mikebv

Fair comment, and the correct thing for the Aces to do I would suggest.. It keeps the Colts going and offers opportunities for new or young riders.. Winning at home (or narrow defeats), keeps punters turning up... And the odd hammering away helps to keep the bank balance in the black...

Been a "guest" at His Majesty's pleasure so fits in well with UK Speedway..

Spot on... Uniquely, Speedway, quite possibly due to the way is ran (in the UK), means it is more "sports entertainment" rather than a bona fide "sports championship", which means plenty who attend are generic Speedway fans first and foremost, rather than "tribal followers" of a team... The smell, the noise, the lights, the speed and the atmosphere got most of us hooked, well before forming any team allegiance, (the word "team" in UK Speedway being as tenuous as it could be).. The issue in attracting ex fans of the tracks closed down "locally" will be more down to the target marketing of these fans to get them there, rather than any major reticence on their part I would suggest... Brum hopefully have already trawled any FB Groups and any Supporter Groups of the ex tracks and made contact... Might as sell offer up some free and £10 tickets through the season to these fans, just to see if they can become "regulars" ongoing, or, at least until they get their respective tracks' back.. As, if they ever do return, you can almost guarantee that these fans will all be there that night they reopen, meaning they will have kept a healthy interest in the sport in the interim.. Therefore, try and get them to Brum. And healthy crowds at a track "local" to Wolves, Cov and Cradley, could also help in convincing their respective local authorities that the sport has a part to play in the local community and is vibrant and viable..

And Bachelor's name will resonate more with the "old teams'" followers than someone they may never have heard of.. They can advertise him a an "ex GP rider, who has been twice on the rostrom, Twice World Cup Silver medalist, and a former Elite League and Australian Champion". which can only help get some interest..

Each season does seem to start with a "whimper" rather than a "fanfare" doesnt it...? And then just seems to "amble on", in a disjointed fashion, to its conclusion in September... I mean October... Or possibly November.. Even the first TV meeting is usually a fair old while after the season has started which doesnt help any "launch".. A five match Ashes series with £150k prize fund in total, split £90k/60k, whilst not "big money" in the grand scheme of sporting reward, should get some wider publicity surely? And kick start the UK version of the sport.. Traditional 6 man Test teams over 18 heats.. £10k each for the losers for five nights riding isnt too shabby either, and £15k each for the winners even better.. The PCMM each season shows that getting a decent line up can bring in a large crowd early doors, with usually over 2000 there, which, with sponsorship added to it, brings in around £50k I would think given the slightly higher than usual entrance fee.. A more structured national launch for the sport, with a well planned and executed national marketing strategy, surely would give the whole season a kick start and positive momentum..?

Maybe do a five meeting series BEFORE Poland opens up? Over a week... Glasgow to Poole, calling at the NSS, Birmingham, and Ipswich. Brum simply to get their season up and running with big publicity behind it which might get more punters in to watch their own output. And, being central, could get a decent amount of Wolves, Coventry, Cradley, Leicester and even Swindon fans. Glasgow and the NSS for the racing and Poole and Ippo for the crowds they can generate... A major start to the season which gets momentum into it which can be then built on..

When the sport was "very popular" it wasn't domestic speedway that stimulated the interest.. It was the very regular national success at both individual and team level, being beamed into millions of homes several Saturdays a season... Domestic speedway then lived off the back of that publicity and interest, and, with no social media, its "Mickey Mouse"' rules, and ad hoc last minute rider changes, which existed even then, didnt impact crowd levels the way they do today. (eg. You would find out PC was riding in Germany in a LT meeting, or that a team had four guests and RR, after you had paid to get in, now you would know well in advance).. Then the promoters started training up all the rest of the worlds riders, and reduced opportunities to UK riders, which had the inevitable conclusion that UK success on the international scene dwindled to virtually nothing... And domestic crowds therefore naturally dwindled off the back of it... As Italia 90 showed, and the England Rugby success in 2003, and the Ashes victory in 2005, international success stimulated each sports' domestic success by the interest it created in the sports' as a whole.. Maybe a test series against the Aussies might engage a few more to attend their local tracks..? (And, such is the relatively low crowd numbers, just a hundred more at most tracks would be a double digit growth)... You would think a 2,000 crowd on a BHM, a GF, or a Saturday or Sunday would be possible at several tracks wouldn't you? Max £25 a ticket and that's circa £50k.. Maybe a £25k prize money fund per test if that crowd size was possible? A "properly ran" speedway meeting/series ran with credibility and something worth winning, might also draw some sponsorship from others outside the sport too, rather than, as so often happens currently, much of the sponsorship coming from those who follow it, or benefit in some way, from being involved in the sport...

They would be "encouraged", to build an asset base just in case "anything happens" and debts need to be paid..

"Bling me Bomber Hallis over to guest for the Bejing Bandits"....

The clear and obvious answer, given the way UK Speedway is ran, is that it is for people who want to finance an expensive hobby... Hence the rules get consistently "made up" to ensure this hobby can take place regularly... No "independent body" would ever sanction a large amount of the regs and rules that get signed off by those who "self police"... Test Matches would have a huge novelty factor nowadays given the fact they don't take place almost ever in the UK.. And with many top class Aussies over here, an Ashes series would stimulate interest in the sport I am 100% sure... The only watch out would be that the promoters would allow Bomber to guest for the Aussies if GB didn't pick him... Only in the first test though obviously... He could ride for GB in the others... Alongside Emil...

C U Next Tuesday.... A term of endearment I believe...

In a weeks time it will be 2024... For some, they will read that as being nearly twenty five past eight....

Nothing stopping any of them coming out as "trans", or identifying themselves as a female....

It really doesnt matter if it turns out that way.. Any semi decent marketeer will see the huge opportunity for a bit of hype and publicity to get your name out there off the back of it... And NASCAR has tens of thousands of fans already at each venue, so bringing in a female racer wouldnt have meant tens of thousands more.. (And given the following demographic of NASCAR if may have even turned a few away)... Worky would be delighted with just an extra couple of hundred on the opening night I am sure, as that would be circa 20- 30% more than a "usual" crowd I would imagine.. A very healthy uplift given the small starting point at most tracks..

Forever if he doesnt pay his fine...

Quite possiblly... Meaning she will be similar to hundreds of others over the decades who have done the same.. The important message is the back story which will help sell Workington Speedway to an audience who will have their ears pricked up by what the promotion team have done.. And, if it doesnt all work out, then those who have been interested enough to go along, may still stick with the sport regardless of her being there or not.. Nothing to lose, and everything to gain by both rider and promoters.... Great to see some proper, modern thinking, promotion of the sport... Obviously, for some others, using "why not bring a friend?" as their marketing plan, is still available....

Great call... A "decent rider" from what I have read of her scores and performances, but, far more importantly, what a story to tell... Plenty of column inches locally I would suggest in the local media and maybe even local TV interest.... Outstanding work from the Comets leadership team...

Spot on... If you want to go badly enough, you will find somewhere to park... Park in a side street.. Park in a public car park and get an Uber from there.. The "event" will deliver the crowd it deserves, just like all events do.. Events that are well ran, well marketed and promoted, have credibility, and offer excellent value for money, will usually generate plenty of punters... Regardless of whether car parking is on their "doorstep" or not..

The straighta way...?

Ronnie Pickering....

And, as has been mentioned on the Glasgow thread by their owners.. The "big names" won't bring in enough crowds on a "different night" than their usual one, to justify the move up.. Speedway in Birmingham in recent history, doesnt appear to resonate with too many people, so to have "Dan, Tai, Emil" et al, appearing in their city, wont have too many of the local populace suddenly sitting up and taking notice I fear.. Lets hope this is the start of a renaissance of the sport in Brum, but it will be a huge challenge..

If that is the case, it looks like a team who will benefit from a very low team average during the season so could, if anyone decent available, be able to redeclare and bring some better riders in... Looking at that suggested septet there could be large scope for changes..

Then why not just drop out of the Championship and go NDL?

Now Mickey Mouse has got further involved, and you can have guests for the top five, it makes sense that the stronger that five the better...

They have to start the season on a lower team average than they ended last year with, so they were bound to be weaker.. Unless they could have got a "four point superstar" on an obviously false assessed average.. Personally I would have gone for a weaker No6 and replaced Blodorn with Charles Wright, as "the tail" looks too long if the Aces want to be title contenders... Thy don't look like they have that "4th Heat Leader" that they had with Wright, and, instead have two clear Second Strings and two clear reserves..