Nottingham and Long Eaton Speedway

From the pioneering days of the Olympic Speedway to the development of the White City as one of the finest stadia in the provinces, speedway in Nottingham had a flavour of its own. Fans could catch a ferry from the famous Trent Bridge to the riverside track where Nottingham enjoyed a chequered speedway career throughout the 1930s, experiencing activity of some sort every year except 1932, 1935 and 1939. When speedway's new golden age in the late 1940s left Nottingham on the sidelines, the focus shifted a few miles down the road, to Long Eaton Stadium, which had first hosted speedway in 1929. Long Eaton built on initial close links with former Nottingham riders and supporters to develop its own distinct personality and fan base, which survived closure in the dark days of the 1950s to enjoy a revival a decade later.