 defeat at Edinburgh. Birkinshaw's comeback lasted just two rides before he was involved in the spill that also led to the Potters' Paul Clews missing last Thursday's trip to South Tees Motorsports Park.

BANDITS: 1 Stanislaw Burza, 2 James Birkinshaw (R/R if unfit), 3 Lee Smethills, 4 Andreas Bergstrom, 5 Michal Makovsky, 6 Danny Warwick, 7 Craig Branney.
BEARS: 1 Gary Havelock, 2 Chris Kerr, 3 Tomas Suchanek, 4 Mat Tresarrieu, 5 Kevin Little, 6 Jack Hargreaves, 7 Dan Giffard.
 

BOUNCING BACK! 
~ With Keith McGhie of SPEEDWAY STAR magazine - Friday 21st July 2006
Tomas Suchanek gained the rare distinction of displacing Gary Havelock at the top of the individual scorecharts as Redcar bounced back from the disappointment of losing their unbeaten home record and ended a run of three straight defeats with a comprehensive defeat of Stoke. Only two highly successful tactical rides limited the final margin as the Teessiders also savoured their biggest aggregate success so far in their short history.

Suchanek was in imperious form, scorching to four race wins – all well within a second of the track record - before climbing all over the back of Mark Lemon during his sole defeat in heat 15. Havelock rode unbeaten but, still suffering from a ankle knock picked up in Russia earlier in the week, opted out of the nominated race to give a deserved opportunity for in-form reserve Dan Giffard to get his first final race outing in a Bears race jacket. Chris Kerr also shone with no better example of his talents than a superb fourth to first blast on the opening lap of heat eight.

Five 5-1s in seven races mid-meeting effectively ended any doubts about the destination of the league points but racing was always keen with Lemon, Trent Leverington, Alan Mogridge and Robbie Kessler all giving good value for the Easy Rider Potters.

Havelock and Kerr gave the Bears a heat one lead they were never to relinquish, with Suchanek and the all-action Mat Tresarrieu extending the advantage in heat three and Giffard and Kevin Little taking them further clear in the next race. Suchanek became the second fastest man ever around the Dormer Way track as he left Leverington and Lemon way behind in heat five, before Havelock and Kerr made no mistake in a rerun of heat six after Kessler had slid off whilst leading the first staging.

Now 12 points adrift, John Adams immediately introduced Kessler in black and white in the next race and was rewarded with a 7-2, as Mogridge initially lost a points scoring place but tigered back passed Jack Hargreaves in a thrilling dual for third. It was temporary respite, as was the Lemon/Leverington 8-1 five races later, although Mogridge deserved to do more damage to the lead when leading Havelock and Kerr for nearly three and a half laps before over-sliding and being very fortunate not to be collected by any of the three chasers in heat 10.

The nominated race was a classic without the order ever changing, as Suchanek tried inside and out to pass a repeatedly glancing over his shoulder Lemon throughout in an attempt to complete his maximum. The Czech star failed by a whisker at the flag but judging by his recent impressive form it can’t be long before he bags a five ride full-house.
 

THEY'RE BACK
~ By Martin Neal Evening Gazette Friday 21st July 2006
That's more like it! Normal service has been resumed at South Tees Motorsports Park after last week's blip. The Redcar Bears were back to their brilliant best last night as they sent Stoke Potters packing with a 56-40 victory. It lifted them back up to third in the Premier League table and was in stark contrast to the performance of seven days earlier when track conditions caught them out and led to Newport heading home with a shock win. Having won at Stoke on July 8, the Bears were always favourites not only for victory, but for the bonus point too. And they didn't disappoint.

Ahead from the moment Gary Havelock and Chris Kerr scored a 4-2 over Mark Lemon and Trent Leverington in the opening heat, they never looked back. The visitors were without the injured Paul Clews but must have been delighted with the nine points they gleaned from the rider replacement facility. They used the tactical double rule to good effect, winning on both occasions they produced the black and white helmet cover to claw back some of the deficit. But it was no more than a damage limitation exercise and the Bears responded immediately and emphatically on both occasions.

Mat Tresarrieu was as spectacular as ever on his return from a three-match absence, while reserve Dan Giffard's paid 13 total was further proof of the progress he is making. Gary Havelock showed no signs of the bruised ankle he sustained in a crash while racing for MegaLada in Russia the night before and raced through the card unbeaten. He did, however, have a stroke of luck in heat ten when veteran Alan Mogridge fell on the final lap while under no pressure, having led from the tapes. With a trip to Berwick coming up tomorrow night and the destiny of the points long since settled, Havvy wisely sat out the nominated riders' race.

That thrust Coulby Newham-based Czech international Tomas Suchanek into the spotlight in the final race of the match. Having also won all of his four programmed rides - all in a super-fast time of less than 54 seconds - he went out looking to complete his first maximum in British speedway. In the event he was pipped to his first full house by the narrowest of margins after chasing race winner Mark Lemon all the way before missing out on the line - but it was Suchanek's most impressive performance in a Bears racejacket and he was clearly delighted. "Next time," he smiled after being denied his first full house. I gave my engine to Sean Wilson (the former England rider turned ace engine tuner) to look at and he was a big help. Before, there was too much spinning and the compression was too high - but not now."

Boss Brian Havelock was also delighted at his team's performance, which ended a run of three defeats. "The track was back to how it should be and all the lads rode reasonably well," he said. "Riding in the World Cup has obviously sharpened Tomas up and he looked sharper altogether. It was good to have Mat Tresarrieu back in the side after missing the last three matches as well. We've missed him and we haven't got the strength in depth to get the points we'd expect from him from rider replacement."

BEARS: Tomas Suchanek 14, Gary Havelock 12, Dan Giffard 9+4, Chris Kerr 8+2, Mat Tresarrieu 6+2, Kevin Little 4, Jack Hargreaves 3+1.
POTTERS: Mark Lemon 14, Robbie Kessler 10+1, Barrie Evans 6, Trent Leverington 5+1, Alan Mogridge 5, Adam McKinna 0, Paul Clews R/R.
 

IN FULL FLIGHT
~ By Martin Neal Evening Gazette Thursday 20th July 2006
Jet-setting Redcar riders will be arriving from all corners of Europe tonight as the Bears bid to embark on another winning run. Brian Havelock's side were stopped in their tracks by a shock home defeat by Newport last Thursday after putting together a fine sequence which had lifted them up to third in the Premier League table. But although they followed that up with losses at both Edinburgh and Newcastle, the Bears were looking much more like their old selves.

In fact, they clinched their first ever league bonus point on their trip north of the border and were just a point away from forcing a run-off for a second bonus point in three days on Tyneside. And that will give them home advantage tonight (7.30pm start) when they entertain a Stoke side they demolished 53-42 in Staffordshire earlier this month to record their first ever away win.

Flying Frenchman Mat Tresarrieu is back in the saddle after being ruled out of the last three matches due to an international commitment in his homeland. He was ordered by the French Federation to race at Marmande last Thursday and, as a result, banned for the rest of the week by the British Speedway Promoters' Association. Tresarrieu set a track record on his last appearance at South Tees Motorsports Park and his return will be a welcome one.

Tomas Suchanek is also back in the country after racing for the Czech Republic in Tuesday's World Cup match in Malilla, Sweden. He failed to score from five rides as the Czechs crashed out, finishing last behind Sweden, Denmark and the USA. But at least that's good news for Bears fans because he won't be needed for tonight's race-off at Reading. And captain Gary Havelock has been on his travels too - he was racing for his Russian League team, MegaLada, last night and will dash back in time to lead the Bears.

Stoke - led by former Middlesbrough riders Mark Lemon and Alan Mogridge - went down 48-43 when they visited Teesside in the Premier Trophy last month. With Luke Priest seriously injured in a crash while riding for Stoke's Conference League team recently, the Potters bring in Adam McKinna as a guest replacement at reserve.

BEARS: 1 Gary Havelock, 2 Chris Kerr, 3 Tomas Suchanek, 4 Mat Tresarrieu, 5 Kevin Little, 6 Jack Hargreaves, 7 Dan Giffard.
POTTERS: 1 Mark Lemon, 2 Trent Leverington, 3 Paul Clews, 4 Alan Mogridge, 5 Robbie Kessler, 6 Barrie Evans, 7 Adam McKinna.

* SEE next Tuesday's Evening Gazette for our special Kids Go Free offer for the Bears' forthcoming Premier League clash against Mildenhall.
 

BEARS BACK ON COURSE
~ Tuesday 18th July 2006
Within 24 hours of a shock home defeat to the Newport Wasps the Redcar Bears were able to resume normal service when they brought back their first bonus point of the new speedway era on Teesside. This was against the Edinburgh Monarchs on the Friday evening. Then on Sunday afternoon the Bears came within an ace of another bonus point when the aggregate score at Newcastle was 92-91 in favour of the home team.

This Thursday at the South Tees Motorsport Park at 7.30pm the Bears take on a Stoke Potters team whom they have already defeated away by 53 points to 42. However, after the events of the previous home match team manager Brian Havelock will guarantee that there will be no complacency in the camp and will have a septet inspired by the return of flying Frenchman Mathieu Tresarrieu to the ranks after his suspension.

Also flying back in for the fixture will be Tomas Suchanek who represented the Czech Republic in a World Team Cup qualifier in Sweden on Tuesday evening plus club captain Gary Havelock who was racing for his Russian League club Togliatti on the Wednesday evening.

Stoke are spearheaded by two former Middlesbrough Bears from the Cleveland Park era in the shape of Mark Lemon and Alan Mogridge. Also in the mix is the exciting Australian rider Trent Leverington who was involved in several controversial incidents with Kevin Little and Daniel Giffard when the Potters visited in the Premier Trophy fixture in June.
 

STAR INTERVIEW STEVE HARLAND
~ With Keith McGhie of SPEEDWAY STAR magazine
Any regular readers of this column will know Steve Harland from the fascinating historical pieces he pens for the opposing page or his round-ups of junior activity earlier in the Redcar matchday programme. What many might not realise is the enormous amount of time and effort he and close friend Jason Pipe put in during the bleak speedway-less years on Teesside, ensuring the name of the Bears lived on and that local youngsters still got a chance to wear the body-colours of their hometown through their tireless efforts.

Nowadays the pair often find themselves in ‘opposition’ on race night, managing the teams in our regular second half shoot-outs between the ‘Scott Bros’ Bays and the ‘Hartburn Garage’ Tigers but for the past four years they have battled together to keep the Bears name afloat – arranging for junior Bears’ sides to live a nomadic existence performing on away tracks only.

As I’m sure you must have read they have now been given the go-ahead to run a fully fledged seven-man Cleveland bays team in the Conference Shield which begins in mid-August. “Getting speedway back in Middlesbrough was our initial aim but for Chris (Van Straaten) to allow us to enter a junior team in the Conference Shield is the pinnacle of everything we have achieved,” enthuses Steve, who first witnessed speedway back in 1969 at the old and still much mourned Cleveland Park. “It will be very interesting to see how everyone reacts and I hope and believe that people will support us when we get going. The whole purpose of the second halves is not the result – it’s the development of people like Rusty Hodgson and Maurice Crang – local youngsters – who want to make it speedway. It’s about them learning how to ride and improving their techniques.”

Since attending that opening meeting of the 1969 season against Crewe Steve has been a regular on the terraces, then helped compile the Middlesbrough programme and even wrote for the Northern Echo during the early nineties. Recently he has been penning regular pieces on the Bays for the Echo’s Friday supplement ‘Local Heros’ and recalls the part he and Jason played in the initial re-birth of the Bears’ name: “In April 2002, at the first ever Conference League match between Newcastle and Rye House, I spoke to Tony and Jonathan Swales and asked them how we could hold a match involving the Middlesbrough name? They told me they would try and arrange something at Workington and I didn’t hear anything for months, then out of the blue I got a call asking if we could put a team together and we rode our first match in August 2002.”

It was the beginning of a nomadic existence, appearing in second halves at venues like Newcastle, Hull and Sheffield, which ended with the Harland and Pipe ‘young guns’ finally putting down permanent roots here at the South Tees Motorsports Park at the beginning of this season. The next chapter of the story begins when the Bays visit Conference League pacemakers Plymouth in their first Shield encounter on August 18th and then have the stage to themselves, here at the STMP against Scunthorpe six days later.
 

WHAT A DEFFERENCE A FEW DAYS CAN MAKE?!
~ With Keith McGhie of SPEEDWAY STAR magazine
The previous weekend Redcar were still basking in the glory of taking Stoke apart at Loomer Road for a first ever away win that hoisted them to third in the league, while dejected Newport were being comprehensively dumped out of the Knock-out Cup by five-man Sheffield on their home circuit. Place your bets please?

The South Motorsports Park track was not at its best – unpredictable and grippy – but it was the same for both sides and, Gary Havelock and Chris Kerr aside, the Everest Group Wasps simply showed more appetite for the fight. Chris Neath and Chris Schramm were ultra reliable, Neil Collins revelled in the dirt, Joel Parsons continued his recent upsurge in form with a totally committed display, while the all-action Carl Wilkinson at times looked a world beater and joined Neath in recording the fastest times ever by visiting riders – just two-tenths of a second shy of Mat Tresarrieu’s week-old track record.

The Frenchman, celebrating Bastille Day at the annual Marmande spectacular, was sorely missed as the feeling was that, like Wilkinson, the circuit could have suited his tigerish style. But still the Bears looked comfortable enough for much of the first three races. Havelock won heat one, reserves Jack Hargreaves and Dan Giffard continued their recent high-scoring form to take maximum points from heat two and Chris Kerr comfortably led heat three until getting into trouble on the final bend being passed on the run to the line by Schramm and Collins. That proved to be the turning point and the Wasps never looked back.

Wilkinson scorched to victory in heat four, then Neath and Atkin put the visitors ahead with maximum points in heat five.
Havelock and Kerr responded to level the scores, as Wilkinson fell on lap three trying round the Californian, but Schramm and Collins restored the Wasps lead in heat seven, Parsons bouncing back from a disappointing start to take heat eight with Tony Atkin’s third place edging the lead up to six points. Extensive track grading was followed by another Havelock/Kerr hone 5-1 but further heat wins in four of the remaining five races saw the Welsh side comfortably home.

Havelock gave the home supporters reason to cheer with a memorable outside pass of Neath on the final lap of heat 13 to keep Redcar’s hopes just alive but they were soon wiped away when Hargreaves fell chasing Collins and Parsons in the penultimate race and referee Dave Watters had little option than to award the points in the visitors’ favour. Neath and Schramm then ruined Havelock’s maximum to, in a buoyant Tim Stone’s words: “put the icing on the cake” and seal the Wasps first away win of 2006 – the Bears first home league defeat.
 

HEAT IS ON
~ By Martin Neal, Evening Gazette Monday 17th July 2006
Redcar Bears were narrowly squeezed out of a bonus point in a lively derby encounter away at old rivals Newcastle Diamonds. A weakened Bears side battled all the way but were edged out 49-42 in difficult conditions at a baking Brough Park. And left the Bears agonisingly just one point short of forcing a run off for the bonus point with the aggregate over the home and away matches 92-91 in the Diamonds favour. It was a difficult match in hot and dry conditions with the outcome in doubt right until a last heat decider.

Bears top scorer Gary Havelock streaked clear from the first bend and won that final heat but despite a real scrap team-mate Tomas Suchanek finished fourth after snapping at the back wheels of the Newcastle pair of George Stancl and James Greaves throughout the race. The standing saw the points split 3-3 and so the Bears missed out on the chance of a run-off for the bonus by a whisker.

It had been a hugely entertaining meeting for the bumper derby crowd. Newcastle always had the edge but Bears were in contention throughout. There was a nasty spill in heat eight as Newcastle rider Jamie Robertson went spinning in the cinder as he came out of the pits bend on heat three. Bears Daniel Giffard, hot on his heels, had no chance to avoid him and crashed heavily into Robertson's bike. The Newcastle man took no further part in the meeting but Giffard, who has a history of painful broken ankles, elected to carry on despite early fears that he may have aggravated his old injuries. As it was he went on to compile a useful eight points in a decent performance.

Bears had been trailing but dragged themselves back into the match when team manager Brian Havelock made a gamble on a tactical ride in heat 12. He put key rider Kevin Little in as a substitute and although the Bears man started with a 15 metre handicap he quickly made up the gap and in the final straight passed a Newcastle rider to claim double points. With team-mate Suchanek winning the heat the five point points victory margin in that race put Bears right back in contention and so there was a tense finish. With Bears chipping away at the Diamonds in the final few heats it came down that deciding final race.

Bears had been weakened by the absence of French star Matthieu Tresarrieu, out after a red tape row. He was ordered by the French Federation to sit out last week's match at Stoke and was subsequently suspended for one week by the British Speedway Promoters Association. But Tiesarrieu may yet get his chance to have a crack at the Diamonds if a plan to revive a prestigious one-off competition comes off. The revival of the Bears has led to calls for the return of the once popular Tyne Tees Trophy.

Given the sizeable crowd and the quality of the racing at both meetings this season, Bears bosses have suggested an end of season trophy tussle. Newcastle chiefs too are delighted to have the boost to gates and interest that comes with derby action and have agreed in principle. Newcastle lead the Bears 17-1 in Tyne Tees Trophy wins so will be favourites but on the evidence of this show, and boosted by the return of the Frenchmen, the Bears will fancy their chances of silverware.
 

BATTLING BEARS EARN A BONUS
~ By Martin Nea, Evening Gazette Saturday 15th July 2006
Redcar Bears went down fighting away at Edinburgh Monarchs last night but are still in high spirits after taking their first bonus point of the new era. The Bears were beaten 50-36 at the Armadale Stadium in Bathgate but victory for Gary Havelock in the final heat was enough to bring the bonus for an aggregate win back to Teesside. The Bears had beaten Monarchs 56-38 on home turf last month so were celebrating a 95-91 aggregate win that is another landmark moment for the new club. The bonus point completes a watershed hat-trick for recently revived speedway on Teesside.

After a sticky start, in the past fortnight the Bears have clocked up their first away point at Mildenhall, their first away win at Stoke and now the first bonus point from north of the border. Local legend Havelock was again the key figure. The former World Champion top scored with a hefty 16 points, including double in the 11th heat when he took a tactical ride. In that heat he missed the gate and was last going into the first bend but fought back to get into second place and was just edged out on the line by Monarch's William Lawson, the only rider to beat Havelock on the night.

In all, Havelock produced four heat wins in the match and in heats 13 and 15 beat all of the Monarch's star men. But while Havelock was again Mr Consistency the rest of the Bears team chipped in with their share of vital points. Kevin Little and Tomas Suchanek took seven valuable points apiece, Jack Hargreaves earned four and Chris Kerr three while Daniel Gifford got two and a bonus.

Edinburgh's scorers were Lawson (11 plus three bonus points), Derek Sneddon (12 + 1), Theo Piper (12), Henrik Moller (9 + 4), Matthew Webbers (9 + 2) and Sean Stoddart failed to score.

Both sides were operating rider replacements. The Bears were without Mattieu Tresarrieu, compelled to miss last Thursday's match by the French Federation then later suspended for one week by the BSPA. Monarch's were without heat leader Rusty Harrison, sacked after refusing two late rides in their previous meeting. Banned Tiesarrieu will also be missing for the Bears on Sunday when they go to local rivals Newcastle Diamonds. But Bears insist Chris Kerr will be fit for that meeting. He won one heat last night then in his next race crashed heavily coming out of the first bend and complained of a shoulder muscle tear but will be ready for the derby clash.

The Newcastle meeting has been brought forward to 2pm to avoid a clash with the televised World Speedway Championships, live on Sky Sports at 6pm.
 

GIMME FIVE
~ By Martin Neal Evening Gazette Thursday 13th July 2006
In-form Redcar Bears are aiming to swat the Wasps of Newport and stretch their unbeaten run to five matches tonight. The Premier League's newest team have hit top form in recent matches and followed last Thursday's club record 64-26 mauling of Berwick with their first ever away win at Stoke on Saturday. That lifted them up to third in the table, and now skipper Gary Havelock is urging his team to stay focused and keep their run going.

"It's too early to think about where we'll be at the end of the season, but we've certainly hit a purple patch," he said. "Every rider in the team is capable of going out and winning races, and that's phenomenal. What we are looking for now is consistency for the rest of the season."

Mat Tresarrieu, who relieved Havvy of his South Tees Motorsports Park track record last week, is away on international duty in France and the Bears will use rider replacement.

Havelock, meanwhile, is included in the Bears side for tomorrow's trip to Edinburgh and Sunday's Tyne-Tees derby at Newcastle after being left out of Great Britain's World Cup clash with Poland, Australia and Finland in Rybnik. Havvy was included in the Lions' 12-man squad but manager Neil Middleditch's quintet comprises Lee Richardson, Simon Stead, Chris Harris, captain Scott Nicholls and Mark Loram. "That's the five I would have chosen," he admitted. "It would have been nice to have been selected but I didn't really expect to be."

Newport's veteran former England test star Neil Collins proved his fitness after a broken collarbone with a score of paid nine from five rides in Sunday's 50-39 home defeat by Sheffield. But injured Craig Watson is still absent with a broken arm, so Rye House's Chris Neath is drafted in as a guest at No 1. Neath notched 12 (paid 13) from six rides when he visited South Tees Motorsports Park with the Rockets three weeks ago although he won only twice and failed to get the better of home skipper Havelock on each of the three occasions they met.

Like the Bears, Newport were tipped for a season of struggle this year. And, although Redcar have defied the experts with some stunning performances, the Wasps have lost all their away matches this term and are at the wrong end of the Premier League table.

BEARS: 1 Gary Havelock, 2 Chris Kerr, 3 Tomas Suchanek, 4 Mat Tresarrieu R/R, 5 Kevin Little, 6 Jack Hargreaves, 7 Dan Giffard.
WASPS: 1 Chris Neath, 2 Tony Atkin, 3 Chris Schramm, 4 Neil Collins, 5 Carl Wilkinson, 6 Joel Parsons, 7 Billy Legg.
 

BEARS RETURN IN TRIUMPH
~ Tuesday 11th July 2006
The Redcar Bears speedway team return to the South Tees Motorsport Park this Thursday evening to face Newport Wasps in a Premier League match in a mood of celebration. Having secured their first away point of the new era when forcing a 45-45 at Mildenhall on Sunday July 2nd and then recording their biggest win at home on Thursday July 6th when they mauled the Berwick Bandits by 64 points to 26 - the Bears came away from Stoke on Saturday July 8th with their first away win of the new era scoring 53 points to the Staffordshire side's 42.

Six of the team recorded at least one heat victory apiece. This performance took the Bears to third place in the Premier League. Another strong performance against the Welsh visitors and the prospect of a bonus point when they travel to Edinburgh on Friday evening will keep the opportunity of a place in the end-of-season play off’s in view. This from a team that the Speedway Star 'expert' pundits predicted would finish in the bottom two in their inuaugural season back in professional league racing. A long way to go but the signs are more than encouraging while experienced team manager Brian Havelock will keep the boys on their toes and ensure that there is no complacency in the ranks.

Newport lost their outstanding number one Craig Watson with a broken leg in May and are searching for a top class guest replacement who would ensure a competitive edge for the Wasps. The South Wales septet include Neil Collins, who held the record of 1,061 official appearances in British Speedway by the end of the 2005 season. Neil started his racing career in March 1978 and is still piling up the points at the age of 44. He is the younger brother of former World Speedway Champion Peter Collins.

Matthieu Tresarrieu who lowered the track record to 53.2 seconds last Thursday is away on international duty in France and the Bears operate the rider replacement rule whereby a selection of his team-mates can share his programmed rides.
 

STAR INTERVIEW PAUL BENTLEY
~ With Keith McGhie of SPEEDWAY STAR magazine
One of many familiar faces in the pits this season a former Cleveland Park hero who several pundits felt might even don a Bears race jacket when it was confirmed that speedway was to return to Teesside during the winter. Paul Bentley had two spells with the Middlesbrough Bears, between 1988 and 1991 and then a memorable 2004 season which ended in ‘Banger’ being crowned Second Division Riders Champion.

Paul surprised many when deciding to retire early last season yet he has remained never far from the smell of Castrol R and burning methanol. So far he has resisted any temptation to dust down the kevlars (it was leathers during his heyday!) but admits: “I do miss the racing, the adrenaline and the thrill of winning races when I’m watching. But I’m not planning a comeback, I’m happy just coming down to help and advise Maurice Crang in the second halves. Maurice is dead keen and the cousin of Mark Crang, who’s probably my best mate and I’ve known for about 30 years. I had some great times with Middlesbrough and although I don’t think we ever won anything as a team while I was there, we finished second in the league and runners-up in the knock-out cup.”

Banger did manage to pick up a cup winners medal with Bradford, during one of several stints racing in the old Division One, but he reckons the highlight of his career was probably the Division Two Riders Championship triumph at the end of 1994. “It was just a good all round season and to win the title at the end of it was special,” he recalls.

For many years Paul juggled his speedway career with the equally unsociable hours dictated by a full-time job as a postman. Now very, much a family man, he is in the process of also setting up his own cleaning business, explaining: “I had to look to something else when I finished riding and the all the travelling and preparation of bikes was too much as it became impossible to do everything

“I think they’ve done really well at Redcar to do what they have with the land they had to work with. I used both the motocross track and the kart track before they built the speedway track and it was difficult to imagine but they had a lot of vision and what has been built is good. The longer the project goes on the more is being added and still needs a stand among a few other things. The people in Middlesbrough have always shown a lot of interest in speedway and that was helped enormously when Gary (Havelock) joined – he being the local star. The crowds have been very good and the team is gong from strength to strength - considering everybody tipped them to finish bottom there must be a few people eating their words now.

And with the experienced help of the likes of Paul Bentley behind the juniors who are set to back up the Bears, the future of the sport here at the South Tees Motorsports Park seems in good hands.
 

ROAR TALENT
~ By Martin Neal Evening Gazette Monday 10th July 2006
Rampant Redcar Bears have roared up to third in the Premier League after their first ever away win. And now boss Brian Havelock believes his in-form team are good enough to stay at the top end of the table for the rest of what is proving to be a memorable debut season. Saturday's 53-42 victory at Stoke was every bit as convincing as the scoreline suggests and was once again the perfect put-down to critics who had predicted a season of struggle for the newly-formed Bears.

The fact that six of their seven riders won at least once away from home demonstrates their all-round strength. The early top heavy days of the season seem an age away now and the large and noisy band of travelling Teessiders in the crowd were treated to another stirring team performance in which every member played a crucial role.

After drawing the opening heat, Havelock's side went in front next time out when Dan Giffard and Jack Hargreaves notched a 5-1 over Barrie Evans and Gareth Isherwood. From then on the Bears were always ahead. Hargreaves - on loan from the Potters - finished the race on the deck after being shunted off by Evans but the Stoke rider was excluded and the race awarded. Potters chief Nigel Crabtree was not happy at the decision but referee Barbara Horley got it spot on. In fact the referee dealt superbly with two more contentious incidents later on. First she correctly excluded Evans for sending Chris Kerr sprawling in heat eight then rightly showed the red light to Robbie Kessler who slid off trying to pass Gary Havelock in heat 13, although the Potters were unhappy at both decisions.

Havvy again led the way and his only two defeats came near the end when victory was already in the bag, while Mat Tresarrieu enjoyed one of his best meetings as a Bear. The Frenchman's all-action style is a joy to watch and he passed both Mark Lemon and Trent Leverington to follow home Tomas Suchanek for a 5-1 in heat ten. Suchanek burst into life after trailing a last first time out. He swapped bikes and went on to win twice - including a rousing heat 12 victory in which he came from behind to beat both Isherwood and Paul Clews.

Another of the highlights came in heat nine when young reserve Hargreaves made the gate then rode like a tiger for four laps to hold off the vastly experienced Alan Mogridge and tac double Paul Clews. Like Dan Giffard he finished with an impressive six (paid eight) points - and to think questions were being asked about the strength of the Bears at reserve in the early weeks of the season.

Boss Havelock snr missed the opening eight heats after being stuck for three hours in an M6 traffic jam. By the time he arrived the Bears were well in charge and he was delighted with the outcome. "It was even better than I expected," he said. "It was a brilliant performance. In the last three weeks the lads have exceeded my expectations. I thought we could be in the top five or six but they have proved they are better than that. They are riding as a team."

POTTERS: Mark Lemon 14, Paul Clews 11, Robbie Kessler 6, Alan Mogridge 5+1, Barrie Evans 3+1, Trent Leverington 2+1, Gareth Isherwood 1.
BEARS: Gary Havelock 13, Mat Tresarrieu 9+1, Chris Kerr 7+2, Tomas Suchanek 7, Jack Hargreaves 6+2, Dan Giffard 6+2, Kevin Little 5+1.

UNBEATEN in their last two away matches, the Bears go to Edinburgh on Friday and Newcastle on Sunday looking for more reasons to celebrate. Coach trips are being run to both meetings - call 01642 477729 for details.
 

SET ON STOKE
~ By Martin Neal, Evening Gazette Saturday 8th July 2006
In-form Redcar Bears are aiming to claim another scalp tonight when they visit Stoke in the Premier League (7.30pm start). Brian Havelock's side have looked a potent force in recent matches and followed their first ever away point at Mildenhall with a club record 64-26 thrashing of Berwick on Thursday.

The Bears lost by just six points when they visited Loomer Road in the Premier Trophy in April, and Havelock believes they are capable of improving on that tonight. "I'm looking forward to it," he said, "and we should go there on a high. We did very well there in the Premier Trophy and, the way we are going at the moment, we can go even better this time. If we can stay with them in the first couple of heats and then hang on until about heat ten, we could be in with a shout."

Havelock is able to name new South Tees Motorsports Park track record holder Mat Tresarrieu after the Frenchman pulled out of his Grand Prix qualifier this weekend.

Stoke are not without their problems, however, and boss Dave Tattum has spent the last couple of days trying to find a replacement for reserve Luke Priest. The 21-year-old prospect suffered a broken ankle, elbow and pelvis, plus internal injuries, in a horror crash while riding for Stoke's Conference League team, the Spitfires, on Wednesday. A pal and neighbour of the Bears' Jack Hargreaves who was also in the race, Priest remains in hospital and has been supervised by a trauma team.

The Bears, whose win over Berwick this week hoisted them up to fourth in the table, are five points ahead of their hosts - although Stoke showed what they are capable of with a 47-43 win over title favourites King's Lynn in their last home meeting.

POTTERS: 1 Mark Lemon, 2 Trent Leverington, 3 Paul Clews, 4 Alan Mogridge, 5 Robbie Kessler, 6 Barrie Evans, 7 TBC.
BEARS: 1 Gary Havelock, 2 Chris Kerr, 3 Tomas Suchanek, 4 Mat Tresarrieu, 5 Kevin Little, 6 Jack Hargreaves, 7 Dan Giffard.

CLUB owner Chris van Straaten has confirmed he has applied to enter the Cleveland Bays in the end-of-season Conference Shield. The Bays - Redcar's junior development team - plan to launch their campaign on Thursday, August 24.

BEARS skipper Gary Havelock scored eight (paid nine) in an Elite league KO Cup quarter-final guest appearance for Belle Vue at Arena Essex last night.
 

STAR REPORT BEARS v BANDITS
~ With Keith McGhie of SPEEDWAY STAR magazine
Records tumbled as the closest thing about this north-east coast clash was the balmy mid-summer weather. Rampant Redcar romped to a club record victory after hammering home no fewer than nine 5-1s in the opening 11 races, to leave beleaguered Berwick reeling and still rooted the bottom of the league. The Bandits managed only two heat winners and failed to gain a single extra point from their two tactical rides. The Bears by contrast had five riders still heading for maximums when an interval was taken after heat 11.

Eventually only the mercurial Gary Havelock finished with a full house, although Chris Kerr registered a paid maximum from his programmed races only to be denied by a fall when attempting to round Stanislaw Burza, having already blasted passed Michal Makovsky, following a poor start in the ‘nominated’ race.

Such is the all round strength developing in the Redcar ranks that their top two scorers from the equally historic point gained at Mildenhall four days beforehand - Tomas Suchanek and Mat Tresarrieu - were the only home riders to drop points to a visitor – Lee Smethills and Michal Makovsky – in those opening 11 heats. Tresarrieu, who came spectacularly through from last to second in successive laps in heat 5, had the added consolation of smashing Havelock’s two-month old track record in heat 9 – immediately after the sun-baked but surprisingly good racing surface had been regraded.

Smethills success in heat three prevented a complete whitewash in the opening eight races, while Makovsky’s second place behind the flying Frenchman in heat 9 further interrupted the rout. Dan Giffard’s paid maximum disappeared when he couldn’t follow Suchanek passed Smethills in heat 12; a sharper-looking Kevin Little’s unbeaten run also ended in his final outing – heat 13 – where Havelock glided almost serenely around Burza; and Jack Hargreaves best Premier League haul was only blemished when failing to catch Andreas Bergstrom in the penultimate race.

Peter Waite’s tactical moves both yielded nothing as Smethills and Burza trailed in behind both home riders when sent out in black and white, and the Bandits’ boss’s already injury-hit team, using rider replacement for James Birkinshaw, was further hampered when Craig Branney, not fully fit at the start after damaging an ankle, withdrew from the meeting through illness following his fourth ride. For the Bandits the only way is up, having lost 12 of their last 13 matches, while the Bears are beginning to stake out their territory with a sixth consecutive home win lifting them temporarily into an unprecedentedly high fourth spot in the table.
 

IT’S A RECORD!
~ By Martin Neal, Evening Gazette Friday 7th July 2006
If it were a boxing match the referee would have stepped in long before the end to save the visitors from further punishment! Such was the devastating manner in which Redcar Bears pummelled Berwick Bandits into the ground at South Tees Motorsports Park last night. With an incredible nine maximum 5-1 heat wins in 15 races, they burst through the 60-point barrier for the first time as the Bandits were crushed 64-26. The track record was bettered too as Mat Tresarrieu knocked 0.2 seconds off Gary Havelock's previous best time of 53.4.

After an off night at Mildenhall on Sunday, Havvy was back to his blistering best with a 15-point maximum while Chris Kerr went through all his programmed rides unbeaten by an opponent. Unfortunately he failed to complete his first ever paid maximum when he fell in the nominated riders' race trying to make up ground on Stanislaw Burza and Michal Makovsky. Nonetheless it was an assured performance from the American, whose season hit a low point when he had failed to score against Rye House just two weeks earlier. "That is never going to happen again," vowed Kerr, referring to his Rye House nightmare. "For the past few weeks I have been struggling but I had a new motor last night and I rode the bike like I should have been doing all along."

Berwick manager Peter Waite called his side's display "an embarrassing shambles" and "disgraceful" and they certainly wore the look of a team with low morale. Even their attempts to claw back some of the deficit with a pair of tactical double rides failed to bear fruit as both Lee Smethills then Burza failed to finish ahead of a home rider.

But take nothing away from the Bears. They were fired up, focussed and clearly buoyed by their first ever away point last weekend. Even when they were out gated they came blasting back, with the tenacious Tresarrieu showing style and determination to pass both Burza and Danny Warwick in heat five.

Tomas Suchanek and Dan Giffard turned a 1-5 into a 4-2 in heat 12 and captain marvel Havelock used the banking to great effect as he swept round Burza to win the next race. Reserve Jack Hargreaves got in on the act too, splitting Andreas Bergstrom and Danny Warwick in the penultimate race, though his second place left him just one point short of a paid maximum. In fact Hargreaves was one of four riders only denied a full house in their final ride - Kerr, Kevin Little and Giffard being the others.

"I told you that sooner or later someone would get a tanning," beamed Bears team manager Brian Havelock. "After about heat six it looked like we were going to run away with it, and so it proved. All our lads rode well and I'm delighted with them - you can't beat a big score for boosting confidence."

Bears: Gary Havelock 15, Jack Hargreaves 10+1, Dan Giffard 9+1, Tomas Suchanek 9, Chris Kerr 8+4, Kevin Little 7+2, Mat Tresarrieu 6+2.
Bandits: Stanislaw Burza 6, Lee Smethills 6, Michal Makovsky 5+2, Andreas Bergstrom 5, Craig Branney 2, Danny Warwick 2, James Birkinshaw R/R, John Morrison (No 8) DNR.

Coulby Newham-based South African Byron Bekker won three times as the Cleveland Bays beat Berwick Juniors 17-12 in a second half youth development challenge.
 

ACTION REPLAY!
~ By Martin Neal, Evening Gazette Thursday 6th July 2006
Same again please - that's boss Brian Havelock's team orders ahead of Redcar Bears' Premier League clash with Berwick tonight. The Bandits were sent packing 54-39 when they last visited South Tees Motorsports Park in the Premier Trophy in April, and Havelock is looking for another big win. His side are unbeaten at home in the league this term and go into the meeting buoyed by a 45-45 draw at Mildenhall last Sunday.

"We had a big win over Berwick last time and, on current form, there's no reason why we can't have a repeat," said Havelock. We had a good result at Mildenhall and we're feeling fairly confident about tonight."

The visitors are without James Birkinshaw who suffered a suspected broken leg in only his second match since being drafted in to replace David Meldrum. They will use rider replacement to cover for him, but his average means that only Andreas Bergstrom plus reserves Craig Branney and Danny Warwick can take his rides. None of that trio scored more than four points on their last trip to Teesside and Havelock said: "I think they could find it difficult to make up the points he would have scored."

Sunday's first ever league point away from home was achieved despite Havelock's son Gary, the Bears skipper and No 1, having his worst meeting of an otherwise outstanding season. He struggled out of the gate on a dustbowl of a track which made passing almost impossible and finished with just five (paid six) points. But Havvy Snr expects no repeat of that this evening. "Gary had ridden in Russia on Wednesday and at home to Newcastle on Thursday," he said, "and I think it may have caught up with him."

One of the key reasons for Redcar's good run of form lately has been the performances of reserves Jack Hargreaves and particularly Dan Giffard. But the pair struggled in the early stages of the season and Havelock revealed he was starting to become more than a little concerned before they clicked into gear. "Jack and Dan have come on a treat," he said, "and I'm delighted with the improvement they have shown. It's so important for the reserves to go out and get a 5-1 in the second heat because it gives a big boost to the rest of the team."

Meanwhile the South Tees Motorsports Park arena now has a new hospitality unit on the first bend. Details of packages available from Kirsty Sinclair on 07816 753619 or sinclairkirsty@hotmail.co.uk

BEARS: 1 Gary Havelock, 2 Chris Kerr, 3 Tomas Suchanek, 4 Mat Tresarrieu, 5 Kevin Little, 6 Jack Hargreaves, 7 Dan Giffard.

BANDITS: 1 Stanislaw Burza, 2 R/R for James Birkinshaw, 3 Lee Smethills, 4 Andreas Bergstrom, 5 Michal Makovsky, 6 Danny Warwick, 7 Craig Branney.

THE second practice and training session at the Bears' track takes place this Saturday from 11am to 3pm. Further details are available from Glyn Taylor on 07711 159044.
 

STAR REPORT BEARS v DIAMONDS
~ With Keith McGhie of SPEEDWAY STAR magazine
Redcar maintained their 100% home record in the league against a beleaguered but reliant Newcastle outfit that refused to be shaken off and must now fancy their chances of the bonus point in the return on July 16. The Bears were given every opportunity to bury their north-eastern rivals who suffered an inordinate number of physical and mechanical misfortunes but, largely through sluggish starting, the hosts failed to hammer home their advantage.

Gary Havelock, hotfoot from his maiden visit to race in the Russian League, led from the front as ever, suffering his only defeat to George Stancl in one of the fastest times of the season (just 0.2 short of the track record) in heat 6. The Bears skipper more than made up for it with a wonderful second outside pass of James Grieves on the third lap of heat 10, before exacting revenge on Stancl in heats 13 and 15.

Tomas Suchanek gave plenty of support but was among the leading sufferers of starting gate shyness, often having to battle from poor position s for his points. But it was Dan Giffard’s persistence from the reserve berth, including two fine wins, that kept the hosts in charge. The Warburons Diamonds were struggling from the moment that transmission trouble prevented Christain Henry from making the two minutes in heat one.

After Adam McKinna had ground to a halt in heat two, matters got rapidly worse. When Manual Hauzinger retired and team-mates James Grieves stopped within a 100 metres of the start of heat three. Hauzinger, just back from injury, retired from the meeting after twisting his knee and the Diamonds were already 12-5 down and facing a pasting. But, as Kevin Little fell while second in heat five then Mat Tresarrieu limped out of heat six to redress the balance a bit, the Tynesiders hung on.

Overworked reserve Chris Mills and Christian Henry grabbed vital heat wins and James Grieves trumped their efforts with a victory in ‘black and white’ on the first occasion Bears managed to extend their advantage to nine points entering the penultimate heat. The visitors were a touch fortunate, first by the timing which allowed little time for the Bears to re-establish their lead, then when the race was restarted after Grieves and Mills had fallen during a torrid first bend scrap in the initial staging.
 

BEARS ADJUST TEAM LINE-UP
~ Monday 3rd July 2006
With a new set of averages operating from July Ist, Redcar Bears' team manager Brian Havelock has made some amendments to the order of the top five. American Chris Kerr moves to number two to partner skipper Gary Havelock releasing Chris from a heat 13 commitment against rival heat leaders. Kevin Little takes over that number five berth. Matthieu Tresarrieu moves to number four in the order to partner Tomas Suchanek.

The re-shuffle had an immediate impact at Mildenhall on Sunday afternoon when the Bears forced a 45-45 draw - their first away point of the new era for speedway on Teesside.

The forthcoming home Premier League fixture at the South Tees Motorsport Park on Thursday evening is against the Berwick Bandits. The Bears are so far undefeated at the Motorsport Park in the league and plan to extend the run to a sixth victory. They will not underestimate the Borders team who track an impressive and international heat leader trio. Poland's Stanislaw Burza and Sweden's Andreas Bergstrom are regarded as real rising stars for their respective nations whjile Michal Makovsky of the Czech Republic has an established reputation.

There will be a second practice and training session at the track on Saturday between 11am and 3pm. The first session attracted a healthy attendance of aspiring junior riders. Further details from Glyn Taylor on 07711159044.
 
The arena has seen the addition of a new hospitality unit viewing the first bend. Details of packages available from Kirsty Sinclair on 07816 753619 or sinclairkirsty@hotmail.co.uk
 

SUCHANEK IS BEAR'S HERO
~ By Martin Neal, Evening Gazette Monday 3rd July 2006
Tomas Suchanek was the last heat hero as Redcar Bears snatched a 45-45 Premier League draw at Mildenhall. It was the Bears' best ever away display in their debut season - and they even managed it with skipper Gary Havelock having an off night. Havvy uncharacteristically failed to register a win from his four rides but, although reserve Jack Hargreaves and Chris Kerr also found the going tough, the rest of the team made up for it.

After edging in front early on the Bears found themselves eight points adrift after heat nine. But Suchanek and Mat Tresarrieu responded with a 5-1 over James Brundle and the previously unbeaten Jason Lyons in the next race. And it was all square after Suchanek and Dan Giffard roared to another maximum heat win over Brundle and Danny King two races later. King had won four races out of four at that point and the result left Mildenhall in no doubt that the Bears meant business.

Tresarrieu was using his own engine again and his disappointing performance last Thursday looked a million miles away as he won heat 14. With Brundle falling, Giffard took third place behind Jason King to send Redcar into the final heat 43-41 ahead. The hosts threatened to spoil the party when Danny King and Lyons leapt out of the gate in front of Suchanek and Tresarrieu. But Suchanek battled his way past Lyons to ensure the Bears earned yesterday's draw.

Boss Brian Havelock was delighted to see his side take their first point away from home and put themselves in the driving seat for the bonus point awarded for aggregate victory. "I'm over the moon," he said. "The temperature was 28 degrees and it was a dust bowl, but we coped well. To get a draw away from home when your star rider has an off night is a great achievement. Gary looked a down on power. If he had won his first couple of races we would have waltzed it."

MILDENHALL: Danny King 15, Brent Werner 9+1, Jason Lyons 8, James Brundle 7+1, Jason King 5+1, Barry Burchatt 0, Jon Armstrong R/R, .

REDCAR: Tomas Suchanek 11, Mat Tressarieu 9+2, Daniel Giffard 9+1, Kevin Little 7+1, Gary Havelock 5+1, Chris Kerr 3+1, Jack Hargreaves 1.

JACK Hargreaves rides at No 1 when the Cleveland Bays visit Conference League leaders Scunthorpe - managed by Kenny Smith from Leven - in a challenge match tonight.

BAYS: 1 Jack Hargreaves, 2 Karl Langley, 3 Paul Burnett, 4 Mike Pickering, 5 Paul Cooper, 6 Ben Hopwood, 7 Rusty Hodgson.
 

BEARS BID FOR FIRST BONUS
~ By Martin Neal, Evening Gazette Saturday 1st July 2006
Redcar Bears head to Mildenhall tomorrow aiming to take a giant stride towards their first Premier League bonus point of the season. Brian Havelock's side made hard work of their victory over a Newcastle side blighted by injury and mechanical failures on Thursday, but the Bears boss is hoping that will all be forgotten at West Row. The Fen Tigers have yet to pull up any trees since rejoining the Premier League but have a formidable No 1 in veteran Aussie Jason Lyons and will certainly be no pushovers on their own track.

"With the exception of our reserves and Gary (his son, the team captain), none of our lads have ever seen their track," said Havelock, "and the last time Gary was there was 20 years ago. It's a tiny little track - similar in length to ours but a different shape so it may well take our lads a ride apiece to get to grips with it. But I see us going reasonably well there. I'm not too worried if we don't win but I'd like to see us go within four or five points so we can hang on and get the bonus point (awarded for aggregate victory) when they come to our place at the end of the month."

The introduction of the new green sheet averages means that Chris Kerr moves from No 5 to No 2 in the riding order, while Mat Tresarrieu slots in at No 4 and Kevin Little goes to No 5. Mildenhall's in-form reserve Jon Armstrong swops places with No 2 James Brundle in the home line-up.

American Kerr has impressed fans with his never-say-die style this term but has rarely recorded the scores his efforts have deserved, so Havelock believes the switch will suit him. "He goes straight out in the first heat so he'll have no time to mope around," said Havelock.

FEN TIGERS: 1 Jason Lyons, 2 Jon Armstrong, 3 Daniel King, 4 Jason King, 5 Brent Werner, 6 James Brundle, 7 Barry Burchatt.

BEARS: 1 Gary Havelock, 2 Chris Kerr, 3 Tomas Suchanek, 4 Mat Tresarrieu, 5 Kevin Little, 6 Jack Hargreaves, 7 Dan Giffard.