When Alan first hit the cinder tracks of the world, one promoter begged for him to be taken out of the Cradley Heath side before the other riders racing with him came to serious harm. He went on to become one of the most stylish and accomplished speedway practitioners in the history of the sport. Watching Whacker in action - the polished performer he became in later years - was truly to witness speedway poetry in motion.

We respectively dedicated this series to the continuing memory of Alan Hunt. And our thanks go to Eve. As they say in the Black Country: 'Yo'm fab-u-lus ower wench!'

Alan the International wearing his England race jacket at Wembley

EVE HUNT has a colourful way with words. Readers of a delicate disposition are warned that some of the language they will encounter during this interview will be strong - to put it mildly. So if you are in any way sensitive to that sort of thing, you should look away now...

The truth is, Eve Hunt has a personality that is very much like her old man's. That is: flamboyant, forthright, full of fun and honest determination. She also has - just like her old man - a remarkable talent for entertaining and an infinate capacity for enjoyment.

"Alan loved racing against good riders, riders like Peter Craven - he loved it. He was fair, square and true and he rode some terrific races."

"But against anyone who was rotten to him on the track, he'd get his own back. He made no bones about it - disqualified or not. He'd say: "They'll never do it to me again!"

"Riders like Wonga (Jack Young), Derek Close, Bakey (Bob Leverenz) - they used to be a band of riders at all the big open meetings. All the good ones were there. But you'd never get any crap at those meetings. They were marvellous. There was no fixing. They used to race. They'd give each other about six inches of room between the bikes."

"To see Alan and Peter Craven at Belle Vue - you never saw racing like it - and with Arthur Forrest at Bradford"

"The proudest moment of my life was one Sunday when Alan and I were listening to the radio, and Tommy Price of Wembley, the 1949 World Champion, was being interviewed. He said the most up-and-coming rider to watch out for was Alan Hunt. To me that was fantastic, coming from him."

"Alan's been dead a long time now, but I'm still proud to have been his wife - or widow now, or whatever. Alan was a great person. He had a super sense of humour."

"He was rough, though. His bikes, to be honest, were crap half the time. He was a horrible mechanic. It hurt me when supporters used to say, Oh, Alan got only ten points tonight, he didn't get maximum. You can't be that good all the time."

"He should have been World Champion more than once. Ove Fundin once said to me: 'I remember Alan - a very good rider.' And when people like Ove, who has won the world title five times, remember Alan - it's smashing."

"And he wasn't only a great speedway rider, he was also a lovely man. He had time for the fans."

"He was my hero!"

Not many women still say such things about their husbands. Well not after all of 42 years of widowhood, they don't. Time, it is said, is a great healer. It is also a great amnesiac. It can make you forget things. They vanish into the mists of time. Either that or they become distorted and exaggerated with the passing of the years.

But the flame of affection still burns bright for Alan Hunt when Eve gets into her stride.

"At Cradley Heath", she says, "they thought the sun shone out of Alan's backside!"

Was there ever such admiration expressed for the dearly departed?

John Chaplin