Speedway legend Peter Collins 'Keeping it on the Tyres' life story out
Granada Reports journalist Claire Hannah has been speaking to Peter Collins MBE about his autobiography
Britain's most decorated speedway champion, Peter Collins MBE, has finally written his long awaited life story, Keeping it on the Tyres.
Manchester born Peter is from an era when Speedway was on peak time TV, and regularly made the front and back pages of the national papers.
During the 1970s and early 80s, he was a true sporting superstar whose track exploits and hectic globetrotting lifestyle earned him bigger pay days than those of international footballers at the time.
Now aged 68, Peter took time out this year after having a shoulder operation, to get his memoirs together, saying: "A lot of my contemporaries had written their stories so I thought it was time I write mine, while I still have the memories".
Inspired by Dawn French, who said she writes her books with a pencil and pad because she has "never used a computer", Peter took himself off to a house on Anglesey with notepads and pens, saying, "If it's good enough for Dawn French, it's good enough for me".
The result is a 506-page book, which covers his illustrious 17-year racing career that brought him every major honour in Speedway history, one individual World Championship five World Team Cups and four World Pairs titles.
Aged 22, in 1976, the former farmer’s boy from the suburb of Partington, swept to World Championship glory in front of a 120,000-plus crowd in Poland, and millions more watching on TV.
No other rider in the history of speedway has dominated the front and back pages of top-selling English tabloid newspapers as Peter did the day after his biggest triumph.
It was the culmination of a dream inspired by his boyhood hero Peter Craven, who he had seen ride at Belle Vue at the age of just eight.
He said: "To set out my stall, at the age of eight, deciding I wanted to become World Champion after seeing Peter Craven, and then achieving it at the age of 22, I remember saying at the time 'what do we do next..where do we go from here?'"
In the book, Collins, the head of speedway’s most famous racing family, shines an insightful light on a magical period when his races were the embodiment of his sport’s last golden age.
A one club man, Peter was with Belle Vue Aces for 16 seasons and achieved the highest league and cup honours and, thanks to his trademark bursts from the back, a permanent place among the pantheon of Aces and England greats.
His record 154 international England or Great Britain caps will almost certainly never be emulated, but Collins recalls the lows as well as the highs.
A disgraceful track and freak injury which probably robbed him winning two more individual world titles; possible bike sabotage that wrecked his British Final plans; his rift with England rival and former World Pairs-winning partner Kenny Carter that culminated in violence.
Peter still has the bike he won the 1976 World Championship on.
It also covers how his move into management and the achievement of saving his beloved Belle Vue from closure - maybe extinction - quickly ended in acrimony.
Peter also chronicles his devastating brain haemorrhage in 2010, which left him unable to walk, or talk, or even sit up straight.
Peter Collins MBE is the embodiment of British speedway's last golden era, but this is not just about his speedway career, it is very much about a family man, from his family history, right up to him now being a very proud grandad.
At this age Peter had already decided he wanted to be Speedway World Champion
Riding for his country
Track inspection ahead of 1977 World Championship Final, with a broken leg
A date with the Queen
At home with the family