Chronicles of the Berkshire Pig: Wight Riders

Isle of Wight Warriors v Swindon Sprockets

Shanklin Ladies v Southampton Saints

Next morning was another mileage slog for sport, though this more also multi-modal.

It was down to Sowerby.

Into the gloom factory.

For the all shacks off Leeds.

Down to Donny.

And onto an up Hull Trains.

Which was taken through to the Cross.

Across to Paddington.

And then to the summer home in Swindon.

A quick vote and it was back to the station and onto the Frome flyer.

Which cuts the corner across to Trowbridge.

And onto a Cardiff-Pompey.

Heading down through Wessex, and passing the watercress beds of the Test Valley, and the New Measurement Train.

The picturesque Southampton Docks.

And across the water onto England's most populated largest island.

It was through to the terminus at Portsmouth Harbour.

With the Spinnaker Tower looming over the train.

Outside and at the historic dockyards no Victory, but instead HMS Warrior.

I took a wander down to Southsea. The cannons strategically aimed at the Portsmouth-Ryde fast ferry.

As instead, this was to be my passage across the Solent.

So it was down to the Hoverport.

Just missing a 'flight' on the world's last remaining commercial hovercraft route.

But it being peak hours, it was up to 15 minute frequency, and shortly arrived the 'Island Express'.

Ever wondered what the inside of a hovercraft looks like?

I was first on and with most of the other passengers being commuters who were primarily concerned with being close to the door, I got front seats.

Not that you can see much on the five minute crossing. Most interesting was a Polish warship.

We arrived into Ryde hoverport.

The flat sands here mean the ships land at a pier out in the estuary, whilst the hovercraft can come right onto the shore.

My craft headed off back to the mainland.

Whilst I headed to the adjacent station.

Limited clearance in a tunnel on the line means ex-London Underground tube stock is used. This ex Bakerloo line stock from 1938, and was taken up to St John's Road.

This is also home to the train depot. The line is included in the South West Trains franchise that has just been won by First Group, having being operated by Stagecoach since privatisation.

Being off the beer means that Guide pubs who I have always found closed, are all of a sudden open when I visit. The Railway at Ryde is one such offering, and after visiting for a diet coke, I can confirm I haven't missed anything.

I was heading for an early evening Speedway meeting. The track is at Smallbrook stadium, which was built by Ryde Sports FC in the early 1990s, and is in the middle of no-where. The main road to it is very busy but has no pavement so instead I headed through a vineyard.

And some woods.

Before eventually spying the floodlights.

Though even then there was a bit of 'B road grass verge walk of shame'.

I dived off for the footpath around the track.

This unearthed the town cricket ground.

And also a previously unknown about 3g arena. There is actually a station by the ground, but this is only to interchange with the steam railway that runs on the island, and there is no public access off it. I'd seen floodlights from the platform and always assumed it was the stadium, but I now realise it was this instead, which thwarted an attept at some off sport @nonleague_train.

But eventually the main entrance was found.

It was a good job I hadn't tried to get a taxi here, as they were all in the place already.

So ten pound lighter, I was in.

Isle of Wight Warriors 43 v Swindon Sprockets 47, National League Trophy

Although there had been speedway on the island previously, it really took off when the athletics track at the new Smallbrook stadium was converted to a dirt track, and racing started in 1995, getting a permanent team in 1997 when Skegness Braves relocated to become the rather insipidly named Isle of Wight Islanders, riding in the Premier League. There have been a few setbacks of late, dropping to the National League in 2009, and then a hiatus for a couple of seasons before returning last year as the Warriors.

Sprockets are the development team of the Swindon Robins. They have been going some time, in the 1980s they rode in a number of competitions. These days they are a bit more obscure, being picked almost on a meet by meet basis, riding only in the National League cup.

Smallbrook stadium was built by Ryde Sports FC, with the proceeds they got from selling their quite excellent town centre Partlands ground. The new ground included an athletics track, and allowed them to progress up from the Hampshire league to the Wessex, but after a history of a hundred or so years, they went out of business in 1997.

The facilities are all down one side.

The spectator accommodation is this long, low cover, with three rows of seating.

The design of the stand, coupled with it being a huge distance from the pitch and behind a row of very substantial floodlights, made it a nightmare for watching football from. These days, the pitch is used by Ryde Saints in the Island League.

My first stop off was at the pits, which were allowing public access.

At the control offices, an illusion was shattered as I found that the rather home spun William the Warrior, wasn't a real bear. Or a warrior. Maybe not even a William.

The stadium is home to another international sports venue.

Over the course of the season, my examples of hopeless optimism have progressed from an ice cream parlour in Huddersfield in November, to a health food shop in Kilmarnock, but surely a salad bar at a speedway track must be the pinnacle?

There was a very friendly and well stocked club shop. I bought a Warriors swimming bag.

No television cameras in evidence tonight.

I returned from having a piss to find that the warm up racing had already begun. I got very excited to watch what appeared to be midget speedway.

What made it even more 'Big Train' is that this is the biggest circuit in UK speedway.

However, heading for the cafe, the second illusion of the evening was shattered when it was actually revealed that they were just kids.

There was excitement in front of the main stand, which I assumed to be the coin toss to decide lanes.

But in a twist on the normal method, it was being decided by the capatains having the best of three of 'rock, paper, scissors'.

Which the home side triumphed at.

So after a quick riders parade.

They headed off.

And the racing started.

Swindon soon took a dominant lead.

By heat six, the away side were eight points ahead.

National league racing also meant a national league tractor.

With the watering done using a large tank on the back of a flat bed.

However, this didn't do too much to dampen the track as the riders were kicking up huge dust clouds.

Which would then drift over the banking behind turn one.

Which was why this was the only spectator who wasn't in the main stand.

Although Isle of Wight reduced the defecit, it finished 43-47 to Swindon.

My evening of sport was not yet over as I headed back into town, passing the old Partlands ground.

Onto a Newport bound bus.

Though not getting the TDFS.

It was off on the outskirts of town.

I was heading to the second half of a ladies game, which was being played at Newport's St Georges Park. It was reportedly they were being evicted from the ground and it was being redeveloped, so I wanted to make a final visit.

However, the signage from two weeks previous, told me otherwise.

I headed in nonetheless.

Shanklin Ladies 0 v Southampton Saints 7, Premier League Division One South West

There isn't too much info about the ladies team in Shanklin. The main club were formed in the 1880s, and to celebrate their centenary with a friendly against Wimbledon, who had just won the FA Cup. In the spirit of the event, Vinnie Jones was sent off in the third minute for elbowing the local postman in the face and then calling the referee a cunt.

Southampton Saints were formed in 1979 as Red Star Southampton. They were at the forefront of the development of ladies football, becoming founding members of the Premier League in 1991. They became affiliated with Southampton FC in 1995, but they also fell out of the top level. A short spell back at the top level, and a couple of FA cup finals, then saw the club drop down through the leagues, and lose the links with the men's team.

Like Ryde, Newport sold their excellent town centre ground, Church Litten, for redevelopment in the 1980s. However, Newport only moved a few hundred yards away, and also built a bespoke football ground.