1996 Speedway Motorcycle Racing in Sweden

by Kim Gregory

(Left to Right) top: Jeff, Kim, Bogden, Biff, Andy, Bruce, bottom: fan!, Len, Sobec.

Thanks to Patrick Ahlund (Quebec) for setting this up! Ten of our riders raced in Sweden from April 18th to May 1st, 1996. Arrangements were made for free accommodations, and the riders spent $1400 to $1800 each for round trip flights, food and parts during the trip. They competed in four events in Sweden and saw six speedway tracks on the trip. Similar arrangements will bring speedway riders from Sweden to compete in Canada later this summer. These are the riders:

1. Patrick Ahlund (15th in 1995 Canadian National Championship, 2nd in National long track 1996)
2. Buck Blair (Colorado)
3. Andy Delimat (3rd in 1992 Canadian National Championship, Polish League Rider to 1982)
4. Len Dillon (13 Canadian Speedway Championships)
5. Kim Gregory (2nd in Canadian High Points 1979)
6. Sobec Muszynski (2nd 1993 Canadian National Championship)
7. Bogden Muszynski (3rd in Ohio and Indiana State Championships 1995)
8. Bruce Nelson (Lisle, New York, USA) (1985 AMA East Coast Champion)
9. Zbigniew "Biff" Waczynski (Washington D.C.)(5th 1995 Ohio State Championship)
10. Jeff Orosz (2nd in CSRA High Points Award, 1995)

More photos: Målilla: Team picture, Turn 3-4, Start and Club House, Gotenborg: Track crew, 250 speedway bikes (sliders), Track drag, covered pit area, cutaway engine plates (for removing clutch)

Canadian Team Sponsored by:

Sonab Loudspeakers and Stig Ahlund's Roof Coverings

Canada's team lost heavily to the Division 1 and the Eliete Division Swedish teams, and did well in the individual racing at Molmö. The race with the Nâssjö Division 2 team was rained out after four heats. Our main goal of the trip was to learn more about speedway outside of Canada, and improve Canadian speedway to European levels.

News of the visiting Canadian team appeared in: the May 24th addition of the Speedway Star, and with a coloured picture in the front page of the sports section of the Göteborgs-Posten, April 22, and in the weekly Motorcycle Race Magazine 18/4-24/4 published in Norrköping, Sweden.
Symbols used in the following tables: S=Stopped, X=Excluded, F=Fall.

April 21 - Kabarna Speedway in Gotenborg 60, Canada 36

    KABARNA        HEAT 1 2 3  4  5  6  7  8  9 10 11 12 13 14  T 15 16
Kenneth Nystrom         3               3        3  3          12
Johan Karlsson              3        3     2                 3 11  3  3
Carl.F. Andersson              3              3     2     3    11     2
Tomas Aronsson          1         2     0              2        6
Marcus Johansson            2        1     0           3        6
C. Loungaeus/D. Berglund  2       1              2           F  5  0
N. Eriksson/P. Johansson  1    0              0           1     2

Capt:Kenneth Dunellof   4 3 5  3  3  4  3  2  3  5  5  5  4  3     3  5
Running Total           4 712 15 18 22 25 27 30 35 40 45 49 52    55 60

    CANADA         HEAT 1 2 3  4  5  6  7  8  9 10 11 12 13 14  T 15 16
Buck Blair                3    2        2        1        F     8  2
Bobby Muszynski         2            2        2           2     8  1
Biff Wazzenski              0     3     1           1           5     0
Jeff Orosz                     1           3     0     1        5     1
Andy Delimat                1           X           F        2  3
B. Nelson/K. Gregory      0       F        1                 1  2
Sobec Muszynski         0            0        1        0        1

Captain:Patrick Ahlund 2 3 1  3  3  2  3  4  3  1  1  1  2  3     3  1
Running Total          2 5 6  9 12 14 17 21 24 25 26 27 29 32    35 36

April 27 - Molmö Motorstadion in Molmö

Molmo was unable to assemble an entire team on this date so racing was on an individual basis. My engine lost a cam chain tensioner bearing and I was unable to compete.

           HEAT   1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 10 11 12 13 Totals
Buck Blair           3              3  3              3    12
Bobby Muzcynski               3           3     3     2    11
Andy Delimat            2           2        2  2           8
Jeff Orosz        3        3  2     S                       8
Jonas Nilsson     2                          3     3  S     8
Bruce Nelson            3  1     3                    1     8
Biff Wazzenski             2           2        1  2        7
Johan Anderberg   1  1           2              0           4
Sobec Muzcynski      2  S     1                    S        3
Erik Engdahl                  0  1     1     1              3
Kurt Jensen       S     1              0  2                 3
Kim Gregory          -     -              -  -              -

April 28 - Dackarna Speedway in Målilla 67, Canada 29

Dackarna Speedway Team won 67 to 29 against the Canadian Speedway Team. The Division one team of 1995 has now moved to the Eleite Division for the 1996 season. The fine racing was interupted only by one crash by Jeff Orosz.

    DACKARNA      HEAT 1 2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 10 11 12 13 14  T 15 16
Jimmy Engman             3     3              2           3    11     S
Tony Zetterstrom            3        2     2           3       10  2
Hakan Antonsson                2              3     3     2    10  3
Anders Kling                2        3     3                 1  9
Stefan Ekberg          2          3     1              1        7
Lars Christianssan       1        0              3           3  7     2
Mikael Petersson       3                3        F  0           6

Captian: Jörgan Kling  5 4  5  5  3  5  4  5  5  3  3  4  5  4     5  2
Running Total          5 9 14 19 22 27 31 36 41 44 47 51 56 60    65 67

    CANADA        HEAT 1 2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 10 11 12 13 14  T 15 16
Micheal Karlsson            1           2           2        2  7     X
Buck Blair               2     1                 2        F     5     1
Bobby Muzcynski        1             1        1           1     4
Biff Wazzenski              0     2     0           1           3  0
Bruce Nelson             S        1        1                 0  2     3
Sobec Muzcynski        0             0        S        2        2  1
Jeff Orosz                     0           F     1     0        1

Captain: Patrick Ahlund1 2  1  1  3  1  2  1  1  3  3  2  1  2     1  4
Running Total          1 3  4  5  8  9 11 12 13 16 19 21 22 24    25 29