British Timken provided extensive sports facilities and a large show-ground, around the Duston factory, which extended to about sixty acres. The British Timken Show was held on the show-ground in 1945.** The sports ground included a running track with a grandstand, a new red cinder track was opened in 1954 and floodlights were installed in 1955. The ground was used for football, cricket, athletics and cycle racing.
The first bicycle racing at Duston was held on 12 July 1956 and was organised by Wolverton CC, Wellingborough CC and Northampton RCC in an effort to influence Northampton Town Council to build a hard cycle track. A crowd of 300 people watched Pat Houghton of Wellingborough win all the three races, which were 440 and 880 yards scratch and a devil take the hindmost.
The first Open Athletic and Cycle Meeting meeting was held at the sports field on 20th July 1957, using the quarter mile cinder track. The meeting was advertised in the Birmingham Mail on 6th July and included three bicycle events, a quarter mile handicap, quarter mile scratch and a half mile devil take the hindmost race. The prizes were £7, £4 and £2. The meeting was repeated the following year.
A company social club building was opened at the ground in 1968 and a sports hall in 1981. Through the 1960s and 70s, cycle racing was often included in the British Timken Show, in 1967 a five miles point to point cycle race was included. This event was held every year until 1975 and the race was televised by Anglia TV in 1970. A documentary of the 1967 Show was produced by Talking Pictures TV and a cycle race is shown 17m 30s into the video.
Bicycle racing seemed to have stopped by the 1980s. In 2002 the Duston factory was closed and the works were demolished, production moved to Poland and housing was built on the site.
** The British Timken show was held over two days in late summer, it include a horticultural show, livestock show, dog show, rabbit show, horse show, gymkhana, show jumping, exhibitions and motor cycle displays. In 1957, the show attracted 30,000 people.
