Sad news on the passing of speedway legend John Louis. John passed away recently at the age of 82, and was known as one of the all time greats of speedway.
After an early career in motocross, John switched to speedway in 1969, and was immediately a natural on the shale. His record of riding for the Ipswich Witches was unsurpassed, and was a hero for those who watched him, making the Witches a formidable team. He won the British title in 1975, and was third in the World final in that same year. "Tiger John" also represented Britain in the world Cup in 1972/74 and 75, and was also prominent in the World best pairs on several occasions.
In 1984, He took over as promoter of Ipswich, where the team had many successes. His son, Chris, took over the helm as the team promoter after starting as a top youth motocross rider, and later on was promoted to expert status. However, Chris
also turned to speedway, and duly followed in his father's footsteps in becoming a top class speedway rider.
My early recollections of John was in the early to mid 1960's, when he became one of the region's top motocross riders, battling every Sunday against the likes of Pete Smith, Norman Messenger, John Pease and Freddie Mayes.
Like so many others at the time, John started to race DOT machinery, then switched to the Greeves, followed by some good results on the trusty CZ, before his switch to speedway.
I recall him on the DOT at a meeting at Bentley, when he first started in the sport. During practise, the frame cracked, and his father loaded up the bike on the trailer, then raced home to weld the split frame. They reappeared just in time to compete in the remainder of the meeting !
R.I.P. Tiger.