THERE may be doubts over the future of Sittingbourne AC Associates Crusaders as a league outfit in 2006, but there is no denying that the club remains the place for youngsters to go to get on the road to speedway success.

In December 2004 the Iwade-based club launched its youth initiative, Fast Track, promising a modern apprenticeship scheme where cadets would experience the full range of activities needed to succeed in the sport for a whole year.

There was an early blow in January when promised sponsorship fell through, but the scheme has proved to be a success.

Co-ordinator Paul Heller said: "The idea was to take four or five youngsters who had no experience on a bike at all and teach them as much as possible about speedway in a 12-month period.

"So, as well as one-to-one tuition on 125cc bikes on the mini-track – learning skills like gating, overtaking, laying-down – the lads had regular sessions on machine tuning, fitness and also on track preparation."

The five trainees reduced to four when one actually emigrated to the birthplace of the dirt-track racing sport.

Mr Heller added: "Andy Briggs and his family moved to Australia mid-way through the course. We’ll look out for his progress on the tracks down-under, going as he did – with our blessing – armed with the leathers and crash-helmet the Fast Track course provided."

The other youngsters were local teenagers William Oldfield and Stuart Barker, Robert Joiner, who commuted all the way to Kent from the Isle of Wight, and a 14-year-old determined to climb the mountain to speedway success, Sean Alp from Basildon, Essex.

There will be one change in 2006 though, explained Mr Heller: "We’ve decided to aim to start Fast Track towards the end of the senior season, rather than at the start of the calendar year.

"This will allow us to concentrate resources more fully on our next batch of trainees rather than they having to compete for track time with our senior club members and the team."