Ice speedway is a developed form of
motorcycle speedway
Motorcycle speedway, usually referred to simply as speedway, is a motorcycle sport involving four and sometimes up to six riders competing over four anti-clockwise laps of an oval circuit. The motorcycles are specialist machines that use only ...
racing, featuring racing on frozen surfaces. The sport uses bikes enhanced for the terrain. Participants can compete at international level.
Outline
The bikes race
counterclockwise
Two-dimensional rotation can occur in two possible directions. Clockwise motion (abbreviated CW) proceeds in the same direction as a clock's hands: from the top to the right, then down and then to the left, and back up to the top. The opposite ...
around oval tracks between 260 and 425 metres in length. The race structure and scoring are similar to that in
speedway
Speedway may refer to:
Racing Race tracks
*Edmonton International Speedway, also known as Speedway Park, a former motor raceway in Edmonton, Alberta
*Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a motor raceway in Speedway, Indiana
Types of races and race cours ...
.
History
Ice speedway is an evolution of dirt speedway racing, which first started in 1923. Staten Lorenz of Michigan is generally credited with the invention of the sport, in 1975. The first ice speedway event was organized and promoted by a local motorcycle dealer in
Huntsville, Alabama
Huntsville is a city in Madison County, Limestone County, and Morgan County, Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Madison County. Located in the Appalachian region of northern Alabama, Huntsville is the most populous city in t ...
. The third ever event was hosted at the
Kent State University
Kent State University (KSU) is a public research university in Kent, Ohio. The university also includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio and additional facilities in the region and internationally. Regional campuses are located in As ...
hockey field house, which speedway rider Gary Densford was invited to attend by his friend Bob Hetrick. At this event, Hetrick finished first and Densford finished second. Densford went on to promote this new sport, forming the ICE (international Championship Events).
Studs
Later, in 1982, studded tires were made mandatory. Specially designed studs were used, the first design was the "Ice Getter", a single track of studs which increased traction on the ice but didn't significantly increase wear on the ice (important to consider for indoor racing). Later, a new design was used, the "Kold Kutter", had dual tracks of studs, which increased traction further but increased wear on the ice. The performance gains from the Kold Kutters was so significant, however, that supposedly some of the older racers decided to retire. Lastly, in 1991, the ICE mandated a new type of racing stud, the "Silver Rockets Racing Studs", which had the most traction and least ice wear out of any design so far.
Bike construction
The bikes bear a passing resemblance to those used for speedway, but have a longer
wheelbase
In both road and rail vehicles, the wheelbase is the horizontal distance between the centers of the front and rear wheels. For road vehicles with more than two axles (e.g. some trucks), the wheelbase is the distance between the steering (front ...
and a more rigid frame. As with speedway, the bikes do not have brakes.
The sport is divided into classes for full-
rubber
Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Thailand, Malaysia, and ...
and
studded tyres
A tire (American English) or tyre (British English) is a ring-shaped component that surrounds a Rim (wheel), wheel's rim to transfer a vehicle's load from the axle through the wheel to the ground and to provide Traction (engineering), t ...
. The studded tyre category involves competitors riding on bikes with spikes up to 3 centimetres in length screwed into each treadless tyre, each bike has between the 130 and 140 spikes on the front tyre and between the 170 and 190 on the rear (regulations on length and types of permissible studs are controlled by the sanctioning body). The use of these spikes in this discipline necessitate the addition of special protective guards (similar to
mudguard
A mudflap or mud guard is used in combination with the vehicle fender to protect the vehicle, passengers, other vehicles, and pedestrians from mud and other flying debris thrown into the air by the rotating tire. A mudflap is typically made fro ...
s) over the wheels which extend almost to the ice surface. The spiked tyres produce a tremendous amount of
traction and this means two-speed gearboxes are also required.
The use of spikes on the tyres makes the sport more dangerous with fallen riders running the risk of being run over by other bikes. Ice speedway riders have often been described as both the bravest and craziest of all speedway riders.
Technique
![2018 FIM Ice Speedway Gladiators World Championship - GP 7 Niedermaier-5563](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0c/2018_FIM_Ice_Speedway_Gladiators_World_Championship_-_GP_7_Niedermaier-5563.jpg)
In the studded tyre class there is no broadsiding around the bends due to the grip produced by the spikes digging into the ice. Instead, riders lean their bikes into the bends at an angle where the handlebars just skim the track surface. Speeds approach 80 mph (130 km/h) on the straights, and 60 mph (100 km/h) on the bends. The safety barrier usually consists of straw bales or banked-up snow and ice around the outer edge of the track.
Since the riding style required for studded ice racing is different from that used in the other
track racing
Track racing is a form of motorcycle racing where teams or individuals race opponents around an unpaved oval track. There are differing variants, with each variant racing on a different surface type.
The most common variant is Speedway which has ...
disciplines, riders from this sport rarely participate in speedway or its other variants and vice versa.
Competitions
The majority of
Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme
The Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM; en, International Motorcycling Federation) is the global governing/sanctioning body of motorcycle racing. It represents 116 national motorcycle federations that are divided into six regiona ...
sanctioned team and individual meetings are held in
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
,
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
and
Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
, but events are also held in the
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
, the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
, and occasionally other countries. Countries that dominated and won the majority of titles in
Individual Ice Racing World Championship
The Individual Ice Speedway World Championship is an Ice speedway championship held annually to determine an individual World Champion.
History
The first Championships were held in 1966. A European Championship was held for the two years precedi ...
(held since 1966) and
Team Ice Racing World Championship
The FIM Ice Speedway of Nations, formerly known as the Ice Speedway Team World Championship, is an international ice speedway competition, first held in Kalinin (Tver), USSR, in 1979. Since its establishment, the tournament has been noted by a cont ...
(held since 1979) were the
USSR
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...
and since 1991—
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
.
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
's national touring series is sanctioned by the
Canadian Motorcycle Association
The Canadian Motorcycle Association (CMA; french: Association Canadienne des Motocycles, ACM) was founded in 1946. In 1950, it became affiliated with the World Governing Body of the Federation Internationale de Motocyclisme.
Federally incorporated ...
.
Notable drivers
Being a winter sport, ice speedway is mostly popular in the northern/north-eastern half of Europe and North America. Notable drivers include Sweden's
Per-Olof Serenius
Per-Olof "Posa" Serenius (born 9 March 1948) in Hedemora, Sweden, is a Swedish former ice speedway rider. He is notable for winning two World Individual Championship gold medals in ice speedway.
Biography
Serenius was a fireman by profession. Alr ...
, multiple world champion and with 22 Swedish championships to his belt,
[Westlund, Tord]
"Den gamle och navet".
Aftonbladet.se, 2012-03-09. Retrieved 2012-08-13. and Russia's
Nikolai Krasnikov
Nikolay Krasnikov is a Russian twenty times ice speedway world champion.
Krasnikov won eight consecutive Individual Ice Speedway World Championship titles from 2005 until 2012 and twelve Team Ice Racing World Championship titles with Russi ...
, septuple world champion (2005–2011).
"World champions".
Fim-live.com. Retrieved 2012-08-13.
See also
* Ice racing
Ice racing is a form of racing that uses cars, motorcycles, snowmobiles, all-terrain vehicles, or other motorized vehicles. Ice racing takes place on frozen lakes or rivers, or on groomed frozen lots. As cold weather is a requirement for natural ...
* Motorcycle speedway
Motorcycle speedway, usually referred to simply as speedway, is a motorcycle sport involving four and sometimes up to six riders competing over four anti-clockwise laps of an oval circuit. The motorcycles are specialist machines that use only ...
* Outline of motorcycles and motorcycling
The following outline is provided as an overview of motorcycles and motorcycling:
Motorcycle — two-wheeled, single-track motor vehicle. Other names include: motorbike, bike, and cycle.
Motorcycling — act of riding a motorcycle, around wh ...
* Icetrack cycling
References
* Raby, Phillip; Nix, Simon. ''Motorbikes''. First Avenue Editions; 1999.
{{International speedway
speedway
Speedway may refer to:
Racing Race tracks
*Edmonton International Speedway, also known as Speedway Park, a former motor raceway in Edmonton, Alberta
*Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a motor raceway in Speedway, Indiana
Types of races and race cours ...
Motorcycle speedway