Colin Docker is arguably the most powerful man in cycle speedway.  As a director of British Cycling and chairman of the Cycle Speedway Commision, he is certainly the most influential.  So how does cycle speedway's top official view the sport and what does he predict for its future?  It's a fascinating insight into the present and future as we unveil the









COLIN DOCKER INTERVIEW 

Firstly Colin, it's nearly twelve months since you took over as Chairman of the Cycle Speedway Commission.  Many people will recognise your name but know little about you or your cycling pedigree.  Please can you start by telling us a little bit about yourself.

Let’s say I’ve just got a bus pass! I used to work in IT and Defence, but I’m now able to devote most of my time to the sport as I stopped working full time just over a year ago. I live in the South Downs, on the borders of the soon-to-be National Park, on the Hampshire/Sussex border, about seven miles north of the coast.

What is your cycling background?

I got my first bike when I was 11 years and straight away it was my freedom machine. Being born and raised in Paddington, London, the first thing was to explore the area,  but also get out west of the city. One of the places I found, with several friends, was the old Wormwood Scrubs Speedway track, a complete wreck, but we spent some happy hours there, trying not to fall off too much. So far as competition is concerned, I started very young for the time, riding my first event at the old (now demolished) Paddington track at 13, and carried on competing for too many years on road, track, and cyclo-cross, not exactly breaking any records for wins!

Eventually I started officiating, and qualified as a division/regional commissaire, which together with the ability to be reasonably useful with a motorbike, got me a lot of road race jobs, and considerable experience, pretty quickly. In 1988 I qualified at UCI level as a National Commissaire. I have been lucky to have worked on at least one stage race every year one has been held in the UK since 1977 ( Sealink, Milk Race, Kelloggs Tour, Prutour, Tour of Britain) in various guises, mostly on the motorbike, and was one of the founder members of the NEG (National Escort Group), which grew out of the team covering the early Kelloggs Tours.
I have had the priviledge of being moto-commissaire on the Tour of Britain over the past few years.

How long have you served on the Board of British Cycling?  For those unfamiliar with Board matters, what does this entail?

I spent three years on the old BCF Racing Committee in the early 90’s, including a year in the chair, before taking a back seat, to return to the BC board a few years later. After taking another break, I was elected to the board in 2008. One of the first things was allocation of chairmanships of the commissions, and I was asked to chair both the Speedway and Cyclo Cross commissions, both of which have proved instructive and entertaining. The business of the board is governance of British Cycling, and entails detailed policy and financial matters. The board is there to oversee the running of the business and as an NGB we also consider the sporting and performance side of cycling. Fortunately we have a great senior management team in place and dedicated, excellent staff at all levels.

You must be very proud at the progress cycling in general, and British Cycling in particular, is making?

For me this is the best time I’ve had in my 50 years in the sport. With the brilliant success at the last Olympic and Paralympic Games, the sport has never had a high profile. The public is at last seeing that cycling is not just about the velodrome either and that there are opportunities for all aspects of the sport to gain recognition. I’m very much in the camp of “it’s all bike racing if it involves pedals and effort”!

The Whole Sport Plan and the many other positive developments, such as extra staff both at HQ and in the field, all mean that British Cycling is now seen as a model of a successful NGB by the funding agencies.

So yes, it is time to be very proud of the success of the sport and mindful that it’s the result of a lot of effort over the past decade. It is also time to capitalise on the success and current growth of cycling, so we need to keep the momentum going and take the sport to new audiences. Change and constant striving to improve has to be a way of life in the sport.

You made your first visit to cycle speedway a couple of years ago when you went to Poole to see the British individual final.  What were your first impressions?

I thought it was a lovely little stadium, good spectator sight lines and a well-run meeting. Running multiple heats can be a bit confusing at first, so I spent a little time with the announcer and he was very helpful in showing me how the formulae worked and where the scoring lead to results, run-offs, etc.

The pits seemed busy but efficiently run, with little time lost between heats. All in all, an instructive afternoon and the tea was pretty good too!

One point there, the volunteers worked extremely hard on the refreshment counter and that’s something we don’t always recognise in our sport. A bit of recognition never goes amiss!

I’ve been along to a couple of other meeting as well, staying in the background, and just observed proceedings. Some facilities are not as grand as at Poole, but enthusiasm and combative racing always prevail.

And now, twelve months after taking over the reins?

A good question, first I must be clear that I don’t “take the reins”. As chairman I see my role as facilitating the experienced members of the commission to discuss issues and arrive at decisions that are right for the sport. Now and again I might try an idea, or move things on a little, but in the end it is the commission as a whole which makes the decisions. My aim is to get consensus wherever possible, and in fact it’s not very often that we need to come to a vote. There are some strong personalities in the commission, but what is common to them all is wanting the sport to prosper.

What strengths can cycle speedway build on?

Without doubt, the energy and commitment of the people, riders, referees, organisers, coaches, administrators, general helpers.  I think we have a very strong group who give selflessly of their time and effort. It’s impressive, and equal to any part of the sport.

And the obverse side of the coin, what can the sport improve on?

With notable exceptions, and having listened to a lot of opinions combined with my own observations, probably presentation. If you want to be taken seriously, then a good image is essential. You only get one go to make a good impression, and to sell the sport. You never know who is watching and what might happen if they are taken with the atmosphere of a well run meeting with people who “look the part“.
What sponsor would want to be associated with a scruffy team or facility?

I see reports – and pictures - where referees are not properly kitted out, riders with torn clothing, and that all gives the impression of something I saw quoted a little while ago on Spokesman – “the bombsite sport”. Much as nostalgia is a comfortable place to be, if you want to progress, constant focus on getting better at all levels is necessary. However, I believe this will come as the sport grows. The one thing we have to be able to do is embrace positive change, whilst keeping the traditions that are the heart of the sport.

The other thing is to grow, which sounds obvious, but it’s not easy. As I’ve already mentioned, all sport depends on willing volunteers. The sport is very patchy regionally, with decent strength in numbers in some places, and deserts in others.
 
Someone wanting to get involved in Kent and Sussex has but one club – Hellingly – to consider. This is not something BC can fix, the desire to expand has to come from within the sport. Given a magic wand, I would double the number of riders and clubs, spreading them evenly throughout the country.

How can British Cycling help in cycle speedway's development?

Cycle Speedway is part of British Cycling. BC is not a remote entity, and all it takes is to ask questions and use internal contacts. As an example, a perceived lack of  high level coaching support was raised early in my tenure in the chair. A few phone calls to some key people, and we managed to get things moving, and now there is a member of the coaching team at HQ developing and delivering the support and expertise that was needed. Fitter and more skilled riders will inevitably win more, which is the philosophy through all the success we have had, do the right things at the right time, and results happen. So it’s really not a case of “what can BC do for us” as “how can we work with together”. I have to mention the publicity the sport receives on the BC website, equal to other parts of the sport, and if you look at numbers, proportionately larger than some. The fine work of Andy Whitehouse has raised the profile considerably, and anyone looking at the site is able to see match details and plenty of reporting/pictures, which reach an audience far beyond the speedway community. I see that as a big benefit.

With the new season just weeks away, there is a real expectation around the tracks that 2010 could be a really exciting year, one of change, progress and achievement.  How do you view the year ahead?

With anticipation. I think there will be an excellent Premier League at the top end, but easily as important is the development of women’s competition and regional/junior events. I’ll be hoping for some cracking international results as well!

It is now ten years since cycle speedway came under the British Cycling umbrella.  In that time there has been some significant achievements.  Clubs today are more stable and less reliant on one or two individuals, an improved resilience brought about by Go-Ride and Clubmark accreditation; the sport is professionally run and administered and is now working closely with British Cycling staff to maximise development opportunities and more and more youngsters are taking up the sport.  How do you see cycle speedway progressing in the next decade?

Essentially, more of the same, but bigger and better. As I have already mentioned, everything depends on the volunteers who deliver the events and clubs. Things that would be good to see coming along – a wish list if you like a doubling of clubs and participation, more and bigger regional leagues, an increase in women’s racing, a Premier League with two divisions and automatic promotion/relegation. And, most of all, recognition for all the people that deliver our events. That will do for starters.
At the risk of repeating myself, we need to value the traditions, improve constantly, review what we do to see where it can be better, and be prepared to change where we need to. Simply resisting change because “we always did it this way” is not an option if we want to move forward. Standing still is an easy way to regress.

Finally, I wish everyone all the best for a great season, and just hope that the promised lovely summer from 2009 arrives in time for some sunny race days in 2010!

Editor - Many thanks Colin for answering our questions so openly and frankly.  Here's to a successful 2010 and we look forward to seeing you around the tracks during 2010.