[2] Peter Craven got his first taste of motorcycle speedway racing in 1949 at the Stanley Stadium, Prescot Road, Liverpool.

He visited the stadium a day after his sixteenth birthday and drove a few laps on his brother's bike, before hitting the safety fence and sustaining a concussion.

[1] Craven made his Belle Vue debut on 17 May 1952 when he scored two points in a race against the visiting Norwich Stars.

In 1959 he took on Ove Fundin and won the Golden Helmet Match Race Championship, the Champions of Champions Cup at Poole; the Northern Cup at Belle Vue; the Internationale Derby at Ipswich; the Pride of the East at Norwich; the Tom Farndon Memorial Trophy at New Cross; the Champagne Derby again at Belle Vue, the CTS Trophy at Norwich and the Pride of the Midlands at Leicester.

In 1960 Peter came third in the World Championship final staged at Wembley when Ove Fundin beat Ronnie Moore into second place after a thrilling run off, all three riders having scored an equal number of points after their five rides.

Craven died as a result of a racing accident in a challenge match at Edinburgh's Old Meadowbank stadium on 20 September 1963.

The unconscious Craven was rushed to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, where his family remained at his bedside until he died at 9.10pm on Tuesday 24 September 1963.

[11] However, in this challenge match, Peter was actually at the tapes with the other riders but allowed the others to pull away ahead of him to make the racing more exciting.