Munkebo Speedway Center
Facts: 80 cc track:
Track name: Munkebo Mini Speedway
Track owner: Munkebo Speedway Club
Address: Garbekstofte 20, DK 5330 Munkebo
Length:196 m.
Surface: Granulated bricks and clay
Width straights:7,5 m.
Width Bends:9,0 m.
Track Record: 53,0 seconds
Record holder: Peter Clement, VBMK, 26/5 – 2016
Opened: May 16.1976
Facts: 500 cc track.
Track name: Munkebo Speedway
Track owner: Kerteminde municipality / Munkebo Speedway Club
Address: Garbekstofte 20, DK 5330 Munkebo.
Length: 292 m. In 2012 expanded to 300 m.
Surface: Granulated bricks and clay
Width straights:11 m.
Width Bends: 15 m.
Track Record: 59,7 sec.(before expansion)
Track Record: 58,9 sec. (after expansion)
Record holder: Kenni Larsen.
Opened: May 11.1985.
16.11.2015: A link to the Danish Speedway League 2015 is inserted at the bottom of this page.
The small township Munkebo, located at the main road between the cities Odense and Kerteminde, experienced mid 60es, in connection with the construction of the Lindo Shipyard, a substantial growth in development as well as in population. The many steelworkers and shipbuilders the shipyard attracted to Munkebo also meant a growth in various parts of the town’s sporting life.
When Ole Olsen in 1971 won his first speedway World Championship, a number of new Speedway clubs and tracks emerged in Denmark.
The idea of a speedway club and a track in Munkebo was not far away either, but did not become a reality until December 1. 1975 when the club Munkebo Motor Sport got founded.
In the early spring of 1976 the club opened a 196 meters long moped track located in the industrial zone of Munkebo near the shipyard. From the opening of the speedway team tournament season Munkebo could participate on own home track.
The gates open for the 1976 season.
Originally the track, which was built on filled soil, was surrounded by a security fence, which was made of earth-filled tyre stacks, later changed to a plywood fence. The referee’s box was in a discarded mobile site hut, and the pits were in open air. Facilities for riders as well as for the spectators were primitive – to say it nicely – . No rest rooms. The toilet was for many years a leased toilet wagon of a rather miserable quality. The first official meeting took place on August 14 1976, a semi final in the Danish Moped Speedway Championship. .
Save money when you can. The first programme cover
was written on a typewriter..
Later the same year at a qualification meeting for the Moped Championship of Funen
the programme was 3 handwritten sheets of paper, but no one complained.
The pit in 1979. A second hand carport was re-built and used as
storage room for track material and equipment.
Despite all these initial primitiveness the enthusiasm did not lack anything. Right from the beginning the club joined the Danish Motor Union and soon it had teams riding in all the tournament series, and began organizing more meetings. Similar to other club teams, also the teams from Munkebo took names. The A-team took its name “The swans” from the flying swans in the shipyard’s logo. Then came “The ducklings” and “The eggs”. A team added later got named “The recruits”
The Final in the Danish Mini Speedway Championship
was staged at Munkebo in 1980.
The defending champion from 1979 Jan O. Pedersen, Fjelsted re-claimed his title in front of Flemming Lynge, Fredericia and Peter Johansen, Fjelsted.
Jan O. Pedersen and his cousin John Jorgensen
on the podium as pair champions
In 1983 mini speedway changed from 50 cc to 80 cc.
In 1984 once again the Danish Championship final went to Munkebo. Lars Munkedal, Frederiksborg claimed the title ahead of Søren Damgaard, Fjelsted. A race-off for third place between Jan Pedersen, Vissenbjerg, Bjarne Jacobsen, Fredericia, Knud Sørensen, Fjelsted and Gert Handberg, Fredericia ended in the written order.
As always when working with youngsters, they grow up and soon they were too old for mini speedway. The problem was that the club did not have a track for 500 cc speedway. The 500 cc team had to lease riding time either at Fjelsted or Holsted. A situation far from ideal and expensive too for the club.
The alternative was to let the members go when they advanced to 500 cc bikes, but that was not the option. Instead the management began in 1978 a survey to find possibility to build a new track for 500 cc speedway. A near endless row of problems, which had to be solved one by one, piled up.
First of all the political accept of the project was needed, what due to the fast growth of the town was not easy to achieve. Then permission from the environmental authorities took its time to get.
The bigger issue was how to get the project financed from funds and loan. Finally everything got settled and permission to build was given.
The work began and an enormous amount of soil had to be moved to build the great noise abating wall which should protect the town from excessive engine noise. The track itself should be digged out with dozers and graders and stabilized with stone and gravel.
A wooden safety fence got erected and an 3 meter elevated referee’s box was built on poles. The better part of 1984 went by with voluntary help from the members.
The elevated referee’s box gave en excellent view over the track. (replaced in 2012)
Satellite photo of Munkebo Speedway Centre.
Initially the surface was a mix of gravel, cinders and ashes, but after a year it got replaced by granulated bricks and clay.
The mayor of Munkebo cuts the red tape at the
opening of the new Munkebo Speedway.
The opening meeting was a 4-nations match between Denmark, Sweden, West Germany and Poland with the following Result:
Denmark 38 p. Poland 28 p.
Ole Hansen 11 p. Wojciech Zaluski 8 p.
Jan Staechmann 10 p. Stanislav Mietzinski 8 p.
Jan Jacobsen 9 p. Ryszard Francyszyn 6 p.
Allan Johansen 5 p. Dariusz Stenka 5 p.
Brian Karger 3 p. Zenon Kasprzak 1 p.
Sweden 26 p. West Germany 15 p.
Tony Olsson 9 p. Heinz Huber 5 p.
Conny Ivarsson 8 p. Peter Hehlert 4 p.
Lars Andersson 6 p. Peter Schroeck 3 p.
Patrick Karlsson 1 p. J. Brandner 2 p.
Kenneth Nystrøm 0 p. Hans Faltermeier 1 p.
The winning team: From left, team manager Tage B. Nielsen,
Ole Hansen, Brian Karger, Allan Johansen and Jan Staechmann.
In front Jan Jacobsen. Right, clerk of the course Mrs. Maud Pedersen.
This programme cover from the opening may be
regarded as the”birth certificate” of the new track.
Through very long time a club house at track side had been on the list of wishes and a possibility showed up when The Development Company Lindo would give away a discarded wooden building which had been used as temporary lodging for fugitives. Unfortunately the condition of it was too poor to make it feasibly to re-erect it after dismantling. But parts of it could be re-used at the building of the semi-roofed pits at the new 500 cc track.
June 8. 1987. Nordic U21 Championship, Teams and Individual.
A poster for the Nordic Championship 1987
10 hours of heavy rain up to the meeting did nothing good to the track, but hard work made it usable. Unfortunately most of the fans stayed at home.
Results:
1. Sweden 44 p. 2. Denmark 34 p.
Krister Karlsson 10 p. Allan Johansen 1 p.
Niklas Karlsson 11 p. Brian Karger 12 p.
Bo Arrhen 10 p. Gert Handberg 6 p.
Peter Nahlin 8 p. Torben Hansen 7 p.
Henrik Gustafsson 5 p. Henrik Kristensen 8 p.
3. Finland 23 p. 4. Norway 7 p.
Juhan Moksunen 8 p. Tor Ejnar Hjelm 2 p.
Aki Ala-Rihimäki 7 p. Bjørn Ivar Fauske 2 p.
Roy Malminhelmo 3 p. Germin Roth 1 p.
Janne Moksunen 2 p. Svenn Erik Rafoss 1 p.
Marko Hyrilainen 3 p. Tor Anders Björkvist 1 p.
Individual Nordic Champion.
Brian Karger, Denmark
Junior match.
1. Jan Drejer, Munkebo
2. Jens Jensen, Bogense
3. Bo Sørensen, Slangerup.
Munkebo Motor Sport changed its name in 1988 to Munkebo Speedway Club in order emphasize, that speedway is the main activity.
Through the weekend July 16 and 17 1988 the Danish national U21 team two test matches against the Swedish U21 national team respectively in Holstebro and Munkebo, got absolved. Sweden won both, and at the match in Munkebo the Swede Tony Rickardsson with 60, 1 second sat a track record which stood for many years.
The following Sunday the Danish A-amateur Championship got staged at Munkebo. At that time DMU separated between amateur riders and professionals, and halfway in the planning of the event, the club received from the speedway commission a message saying that DMU intended to abandon this championship.
This was bad news for the club, which already had contracted sponsors and bought prizes.
After some fierce negotiations between the chairman of the club and the speedway commission the meeting got held anyway.
The message from the commission proved not more valid, than this championship also got ridden the next year in Slangerup.
Two professional riders, Peter Glanz and Gert Handberg, who both lacked points enough to qualify directly for the Danish Championship, joined this meeting in the hope through this way to qualify for the grand final. Both failed.
It was a nerve wrecking race. After 20 heats two riders, Per Sørensen, Slangerup and Kenneth Arnfred, Esbjerg with 11 points had a tie and a race-off for the title.
Behind them no less than five riders on 10 points had another tie, which put the complicated rule with two extra race-offs, one consolation heat and a final race off in force.
Actually it was the last minute called in reserve rider Mogens Hansen instead of the absent Finn Rune Jensen, who caused these ties by surprisingly in his last heat beating Per Sørensen.
Result:
1. Per Sørensen,
2. Kenneth Arnfred,
3.Torben Hansen, Vojens.
During the track grading interval after heat 12, an ultra light aeroplane flying over the track entertained the spectators by showing its abilities.
In1988 the great noise abating wall got extended and made higher, Further a wooden noise screen got erected on the top.
The Lindo shipyard donated a second hand blue painted Romney shed at no cost to the club, provided they would dismantle it themselves. That happened on a freezing cold day in February. A local Hauler transported it to the track in containers. The technical department of Munkebo Municipality had a few objections to be negotiated before permission for re-building was given. This was done by freezing members in melting snow and mud.
September 15. 1991, Danish Sidecar short track Championship and Speedway Championship of Funen.
Results:
Sidecars:.
1 Jan Rasmussen/Bo Andersen,
2 Villy Lund/Claus Dahl,
3 Finn Schmidt/Hans Hjeresen.
Championship of Funen.
1 Morten Andersen, FSK.
2 Søren Damgaard, FSK.
3 Peter Larsen, FSK.
Best Munkebo rider was Torben Ruth on 10. place. Carsten Bojlesen and Jan Seerup tied on place 11 with Torben Pedersen, Fjelsted. Munkebo Speedway Centre.
Munkebo Speedway Centre:
In the early 90es a realistic possibility for building of a club house emerged. The Municipality of Odense had since closing of the Fangel track been looking in vain for other locations suitable for a new speedway, but everywhere they met objections. The Bogense Motor Klub had the same problem since the closing of their track at Stego, and The Vissenbjerg-Bred Motor Klub could offer nothing for their riders when they grew up. All sights got directed towards Munkebo. Then Odense municipality invited representatives from the four clubs and the municipality of Munkebo to discuss a possible cooperation agreement. Before the agreement was confirmed and signed, Vissenbjerg withdrew to concentrate themselves around their 80 cc activities. Of course in the remaining three clubs there were members who needed time to accept the idea, but in the end they embarked on a cooperation agreement around running of the Munkebo Speedway Centre as it afterwards got named. The Odense Municipality agreed to pay 75% of the costs for building a club lodge and Munkebo should pay 25%. The members of the clubs should additionally deliver voluntary manpower hours worth approx. 100.000 DKK. Furthermore the running of the center should be financed by the clubs’ annual paying a rent of 8.000 DKK each. Planning the project began in 1994, building the house in 1995 and finally on May 12. 1996 the house got officially inaugurated in connection with the season opening meeting, which was an 80 cc best pair race. The club house frames a vivid club life.
As always in building matters the money didn’t quite cover the needs. There was no money to cover the floor. Luckily the Albani (Brewery) Foundation kindly donated an amount large enough to solve the problem.
In 2005 the cooperation between the three clubs around the Center came to an end. Bogense Motor Klub found it too expensive and pulled out earlier, only hiring the track from time to time. Odin had closed their 500 cc team and had no need for a track other than their own for 80 cc and micros.
Then Munkebo Speedway Club was left alone with the Speedway Center.
A poster for the Semi final in the Danish Championship 1997
In the Semi final Jesper B. Jensen, Holsted won after race off with Nicki Pedersen, Fjelsted, Bo Skov Eriksen, Holsted and Ole Hansen, Fjelsted, all 13 points after heat 20. With 59,7 seconds Jesper B. Jensen improved Tony Rickardsson’s 9 years old track record. May 21. 1999 DM individual 500 cc speedway finale.
May 21. 1999 Danish Speedway Championship final:
On a sunny Friday evening Munkebo with a well prepared track hosted a the Denish Championship finals in 500 cc. It was the Sports Motor Club Odin, who was responsible for the event, which should have been organized by Fredericia Motor Club, who declined. Before there was the inlet apologies from some injured riders, Nicki Pedersen, Jesper B. Jensen, Hans Andersen, Hans Clausen and Jan Stæchmann. This should in no way take the shine off the championship Brian Andersen won.
Results:
1. Brian Andersen 14 point.
2. Charlie Gjedde 13 point.
3. Brian Karger 11+3 point.
4. Ronnie Pedersen 11+2 point.
3 happy winners on Brian Andersen’s bike heading
for the prize ceremony (photo: MotorBladet)
July 25 2004, Danish U21 Championship semifinal:
On a rainy Sunday the track hosted a semifinal, which also was qualification for UEM U19 and the FIM U21 Championships.
In July normally the track is closed for a holiday break. Therefore the riders were allowed a practice session in the morning, when the track was reasonably dry.
At noon the rain poured down. The race began at 2 pm, and soon developed into a muddy affair, from which Steen Jensen from Brovst came out the best. Not many fans were to find on the terraces.
Result:
1.Steen Jensen, BSC 15 point.
2. Casper Wortmann, HSK 13 point.
3. Lars Hansen HSK 10+3 point.
4. Jesper Kristiansen GSK. 10+2 point.
August 12. 2007. Danish U21 Championship final:
After a couple of years of laying low The club again dared a bid for a larger event and got the Danish U21 Championship Final. Much effort got laid down in the organizing work, and it payed off. The weather was superb and so was the track. The audience and the riders were happy, and luckily the Danish Motor Union too. Also the organizers were happy although somewhat exhausted after the event.
The joy of victory is best expressed with a “wheelie”
Result:
1. Patrick Hougaard.
2. Morten Risager.
3. Kenneth Hansen
4, Leon Madsen
Patrick Hougaard won the A-final closely ahead of Morten Risager with Kenneth Hansen third, last lap passing Leon Madsen.
Before the first heat and in the grading interval after heat 12, some classic sidecar show heats got ridden to the audience’s great amusement
The classic sidecars roar from the gates.
The 500 cc track had 25 year anniversary in 2010 and celebrated it with a best pairs meeting. The 25 years had however taken its toll. The track was worn down, and the woodwork in the safety fence and the referee’s tower was ravaged by wind and weather. A major renovation work would be necessary, but it would cost a lot of money that did not exist at the club. A shutdown threatened.
A consultant came in and analyzed how to finance not only the renovation of the track but a complete reconstruction, so that the area could also be used for other activities. The location and the amphitheater-like shape on the ramparts is suitable.
During 2011 a group of companies gathered, and individuals as sponsors would help. Kerteminde Municipality was also interested in getting the speedway center developed, and grants awarded to it. Thus the capital for the first phase was in place.
To emphasize new tides in the center, a new logo was designed..
Early in the spring of 2012, the old safety fence and the referee’s tower got removed and a larger piece of construction work began to extend the track length to international standard 300 meter began with loading new drains, setting up of new safety fence with air cushions in the bends, as DMU rules required and infield marking with curbs. A new and larger referee’s tower was also built. It all was done almost in record time. Yet the first meeting on the track had to be swapped with Outrup Speedway to allow time for the last necessary completions.
Also the club’s well known old logo got refreshed and digitalized.
The long-term objectives were for the club to win a place in the Danish Speedway League, and the track should obtain European approval for possible Championship meetings. To this also the toilet facilities should be improved and expanded considerably.
First sporting target for the club was to form a team, which through the first division was able to qualify for promotion to the league.
The next target was the European approval, which fell into place when MSC was awarded a semifinal in the European Pairs Speedway Championship.
August 25. 2012: UEM Pair Championship Semifinal 1:
6 nations should have participated, besides Denmark Russia, Slovenia, Croatia, Poland and Germany. However Croatia did not come, and on short notice inserted additional Danish reserve team, which could ride for their points money only, but without qualification option, was called in. The meeting itself was subject to large efforts, but threatening rain interacted unfortunately negatively on attendances, which was only approx. 1000.
Result: Nr.
1. Denmark 28 point. (Peter Kildemand, FSK og Kenni Larsen, MSC)
2 Germany 22 point.
3. Poland 20 point.
4. Russia 13 point.
5. Slovenia 10 point,
6. Denmark reserve 15 point.
Nr. 1, 2 og 3 qualified to the final. The Danish reserve pair scored as it can be seen, more points than Russia, but the Austrian referee placed last, respecting the rule that a nation can only have one pair in the final.
The Danish winning pair later won Silver medals in the final.
The day before the meeting UEM’s delegate inspected the track with the Danish UEM member, which proceeded without annotations, and thus the conditions for obtaining a UEM track license was fulfilled.
Medal Awarding in first Division 500 cc, 2012th; Gold for Munkebo,
silver and bronze Holsted and Randers
(Photo Schmidt)
Also the objective to move up into Danish Speedway League was fulfilled in 2012, when the club’s first Division team won the series and the right to promotion. Thus the two major target points were achieved even faster than expected
A view of the renewed Munkebo Speedway, seen from the pit in 2014.
On August 27th 2014 four parachuters landed on Munkebo Speedway Center
ahead of a meeting in the Danish Speedway league.
A view down the back straight
– And into the pit.
The newly acquired TV commentator box at bend 1.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHfCjN3oQ2E&sns=em&fb_ref=Default&fb_source=message
If you posses any information, stories, pictures or other material regarding this track,
you kindly would make available for this website, Please do so by proceeding
to the contact page or by using the e-mail address: sk@speedwaylife.com
Thank you very much in advance.
