DOMINANT SCRAMBLER IN INTER-ISLAND CONTEST Stapleton to make speedway career

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32567, 29 March 1971, Page 26

DOMINANT SCRAMBLER IN INTER-ISLAND CONTEST Stapleton to make speedway career

(By R. O. DEW)

After a brilliant, unbeaten exhibition of rough riding in the annual North-South scramble at Lyalldale yesterday, the Christchurch international, G. J. Stapleton, stepped off his 250 c.c. Czechoslovakian C.Z. racer and announced that his scrambling career was at an end.

The 25-year-old Stapleton will leave for England on Wednesday in an attempt to break into European speedway competition. Last week, he received a cable from the former world champion, R. L. Moore, offering him a trial with the Wimbledon first division team.

However, stapleton, whn will cnmnlotr his who will complete ms first season of speedway competition at Templeton tonight, is not very nhnnt hia optimistic about his chances of riding in the

first division. “I haven’t had enough experience yet,” he said yesterday. “It would be rather like jumping in the deep end before you have learned to swim.” Instead, he plans to begin in the second division and work his way up. There will be a new Eso speedway motor-cycle waiting for him when he arrives in England Inext week-end.

It will be his second tnp overseas, Stapleton returned from England less than 18 months ago after competing in scrambles there with some success. On his return, he won 250 cc - class of the last New Zealand mtemational moto-cross series and

was the first New Zealander in the open. Now, he has decided to begin a new career and the break from the old one .Will be fairly complete. "Speedway and scrambling require very different techniques and it is almost impossible to combine them,” he said. “Once I get used to the routine of speedway, get established, then I might have a dabble at scrambling. But not before.”

Quick success The only rider to- leap-frog the novice class at Templeton, Stapleton’s progress this summer has amazed speedway followers. Recently, he finished fifth in the South Island championship and would have been fourth had he not misjudged the final bend during a run-off with A. Nesbitt. Asked how he liked speedway, he said “I will like it a lot more when I can ride a bit better." His final appearance in scrambling yesterday was one which will not be forgotten easily. Competing in the 250 c.c. class on the hilly Lyalldale circuit, about eight miles south of Timaru, he won all six of his races with a commanding display.

Overwhelming win Unfortunately, it was not enough to tip the scales in favour of the South Island, which went down once again to the North Island, 419-229 —one of the heaviest losses in recent years. The South did not have the depth of ability of the North and even at the half-way stage, after nine events, when the South was trailing, 126-198, the outcome was obvious. But there were some notable performances from southern riders. In the up to 350 c.c. class, apart from Stapleton, another Christ-

church rider recently returned from overseas, G. Sword, produced some great form but .was prevented from scoring highly by a string of misadventures and mechanical failures.

The top North Island rider in this class was the international, M. Shifriffs, of Palmerston North. Riding a Yamaha, he won all his races except those in which he met Stapleton. The 500 c.c. class was an all-North Island affair, with A. Collison (Palmerston North) setting the pace. But A. Sabiston (Christchurch) on a 360 c.c. Greeves, was unlucky hot to be more highly placed on numerous occasions. It was usually only in the last of the four laps that the North Islanders wore him down.

The top scorers in the upto 350 c.c. class were Stapleton, with a maximum of 48, and Shirriffs, 45. The top scorer in the 350 c.c. to 500 c.c. class was Collison, also with a maximum of 48. H. Anderson was second, on 40.