Saffron Lane Velodrome, Leicester

[Mr Sam]

Love that old Honda pic, does the bike still run?

yup although i hardly get chance to use it, damn horses

 

[reddwarf9]

Nice report n pics, looks like the place I used to pass on way to watch Leicester City at Walkers Stadium few years back. (when they had a team worth watching lol)

Nick.

 

[Goldie87]

looks like the place I used to pass on way to watch Leicester City at Walkers Stadium

Yep that would be the place, its pretty much round the corner from the football ground

 

[sheep2405]

I very much doubt it, if I recall correctly velodromes are 250M ovals with 45degree banking on the curves. I doubt even the sporty leon would be able to go more than 15mph around it!

They're designed to make bicycles go fast, not cars.

Newport has the national welsh velodrome but alas it's still very much in use.

The one here in Newport, yes very much in use only been built a few years, its part of the International sports village. What a laugh that is....

 

[MD]

this is what it looked like in its prime

this was the 1970 world championships
the year i was born!!!
man i feel old

 

[Goldie87]

Where did you find that?! Thats amazing to see it looking like that!

 

[MD]

got in a book about leicester.
pretty good.
if there are any place your looking for let me know and ill try and find em

 

[Indefatigable]

Fantastic and wierd location! Nice one on nabbing it before it gets flattened.

 

[Mr Sam]

nice find there, how are the bikes staying verticle on the banks

 

[oldskoolkool]

Its a real shame to see the velodrome in the state it is,i rode there in the early nineties and competed in the '92 National track champs there.It was a really nice track to ride and yea the banking is bloody steep especially when your riding around the top!!You had to keep a certain speed up to ensure you had enough lean angle so your pedal didn't hit the track thus lifting the back wheel up and sending you crashing down the banking lol.......not nice with those wooden boards.

 

[oldscrote]

Listening to good old radio4 the other evening they had a programme on about the 1948 London Olympics.Apperntaly(spelling)the only thing that was built specially and the only thing to vaguely survive from those far off days is the Herne hill velodrome.It's still there but due for a bulldozer job real soon,so anyone one in the locality please hit the urbex routine.

 

[celestialjen]

Any news on this site since the recent fire?

I was going to take a peek myself yesterday, but I ran out of time.

 

[MD]

there was a bit in the mercury the other night about no one is telling the residents around the area anything.
its still there the running track is being used a lot at the moment.
but dont let that put you off

 

[Lightbuoy]

Goldie87 and Kezza

myself.........and yes this time i really did end up on my bum sliding down there

and up the tower

Wow, never realised that the track was made of wood -one heck of a job to sandpaper and varnish that baby

Lb:jimlad:

 

[Lightbuoy]

this is what it looked like in its prime

this was the 1970 world championships
the year i was born!!!
man i feel old

Cheers for sharing that old pic with us -great to see what it looked like "back in the day"

Lb:jimlad:

 

[fixed up fred]

the track still looks like fun, shame I'm so far away id like to take my bike over for a few laps (carving up over the chairs looks like fun).
It's strange how our cycle team has been winning everything track,endurance related in the last few years yet the government/sports council don't seem to offer any real help to cyclists. just look at Herne Hill velodrome, it's an amazing place run by some great people, but it's falling apart, they have some beautiful old buildings boarded up they cant use or repair due to lacking funds.
same with this place I'm sure repairing it would make 10 times more sense than a load of soulless new flats no one realy wants or can afford that will end up looking terrible in 10 years time.
same with harrow skatepark why cant things be recognized as historically important or even just useful?
sorry to rant... im sick of seeing usefull or interesting buildings and public space generifyed . . .

 

[krela]

the track still looks like fun, shame I'm so far away id like to take my bike over for a few laps (carving up over the chairs looks like fun).
It's strange how our cycle team has been winning everything track,endurance related in the last few years yet the government/sports council don't seem to offer any real help to cyclists. just look at Herne Hill velodrome, it's an amazing place run by some great people, but it's falling apart, they have some beautiful old buildings boarded up they cant use or repair due to lacking funds.
same with this place I'm sure repairing it would make 10 times more sense than a load of soulless new flats no one realy wants or can afford that will end up looking terrible in 10 years time.
same with harrow skatepark why cant things be recognized as historically important or even just useful?
sorry to rant... im sick of seeing usefull or interesting buildings and public space generifyed . . .

All the "UK Sport" money goes to elite athletes, quite how you get to be an elite athlete to get to the money is a bit of a mystery though.

It's the same in a lot of sports, you're totally on your own until you look like you might win a medal.

Sports in the UK are a hobby, not a valid occupation.

Massive respect to everyone who makes it though, they have to work a lot harder than athletes in a lot of other countries.

 

[MD]

tonights leicester mercury has the story that the velodrome is being demolished and will be gone in 14 days
and made into brownfield site suitable for housing



linky http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/leicestershire/7748203.stm


the mercury had a better one

 

[Mr Sam]

there were a couple of cars up at the buildings when we went home sunday evning

how about a last looksie?

 

[MD]

deffo up for that