IainB

Not a classic is it.

You take £12,570 out without paying any income tax, you have your wife as secretary or something, another £12,570, your mum as admin or cleaner or something, another £12,570 etc. etc. You could be on flat rate VAT meaning you can keep a portion of the VAT you charge your customers, if you're brave enough you can put pretty much what you want through expenses, I used to work with a bloke who put a Caribbean holiday through as an expense on the pretense that he was looking to do work out there and it was an exploratory trip... it all comes off your profit that you're paying just 20% Corporation Tax on. I run a limited company myself but I play it straight down the line as the last thing I want is a call from the tax man and any investigation... I'm probably too much of a coward but I've known others down the years who have really taken the pish. And of course if the ** do go up you're not personally liable.

... or Brady Kurtz powers of recovery 😁

Because it's massively beneficial tax wise... you can employ family members and withdraw money out of your company tax free, that's just one example, there are many "loopholes" to exploit.

All I asked was what can a CL heat leader expect to earn, no specifics. Not sure why as somebody in the know couldn't put a number on this. I could, of course, look at riders' limited company accounts but with so many riders riding for so many clubs it's difficult to get a picture on a riders earnings from a particular club. I did look at a specific top current CL riders' accounts and was surprised to see that none had been submitted since 2019!!!

I was thinking more of Golf and Tennis but okay let's create some headlines, you must know, but as so many do in Speedway, close ranks when it comes to money?

I don't really think it breaks anybody's personal privacy to say a CL heat leader can expect to earn in the region of £xx,xxxx? It's all so cloak and dagger, smoke and mirrors. It's one of the few sports where earnings and prize monies are such closely guarded secrets. Sports such as golf and tennis are very open about these things.

Any reason given?

I agree we're not very far apart at all and there is no magic bullet that is going to cure all of Speedway's current ills, at the moment it's a death by a thousand cuts. I do take onboard what you're saying about participation, but there are avenues into the sport but that's not to say that more couldn't be done, you can always do more with everything and things should always be under constant evaluation. One thing I will say about Speedway is that it's niche, especially as a participation sport, always has been always will be. You can't just go into a Sports Direct and by a set of Darts, a Cricket Bat, Tennis/Squash/Badminton Racket, Golf Club, Hockey Stick, Football, Fishing Rod, Tiddlywinks etc. You have to go to a specialised supplier and buy highly specialised kit and I dare say you'd have done your £3k before you got anywhere near a Speedway track. In this respect it is also similar to F1 or more specifically Single Seater racing. Even the motorcycling fraternity don't really buy into Speedway like they do with MotoGP & Superbikes, I've heard it said that it's because they can go and buy the equivalent bike and ride it on the road and/or track. Can't argue with most of your last paragraph, I do think there will still be team Speedway in the UK in 5 years time though, even if it's only at an NDL level. All the best Iain

I get what you're saying and speedway does have amateur opportunities as @THE DEAN MACHINE has mentioned, add to that grasstrack and the youth system and there is opportunity for all ages. Speedway is very different from many of the sports you're thinking of because of the need for highly specialised kit to compete. I think you're being a bit disingenuous with the victory lap thing, we all know that's not going to save the sport alone it's just an issue I've highlighted to represent the greater lack of interaction between those competing and those paying to watch.

Again, with respect, I don't think the sport should be spending any time on providing 48 year old hobby riders the facilities to have a go, there's certainly no future in that. It's a young man's game as is all professional sport All of the issues that face the professional sport in this country are addressable, it just needs the will to do it, it is certainly not dead... some riders may walk away, so be it, but there are youngsters out there ready to take their place.

As business's they're a million miles apart and bare no comparison, but... they are both sporting competitions and that is where you can compare them and Speedway is severely lacking in many areas that it's easier than ever before to offer. You do touch on something where Speedway is almost unique it's an individual sport masquerading as a team sport, the fans are interested in following their team and most of the riders are interested in individual glory. With F1 it's also an individual sport masquerading as a team sport but conversely the fans don't really care who wins the constructors championship, they care who wins the drivers championship. The grassroots of Speedway used to be grasstrack, not so much these days with many riders coming from a MotoX background but there is also a thriving junior programme which has produced many riders and really has been quite a success... these riders have then been denied opportunity in the leagues due to the senior riders doubling up and taking all of the team spots. With all due respect to you and I don't wish to be rude but I can't see many fans wanting to follow you on your individual path to glory. Fans over the years have followed the club that represents their local town/ city and then maybe their star rider who rides for them... If you really are interested in having a go though, have you checked out the Aiden Collins thing?

Not so sure about that, Speedway is all about the riders and the more interaction they have with the fans the better... Look at F1, packing stands out around most of the world, it's certainly not because of the racing, it's seen an uptick in crowds since the Drive to Survive series because fans have got to see the drivers and all of the bts footage and a narrative that has been built up around them, rivalries etc, not to mention you don't see Lando Norris driving for McLaren for the season and occasionally turning out for Ferrari. A few questions, what is the biggest rider rivalry in British Speedway at the moment? Who is the most controversial character? What do we know about these riders? The rider with perhaps the biggest following and puts bums on seats is maybe Chris Harris (Now the Emil Sayfutdinov effect has worn off a bit) and he's become a bit of a running in joke within the sport for the number of (diminishing) clubs he rides for. These riders need to connect with the crowd and victory laps and soaking up the crowd applause... or winding them up is a start.

Who needs an accountant when you can get a flatulent dog 🐕 💨

This was one of my most memorable nights at any Speedway track! Brilliant stuff!