Sprouts Elder
Lloyd 'Sprouts' Elder (born 4 August 1904 in Fresno, California, USA - died 1957) was an international motorcycle speedway rider.[1]
Career
Elder was one of speedway's pioneers and featured in the first Star Riders' Championship, the forerunner to the Speedway World Championship in 1929.He was beaten in the semi final of the 'overseas' section by Vic Huxley. He also rode for the West Ham Hammers. In 1931 he rode for the Southampton Saints.
Elder was also a pioneer of speedway racing in the USA. He was a champion rider at home and abroad during the 1920s and early 1930s. Elder helped organize speedway racing on the east and west coasts of America and later became an AMA referee and a member of the competition committee.
Elder learned to race racing on some of the last surviving board track racing circuits during the 1920s. In the late 1920s Elder really began to make a name for himself by racing overseas.[2]
In 1927 he won Australian Championship, against top Australian as well as several top British and American riders who also spent the winter months racing in the Australian summer. Elder also won titles in South America.
1928 saw Elder turn his attention to racing in the United Kingdom, becoming one of the most popular riders in the country. He could command fees of £100 per meeting, plus prize money. Crowds of 30,000 to 40,000 were not uncommon at larger meetings during the heyday of speedway racing in England. Elder's popularity was revealed when the British paper "Speedway News" honoured Elder by calling him the greatest showman of all time.[2]
During the mid-1930s, Elder returned to the United States to help organize American speedway. Speedway racing was among the popular forms of motorcycle racing in the country. Elder, along with Wilbur Lamoreaux, Jack and Cordy Milne, he helped found and promote speedway in America.[2]
Retirement
Elder retired from racing after joining the California Highway Patrol and was responsible for securing sponsorship from the Highway Patrol for a number of meetings. Elder retired from the patrol after suffering life-threatening injuries in a traffic accident. Even after retirement, Elder stayed involved with racing through his duties on the AMA Competition Committee.[2]
Death
Elder died in 1957 after committing suicide following the death of his wife.[1] He was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 1998.