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Post by administrator on Sept 12, 2012 19:48:34 GMT 1
"...on cinder surfaced tracks in Raheny, Santry, Chapelizod, Portmarnock and Shelbourne Park.."
As mentioned by halflinger121, the only cinder venues I am familiar with sre Santry, Chapelizod and Shelbourne Park, which also staged speedway in the late 1940s and early 1950s.
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Post by haflinger121 on Sept 12, 2012 20:14:51 GMT 1
I just went back and checked what Trevor wrote for us originally about Irish midgets and he describes Raheny as having been a grass track, so that's probably why we've never heard of it; it was probably just a field somewhere. Portmarnock stands a bit of closer scrutiny. They have a trotting track (shades of Greenford!) but it didn't apparently exist until the 1970's so that can't be it. How about this though? www.britishpathe.com/video/speedwalking-on-the-sands-aka-speeding-on-the-sand/query/PortmarnockPeople down the ages have often thought beaches were a good idea to race on...Irish Midgets too perhaps? Or am I just barking up completely the wrong tree?!
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Post by administrator on Sept 12, 2012 22:50:52 GMT 1
I have a hazy recollection that, on one of the many of the phone calls he used to make to me from Canada, the late Mike Tams (a Canadian with strong links to Ireland) who rode speedway at Santry, Chapelizod and Shelbourne Park in the late 1940s, once mentioned he had taken part in a couple of midget car races in Ireland. Most probably it was at either Santry (where I think Tams also had a promotional interest) or Chapelizod.
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Post by haflinger121 on Sept 13, 2012 9:39:36 GMT 1
Ah. I wasn't aware Tams had ever been involved in car racing, even if it was just a brief flirtation. It would be nice to get hold of some proper memorabilia concerning the early days of midget racing in Ireland, programmes, newspapers or whatever, but I've never seen a thing. Even the much more recent 1950's stock car progs are very rare.
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