When Did Uk Speedway Decline Start?

[Guest]

these are all valid points except they are not really relevant for speedway because it's not seen as a Motorsport , it is and always will be a team sport on motorbikes , 90% of fans including ex supporters don't care about the bikes , my misses has been a fan of speedway since the 70s and has no interest in bikes what so ever , you go to superbikes or whatever and in the main they are petrolheads , the bike is king , listen to the commentators on superbikes it's all "he is on the new factory Yamaha with the new shocks blah blah bla " it's all about the bikes , speedway is all about the riders

 

 

Agree.

 

I agree. It's as in football and other mainstream sports. The club and the players matter the most - not the type of ball, the boots the players wear, the goal netting - none of it counts. THE DEAN MACHINE has summed up 'what makes speedway tick' very well. A small example is action photos - the emphasis is on the speedway rider and team he represents, not the look or set-up of his bike. Speedway in fact snubs its technical side most of the time.

[Vince 9,458]

these are all valid points except they are not really relevant for speedway because it's not seen as a Motorsport , it is and always will be a team sport on motorbikes , 90% of fans including ex supporters don't care about the bikes , my misses has been a fan of speedway since the 70s and has no interest in bikes what so ever , you go to superbikes or whatever and in the main they are petrolheads , the bike is king , listen to the commentators on superbikes it's all "he is on the new factory Yamaha with the new shocks blah blah bla " it's all about the bikes , speedway is all about the riders

 

It's a good point and I wouldn't disagree. The same things apply to the majority of sport though, it is just that I used motorsport because I know about the situation it is in. By and large spectator attendance at any sport has decreased (Football excepted I assume) over the decades as the entertainment options have increased.

[moxey63 1,785]

Is it because we have become too damn lazy to go out and watch anything? Twenty years ago we had to at least leave our seat to take out a video cassette and put in another, to change a long-playing record onto side two, or flip an audio cassette over. The actual thought of leaving the house to travel even five miles, and then all the hassle of gaps between heats, then travelling home... it is easier to watch the speedway updates site or a live stream, if available. And do you know what? They'll be a time when we can't be bothered switching on the device to watch those live streams.

 

The downward roll of speedway popularity has many reasons.

Edited December 26, 2016 by moxey63

[THE DEAN MACHINE 4,740]

This is a post from a personal point of view and not really general but , I was born in Wolverhampton and grew up a wolves fan ,speedway was wolves are far I was concerned , I never missed a match and the riders were my hero's , now when I became a rider obviously my perspective changed a little , after I finished riding and became a fan again the sport had changed and doubling up had taken hold and I now find it hard to be a wolves fan as the riders are all over the place riding for their other teams and it doesn't bother me if I miss a match or if wolves lose , this is not because of bikes or racing or price (even thought I think this is a major issue overall) it simply cause the team aspect of the sport has been diluted to the point where it's like a school footy game where one side picks a player then the other picks one , as I said in an earlier post the max clegg situation last year , this is not against max personally but how can I support a rider who also rides for our deadliest rivals , it's bizzare at best yet the modern speedway has made it so ,it goes against the whole point of team sport , it makes me not want to support my team and not bothered about going

[moxey63 1,785]

This is a post from a personal point of view and not really general but , I was born in Wolverhampton and grew up a wolves fan ,speedway was wolves are far I was concerned , I never missed a match and the riders were my hero's , now when I became a rider obviously my perspective changed a little , after I finished riding and became a fan again the sport had changed and doubling up had taken hold and I now find it hard to be a wolves fan as the riders are all over the place riding for their other teams and it doesn't bother me if I miss a match or if wolves lose , this is not because of bikes or racing or price (even thought I think this is a major issue overall) it simply cause the team aspect of the sport has been diluted to the point where it's like a school footy game where one side picks a player then the other picks one , as I said in an earlier post the max clegg situation last year , this is not against max personally but how can I support a rider who also rides for our deadliest rivals , it's bizzare at best yet the modern speedway has made it so ,it goes against the whole point of team sport , it makes me not want to support my team and not bothered about going

 

 

Dean, you echo my views entirely. I love the sport... but it's not the one I fell in love with. How can you support a team sport when it ain't so? I was an adult when I used to be really angry when Belle Vue lost. But when you start to look at line-ups and feel the men you are cheering have no connection with your team, then what is the point supporting a side? The BSPA needs to address this..... It got so bad, I used to go not really feeling anything if BV won or lost. In fact, I used to chuckle at the ones on the terracing who were angry that they were losing! Perhaps in the years that have passed, the same ones have cottoned on. It is a waste of time getting upset, for this time next year the same way of throwing sides together will be as of now... PE football matches at High School, exactly how I've described it in the past.

Edited December 26, 2016 by moxey63

[Guest]

As the debate about the decline in interest for speedway and possible remedies and views are debated on this thread, it's interesting to see on their website the SGB/BSPA new of what the sport is "all about." I wonder how exactly their definition/viewpoint fits in with what is actually taking place? Here is the item (note it was originally posted prior to the revision of titles for the top two league competitions):

 

"WHAT IS SPEEDWAY?

SPEEDWAY BIKES have no brakes, just one gear, a clutch and 500cc engines which run on methanol fuel and can accelerate to 60 mph, faster than a Formula 1 car!

They race around oval circuits of around 300 metres in length in an anti-clockwise direction. To get around the tight corners at high speed the riders actually have to accelerate to bring the rear wheel out and initiate a "skid"!

Speedway meetings can be run as individual events although what you will usually see week in and week out, at most tracks around the country, are 2 teams racing against each other. The 2 teams have 7 riders each and they race over 15 heats with 2 riders from each team in every heat. If a rider wins a race he will earn his team 3 points, if he comes second he will earn them 2 points, 3rd and they will only earn 1 point and if he comes last the they won't get anything!

There are 3 leagues in the UK,
1. The Elite League (The top league).
2. The Premier League (The middle League).
3. The National League (The league to hopefully train the youngsters).

"It's fast, it's furious, it's family entertainment and it's at a track near you!"

So to sum Speedway up it's four laps of all out speed, control, excitement and thrills as 4 riders go for the chequered flag in honour of their team! The best thing is that all this happens just yards from where you're standing and the stars of the show (the riders) are easily accessible to see and meet, so don't forget your cameras, autograph books and pens!

THE MEETINGS

A meeting or match as it is sometimes referred to is between two teams in the league.
The meeting is run over 15 heats/races and the team with the most points at the end of the meeting takes points toward the league table.
In 2009 a new league points scoring system was introduced as follows:
Home loss by any amount of points = 0
Home draw = 1
Home win by any amount of points = 3
Away loss by 7 points or more = 0
Away loss by 6 points or less = 1
Away draw = 2
Away win by between 1 and 6 points = 3
Away win by 7 points or more = 4

WHO ARE THE TEAMS
There are teams from all over the country racing every week.
The teams are made up of seven riders in each team.
A team manager can decide the riding order of the number 1 to 5 race jackets, the number 6 and 7 race jackets are taken up by the reserves. The reserves are the two lowest averaged riders in the team.
Each team will wear its club colours and a home team will wear Red and Blue helmet colours, whilst the away team will wear White and Yellow/Black helmet colours.
THE HEATS
There are four riders in each heat/race, two riders from each team and each heat lasts four laps of the track Generally a heat will last about 60 seconds on average, but in that time there is plenty of action.
Points are awarded as follows:
First - 3 points, Second - 2 points, Third - 1 Point, Fourth - 0 Points.
The points that each rider scores are counted towards the teams total at the end of the meeting.
THE EQUIPMENT
Each rider rides a 500cc motorcycle with no brakes and fixed gearing.
The bikes run on methanol for fuel and each bike's tank will hold enough fuel for one race.
The bikes can reach speeds of up to 80mph and are capable of 0-60 in approximately 3 seconds.
THE RIDERS
All riders wear kevlar race suits that protect their bodies.
In addition to the kevlar race suit each rider will wear a pair of racing boots, one of which will have a steel shoe fitted that the rider puts down when cornering.
Finally a helmet is worn with goggles to protect a riders head and face.
Each rider will have a kevlar suit tailor made with their sponsors names on.
The bike covers are generally designed to match the riders kevlar suits.

Edited December 26, 2016 by Guest

[moxey63 1,785]

The people who run the sport, the promoters, they are making rules which in the long run make it easier for what are, afterall, their businesses to run as easy as possible, hence the doubling upper and downer, the multi-country men. I suppose, with it being their livelihood, their business comes before the general well-being of the sport, and they are all pulling their own directions.

Edited December 26, 2016 by moxey63

[mikebv 10,273]

For me, the decline started when ITV no longer showed Speedway nationally on a Saturday. The sport getting beamed into literally tens of millions of homes regularly must have had a positive knock on effect for crowd numbers..

 

PC, Mauger, Olsen and Penhall were 'Box Office' and even non speedway fans had heard of them (and recognised them)..

 

Having one of them at your stadium was a definite head start in generating a crowd...

 

At the same time the national team became second (or even third/fourth rate) which was double the problem as no one wants to watch a consistently losing national team. The Danes took over which was never going to move the sport forward in this country..

 

The rest fell into place as teams started to fill themselves with overseas riders of dubious ability levels alienating fans who had an affinity with the British ones they often replaced..

 

The nonsense rules havent helped down the years in anyway of course and have done much to erode away virtually all the credibility and integrity in the relevant Championships which means hardly any kudos is acheived by winning the title. Not a great way to kick start your business when your ultimate aim is so diluted and sadly, irrelevant...

[martinmauger 584]

 

An interesting comment Martin Mauger, but what has this to do with the thread which is titled "...When Did Uk Speedway Decline Start?.." - or are you indicating that the tastes of people have changed over the years?

Not really sure, I've had the flu so haven't slept for 2 days (!).

 

"These are all valid points except they are not really relevant for speedway because it's not seen as a Motorsport , it is and always will be a team sport on motorbikes , 90% of fans including ex supporters don't care about the bikes , my misses has been a fan of speedway since the 70s and has no interest in bikes what so ever , you go to superbikes or whatever and in the main they are petrolheads , the bike is king , listen to the commentators on superbikes it's all "he is on the new factory Yamaha with the new shocks blah blah bla " it's all about the bikes , speedway is all about the riders."

 

The above is so true, I have mates who are mad, crazy about MotoGP, Superbikes, etc, but give me a blank look when I point out the racing is mostly dull with everyone following around the line for seemingly endless laps waiting a fall, mistake or EF. Though I DO realise they are going mostly 10/10ths on the limit, cranked well over at Ice Speedway angles. It still don't do it for me though..

 

True story: I visit road loving, Sky subbing mates on Saturdays * which just happen to (cough) coincide with Speedway GPS * and they would humour me in viewing the speedway until whatever came on at 9ish pm. But - the last few years when Woffy arrived, they really got into "that British guy in black with the tats kicking it to the foreigners", with all due respect to Chris Harris who did the best he could. Woffy's image defo helps - a missed marketting opportunity in 'lifestyle' type mags perhaps? Anyhoo, nowadays we all watch the GPs together from beginning to end and they actually look foward to them and either record or miss the other Saturday nite stuff they used to watch, evne the IOM TT. So speedway can still attract new fans, when the product is right.

 

Agree with many points but my latest gripe is the endless, flipping re-runs, constant 'all 4 back' seemingly because "someone made a too good start". Riders, in any sport, cannot always be guarranteed to hit the first turn all perfectly in a line, someone will almost always make a better or worse start than the rest, that is when the racing / passing should kick in.....

Edited December 26, 2016 by Martin Mauger

[waytogo28 2,054]

The "What is speedway" post by the SGB / BSPA says it all really! Take out the reference to kevlars ( and substitute leathers" ) and reduce the likely top speed - this could have been the introduction of speedway in the late 1940's. Of course it needed no marketing at that time and it now needs something VERY different if it is to capture the imagination of a new generation of younger fans. Like the recent "new" logos it shows that the BSPA thinking is way, way out of date! It needs something that is clearly not there within the ruling suits. The recent "major re-vamp" was a laughable sticking on of new name tags - aping soccer and praying that a tiny part of the multi billion pound business that soccer is, trickles down to speedway. No chance!

[Guest]

There have been several comments intros thread that a major problem that has caused a growing lack of interest in speedway is the way teams are constructed/built in present times.

The procedure is a much distant from the era when teams were built season-on-season by means of the transfer market, the signing of an overseas rider, or the graduation of a young rider to team status.

The Link shows how LONDON teams were evolved from the start of league racing in 1929 until about 20 years ago. Then came the equalisation of sides, riders switching teams to ensure the equalisation worked (and some going out of the sport because they could not be fitted in?), the over-use of guest riders and more happenings like this which have been chronicled already on this thread.

The London teams procedure was, of course, the criteria for many early years throughout speedway. A study of the teams list shows how little teams changed season-on-season in what can only IMO be described as genuine club sides. Sadly, that has long since been taken away from the sport.

The Link is at:

http://londonspeedways.proboards.com/board/76/london-team-squads

 

http://londonspeedways.proboards.com/board/76/london-team-squads

Edited December 26, 2016 by Guest

[mikebv 10,273]

You cannot run any professional team sport successfully, and hope to get a great following, when the crowd themselves have very little 'emotional' attachment to the teams involved, or even the outcome of any event that they take part in...

 

The way teams are put together in British Speedway delivers exactly the situation it currently finds itself in...

 

No surprises as, quite simply, it couldn't be any other way....

Edited December 26, 2016 by mikebv

[New Science 1,059]

 

And yet we have had that for 50 years. Gary Peterson, for example, rode for both Wolverhampton & Nelson in 1970.

 

 

At the end of the 1987 season, there were 28 stand alone clubs in British Speedway. At the start of 2017, there will be 29.

 

 

In my (albeit limited) experience, most of them still are.

 

 

I certainly haven't noticed a significant decline in attendances since 2011 nor have I noted a similar deterioration in the quality of racing.

 

Scunthorpe, for example, consistently put on speedway meetings that range from good to excellent and I therefore see why the others can't do the same thing.

 

 

I think that's true. Its not that the foreigners come over here, but that EL & PL promotions are far more inclined to persevere with them.

Unfortunately where I watch speedway there has been a deterioration in the quality of racing which has led to a reduction in attendances.

[Guest]

Unfortunately where I watch speedway there has been a deterioration in the quality of racing which has led to a reduction in attendances.

 

I am sorry to hear that news. Is there any reason not to name the track and to specify what is wrong with racing? I obviously also appreciate it if you decide not to make your concerns public.

[Vince 9,458]

I've said many times that I am one of the very few who much prefers individual meetings. However I am not immune to the attractions of team Speedway and do feel that having local riders especially in teams year on year would benefit attendances.

 

I can see that a free for all team building scenario could lead to teams who never had a chance of winning shortly going bust so don't believe you can do away with averages for team building. You could give an average discount for riders to be retained year on year though and perhaps another for local riders or more importantly those who have been given training opportunities from early in their careers by that club.

 

A short practice session before the start of meetings would help lessen the disadvantage of the away team as well.