DC2

If you take out the junior teams of Edinburgh and Belle Vue there are currently 24 clubs. Maybe 16 for the top league and 8 for the junior league? So we’d need 16 x 7 for the top league, 112.

How many UK riders do we have in all leagues from last year? I’d be quite happy with a top league similar to the CL and a junior league like the NL, with under 23s doubling down into the junior league.

Yes, very few mentions of April Showers this year. Although having said that I haven’t been watching the weather forecasts because they have become pretty much redundant. The good weather has though kept the public onside with the lockdown and the hour’s exercise or sitting in the garden has been a treat. If we’d all been looking out at rain we’d be more depressed.

Lots of fans say the league has been weakened every year so you’d imagine our 2019 team to be like an NL side compared to the 2007 one, but it isn’t anything like that weak. Ellis, Musielak and Jensen were better than Chrzanowski, Gjedde and Ulamek. The only “weakening” has been the loss of a handful of GP standard number 1s and some reserves promoted prematurely from the lower leagues.

Spot on and perfect. Oh, apart from the last sentence! And you could have a large, old fashioned cricket style scoreboard to please Grachan (which is a fair point).

I think that’s a fair assessment, Grachan. Lots of fans say the league has been weakened every year so you’d imagine our 2019 team to be like an NL side compared to the 2007 one, but it isn’t anything like that weak. The only “weakening” has been the loss of a handful of GP standard number 1s and some reserves promoted prematurely from the lower leagues.

That’s all well reasoned. But would you pick the 2007 Chrzanowski, Ulamek and Gjedde over the 2019 Ellis, Musielak and Jensen If you were picking a team for this year? I certainly wouldn’t.

Ah, those were the days.

I remember thinking at the start of 2007 it was a dream team but they never seemed to all fire at the same time. Gjedde in particular was poor and dropped to reserve (although he did have some good meetings there away from home) and the Poles seemed to go off the boil to the extent that made Rosco say he would never sign another again. And while I liked Andy Moore he just couldn’t gate.

You’re slipping from debate to abuse.

Do you think the 2007 2, 3 and 4 would beat last year’s counterparts based on their form in the respective seasons? And Adams and Richardson would 5-1 Doyle and Batchelor?

The 2007 trio were disappointing, the 2019 trio well above expectation.

Which team would win, 2007 or 2019? Considering how the riders performed in those seasons and not on their reputations, I wouldn’t be so sure that the 2007 one would thrash the 2019 one: 2007 Adams Chrzanowski Gjedde Ulamek Richardson Korneliesen Moore 2019 Doyle Ellis Musielak Jensen Batchelor Vissing Perks

You think? I think last year’s 2, 3 and 4 were better, but the 2007 reserves were better. 1 and 5 equal.

Is it indisputable? Maybe in terms of half a dozen lost GP riders, but otherwise? If you compared two of Swindon’s best teams over recent years, considering how the riders performed in those seasons and not on their reputations, I wouldn’t be so sure that the 2007 one would thrash the 2019 one: 2007 Adams Chrzanowski Gjedde Ulamek Richardson Korneliesen Moore 2019 Doyle Ellis Musielak Jensen Batchelor Vissing Perks

Fair point. But I assume you take my point that you can’t have the best riders if they can’t be paid for by people through the turnstile.

Didn’t you say we need to see the best riders? Well, to pay for them you have to charge more or hope attendances treble or better. So can you afford them on 800 crowds paying £50 each or on 2,000 crowds paying £30? You definitely can’t afford them on 1500 crowds paying £17. So I’m asking you where the balance lies between quality of rider and affordability?

Not at all. It was a guess on my part. If you think that team would be supported by a £30 admission fee say so and give an idea of how many fans would pay that and what the overheads would be.

What do you mean? You’re beginning to slip from debate to abuse. I said “Polish type team” and I’ve used Lesznos as an example.

Possibly. But how much do you think it would cost to field a team of Hampel Kolodziej Kurtz Lidsey Piotr Pawlicki Sayfutdinov Smektala

I wonder where the balance lies? Would people pay £50 to watch Polish quality teams or prefer £10 to watch lesser ones?

Not sure that is a unique selling point. Plenty of sports in this country have the best participants. I don’t know what the USP is, other than good races are thrilling and following a team is “tribal”, similar to football but more pleasant For me, the key is value for money. If speedway were £10, albeit with lesser riders, my girlfriend and I would go every week.

But there’s no evidence that the first caused the second.

I don’t think chalk on a board will cut it though. From my experience of shop fascias, a two metre by three metre illuminated plastic board with a LED display would cost at least £10,000.

I agree one is desirable but wonder if it can be afforded by every club. I suspect they cost at least £10,000? I’m not sure that expense can be justified simply to inform those who are not paying attention to the PA.