Home Contact Us Stadia Pix Articles All About You Riders to Remember
DVDs Books Pictures Archive Dream Teams Programme Generator
28/01/2024
1975/76 NZ v England
Your Feedback
 
17/12/2023
DVD: Great Races of the 80s
What's Wrong With Ambition?
Your Feedback
 
29/10/2023
Book Review: Walthamstow
When the Rangers Roared
High Beech Revival of 1954
Your Feedback
 
16/10/2023
Western Springs Winged Wheels
Grand Pricks?
Your Feedback
 
01/10/2023
Blind Speedway Rider
Track Pix: Oxford
Farcical Guest
Your Feedback
 
17/09/2023
The Ole Olsen Tapes
Dream Team: Richard Cleaver
Plus Points
Your Feedback
 
23/07/2023
1974/75 BL V New Zealand
Heat Details Required
Your Feedback
 
04/06/2023
Northside Arena
 
14/05/2023
Review: Tigers at White City
Your Feedback
 
19/03/2023
How to halt the decline
 
12/03/2023
NZ v Poland - 1st Test
NZ v Poland - 2nd Test
NZ v Poland - 3rd Test
NZ v Poland - 4th Test
 
05/03/2023
Track Pictures: North Brisbane
It's All About You: Lionel King
Your Feedback
 
15/01/2023
Dream Team : Geoff Langley
Your Feedback
 
04/01/2023
Gerald Dunn's JAP
Your Feedback
 
27/12/2022
1975 World Final. Heat 20.
Your Feedback
 
11/12/2022
Peter Collins Autobiography
Your Feedback
 
23/11/2022
DVD Review: 70s - A to Z
Your Feedback


Book Review: Diary of a Speedway Kid by Drew Kemp

Studying for school exams, making sure his hair is on point and throwing a 500cc speedway bike into tight corners are all in a day's work for Drew Kemp.

The highly-promising youngster kept a diary throughout 2018 and with the assistance of Barry Cross it's been published for all us to share.

"Diary of a Speedway Kid" is an honest and entertaining insight into his experiences throughout his first full season in the senior leagues. He started the season as a 15 year old, signing up to ride for both Mildenhall Fen Tigers and Cradley Heathens in the National League competitions, later being drafted into the Ipswich Witches side as soon as he met the minimum age requirement for that sphere.

There's a clear learning curve to his season and he's mature enough to recognise that, building up his knowledge through experience and by picking up information from team mates. Rory Schlein suggests he gives up his tradition of getting change in the van, saying he'd benefit from being alongside the other riders in the dressing room in the build up to the meeting. Danny Ayres and Jon Armstrong are others that are generous with the advice and help they offer. There's a tangible sense of all these little nuggets of wisdom being digested and applied to good effect on the track.

Drew follows in the great tradition of the superstitious speedway rider - lucky socks, pants and Weetabix are all seemingly essential in him maintaining a positive frame of mind.

Complementing the diary entries are hundreds of great colour photographs, covering the meetings that Drew raced in throughout the season. There's a good mix of action, portrait and behind the scenes shots, including one of him getting a cuddle from his mum, a reminder of his tender years.

Despite his youth, he comes across as a lad with a sensible head on his shoulders. He set achievable objectives for the season and seems to have a clear plan on how he wants his career to progress. Anyone who has seen him action will agree that he's a very decent prospect who we can expect to follow in the footsteps of the likes of Robert Lambert and Dan Bewley before too long.

We not only get insights into the speedway life, but also into the life of the modern teenager, such as the horrors of running out of data on a long road trip.

The book ends with a two page spread detailing all the meetings he competed in, showing his race results and his own three word summary of the meeting. June 17th was the night that "Kylie Saves Day", while "Crashed on Parade!" sums up 11th September. You'll need to buy the book to find out who Kylie is.

In a generous gesture, £2 from each sale will be donated to the Speedway Riders Benevolent Fund.

You can buy you copy for £10 from https://barrycross.bigcartel.com/product/diary-of-a-speedway-kid

 

This article was first published on 3rd March 2019

[ Use Mobile Version ]
 

 

Comment on this Article | Contact Us | Go Back to Main Menu

   Please leave your comments on this article or on the site as a whole