The Walthamstow Wolves were a

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 ...

team which operated from 1934 and again from 1949 until their closure in 1951.

History

The club opened in 1934 competing in the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

, when Lea Bridge were forced to find a new venue. They finished ninth in the

1934 Speedway National League The 1934 National League Division One was the sixth season of motorcycle speedway in Great Britain. It was also the first time that a second division/tier of racing was introduced following the creation of a reserves league. Summary Birmingham Bu ...

. After the 1934 season the Wolves were forced to relocate due to noise complaints. They moved to the

Hackney Wick Stadium Hackney Wick Stadium was a greyhound racing and speedway stadium located at Waterden Road in the London Borough of Hackney. Origins The site chosen for the stadium was on land known as Hackney Marshes west of the River Lea and on the west sid ...

as the

Hackney Wick Wolves Hackney Wick Wolves speedway opened in 1935 at Hackney Wick Stadium, Waterden Road, London, and operated until the outbreak of World War II in 1939. Many years later the Hackney Hawks and Hackney Kestrels rode at Hackney Wick Stadium. History Th ...

. In 1949 saw the track join the National League Division Two but struggled to attract good crowds, situated between Division one tracks at

West Ham West Ham is an area in East London, located east of Charing Cross in the west of the modern London Borough of Newham. The area, which lies immediately to the north of the River Thames and east of the River Lea, was originally an ancien ...

and

Harringay Harringay (pronounced ) is a district of north London, England, within the London Borough of Haringey. It is centred on the section of Green Lanes running between the New River, where it crosses Green Lanes by Finsbury Park, and Duckett's ...

. The team raced for three years but finally closed in 1951 due to declining attendance and complaints of noise from local residents. The track was later covered in tarmac for easier maintenance of the

greyhound racing Greyhound racing is an organized, competitive sport in which greyhounds are raced around a track. There are two forms of greyhound racing, track racing (normally around an oval track) and coursing; the latter is now banned in most countries. Tra ...

track. The stadium was sold in August 2008 and demolished to make way for a housing development.

Season summary

Notable Walthamstow riders

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References

Defunct speedway teams in the United Kingdom Speedway teams in London Walthamstow {{motorcycle-speedway-team-stub