Welcome to the online home of the Lakeside Hammers

New to this website ?

Welcome to the Lakeside Hammers Speedway website. We hope that you will find these pages enjoyable - there are many items featured here for both the die-hard Hammers fan and visiting speedway fan alike. There is also the opportunity for businesses to advertise with us or to provide varying degrees of sponsorship.

Navigation around this site is made possible via the subject menus on the left-hand side of the screen.

What is Lakeside Hammers speedway ?

Ah, of course. Just who are the Hammers and what is this site all about? Well, the sport of speedway takes place at the Arena-Essex Raceway in Thurrock, Essex, England virtually every Friday between March and October.

The speedway club originally took their name from the stadia - Arena-Essex – but changed it to the Lakeside Hammers in 2007 as the venue is close to the large Lakeside Shopping complex. Their nickname, the Hammers, is a name that is synonymous with sport in the region.

The Hammers currently operate in the Elite League, the sport's top division and one of the toughest speedway leagues in the world.

During 2008, Lakeside Hammers will face 8 other league tracks from around the country in league and cup competitions that will feature the world's top riders in action.

That sounds great - but what is speedway ?

If that's your question, then you need to read our beginner's guide to speedway.

Typical league racing, which is the type of match normally staged at the Arena-Essex Raceway, consists of two teams of seven riders competing against each other on 500cc methanol fuelled bikes capable of reaching speeds up to 80mph! If that sounds exciting, bear in mind that these machines also have no brakes! They are fitted with a clutch lever, throttle control and have fixed gearing.

Team matches are run over fifteen heats (or races), which each consist of four laps. Two riders from each team take part with a simple objective - beat the opposition and get to the chequered flag first!

Speedway tracks are oval and vary across the country. They are covered with shale, a surface which allows riders to power slide around the corners in spectacular fashion.

In addition to club racing, an individual world championship Grand Prix takes place throughout the year at some of Europe's leading venues.

Haven't I seen speedway before somewhere ?

Undoubtedly! Thanks to the superb coverage of Sky Sports, Elite League, Grand Prix and World Cup racing can be seen throughout the season on television each and every week.

I'm interested - how do I get to the Arena-Essex Raceway to watch the Lakeside Hammers ?

That's great - take a look at our track details section here.

I'm interested in advertising with the Club or providing sponsorship

There are several ways of advertising your business – either in the weekly programme or by way of banners on our air fence or on the centre area. The club is always on the look out for sponsorship and the website details various packages, which may be tailored to meet your need. Please contact us if you are interested and we will be pleased to discuss a package that meets your needs.

I want to bring my business associates or colleagues along to watch a match

We offer several corporate hospitality packages the details of which appear on this website. For more information please e-mail or telephone the club. Contact details are shown on this website.

What is this website all about ?

Our aim is to help promote speedway to as wide an audience as possible - and this audience is the biggest you can get.

We aim to provide the definitive coverage of the Lakeside Hammers. We have all the latest news direct from the Club as well as coverage of all home and away meetings.

The results section is updated regularly - immediately after all home matches and as soon as possible after all away matches. We have detailed match reports of all home encounters, supplemented by superb photographs from Karen Chappell, our official club photographer.

For those of you who are hooked on the Hammers, there are rider profiles so you can find out a little more about the career of your favourite rider. Plus, of course, there is the ever popular Fans Forum where fans can put the world of the Hammers to right.

I've been to watch Lakeside a few times - how do I find out more about the history of the Club ?

Take a look at the complete club history by clicking on the heading on the left of the screen. This is the definitive resource for all things associated with the Hammers. To celebrate 25 years of the Hammers, we have a guide to "Retro Hammers", a selection of memorable riders who have ridden for the club in years past. During the course of the year, we'll detail each of our seasons on a weekly basis.

Thank you for visiting the Lakeside Hammers Speedway website.