5 replies to this topic

[arttidesco]

Howdy I just popped over from the TNF because I have been doing some research into motor sport in Zambia, Nothern Rhodesia as was, where I saw my first races of any kind in 1970.

I have just stumbled across a rare series of photographs including programme and entry list for the Coca Cola Trophy Friday 9th July 1954 at Kitana Speedway, Northern Rhodesia which I thought some of you might like to know about.

So as not to infringe any copyrights with persons it is not possible to contact I will post the web addresses below in an order which to my mind resembles the meeting as it unfolded.

This all happened before I was born and I have not come across any of the names in the programme elsewhere in my research into Zambian Motor Sport, I had no idea Kitana Speedway, near Kitwe, even existed in Zambia until I found these photographs.

If anyone can put names to faces or furnish any other details that would be cool, if not I hope you'll enjoy this insight to an altogether different age, where a termite hill appears to have served spectators well as a grandstand.

Programme Cover http://www.greatnort...e:Kitana_02.jpg

Entry List http://www.greatnort...e:Kitana_03.jpg

Single Rider Practice (?) http://www.greatnort...e:Kitana_10.jpg

Two Riders practice (?) http://www.greatnort...e:Kitana_07.jpg

The Start http://www.greatnort...e:Kitana_08.jpg

Two Riders http://www.greatnort...e:Kitana_11.jpg

Single Rider http://www.greatnort...e:Kitana_06.jpg

The Finish http://www.greatnort...e:Kitana_09.jpg

Group Photo http://www.greatnort...e:Kitana_05.jpg

Strikes me there must have been some brave men riding these machines without gloves. By the end every one will have been covered in red laterite dust that is prevalent in this part of the world.

These photo's were sent to The Great North Road Website (unfortunately dormant since 2009) by Jim Cash.

Apologies I cannot make the link feature work with these pages, for some reason well beyond the wit of my brain cell, so it will have to be a copy and paste job with the web addresses.

If those web addresses go down let me know, I recognise these must be rare photographs and have copied them to my hard drive just in case.

I will be collating a stack of largely anecdotal information about Zambian Motorcycle Road Racers presently and will keep you posted :-)

Edited by arttidesco, 24 May 2010 - 21:11.

[gokwe]

I was fascinated with the pictures of Kitana as these are the first I've seen of Northern Rhodesia speedway after a lifetime of following the sport and several years of researching the history of speedway in SA and the Rhodesias.

The origins of Northern Rhodesia speedway are linked to the boom in the sport in SA in the 1950s and an influx of South Africans moving to the Copperbelt to work on the mines and associated industries. Dirt track racing on 440 yard tracks first began to appear in about 1951 in contrast to the mile to mile and a half tracks that had henceforth been the norm for dirt track racing. Luanshya was one such centre for 440 yard racing.

However, the first official speedway meeting in Northern Rhodesia was at the Kitana Stadium in Kitwe on 16th July 1953 and this is also the first ever meeting in the Rhodesias as the first in Southern Rhodesia did not take place until 5th September that year at the Bulawayo Showgrounds. This first Kitwe meeting was for the Northern Rhodesia Open Individual Championship and won by Bob Serrurier with Toby Boshoff runner-up. Bob Serrurier was one of five brothers who all rode speedway in SA and Bob was the main instigator in starting the sport after moving from SA in 1953 to work on the Copperbelt. A second major meeting at Kitana, the Northern Rodesia Individual Championship, was held on 30th October 1953 and again won by Bob Serrurier with Stan Paulsen second and Bert Clark third. Most of the riders who raced in Northern Rhodesia on a regular basis were ex-South Africans with meetings occasionally being supplemented by visiting riders from the Transvaal. The best local rider to emerge from the Copperbelt scene was Bert Clark who rode for the (Southern) Rhodesian and Dominions teams in internationals against overseas opposition at Bulawayo. Bert was in fact Welsh, having emigrated to Northern Rhodesia after World War 2.

The Kitana Stadium track was 340 yards in length and at the end of 1953 the 4 laps clutch start track record of 68.90 secs was held by Bob Serrurier. The 1 lap flying start record of 16.80 secs was jointly held by three South Africans, Doug Lang, Fred van Zyl and Toby Boshoff.

I cannot be absolutely sure of any of the riders in the group photo although the rider on the machine is probably Henry Long who won many SA Championship titles in the 1950s. Henry Long's name does not appear on the race card but Long may have been there for a match race series in the second half of the programme or perhaps the group photo was taken at a different meeting to that indicated. The rider standing to the right behind Long and with his goggles around his neck is probably Bob Serrurier. The race jackets are interesting as it looks as if that worn by Long (and others) is from the Springs Stars team that competed in the SA National League from 1953 to 1957, the other race jacket I do not recognise.

I do not know when speedway ceased in Northern Rhodesia. It was reported that in 1954 a Bulawayo team was to race regular Challenge matches against SA teams from May until September with occasional meeetings being staged at Kitwe. Further references are sketchy but speedway on the Copperbelt is unlikely to have survived beyond 1958 when Bulawayo closed as a result of the slump in SA speedway.

Speedway was subsequently revived in Rhodesia in 1971 at the Trade Fair Arena, Bulawayo Showgrounds, Glamis Stadium in Salisbury and the Old Newmarket Stadium in Gwelo with the last ever meeting being held at Salisbury at the end of 1976.

Howdy I just popped over from the TNF because I have been doing some research into motor sport in Zambia, Nothern Rhodesia as was, where I saw my first races of any kind in 1970.

I have just stumbled across a rare series of photographs including programme and entry list for the Coca Cola Trophy Friday 9th July 1954 at Kitana Speedway, Northern Rhodesia which I thought some of you might like to know about.

So as not to infringe any copyrights with persons it is not possible to contact I will post the web addresses below in an order which to my mind resembles the meeting as it unfolded.

This all happened before I was born and I have not come across any of the names in the programme elsewhere in my research into Zambian Motor Sport, I had no idea Kitana Speedway, near Kitwe, even existed in Zambia until I found these photographs.

If anyone can put names to faces or furnish any other details that would be cool, if not I hope you'll enjoy this insight to an altogether different age, where a termite hill appears to have served spectators well as a grandstand.

Programme Cover http://www.greatnort...e:Kitana_02.jpg

Entry List http://www.greatnort...e:Kitana_03.jpg

Single Rider Practice (?) http://www.greatnort...e:Kitana_10.jpg

Two Riders practice (?) http://www.greatnort...e:Kitana_07.jpg

The Start http://www.greatnort...e:Kitana_08.jpg

Two Riders http://www.greatnort...e:Kitana_11.jpg

Single Rider http://www.greatnort...e:Kitana_06.jpg

The Finish http://www.greatnort...e:Kitana_09.jpg

Group Photo http://www.greatnort...e:Kitana_05.jpg

Strikes me there must have been some brave men riding these machines without gloves. By the end every one will have been covered in red laterite dust that is prevalent in this part of the world.

These photo's were sent to The Great North Road Website (unfortunately dormant since 2009) by Jim Cash.

Apologies I cannot make the link feature work with these pages, for some reason well beyond the wit of my brain cell, so it will have to be a copy and paste job with the web addresses.

If those web addresses go down let me know, I recognise these must be rare photographs and have copied them to my hard drive just in case.

I will be collating a stack of largely anecdotal information about Zambian Motorcycle Road Racers presently and will keep you posted :-)

[arttidesco]

Welcome to MRN gokwe, and thank you for your account of speedway in Northern Rhodesia.

It seemed very odd that neither I or my folks had not heard mention of the sport while I was living in Zambia during the 1970's, but your account show's me why, Speedway activity had ceased before I was born and 11 years before I first stepped foot in the country !

This also explains why no one has been able to help me locate the Kitana track.

Of the names you mentioned Stan Pauleson is the one that stands out, his family farm became home to the Lawrence Allen Circuit just outside Chingola, used for two and four wheel racing, and as this google image show's the circuit had a dirt oval with in it's confines.

Now that I know exactly how short Speedway activity was in Northern Rhodesia the rarity of these photo's also becomes apparent.

I'll keep you posted if anything new comes up now that I have some dates I at least know which which age group I am looking to speak to.

If anyone here at MRN know's anything or anyone who might be able to fill in anymore details your information will be much appreciated

[gokwe]

Thanks for the words of welcome, much appreciated.

Although 1958 would probably be the outside date for the cessation of Northern Rhodesia speedway, my suspicion is that it may have ended earlier than then. If so, this would make those pictures even rarer than either of us currently suspect.

I don't know how common the name Paulsen was in Nothern Rhodesia motorcycle circles, there are two, Stan and George, in that Kitana programme, but are they perhaps related to another Paulsen, Denis, who appears in (Southern) Rhodesia motorcycle history? Denis was from Bindura and a road-racer who combined racing on the 'tarmac' while also riding speedway at Salisbury and Bulawayo. As a road-racer he rode a Seely 500 in the Unlimited Class and was a top gun in Rhodesia.

To help you with your research, other riders who rode at the (Northern) Rhodesian Individual Championship meeting on 30th October 1953 and who are not shown in the Kitana programme of 9th July 1954 are as follows: Brian Ellis, Johnny Walker, Johnny Theron, Attie Olivier, Percy Binder, Len Munro and Alan Chambers.

Chambers did not have a Northern Rhodesia background, he was from England and rode for Poole Pirates there and toured SA with the British touring team in 1948/49. He liked SA so much he became a naturalised South African and rode for SA against Britain in the 1949/50 Test series! I guess that he was invited up to the Copperbelt for that NR Championship.

Two more small pieces of information for you, Stan Paulsen rode for SA against Rhodesia in the first ever meeting at Bulawayo and Bert Clark was the first ever Rhodesian to ride speedway in the UK when appearing for Edinburgh Monarchs in 1954 (which may explain why he did not ride in the Kitana meeting of 9th July 1954).

Also I have heard that speedway took place at Mufulira but I have not been able to substantiate this.

Hopefully, some of the above will give you some leads to take your project further.

[arttidesco]

According to my records David, there was a veritable Pauleson dynasty involved with motorsport based round their Newlands Farm not far from the Chingola copper mine, head of the family appears to have been Vic Pauleson



after whom a trophy was named awarded to the winner of a car race



held on the streets Garneton a Kitwe township born in the late 50's.

So far as I know Vic had at least 3 sons George, Denis and Andy, I am sure I have seen the name Stan Pauleson but can't find it presently amongst the dozens of posts I have copied off the GNR site.

It would appear all of the sons were into bikes off road and that they then got the idea along with fellow biker and ex pat civil engineer Eric Evans to build the tarmac Lawrence Allen circuit mentioned above.

[gokwe]

Yes Ralph, the Paulsen family certainly do seem to have been greatly involved in pioneering motor-sport developments in NR/Zambia. All most interesting.

Finally, one last piece of information, a little background on the Serrurier family that may lead you to find out more about Kitana. Bob Serrurier was born in Germiston and sadly passed away just before his 80th birthday in 2008. As far as I know he had three children, two boys and a girl, all of whom were born in Nkana before NR became Zambia. Perhaps his children still have some links with Zambia and can provide some information on their father's speedway days.

According to my records David, there was a veritable Pauleson dynasty involved with motorsport based round their Newlands Farm not far from the Chingola copper mine, head of the family appears to have been Vic Pauleson



after whom a trophy was named awarded to the winner of a car race



held on the streets Garneton a Kitwe township born in the late 50's.

So far as I know Vic had at least 3 sons George, Denis and Andy, I am sure I have seen the name Stan Pauleson but can't find it presently amongst the dozens of posts I have copied off the GNR site.

It would appear all of the sons were into bikes off road and that they then got the idea along with fellow biker and ex pat civil engineer Eric Evans to build the tarmac Lawrence Allen circuit mentioned above.