Silsden's Wainman family star in TV show about stock cars (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

Silsden's Wainman family star in TV show about stock cars

9:00am Saturday 4th September 2010 in

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The television exploits of a family of stock car racers from the district have led to a resurgence of interest in the sport, with record crowds flocking to watch the racing.

For the last month, the Wainman family, from Silsden, have featured in a weekly BBC documentary called Gears and Tears.

The show, screened on Mondays, portrays the family’s War of the Roses rivalry with the Smiths, a family of stock car racers from Rochdale.

The documentary, which goes behind the scenes to focus on human interest stories within the sport, has been widely praised for opening it up to a wider audience.

A bumper crowd turned out for the most recent Formula One stock car meeting at Belle Vue stadium in Manchester, and another huge attendance is expected for the biggest race of the season tonight when Frankie Wainman Junior and arch-rival Andy Smith line up on the front row in the world final at Coventry.

Now one of the sport’s stalwarts, Frankie Wainman Senior, has called for stock car racing to return to Odsal Stadium, in Bradford.

Mr Wainman Senior, who started racing in the 1970s, said there was still huge interest in stock cars across the North, but he said another track was needed on this side of the Pennines.

He said: “It needs Bradford back doesn’t it?

“The track is still there and the problems could be got around, although it might have to be a tarmac track.

“A while back, Bradford Northern (Bulls) decided they could do without stock cars.

“But who knows, maybe if they are struggling they will come back to stock cars.”

On the documentary, Mr Wainman Senior said: “It has enlightened a lot of people.

“It’s not necessarily new people but a lot of people who’ve gone away over the last 20 years. There’s a lot of old faces coming back.

“Saying that, there were a lot of people walking round at Belle Vue in white clothes who didn’t really know where to stand, so they were definitely newcomers because it’s not the kind of thing you go to watch in your best clothes.”

Promoter Steve Rees, of Startrax, said the crowd at the August Bank Holiday Monday meeting had been a record attendance at Belle Vue since the stadium opened in 1999.

He said: “Certainly, Gears and Tears created interest which we tried to capitalise upon with a considerable advertising campaign – and trying to do the show and the sport justice it deserved.

“Where we as a sport will win out is that a certain percentage of these people will keep coming back, especially after seeing the quality of the racing at Belle Vue.”