The district of Wyken lies two miles north-east of Coventry City centre. It is here that The Coventry and Walsgrave Greyhound Racing Club staged meetings. The first gathering took place on November 16th 1929, when an eight-race event was staged during the late afternoon, which included both Greyhound and Whippet Racing.
Access to the venue was along Cowley Road in the district of Wyken, and indeed became a substantial venue which consisted of a main stand measuring 70 feet in length, and 10 feet in depth. It also had a smaller covered standing area, along with trackside lighting and a petrol engine to power the lure.
Races were staged over 350 and 550 yards, with a 200 yards straight distance for the Whippets. It is known that the site was sold for development well before its final meeting on the 22nd of July 1937. It is only recently that further information has resulted in pinpointing its location. A block of flats known as Fylde House presently located on the eastern corner of the junction between Hermitage Road and Cowley Road, covers part of the original site, although prior to that a woodyard had been present since its demise. Further housing to the southwest of Hipswell Highway and northeast of Cowley Road, covers the remainder of the site.
Notice the advert for the first meeting states that the track is “Near Weighing Machine” – this was located on what is now the junction of Ansty Road and Dane Rd (a little to the Northwest of the stadium) and was used to weigh coal which had been extracted from the local Wyken collieries. Many thanks to Mr Phillip Tutchings for information regarding locating the site.
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