mikebv

As I say 'IF'..... one thing is for sure, doing nothing wasnt an option... this may turn out to be contrived bollox, but at least its a way of reducing costs with effectively 5 man teams rather than seven, it reduces air fare/hotel costs and gives the NL riders the opportunity to rub shoulders with much better riders without having to race against them... as you say it may not last, but at least it is radical (which the BSPA gets called for never being) and if SKY do come on board may get dumped, however what this does do I would suggest is give the EL breathing space in their challenge in balancing the books..

several have come on and said that they are glad that their teams are PL so therefore not effected..... well the top 20 NL riders pretty much make up the double uppers 'pool' in the PL which next year I presume will be 'ring fenced' for the EL should the inevitable fixtures clash?? that would then leave a good few 'all fall downers' for the PL... for me, IF this results in reduced admission and a genuine attempt at 'fast tracking' GB talent (and is administered fairly! ) then it may just work for the benefit of the sport... many have moaned that not enough is done for GB riders, so let's not moan now when at least four riders on view each night will be from these shores... keep them riding against each other and the racing 'entertainment' should be relative even if a few seconds slower...

It has been said many times... Everyone remembers the 'great meetings' they attended in the good old days... The one common denominator was the crowd levels and therefore atmosphere, rather than the racing.... (If the racing was as great as the crowd then that was truly the 'utopia' that this sport uniquely can bring). Sadly those who run the sport now see 'survival' as the mantra to be followed rather than simply agreeing a business model with regulations that reduces costs and would enable all to make money by charging an admission fee that would render 'decent crowds' in these difficult economic times... Without an independent body to ensure this happens, the 'haves' will always try and ride roughshod over the 'have nots' (and I cant blame them to be honest if its within the rules then everything is fair game)... As many have said, speedway's ills in this country are largely self inflicted, the current situation is delivered by years of myopic incompetence.. The saddest thing is that this website (and the readership of the speedway star) must have 1000's of 'soothsayers' as for a good many years these people have predicted the current situation 'ad nauseam' ... Truly embarrassing to be honest that those who run this sport have 'blindly' let this situation happen... Given all the facts and history before us, has anyone really got any faith that they can put together a cogent business plan to move the sport forwards in this country?

have biscuits been officially agreed??

Imagine the Leicester thread if their track had even more corners and 'jumps' for them to moan about???

a bit similar to what happens in cycle speedway this idea, but could work.... when a team goes six behind then they can choose gate positions for as long as they remain six behind... wont cost anymore for the promoters and is somewhat less contrived and mickey mouse than giving a team a 'bonus' of extra points for simply being rank.. and it doesn't massively put the team in front at the disadvantage which 'double points'/'bring in a tac No1' does...

Absolutely... Especially when hardly anyone outside 'the converted' know speedway exists anyhow... My team in manchester has a 45 minute catchment radius of 2.5 MILLION people yet despite 'best intentions' cannot get even just one thousandth of them to attend each week... Those 'gone aways' at least know/remember the sport and lets be honest if most tracks can entice just a meagre 500 of them back they wont be losing money... It has been questioned 'how do you know who have gone?' well you dont, but you do know reading the speedway press and this forum over the past ten years or so WHY they left which means you can slow the hemorrhage down by not making the same mistakes again and fixing what is broken... Also you can start to actually 'know' your current punters who still attend by market research, mobile numbers, email addresses etc so when/if they 'go away' you have at least a chance to entice them back... Every track MUST have 500 punters they can get back thru even the most basic marketing campaign surely? If not god help them...

I didnt think you would need a 'whooooosh'!!!

can see where you are coming from but to be fair to Matt Ford he does speculate to accumulate so using his 'cheque book' is an 'ends to a means'... and also he knows, through experience, the fickle nature of the pirate fans when their team is on a losing streak, ie crowds dwindle as the fair weather supporters stop turning up just leaving the die hards... hence, he needs to keep his team successful or the 'speculation' on salaries at the start of the season will leave the club on a poor financial footing...... the only gripe I would have is the way he ignored a directive re the lakeside meeting and rode completely rough shod over the integrity of the league, (which if I am honest does dilute pooles achievement considerably in my eyes as they subsequently got points from the restaging, which, without getting, they wouldnt have qualified for the playoffs) other than that blatant disregard for the rules, he seems to run a professional business model which a few others may consider following...

the theme tune to 'rising damp' might also have been appropriate...

I think you are correct, however a signed contract can seem to be over ridden by a signed doctors note... even if signed by Doctors "Who", "Spock" or "Zhivago" ....

when sixteen riders turn up (regardless of who they are)...

The hokey cokey elrc!!! You put a rider in.. :lol: You take a rider out.... :cry:

ONLY chance for the brummies is to make the track as grippy and deep as idiot for harris, doyle, barker and king..... (and tell smolinski to just ride the inside)...

You only have to see the latest movie about James Hunt to see how 'someone a bit different' can be a beacon for the sport that they do... Was F1 better in those days? Probably as the driver made more of a difference to the success of the car than they do today, however it definitely was more 'on the edge' with the personalities that were around then.... A bit of controversy is never a bad thing and a 'bad boy' image can do wonders if worked to the media well...,

See what speedway is clearly missing is to be ran by Mr Cholmondley-Warner and Grayson.... "I say Grayson, that young Tay chappie certainly looks like a rum 'un and no mistake".. "Yes, Mr Cholmondley-Warner, he will certainly impact the femily velues the sport has held so dear and delivered so much popularity over the pest 20 yars". "Mark my words Grayson, if he continues to appear on the tele-visual box the stadiums may soon be full of tettooed teenagers and even worse, adolescent urchins who may aspire to be him one day" "Perish the thought, Mr Cholmondley-Warner, however, be rest assured that as long as I have anything to do with it, our femily sport with traditional femily velues will ensure such awful frightfulness will never be seen as something the sport should be proud of" "Very good Grayson". "Thankyou Mr Cholmondley-Warner" "Now Grayson. Let us talk about how we ensure the play offs are exciting and the 'right team' wins"

clutching at very big straws maybe but... IF the beeb start to give the sport (via Tai) more of a push, could that be down to them getting more involved in covering the sport knowing sky have bailed? bbc3/4 etc could be ideal for a highlights package of gp or even british speedway..? more likely gp to be fair as its the professional one, however with moto gp now exclusively on bt sport next season maybe speedway can fill the beeb's motorcycle 'hole' so to speak... we may dream...

indeed..... and the many other olympic champions were manna from heaven for our nations broadcaster.....

what it always was... a farce... simply an opportunity for the beeb to self indulgently show the nations licence fee payers that they still cover some sport... if it hasn't been covered by the beeb, you wont win... simples,,,

not just at rye house mate.... these beauties will fly out all round the country... there is an option for 'tassels' on the blankets should they be wanted and I believe that as an added bonus, on the night in question there will be the opportunity to purchase extra strong cotton, which will be demonstrated as ideal for sewing on 'patch badges' to sleeveless denim jackets (or even wulfsport ones)!!!

Tai has done a lot of good work for the sport this morning... Now someone needs to keep him in the media focus thru the winter... Be a shame to lose any awareness momentum he may be bringing... Is he though going back to Oz for the winter?.

very... if memory serves, a couple of years ago belle vue had four riders pull out on their own and james wright represented us... didnt this meeting take place at the start of the season a few years ago to ensure most riders available?

came across well.. the interviewer seemed clueless (but then she is about most things having seen her in the north west for a few years).. he showed his 'tats' off which concerned me a bit as people watching may think speedway is a 'bit extreme' and up to date, and he didnt mention that it was simply a 'good old fashioned family sport' which disappointed me as this message has proved so successful over the years!!! all in all, well done Tai.... could speedway now have someone a younger generation can relate to? let's hope so..

.... and even more good news.. not to be outdone by bsi's professional approach, british speedway has had its media group on the case and have got Tai on the QVC channel, three weeks this thursday, on its prestigious 2.46am slot, flogging tartan blankets and matching flasks....

"We're doomed ahh tell thee".... "We're dooooooomed"!!!!