tonyd

Went to the "Lada International" meeting at Wembley Empire pool one year put on / promoted by Ivan Manger & Barry Briggs. A small track of glazed concrete with straw bales for a safety fence. A fun entertaining meeting in which Ivan rode along with many other well known riders of the time. A track where throttle control was a important feature, a blast out of the tapes meant you met the straw bales on bends 1&2

I think his interest in the sport of speedway will keep him going (well I hope it does) because apart from following Sheffield he is a supporter of speedway in general as many times since he has started going we have taken a trip down the M1 to Leicester for matches (Lions and Cubs) and also down the A1 to Peterborough. Its funny the wife and I can see that he has the same enthusiasm for the sport that we both had back in the 70s only these days he has the internet, YouTube and the likes of BSN to keep his interest going (which is a lot better than just the speedway Star and mail along with programme notes and word of mouth going around the terraces that we had )

With the comment of "the sport doesn't attract young fans I beg to differ, yes the sport can always do with more fans young and old but the problem is how do you get them to attend the sport? Back in the 60/70s when I started going it was mostly a family outing, these days how many family's do things together apart from watch tv? The first meeting I attended on my own was Wembley 71 and I could walk from home to the stadium in 45 mins and the same home again after the meeting. I was 14 that year and lets be honest how many of us would let our son or daughter do something like that these days? Yes the latest generation need to be tempted to speedway but exactly how? In 2022 my grandson was gifted a couple of free passes for Sheffield speedway by the Bluebell Woods charity and he asked me if I would go with him and his family to a meeting as he knew I was a speedway regular at one time. From that meeting in May that year to the end of the 2023 season I think we have missed one match and we have also attended a few away tracks as well. He is obsessed with the sport and on the phone to me daily with speedway updates he has found out, AND to go with his obsession he has a subscription to the Speedway Star and he had a 2023 subscription to BSN. The lad is not into football as much as he is his speedway and its all down to Sheffield speedway and the Bluebell woods Charity for those couple of tickets.

Kyle Howarth has been granted a testimonial next year.

Agree 100% as much as I like Tai I feel Tobi will always give us that 110% every match right through the season.

The cost comes into it if someone fails a test and the sample is sent to the laboratory. The actual test kits are reasonably inexpensive I believe. Also a reasonably competent person can be trained up to carry out the testing and fill out the relevant forms.

Following the tests that have been failed by riders in recent seasons I feel the time has come for EVERY rider to pee in a pot and be tested at EVERY meeting. Before anyone starts talking about the costs of testing I say the costs does not come into it, the health and safety of every other rider, spectator and official far out weighs any cost involved. The cost of a test is nothing compared to the value of someone's life.

I would say Boxall is finished in speedway and he knows it, to not attend the hearing and with no representative there he has no interest in the sport now (and I cannot see the fine being paid). I am surprised though that he only got a 2 year ban, for a second offence for the same thing I would have expected a 10 year ban at least if not a life ban. Worrall only getting a 18 month ban which is effectively 9 months with the suspended bit sound fishy to me. Normally a failed drug test always has a 2 year ban and fine so either we are not being told something or one has to assume there is a lot of brown envelopes floating around. What's the betting Worrall signs for a team but as he cannot start riding until June the team are given a dispensation for his absence at the start of the season.

For me the play offs should be a separate competition, finish top of the league then your the league champions as it used to be but then you could have the playoff championship to win a separate trophy. Top four teams again same rules as now but for the playoff trophy. Teams would still be looking to finish in the top four BUT there would be more incentive to fight harder to finish in number one position and win that League Champions Trophy and then do battle with the three other teams all wanting that title of Playoff Champions.

The 2023 season started in march and finishes in October, the Lions race Mondays or Thursdays SO why at this time of the year are they still trying to complete the cubs season? There are plenty of Saturdays between March and October for the cubs to race. At this time last season I seem to remember the same problem matches to complete, Rain and a track that does not like to let the water head for the drains. I love my visits to Leicester, but gave today a miss because I was 99% certain the matches would not go ahead with the amount of rain that has fallen over the past week or so. I think its a poor show by the Leicester management, they know what the track is like and how long it takes to bring back to life after being waterlogged (unless they were hoping for divine intervention this morning by the sunshine fairy )

Oh dear hope Kyle is not another injury to add to the list

And so he should be I believe, shame they have not also stated what the reason for the failure was. One has to assume it was some sort of drugs because if it was alcohol I believe the ban and fine would have been less. He is a silly man instead of refusing the test he should have stated that he was going to fail it before taking it and still took it, I believe he will still have been banned but for a lesser time, and if it was due to prescribed drugs again I believe the ban would have been shorter. Once again this is a lesson to ALL riders and officials (do they test race officials?) that a refusal is an automatic guilty verdict that results in a longer ban everytime.

I cannot see why every rider cannot be tested before a meeting and not just the odd one now and again. I used to work on very large construction sites and EVERY person on site was D&A tested before they could start on said site. When the site was up and running EVERY new starter was tested before they went out onto the site, if they refused they didn't start end of story. Before being tested they were asked 1) when did they last have alcohol 2) have they taken anything that might not allow them to pass the test and 3) a list of any prescribed medication they are taking. Also there was a computer that gave out random names each day for routine testing and these could be anyone on site from machine operator, to a receptionist to the site manager They then peed in a special test pot which was then sealed, snapped into the crystals below and shook up and depending on the colour it turned showed a positive or negative reading. Negative reading ........ carry on working Positive reading ...... you were sent home to wait for further testing of the sample to be carried out. This involved pouring the sample into two sample jars that were labelled A and B and the person was offered either of the jars to take away and have tested themselves if they wished. The sample was then sent away to the labs for more vigorous tests with the results normally back within 48 hours of test giving what the failure was or the fact that the person was taking a combination of prescribed medicines that gave a failed test result so was ok. Mind you most people who failed expected to and just said ok bye. What I am saying is that basic D&A testing kits are relatively inexpensive and could be carried out by the stadium doctor / paramedic so riders would know and expect to be tested prior to a match. If a rider has nothing to hide then they have nothing to worry about.

Watching last nights British Final you could see how determined Phil was to ensure the meeting went ahead last night, there is not many CEO's that would grab a broom and rake and get stuck in on the track work. The camera showed him in his crisp white shirt getting wetter and wetter while clearing water off the track and when it was done he was back in the pits geeing up the riders and getting them out onto track ready to race. The meeting and every race was completed and while the racing was not as good as a dry track would give you at least we saw a meeting. I think Phil deserves full credit and praise for last night as you can see he takes his job seriously and has a determination to take this great sport of ours by the balls and move it forward. (I just hope he gets the backing from Speedway GB he obviously deserves).

With all the suggestions in this thread about six man teams, north / south leagues race nights etc all means nothing as at the end of the day the sport needs supporters and what the supporter wants more than anything (as quoted above) "It's also about having an evening out where you go home feeling entertained" and at present that is something the supporter is not getting in fact the supporter is treated as a cash cow for the club each week with no respect or real return for there money by the sport. (Look at the Sheffield v Peterborough match tonight) Promotions moan about the lack of crowds at matches but at the same time the crowd are getting fed up of seeing the same teams twice or three times a season and the same rider(s) six or eight times a season wearing different team colours. Maybe before this great sport totally collapses in this country certain people should look at Barry Bishop and the Isle of White who seem to regularly put on an entertaining fast moving and packed programme of motorcycle action that seems to leave the crowd wanting more and wanting to come back to see more of the action again and again. The way the sport is going in this country I can see the IoW (and maybe one or two who join them and there ideas of motorcycling entertainment) being the last ones standing as the other clubs across the country fall by the wayside.