Frank Joseph Auffret (born 23 December 1950) is a former

motorcycle speedway Motorcycle speedway, usually referred to simply as speedway, is a motorcycle sport involving four and sometimes up to six riders competing over four clockwise, anti-clockwise laps of an oval circuit. The motorcycles are specialist machines that ...

rider from England. Auffret earned six international caps for the

England national speedway team The Great Britain national speedway team (formerly the England speedway team) is one of the major teams in international motorcycle speedway. The team is managed by former Great Britain riders Oliver Allen and Simon Stead, and captained by th ...

Career

Born in

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ), colloquially known as Boro, is a port town in the Borough of Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England. Lying to the south of the River Tees, Middlesbrough forms part of the Teesside Built up area, built-up area and the Tees Va ...

, Auffret entered the sport via

cycle speedway Cycle speedway is a form of bicycle racing on short oval dirt tracks, usually outdoors, occasionally indoors, typically 70–90 metres long. Like motorcycle speedway, riders use machines without brakes or multiple gears but, unlike motor speedway, ...

, and after winning the Tyneside Cycle Speedway Championship in 1967, he took up the motorized form of the sport.Oakes, Peter & Mauger, Ivan (1976) ''Who's Who of World Speedway'', Studio Publications, , p. 12 He first rode in second half races at Middlesbrough Teessiders in 1969 and made his league debut in 1970 for

Hackney Hawks Hackney Speedway opened in 1935 at Hackney Wick Stadium, Waterden Road, London, and operated until 1996. The team raced under various names, known as Hackney Wick Wolves, Hackney Hawks, Hackney Kestrels and London Lions. History Origins & 1 ...

in division one, riding in two heats but failing to score, also riding for

Rayleigh Rockets The Rayleigh Rockets were a Motorcycle speedway, Speedway team which operated from 1949 until their closure in 1973 from the Rayleigh Weir Stadium in Rayleigh, Essex, Rayleigh, Essex . History Origins and 1940s In June 1948, the Speedway ...

.Bott, Richard (2009) "Being Frank", ''Backtrack'', Issue 32 (May–June 2009), p. 17-19 Auffert was given a chance in the Teesside first team during May 1971, after promoter Ron Wilson dropped Pete Reading. He established himself in the Teesside team in the second division in 1971, and his average improved to 8.62 in 1973. He was selected for the Young England team in 1972 and 1973. In 1973, he also rode in the top division for

Leicester Lions Leicester Lions are a speedway team which originally operated from 1968 until 1983Bamford, R & Jarvis J.(2001). ''Homes of British Speedway''. and again from 2011. The team race at the Beaumont Park Stadium (or Hydroscand Arena for sponsorsh ...

and

Halifax Dukes The Halifax Dukes were a speedway team which operated from 1949–1951 and again from 1965 until their closure in 1985 at The Shay Stadium in Halifax. The team were nicknamed the "Dukes" after the local Duke of Wellington's Regiment, whos ...

, and he signed for Leicester in 1974, averaging almost 6.5 in division one. He stayed with Leicester in 1975 but insisted on being put on the transfer list for the 1976 season. He represented the full England team in 1974 and 1975. In 1976, he moved on to

Hull Vikings The Hull Vikings were a Motorcycle speedway, speedway team from Kingston upon Hull, Hull, England, who operated from 1971 to 2005, primarily from The Boulevard (stadium) and Craven Park, Hull, Craven Park. History Origins, 1940s and Hull An ...

, riding for them for six seasons until their closure in 1981.Jones, Alan (2010) ''Speedway in Leicester: The Lions Roar'', Automedia, p. 157 He made three appearances for Middlesbrough Tigers in 1982 before retiring from the sport.

After speedway

After his speedway career, Auffret gained a diploma in Management Studies and Marketing from Teesside University and worked in local government before becoming a website designer.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Auffret, Frank 1950 births Living people Alumni of Teesside University British speedway riders English motorcycle racers Sportspeople from Middlesbrough Hackney Hawks riders Halifax Dukes riders Hull Vikings riders Leicester Lions riders Middlesbrough Bears riders 20th-century English sportsmen