DID you know that Burnley and Whalley were once hotbeds of speedway?

After hitting our shores in the end of the 1920s, these 'no-ordinary' motorcycle races flourished in East Lancashire and, seemingly, in some unexpected places.

The history of the shale sport has now been captured by author Adrian Pavey in his book 'Speedway in the North-West', published by Tempus, which looks back at those four lap battles between spindly bikes with no gears, no brakes and virtually no suspension.

Delving into the history books he tells the story of Towneley Speedway, which opened in Burnley on March 30, 1929, but closed less than four months later following financial losses.

The old stadium stood on the drive to Towneley Hall and had originally opened as a greyhound track in 1927. It offered two covered grandstands on the home straight, three covered shelters on the back and electric floodlights.

A crowd of 12,000 witnessed its first event and a Burnley and District Dirt-Track Racing Association quickly followed. Among the riders were Frank Charles, Harold 'Ginger' Lees and brothers Arthur, Cyril and Fred Wilcock.

While the racing was a success, the track was suffering huge losses and what turned out to be the last meeting was staged on July 6.

Promoters had been advised against running during the Burnley holiday weekend and they suffered the financial consequences when it attracted only a poor crowd.

The site of Burnley Speedway is now home to a more sedate sport -- it lies under part of the municipal golf course.

Back in 1929, Whalley was home to Jazzland, tells Mr Pavey, a riverside amusement park at the foot of the Nab, which was popular with courting couples and young motorcyclists.

Prompted by Cliff Walmsley, who rode a 250cc Ivy and his friends, a miniature dirt track was built in the next field, from cinders and ash ferried from the cotton mills by Ted Wild, a gold dealer from Great Harwood,

As the months rolled on, more and more aspiring riders turned up, so to control numbers the Whalley Amateur Dirt-Track Club was formed and members had to pay both annual subscriptions and to ride the track.

A Whalley Dirt-Track Festival was staged on March 30, 1930, which drew 4,000 spectators to see, among others Burnley rider Joe Abbott.

By the end of 1930, however, interest was on the wane, while the cotton depression meant many riders could not afford their subs and the track eventually grassed over-- its outline can still be seen today.

The book also outlines the speedway events which took place in Nelson nearly four decades later.

Seedhill Stadium paid host to the sport between 1967 and 1970 but was partly demolished in 1980 to make way for the M65.

The old pits wall, however, is still visible today.