THERE was barely enough room in the Kingsdown Crematorium for all of the friends and family who came to pay their respects to speedway star David Ashby yesterday.

A sea of red ties filled the chapel as well-wishers came to give the former Swindon Robins star a rousing send-off.

David lost his battle with cancer at Prospect Hospice on Wednesday, September 16.

He was born in Marlborough on November 11, 1949 and rode for Swindon between 1972 and 1978, making 151 appearances.

He also made appearances for Peterborough, Leicester and Milton Keynes.

Bryan Adam’s Everything I Do filled the chapel as mourners took their seats.

And Wind Beneath my Wings by Bette Midler was also played as people recalled their fond memories of David.

In a moving tribute, his sons Lee and Jamie read a poem entitled Our Father It said: “We grow to expect that our father, like the weather, will always be with us.

Then he goes, leaving a mark like a hand-print on glass or a wet kiss on a rainy day – and with his passing we are no longer children.”

Leading the service the Rev Sandy Railton said: “It is true to say that David was never really very keen on school and was always up to mischief.

“He was proficient in the art of missing the school bus by hiding behind a tree.

“He got his love of bikes from his father, and he was never happier than when he was in the workshop covered in oil.

Bob Radford paid a moving tribute to David’s success on the speedway track and thanked members of the current team who had attended.

He said: “Apparently on his very first race he flipped the bike over, not the most elegant ay to start, but we knew people that have done worse.

“At the hospital all of the nurses knew that he liked two sugars in his tea because he was that well known.

“I think the nurses probably enjoyed having him there too.

“I would just like to say, thank you very much David, you have given us all a lot of pleasure.”