Rosebank Speedway - Auckland Speedway Riders Club

Auckland Speedway Riders Club is deeply saddened by the passing of 𝐋𝐞𝐬 𝐃𝐰𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐉𝐧𝐫 - a stalwart of NZ motorcycle speedway.

An Auckland Speedway Riders Club (ASRC) Life Member and former President, Les was heavily involved with the club through the 1970s and into the 1980s, dedicating countless hours to helping physically build the clubrooms alongside Dave Tompkins.

Les also played an important role in the administrative and organisational side of the club. Long-time member, Sandy McPhee said his behind-the-scenes contributions were extraordinary.

“𝘏𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘭𝘶𝘣 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘩 𝘗𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘚𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘭𝘶𝘣’𝘴 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦 — 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘥 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘧𝘶𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘭𝘶𝘣 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥 𝘶𝘱𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘰𝘥𝘢𝘺”.

He also claimed fame on the track with his Vincent sidecar, winning multiple national titles, just like his dad. The Dwight family’s passion for sidecars is an often-told story in speedway circles.

“𝘓𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘕𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘮𝘱𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 𝘰𝘧𝘧 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘥𝘢𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘤𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘪𝘵 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘰𝘧𝘧 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘓𝘋 𝘫𝘯𝘳 𝘤𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘵 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘮𝘢𝘯, 𝘢 𝘰𝘯𝘤𝘦-𝘪𝘯-𝘢-𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘴𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘰”, said Perry Lane, long-time member and former president of ASRC.

Les’ contribution to Rosebank Speedway Club will not be forgotten, and we extend our sincere condolences to his family, friends, and all who knew him during this difficult time.

📅 To honour Les and celebrate his life and contribution to the club, ASRC will be holding a gathering at the Rosebank Speedway clubrooms on 𝐒𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐉𝐮𝐧𝐞 𝟔 𝐚𝐭 𝟏𝐩𝐦.

All members, past members, family, friends and the wider speedway community are warmly invited to attend and share memories together.

Rest easy, Les. Thank you for everything you gave to our club.

📷: Hoppy's Photos Archives - Speedway & "Hi" It's Sandy - lover of Rosebank Speedway racing

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT SPEEDWAY DRIVERS FORUM

Hear from past New Zealand speedway champions as they talk about life after racing, changing direction, the next generations and the future.

Dudley's Sports Bar
𝟐𝟑 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐤𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐭, 𝐒𝐭 𝐇𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐫𝐬

𝐓𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐌𝐚𝐲 𝟐𝟖𝐭𝐡, 𝟕𝐩𝐦

Speakers:

𝐉𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐁𝐮𝐧𝐲𝐚𝐧 - 10 x NZ Solo Bike Champion, 3 x World Grand Prix Rider, and a full-time professional British league rider from the age of 16, reflects on his professional career and life after hanging up his leathers.

Michael Pickens - multiple championship-winning driver and Midget racing legend, tells us why the time is right to concentrate on his Sprintcar racing.

𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐮𝐧 𝐈𝐧𝐬𝐥𝐞𝐲 - former NZ Midget Champion, talks about life after racing, working as a crew chief with so many champion drivers, including SVG and the next generation of Insley racers.

𝐆𝐫𝐚𝐡𝐚𝐦 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 - what it took to retire, how that felt, pivoting to working behind the microphone and now what his role as a driver mentor looks like

Reserve your place today by emailing [email protected]. Spaces limited. These events always reach capacity

On May 17th, NZ and UK speedway lost one of the greats — 𝐁𝐨𝐛 𝐀𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐰𝐬.

The legendary British-born rider had extraordinary skills on the dirt and grasstrack with an outstanding career through the 1950s through to the '70s. After arriving in New Zealand in the early 1960s, Western Springs became Bob’s home track, where he built an incredible legacy in the sport. Across an extraordinary international career, Bob reached four individual World Finals, won the inaugural World Pairs Championship alongside Ivan Mauger in 1969, claimed the New Zealand Championship in 1966, and in 2014, cementing his significant contribution to the sport, was inducted into the NZ Speedway Hall of Fame.

At Rosebank, Bob will be remembered just as much for what he gave back to the sport. He was passionate about supporting junior riders, always willing to share his time, knowledge and encouragement with the next generation. He even popped in for one of our last meetings this year. Bob and his family's contribution to the Auckland Speedway Riders Club at Rosebank and the wider speedway community leaves a legacy that will not be forgotten.

Our thoughts are with Bob’s family, friends, and all those throughout the speedway community feeling this loss.

Thank you for everything, Bob. Your impact on Rosebank and New Zealand speedway will live on for many years to come.

𝐃𝐢𝐝𝐧'𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐢𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠?

See all the results and special award winners on the website now - https://www.rosebankspeedway.kiwi.nz/newsarticle/165883?newsfeedId=2279232

What a way to finish the season 🏁

On Saturday night, we came together to celebrate an incredible 2025/26 season at our Prizegiving. From the riders and drivers to the volunteers, officials, sponsors, families and supporters, we celebrate you all.

It was a great night recognising the achievements, dedication and hard work that went into the season both on and off the track.

Congratulations to all our award winners, and thank you to everyone who helped make the night such a success. Thanks to Kenneth Fox Digital Imagery for capturing the event, you can check out the award winners and those recognised here - https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?vanity=kennethfoxdigitalimagery&set=a.1303225785119680

Now it’s time for a well-earned break before we do it all again next season 👊🔥

🚧 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐁𝐞𝐞 - 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐂𝐥𝐮𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐦𝐬 🚧

We will be hosting prizegiving in the NEW clubrooms.

In order for this to happen, we are having a working bee this weekend to make the move.

📅 𝐒𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝟗 𝐌𝐚𝐲 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟔
🕤 𝟗:𝟑𝟎𝐚𝐦

We’re calling on the ASRC crew and supporters for an end-of-season working bee at Rosebank. The more hands we have, the quicker we can get through it.

🔧 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐖𝐞 𝐍𝐞𝐞𝐝:
• People power
• Equipment for moving whiteware between clubrooms
• Water blasters

🛠 𝐌𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐓𝐚𝐬𝐤𝐬:
We’ll be moving equipment (including fridges), reorganising areas around the clubrooms, and carrying out a full end-of-season clean-up of:

• Clubrooms
• Tower
• Sheds
• Grounds
• All gear used throughout the season

Every bit of help makes a difference — many hands make light work. Thanks in advance to everyone who can lend a hand.

🏆 𝐀𝐮𝐜𝐤𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐩𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐑𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐂𝐥𝐮𝐛 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟔

After a very successful finale to the season, we would like to invite members, supporters, friends and family to the Auckland Speedway Riders Club (ASRC) Prizegiving 🏁

𝐒𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝟏𝟔 𝐌𝐚𝐲 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟔, 𝟒 𝐩𝐦

𝐑𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐒𝐩𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐂𝐥𝐮𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐦𝐬
𝟏𝟐𝟔 𝐏𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐤𝐢 𝐑𝐨𝐚𝐝, 𝐀𝐯𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐥𝐞

Purchase your ticket here -
https://www.rosebankspeedway.kiwi.nz/viewform/508846

It’s been a huge season, and there are plenty of reasons to come together — to celebrate our riders, drivers, volunteers, and everyone who helped make the 2025/26 season one to remember.

🥇Prizes will be awarded to the top point scorers in all classes over the season, plus three special awards.

🕒 Doors & bar open from 3:00pm
🏆 Prizegiving starts at 4:00pm
🍽 Dinner served at 5:30pm

🎟 Tickets must be booked by Saturday, 9 May.

Please note this is a presale-only event and there will be no door sales available.

See full details here - https://www.rosebankspeedway.kiwi.nz/newsarticle/165505?newsfeedId=2279905

We look forward to celebrating the end of the season with you all!

Does your track have an unsung hero? Nominate them for Contribution to Speedway
Did you have a favourite meeting this season? Nominate it for Promotional Event of the Year
What vehicles stood out this season? Nominate them for Best Presented Racing Team
Anybody can nominate, just complete the form(s) at www.speedway.co.nz

𝐎𝐮𝐫 𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐦𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐚𝐧 𝐚𝐛𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐞 𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫! 🔥

The ANZAC Remembrance Meeting drew out one of the biggest crowds of the season. Here are our highlights:

• A special send-off for Jaymee Allsop-Smith and Jayden Sardelich as they raced their final laps at Rosebank in the quarter midget class. Jaymee now moves on to join HLR Racing NZ in the F2 midget class — make sure you follow her journey on their socials and catch her at a track near you next season!

• The track was flying, with two classes smashing records:
– Mark Galbraith set new 1-lap and 6-lap records for the Flat Trackers
– Chris Jennings and Mitch Brady set new 1-lap and 4-lap records for the Classic Sidecars on the Kawasaki ZX-10 — in their very first meeting out here!

• We also raised a modest amount for Papatoetoe RSA through poppy donations. Huge thanks to everyone who gave a koha, and to our returned services guests for joining us ❤️

Check out all results and prizes from the day, including racing photos, from our official photographer, Kenneth Fox Digital Imagery — - https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1287140930061499&type=3

𝐃𝐢𝐝𝐧'𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐢𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐤, 𝐨𝐫 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐰𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐢𝐭 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧?

Watch the action over at Blake's Speedway and Sandy’s Youtube channels - details in the comments.