“Car racing in Queensland is practically unknown. Occasionally speed carnivals are held at which a race for cars is part of the programme, but the car racing track has still to be built in this state,” said the motoring reporter of Brisbane’s The Telegraph on November 5, 1929.
“The popularity of sporting events at which cars and their drivers are the performers has been proved many times.”
“Mount Coot-tha and Mount Gravatt (8 km and 10 km from Brisbane’s CBD) have been visited by huge crowds for the hillclimbs organised by the Royal Automobile Club of Queensland, and special tests on Southport Beach (on the Gold Coast) have drawn thousands of spectators.”
“Sydney has dirt and concrete saucer tracks which will take cars. Except for isolated races (for cars) at Deagon (Speedway 20km north of) Brisbane in recent years has not seen cars at speed work on the track.”
“In America, and England, and on the continent, there are famous speed tracks. America has the Indianapolis brick track where the classic ‘500’, henceforth to be known as the Indianapolis Grand Prix is held. All the world knows of Brooklands. In England, and in the past few years high speeds have been made at Montlhery, outside Paris.”
Some context of motor racing progress elsewhere in Australia is that the Aspendale Park Speedway opened in outer Melbourne in 1906, the Olympia Motor Speedway at Maroubra, Sydney in 1925. The first Australian Grand Prix was held at the Goulburn Racecourse (Neddies), 200 km south of Sydney in 1927, and the first AGP on a road-course at Phillip Island in 1928. Viz; 1928 100 Miles Road Race, Phillip Island… | primotipo…
Given the relative population of Queensland to Victoria and New South Wales, the banana-benders (Queenslanders) weren’t lagging behind too much. What is interesting is the popular press ‘pushing’ for creation of a local venue. It wasn’t until 1949 that an AGP was held in the Sunshine State, at Leyburn, a former Royal Australian Air Force base. See Aspendale here; Werrangourt Archive 11: DFP ‘The Greyhound of France’ by Bob King… | primotipo… and Leyburn here; 1949 Australian Grand Prix, Leyburn… | primotipo…
Alec Jewell aboard the Willys Overland which won “Australia’s first land speed record” in a competition with a Studebaker Six driven by Fred Eager on the Surfers Paradise sand, Christmas Day, December 25, 1916.
The cars had a number of runs, Jewell’s best was a time of 21.4 seconds between the measured marks, 84.5mph as adjudged by Automobile Club of Queensland officialdom.
Etcetera…
Deagon was established as a horse-racing venue in the early 1880s. It was first used for motorised events with ‘The Great Motor Cycle Carnival’ in November 1921. The card that day included 3 and 20 mile races for solos and a 5-miler for sidecars. 24 meetings were held from 1921-1931 including 14 state, and six Australian/Australasian Championships. Cars were never the mainstay of racing at Deagon, but were occasional guests on the bike’s-card.
Credits…
Brisbane Times, The Telegraph, Brisbane, November 5, 1929, Old Bike July 2015, Alamy, Goulburn Post, speedwayand roadracehistory.com, Tony Webb Collection, ABC via Murray Hubbard, Bob King
Tailpiece…
Deagon Speedway commentators doing it the hard way in the mid-1920s. I wonder if hats will ever make a comeback?
Finito…
primotipo... 