Frank Hodgson (25 May 1908 – 8 May 1983) was a

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, who rode for

Hackney Wick Wolves 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 ...

and

Middlesbrough Bears The Middlesbrough Bears were a British speedway team which operated under various names from 1929 until their closure in 1996. History Origins and 1920s Speedway arrived in Middlesbrough during 1928 when an attendance of 15,000 turned up f ...

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 ...

, Hodgson's first job in speedway was as a sign-writer at

Hackney Wick Stadium Hackney Wick Stadium was a greyhound racing and speedway stadium located at Waterden Road in Hackney Wick, London, England. Origins The site chosen for the stadium was on land known as Hackney Marshes west of the River Lea and on the west side ...

in 1935.Morgan, Tom (1947) ''The People Speedway Guide'', Odhams Press, p. 76 He had previously competed in

grasstrack Motorcycle Grasstrack is a form of track racing which typically, in its current form, takes place on a flat track consisting of two straights and two bends usually constructed in a field. It is one of the oldest types of motorcycle sports in t ...

racing, and his early speedway experience was gained with the Amateur Riders' Club in

Dagenham Dagenham () is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. Dagenham is centred east of Charing Cross. It was historically a rural parish in the Becontree Hundred of Essex, stretching from Hainault Fo ...

in 1936, where he also worked in the

Ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...

factory. He signed for

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...

in 1937, returning to Hackney Wick as a rider later that year. He was captain of Hackney's team in the second division in 1938 and 1939, before his career was interrupted by

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, in which he served in the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...

. In 1946, he rode for

, whom he also captained, his brother Jack Hodgson also a member of the team. A fractured spine at the start of the season kept him out of speedway for two months, but he returned later in the season, winning a round of the British Riders' Championship, and leading his team to the Northern League title.Storey, Basil (1947) "Frank Hodgson's Rise to Fame" in ''Speedway Favourites'', Sport-in-Print, p. 6 Hodgson later moved on to

Newcastle Diamonds Newcastle Diamonds were a motorcycle speedway team that raced in the British speedway leagues from 1929 to 2022. They were based at Newcastle Stadium on the Fossway, Byker. The Stadium was previously known as Brough Park. History Origins and ...

, where he became the club captain. He suffered a serious spinal injury at the end of the 1949 season before returning in May 1950. Also in 1950, he joined Glasgow Tigers, missing the start of the 1952 season after falling from a ladder and breaking a rib.Hodgson First Casualty of Speedway Season
, ''

Evening Times The ''Glasgow Times'' is an evening tabloid newspaper published Monday to Saturday in the city of Glasgow, Scotland. Called ''The Evening Times'' from 1876, it was rebranded as the ''Glasgow Times'' on 4 December 2019.Russ Russ is a masculine given name, often a short form of Russell, and also a surname. People Given name or nickname * Russ (rapper) (born 1992), American rapper, real name Russell James Vitale * Russ Abbot (born 1947), British musician, comedian ...

and grandson Russell "Rusty" Hodgson both followed him into careers in speedway.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hodgson, Frank 1908 births 1983 deaths British speedway riders English motorcycle racers Hackney Wick Wolves riders Middlesbrough Bears riders Glasgow Tigers riders Newcastle Diamonds riders Royal Air Force personnel of World War II 20th-century English sportsmen