Mickie mixes it with speedway greats

It was a rollercoaster weekend for young Wrangle speedway ace Mickie Simpson.
Mickie with Tai Woffinden.Mickie with Tai Woffinden.
Mickie with Tai Woffinden.

He was invited to join a group of 11 young speedway riders for an academy day at the Speedway Grand Prix at Cardiff on Friday ahead of the British GP on Saturday.

On Friday there was a lesson on riding style, after which all the riders had track time on their bikes on the purpose-built shale track, with two ex-top riders, including Kelvin Tatum, watching and giving advice about positioning and style.

After their track riding experience, the boys each had an interview with Tatum along the lines of how they would be interviewed by the media after a race meeting.

A healthy, nutritious lunch was followed by a return to the classroom to learn about such issues as dealing with the media and bike preparation.

When the class was over the young speeday aces of tomorrow were able to watch the best riders in the world practising for the main event taking place the following day.

Saturday was spent looking around Cardiff and enjoying the fan zone, then in the afternoon the boys were given a tour of the pits as the riders and pit crews prepared for the racing to commence.

The boys were able to talk to the some of the riders and have their photo taken with them, including world champion Tai Woffinden.

Racing started at 6pm and Mickie and the other young guests and their families had seats near the finish line.

On Sunday, Mickie was on his travels again, with a long journey from Cardiff to Scunthorpe to ride in a British Young Lions event.

The meeting started well, with Mickie finishing second in his opening race, and he followed that with third place in his second outing.

He got off to a good start in his third race, lying in second place with the possibility of picking up enough points to make his first ever final on his 500cc bike.

Sadly for the young Wrangle rider, his engine seized up on the last lap, bringing about an early end to his day’s racing.

Mickie is pictured with Tai Woffinden during the weekend.