Co-promoters Richards and Tapson had long held a desire to take speedway back to Bristol, and that chance came at Eastville. After a 16 year absence, Speedway returned to Bristol in 1977 when the Bulldogs were reborn in front of large crowds at Eastville Stadium. The heroes of the new generation were Phil Crump, Tormod Langli and Steve Gresham. Sadly, the Bulldogs soon suffered a seemingly fatal blow when the local planning authorities banned them from racing at their new home...sadly there is no more speedway racing in Bristol..
Knowle, Bristol's pioneer stock car circuit on the A37 in the southern suburbs was also a speedway and greyhound venue and fell victim to housing development in about 1960. It was less than half a mile from Whitchurch Airfield (the former Bristol Airport which once held circuit racing) almost opposite the Happy Landings pub and near the old sports ground where first class cricket was played until the 1980s. No signs remain of the stock car stadium today but as you drive along Wells Road the older style houses give way to a section of newer (1960s) ones. That's where it stood.
The first period of racing came to an end in 1930, but speedway returned to Knowle in 1936, when the club acquired the nickname 'Bulldogs'. Supporters flocked to Knowle in this period to make Bristol the best-supported team in the Provincial League and, before the intervention of the Second World War, they spent a season in the top division. After hostilities ceased the Bulldogs were in the National League Division Two until the on-track heroics of riders such as Billy Hole, Jack Mountford, Eric Salmon and Mike Beddoe gained the club promotion to Division One in fine style in 1949.
After the Second World War, the Bulldogs competed with a team in which local talent was prominent. Names such as Billy and Johnny Hole, Roger Wise, Mike Beddoe, Eric Salmon and Dick Bradley were headline makers on the local sports pages. However, in 1961 Knowle Stadium was demolished to make way for a housing development and the Bulldogs were homeless.
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