Len Silver (born 2 February 1932, east London,

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

) is a former

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 ...

rider and is former promoter of the

Rye House Rockets The Rye House Rockets were a speedway team based at Rye House Stadium, Hoddesdon, England. They competed in various British speedway leagues from 1954 to 2018. History Rye House began life in 1934 hosting open meetings. Whilst at Hackney in 1 ...

Racing career

Silver stopped racing in 1957 but returned to the

Ipswich Witches The Ipswich Witches are a British speedway club based at Foxhall Stadium near Ipswich, Suffolk. They compete in the British SGB Premiership. Meetings are staged on most Thursdays from March until October, normally commencing at 7.30pm (first ra ...

in 1960 after a layoff due to injury. In 1961 he was transferred to Exeter where he skippered the

Exeter Falcons The Exeter Falcons were a speedway team based in the city of Exeter. The Falcons operated from 1947 to 2005 at the County Ground Stadium in Exeter. History In 1947, the Falcons competed in a league for the first time when they finished fourth ...

and won the Provincial League Riders' Championship in 1962. Silver made 10 successful defences of the Silver Sash Match Race Championship. In 1964 he transferred to the

Hackney Hawks Hackney Hawks speedway opened in 1963 at Hackney Wick Stadium, Waterden Road, London and operated until 1983. The team replaced the Hackney Wick Wolves who had raced at the stadium from 1935 to 1939. The Hawks were then themselves replaced by the ...

as a rider/promoter but his riding career was cut short by serious injuries after a first bend crash at Hackney shortly after joining.

Promoting career

Silver continued as Hackney's Promoter and Manager until the demise of the Hawks in 1983, and also promoted at Hackney's sister track Rye House. As part of Allied Presentations, he also promoted at the

Rayleigh Rockets The Rayleigh Rockets were a Speedway team which operated from 1949 until their closure in 1973 from the Rayleigh Weir Stadium in Rayleigh, Essex . History The Rockets inaugural league season was in 1949 Speedway National League Division Three, ...

Weymouth Wildcats The Weymouth Wildcats were a British motorcycle speedway team based in Weymouth, England, who raced in the National League (speedway), National League. The Wildcats won the first Conference League (speedway), Conference League Championship in t ...

Crewe Kings The Crewe Kings was a British Speedway team which operated in Crewe, Cheshire from 1969 until its closure in 1975. History The team first competed in 1969 promoted by Maury Littlechild for Allied Presentations who also promoted the Rayleigh R ...

Sunderland Stars The Sunderland Stars were a motorcycle speedway team who raced at the Sunderland Greyhound Stadium from 1971 until 1974 in the Britrish League Division Two when Len Silver acted as promoter on behalf of Allied Presentations Ltd. History Spee ...

and the

Reading Racers Reading Racers are a British motorcycle speedway team. Formed in 1968, they won four British League titles during their history. The club closed in October 2008 after the lease on Smallmead Stadium was sold and the site was demolished. In 2016 a ...

. He also spent a season as promoter of the

Eastbourne Eagles The Eastbourne Eagles were a British speedway team, based at Arlington Stadium, near Eastbourne, England, that raced in the SGB Championship. History Speedway was initially introduced to Eastbourne in 1929. During their first league season th ...

during the 1980s. He became owner of Rye House Stadium in 2000 and returned to Rye House Speedway as team owner, promoting the

in the

Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...

and the

Rye House Cobras The Rye House Rockets were a speedway team based at Rye House Stadium, Hoddesdon, England. They competed in various British speedway leagues from 1954 to 2018. History Rye House began life in 1934 hosting open meetings. Whilst at Hackney in 1 ...

in the Conference League. He now co promotes the

Kent Kings The Kent Royals (formerly Kings) are a British speedway team formed in 2013. Through 2021 they competed in the SGB Championship but also run a junior team in the National League. They were based at Central Park Stadium in Sittingbourne, with a t ...

at Sittingbourne. He is considered to be one of speedway's most colourful and controversial characters. He was once banned by the

Speedway Control Board The Speedway Control Bureau (SCB), known as the Speedway Control Board between 1948 and 2002, governs the sport of motorcycle speedway in the United Kingdom on behalf of the Auto Cycle Union (ACU). The directors are appointed by the ACU and Br ...

from "taking any part in a speedway meeting" during the 1976 season after an altercation with a referee. He has also served as the Team Manager for the England and Great Britain National teams and was the track curator at

Wembley Wembley () is a large suburbIn British English, "suburb" often refers to the secondary urban centres of a city. Wembley is not a suburb in the American sense, i.e. a single-family residential area outside of the city itself. in north-west Londo ...

stadium for the 1981 World Final.Bamford, R. & Shailes, G. (2002). ''A History of the World Speedway Championship''. Stroud: Tempus Publishing. . Has served several terms on the

British Speedway Promoters' Association The British Speedway Promoters Limited (BSPL) organises the domestic motorcycle speedway competitions in the United Kingdom. They are also responsible for the promotion and running of the FIM meetings staged in Britain. Each club has a promote ...

management committee.

References

External links

Hackney Speedway WebsiteRye House Speedway WebsiteKent Kings Speedway Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Silver, Len 1932 births Living people British speedway riders English motorcycle racers Sportspeople from London Speedway promoters Hackney Hawks riders Ipswich Witches riders Exeter Falcons riders