Whiteliner

Sorry you got the un editted version Ian

Quick draft of what it could be like 5 Man Teams 15 heats all riders have 6 rides Home Team Away Team Heat 1 1-5 1-5 Heat 2 3-4 3-4 Heat 3 2-5 2-5 Heat 4 1-3 1-3 Heat 5 2-4 2-4 Heat 6 3-5 3-5 Heat 7 1-4 1-4 Heat 8 2-3 2-3 Heat 9 4-5 4-5 Heat 10 1-2 1-2 Heat 11 4-3 4-3 Heat 12 5-2 5-2 Heat 13 1-4 1-4 Heat 14 2-3 2-3 Heat 15 1-5 1-5 All riders must take a minimum of 4 rides, their other 2 rides can be replaced by any rider with a lower average. Riders injured on the night can be replaced with a rider with a lower average but a replacement rider can only do this once. Just a thought, this could easily be amended to fit into 6 rider teams, with the 6th rider being a reserve, I will do a format for that another time.

Maybe he wasnt asked......

Yes it was but unfortunately when you want to do things on the cheap, you get what you pay for. Hasnt been a proper track man for years, job seems to go to anyone who can drive a tractor and is willing to do it for nothing. Pretty much the same as everything else at Redcar, train of thought seems to be, why should I pay for it when I can get somebody to do it for nothing.

Its not the taking over at Redcar thats the problem. Its the current ownership that refuse to let anybody else in, there have been offers made but they just want their money and wont allow anyone else to take over, they offer team sponsorship packages but no other involvement. Ged Rathbone a perfect example, when he tried to buy in he was offered the team sponsor but no role on the board and look what has happened to Peterboro since he went there. The current team sponsor ECCO Finishings has tried for over 2 seasons to get on the board, all to no avail.

Hope all you Ipswich fans make the most of those easy points, would be sad to see you lose them because Redcar close before the end of the season. Worst team at Redcar since it opened in 2006, coupled with very poor home gates and no prospect of it getting any better while Havelock and co are trying to run the show.

REDCAR Bears Speedway closes for the last time Not a headline any of us wants to read but 'm sorry to say that it is a possibility before the end of this current season. So where do we lay the blame for what has gone wrong with this club. A club that had the potential to be a very good club, I was there on 13th April 2006 along with thousands of others, yes thousands who turned up for the opening night. Current Promotion, Brian Havelock, Eric Gladders, Brian Gladders: Classed a few years ago as the saviours of speedway on Teesside, they could do no wrong in the eyes of many supporters. They have improved the stadium, new bar, new stand better facilities all out of their own pocket. Unfortunately this has led them to believe that they need to re-coup money at an alarming rate, at the expense of the supporters. They have made cut back after cut back to save money, I dont think they have ever employed a real track man who knows what he/she was doing. They now rely on volunteers who will do what they can for nothing. The track has been a disgrace for over 2 years, Redcar is a gate and win track, thats if the riders can stay on for 4 laps. Brian Havelock and Eric Gladders have themselves lost a lot of the supporters through their own attitude, ignorance, aggression and belief that they know best. Penny pinching is all well and good but in the right area's. The track condition must be the No1 priority. The riders safety is paramount, to prepare a track that is dangerous for those riders should result in a full investigation by the BSPA and a suspension of Promoting licence should be applied until the BSPA are convinced improvements have been made. Glyn Taylor: Glyn took over the reigns of Redcar Speedway and tried to run it on his own. Finding that it wasnt as easy as he maybe first thought he looked to make savings. His downfall was trying to sack the then skipper Gary Havelock who I would say was his biggest outlay. This instantly caused a massive rift amongst the supporters, some could see why he was doing it others just couldnt believe it. Brian Havelock stepped in and set up an SOS fund (Save Our Skipper), the fans would help pay Havvy's wages, so god knows just how much he was on. This was the start of the end for Glyn Taylor. Glyn was a track man, he certainly knew his stuff. The track he produced every week was fantastic, riders loved coming to Redcar, the racing was always very good, the fan base was solid even if the team wasnt anything spectacular. After every meeting Glyn would stay back and scrape off the racing strip, often spending many hours doing track work for the benefit of riders and fans alike. C.V.S The initial founder with some help from local people who started the ball rolling in 2006. Played the role of a silent partner, he has probably re-couped all of his initial outlay in the following years. Seems to have completely walked away from Redcar Speedway, not even sure if he is still a share holder, wouldnt blame him if he wasnt. Would of liked him to have been more involved in the actual running of the club. So we can lay the blame at what is happening over quite a wide area. Ultimately whats happening at Redcar must come down to the current promotion, they must realize that they are living in the dark ages and its time for them to go. They have had offers of help, people have wanted to come on board. These people have been told, yes we want your money but you can be team sponsor, you cant come onto the board and have any say in what we do. Ged Rathbone a perfect example and there has been others. If the above headline does appear who will be to blame. The promotion will no doubt blame the supporters for not turning up, that is their mentality, nothing is ever their fault !!!! Hope I haven't disappointed you Ian

Good possibility that Redcar will close before the end of the season if the current set up is maintained. Very poor track preperation, running a team with 2 premier League reserves plus a national League rider (Graversen, Konopka and Morley), throw in Kus who craps himself when anyone gets close and then might as well go home.

Could shut the place tomorrow for me, wouldnt miss it one bit. Save my money now to go to Berwick or Scunny every other week at least I see good speedway and Im entertained. I live less than 10 miles away from the Redcar Track, does that give you an idea of just what Havelock has done to the place ?

Not good to hear long time fans of redcar saying after tonights meeting that they had seen enough already and were considering stopping going. I personally took that decision last season, just how long will Redcar continue that question has to be asked.

Maybe a pointer to which of the 2 will collect the wooden spoon this year

OK as it seems to be my initial post that has started all this supermarket sweep stuff off I just want to make a point. I have already stated that for my family of 4 to go every week its around £80 a week, a figure I cant justify spending on a sport that seems to give me less and less every year. Redcar have just put the price up to £16, didnt bother to tell anyone until they turned up at the gate for the first meeting, just shows the contempt the management of Redcar show the paying public. Crowds at Redcar have fallen every season over the last 3-4 years I would say and its not hard to see why. The current owners constantly plead how hard it is for them to manage and ask the public to help with this fund and that fund. With getting very little back its understandable when the fans say enough is enough. Im a supporter since 1969, I loved the sport from my very first meeting, I felt entertained, I felt appreciated, I wanted to come back every week. Ive lost all those feelings over the last couple of seasons. What do I get now ? 15 heats of speedway, rushed through as quickly as possible and sent home, just not value for money anymore. Costs are to high but Promotors will rely on the die hard fans to pay their prices to watch whatever is put in front of them just because its speedway. Take away all the No1's from the Elite league and what do you have? Answer the Premier League. Promoters need to stop cutting their own throats, get rid of all the very high earners, offer a rate of pay that they can really afford. Yes you might not see the top riders in the world but at least you will still see speedway. Sorry if its been a bit long winded, but rant over for now.

Yes, Ian, as I said in my original posting, MOST OWNERS/PROMOTORS, I do not tar all with the same brush.

Speedway is what it is, a sport run by a few for the few. For me the biggest damage to the sport in this country has been the Grand Prix series. Owners and Promotors of most clubs I would dare say dont really give a toss about the fans, only start to worry when they stop coming. They make rules up then change them when it suits them. No wonder really the whole sport is considered a joke by many. As a fan of speedway for over 40 years, I find it hard to say that it now holds very little interest for me or my family. I cant see me visiting my local track again. So thats about £80 a week not going into the owners pocket just from my family. I certainly dont consider that we now get value for our money. Get them in, take their money and get them out again as fast as we can attitude doesnt work for me anymore.

Some greats from the 2nd tier of racing would do me, Arthur Price, Arthur Browning, Roger Mills, Lou Sansom, Taffy Owen, Tony Childs not forgetting the best for me John Jackson.