Old Bike Australasia – July 21, 2019

Jim Airey with the Peter Craven Memorial

Trophy, in memory of the British World

Champion and Belle Vue star.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

OLD BIKE AUSTRALASIA: 11

make a professional looking “Speedway frame”.
I then cut a piece of zinc anneal and welded it into
head stock to imitate a fuel tank, added extended
speedway bars, chrome spokes (which Dad laced
up himself, teaching me, a skill I still have today)
and a coat of Oxford Blue paint. 
I used to modify bikes for other kids for $3.
each, not a bad business for a young teen. We used
to cruise in groups, our track was disused tennis
courts in Russell Avenue Sans Souci. This is the only
photo I have of the bike, the veranda haircut was
mandatory to be really cool. It was taken around
1966/7.

Barry Patterson
Via email

Amazing Airey

As an avidOBAreader, when issue 79 came out
with the promise that in the next edition Jim Airey
would be one of the featured stars, the time
seemed to drag along! Finally it popped through my
letterbox. I couldn’t hide my eagerness as I ripped
number 80 open to page 22/23 – you beaut! While
in no way wishing to denigrate the work by those
devoted people who put Jim’s story to print, I felt
that so much more credit could have been given to
probably the greatest Australian speedway rider
that existed through the 1960s and 1970s. The story
failed to mention that amongst Jim’s incredible
career highlights, he was fourth in the British
League Division 1 averages for 1971 with an aver-
age of 10.66 points per match (out of 12). Only Ivan
Mauger, (11.33), Ray Wilson (11.03), and Ole Olsen
(10.99) were better that year. I well remember the
visit to Townsville’s Savanna speedway by Jim in
1971, certainly after Ole Olsen and Howard Cole had
set the place alight with a new track record set by

Olsen, who was definitely the man of the moment

internationally. Airey showed us his undoubted class

in equalling the time set by Olsen, and I believe this

mark still stood when the venue folded, many years

later. Airey’s record in Test matches against the old

enemy, the Poms, also will stand up to any scrutiny,

proving in that particular era we did not produce

any finer speedway rider. Undoubtedly Phil and

Jason Crump have gone on to much greater rewards,

but that is not my purpose in this post, merely

being to pay tribute to one who should be remem-

bered as outstanding in his speedway racing career

with his mastery of the daunting Sydney Royale

possibly his defining moment.

Barry Graham

Via email

Ed: It would take more space that we have

available to list all of Jim’s achievements in a single

story, not just in speedway but other forms of

racing as well as business. I think Peter Whitaker

did a great job in showcasing the broadness of Jim’s

talents. Truly an outstanding innings. –Ed

Beating the system

As a teenagerin Bathurst in the 1970s, it

became a challenge for us to gain entry to the pits

during the Easter races. There was always an ACU

official checking Pit Passes when the gates at the

start/finish line were open between races. If there

was enough of a crowd ready to enter, the white-

coated man would be overwhelmed and so, by

positioning ourselves on the offside of someone

with a pass and asking them in a loud voice, “Who’s

in the next race Dad?”, just before the said official,

we could usually sneak through. “Dad” would look

at us with shock or distain, but that didn’t worry us

as we had achieved our goal. Not quite as good was

to send one of us in front to be caught, and during

the commotion, two or three of us would make it

through. By the time I was 18, we had a mate

whose dad worked on the council so we could use

his pit pass to gain access, and by passing it back

through the fence several times, we would all be

in. This explains how I got a candid shot of Murray

Sayle (above) when he was riding for Milledge

Brothers in 1978. I read in OBA 78that he had

retired so I would like to wish him all the best for

the future.

Don Sinclair

Bathurst, NSW

Jawa jollies

I must writeto express my pleasure at reading

Tracks in Time (OBA 77– Dapto Hill Climb) which

was written by my friend of long ago, Neville

Stumbles. His record of the track was outstanding

with his photos and the story revived many

memories. Also on page 98 of the same issue was

a photo of a 250cc Jawa, which was my second bike,

either a 1950 or 1951 model. I purchased it from

Jim Eade on Parramatta Road, Ashfield. Malvern Star

in Crown Street Wollongong were the agents, and

Dexter Electrical in Victoria Street Wollongong did a

couple of minor repairs to the electrical system.

Barry Patterson.

Murray Sayle in the

pits at Bathurst, 1978.