Shale Searcher 1,264 Posted February 7, 2017 Gone are the days when if riders didn't have their helmets on, they were puffing away on a Woodbine!! Can't remember the last rider I saw smoke.... Yes I can, it was Simon Lambert.... Being fitter has to help, even if it's just to help "arm pump" or help you breathe better, more effectively.... I packed in smoking 4 years ago, albeit with the help of an ecig.. I needed to get from the pits bend to the 4th bend at Leicester after a bad smash, think Woffy was involved, by the time I arrived, I was f****d! Could barely do anything I was so out of breath.!! I believe it must improve a riders chances, performance if they are fit, but I don't think being super fit is necessary, looking at some riders today, there's nowt to them, light as feathers, can't help them when they fall, I'm sure that contributes to the number of broken bones these days.. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Vince 9,454 Posted February 7, 2017 I can see where you're coming from but personally I like the idea that success at Speedway comes from dedication and that is visible when it comes to fitness. It's always taken dedication but the fans can't see hours spent in the workshop or travelling but they can see if you can't be bothered to keep fit and if you don't you are giving something away to those who do. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
waiheke1 4,295 Posted February 7, 2017 I bet a 16,17 and beyond Mike Lee didn't train at all I was at Lynn when Lee came back after the ban.Don't remember the year.He turned up with his leathers in a carrier bag.He did six laps and came into the pits where I was standing and said to his" man " The Jawa is flat all the way.The GM not. .He had done 6 laps and wasn't even breathing heavy. Surely Mike lee is the prime example of someone who should have spent more time in the gym, if only to keep him out of trouble! Similar to Darcy, both naturally skinny blokes, who would have achieved so much more had they been as dedicated as other less gifted riders. Time in the gym may not habr made those two better riders but as much as anything the gym work is surely part of the psychological preparation and cutting out vices that may impact on your career on the long term. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
steve roberts 9,244 Posted February 7, 2017 (edited) Ivan Mauger used to sometimes train with Manchester City but his requirement was to adopt a sleep pattern and he adopted a routine that enabled him to do so to keep his mind and body sharp. Edited February 7, 2017 by steve roberts 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
speedibee 3,091 Posted February 8, 2017 I'm not saying they shouldnt be fit in just saying all this fitness stuff is taking away the point of why the fans loved riders in the first place , I know a couple of riders who hate training and don't do it and they are no better or worse riders for it , personally if I had to train i would never of got on a bike in the first place , I wasn't a better rider than I was because I hit my talent level not because I wasn't any fitter ,you want to be a better rider go to peter John's and then go to a head shrink cause they are what you need to win they spend so much time in the gym and on the phone , then turn up with unreliable crappy bikes .Unless they are spoilt like a few and daddy employs somebody to do all the dirty work . you're better off out of it Dean , rather than spend too much time with spoilt and precocious 15 year olds who think because they wear dark glasses and a t shirt with no sleeves and a tail they are something special Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sotonian 610 Posted February 8, 2017 Surely Mike lee is the prime example of someone who should have spent more time in the gym, if only to keep him out of trouble! Similar to Darcy, both naturally skinny blokes, who would have achieved so much more had they been as dedicated as other less gifted riders. Time in the gym may not habr made those two better riders but as much as anything the gym work is surely part of the psychological preparation and cutting out vices that may impact on your career on the long term I keep seeing this in regard to Mike but he won everything of note that he could have. World champ in speedway & longtrack, WTC winner, British champ, BLRC winner when it actually meant something. A pretty tidy list by most standards. 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
keepturningleft 589 Posted February 8, 2017 Didn't Steve Davies used keep himself fit and healthy in a sport where that wouldn't necessarily seem to be much of a requirement? Fit body, fit mind. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Shale Searcher 1,264 Posted February 8, 2017 One thing that takes a lot of getting used to is breathing when on a speedway bike.. Do you breath in when you're going in to a corner, and out coming out a corner, or do you only breathe on the straights, I also used to hold my breath on the green light.. it's not as easy to breathe as you think... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sotonian 610 Posted February 8, 2017 One thing that takes a lot of getting used to is breathing when on a speedway bike.. Do you breath in when you're going in to a corner, and out coming out a corner, or do you only breathe on the straights, I also used to hold my breath on the green light.. it's not as easy to breathe as you think... On the few occasions I had a go, keeping things in at the other end was more of a concern! 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BWitcher 12,453 Posted February 8, 2017 The more I think about this the more I think Dean has completely the wrong end of the stick here. I'd say in the modern world and to attempt to capture more younger fans MORE of an emphasis on the fitness side of things is required. You're always seeing articles about such and such a celebrities fitness regime. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
THE DEAN MACHINE 4,738 Posted February 8, 2017 The more I think about this the more I think Dean has completely the wrong end of the stick here. I'd say in the modern world and to attempt to capture more younger fans MORE of an emphasis on the fitness side of things is required. You're always seeing articles about such and such a celebrities fitness regime. that's why I said I'm getting old on the end of the title , it is a young thing and maybe it is the future but it's not what made speedway popular and it turns me off the sport for one , I'm not saying it's the wrong way to go I'm just saying it's not what speedway was ,is and hopefully not what it's going to be they spend so much time in the gym and on the phone , then turn up with unreliable crappy bikes .Unless they are spoilt like a few and daddy employs somebody to do all the dirty work . you're better off out of it Dean , rather than spend too much time with spoilt and precocious 15 year olds who think because they wear dark glasses and a t shirt with no sleeves and a tail they are something special I've had a few offers to help youngsters but it just doesn't work for me , it's the same as a mechanic , I'm proberly a better mechanic than I was a rider and I've had a few offers but I turn them down as it feels like I can't relate to the modern rider , feels a bit like they are doing a different sport and it's not the sport I love ,this season I'm mechanic for a pole and I have no problem because he is one of the last of the old school riders and that is in a round about type of way the point I'm trying to make Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
waiheke1 4,295 Posted February 8, 2017 I keep seeing this in regard to Mike but he won everything of note that he could have. World champ in speedway & longtrack, WTC winner, British champ, BLRC winner when it actually meant something. A pretty tidy list by most standards.To be pedantic he never won the blrc. But agree he still had a good record, though his career as a top rider was over in early 84 at 26? years of age.But compare what lee won to what say Mauger or nielsen or gundersen won. No question that Lee was a greater talent, yer he won far less than those riders who combined talent with dedication. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bruno 1,790 Posted February 9, 2017 Tbh when all said and done I reckon Ivan was the best ever when you combine all aspects of the sport, there was a time , 75? When he was almost unbeatable 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Vince 9,454 Posted February 9, 2017 Out of the lads my boy started with at 14 it is very noticeable (with one exception) that those who did best were those who were dedicated and worked at it were the ones who succeeded and got into the higher leagues rather than the most talented. The exception is an immense talent with plenty of money behind him who has done pretty well but by the time he gets to my age will realise how much further he could have got with a better work ethic. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TwoMinuteWarning 69 Posted February 9, 2017 I think the need for improved fitness these days is partly down to the travelling the riders have/choose to do. Riding 4 or 5 nights a week (sometimes more) in 3 or 4 different countries is ludicrous, and must be very tiring. I well remember the sight of the late Lee Richardson at Eastbourne on a Saturday night, curled up on the floor of the pits, trying to get some kip while bikes were being warmed up, as he had just returned from a Thursday night meeting in Russia. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
