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The continuing decline of Speedway

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2 minutes ago, moxey63 said:

Still going through old mags, and back in 1978 Belle Vue were celebrating its 1502 member to the Supporters’ Club. I know it is 40 years since, but perhaps the lure of following a team – you needed to join the club to travel on club coaches – was one of the reasons. Belle Vue, admit ably, had an attractive side, but they had a decent line-up for much of the seventies.

 

My belief - back then; it was the lure of following a side you could identify with. They were your boys, which you felt all sort of emotions when they won and lost. Racing was no better, but you had the belief that it was your side. You were energised to follow it on its travels, even the odd individual meeting that one of your riders was in at some far off corner of the country.

 

But that has gone. And so-called promoters scratch their scratched-scarred heads wondering why.

 

Speedway has suffered a continuous decline since 1978, but modern day speedway puts two fingers up at the fans that want that team ethic back we had even 20 years ago. When you see men on television riding in a Swedish match and scoring well after having had a bit of a stinker for your club just 24 hours earlier, it makes you think – why should I support a team of riders who don’t really mind what they net for you or your team, because they have a preferred match in Sweden or Poland later that same week? 

Unfortunately that's what it is all about nowadays with riders,how many meetings can I ride a week ,doesn't matter who for.

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I'm not kidding myself that speedway forty years ago was perfect either - for in one 1980 fixture  Bobby Schwartz of Reading and Hackney's Finn Thomsen pulled on Aces' jacket as guests in one match - despite both of their teams challenging the Manchester club for the league title! And it happened late enough in the season - mid-September - to have had an influence on the title race. 

Edited by moxey63

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11 minutes ago, moxey63 said:

I'm not kidding myself that speedway forty years ago was perfect either - for in one 1980 fixture  Bobby Schwartz of Reading and Hackney's Finn Thomsen pulled on Aces' jacket as guests in one match - despite both of their teams challenging the Manchester club for the league title! And it happened late enough in the season - mid-September - to have had an influence on the title race. 

Wish you hadn`t posted that as it`s reminded me that in the same season we(the Racers) had the Kai Niemi guest farce. I thought i had just got over it :D but i`m not so sure now.

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Have you ever worked somewhere where the people talk continuously about it closing, eventually after several years, even tens of years the place closes.

It's called a self fulfilling prophecy.

This thread is a bit like that.

Why don't those people find something else to do.....

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9 minutes ago, sharpandroid said:

Why don't those people find something else to do.....

 

Like how far our heads can get in the sand before we stop breathing?

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As someone who also started following the sport in the 50's I must say that it doesn't bother me if Belle Vue riders race for other teams so long as they are available when we race. When we had riders like Soren Sjosten and Gote Nordin I didn't regard them as any less members of the team just because they also raced for their Swedish teams. In recent times Belle Vue have had a lot of continuity of riders from year to year and I identify with the likes of Cook, Fricke Worrall and Bewley as our riders, just as much as I did with Collins, Morton, Sharpies, Johnston etc.

The real problems are many and varied but some examples are; the silly rules that have to be amended within weeks, the inconsistent application of the rules, the ever increasing costs of machinery, too many riders thinking they are entitled to race as a full time job, losing the opportunity for PL clubs to race at the weekends, many promoters ignoring, rather than embracing, the fans and making them feel they are the integral part of the sport that they are, poor presentation, the failure by the BSPA to get the message out there that Speedway is alive and an exciting sport to follow, etc., etc., etc.

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This ^^, plus meetings dragging on for too long.  At Hull in 1970's / 80's non supporters club members could travel on supporters club coaches but paid a bit more.  Join the club and your next coach trip discount pretty much paid for membership so quids in.  Well prob 1 quid in.  We took 15 coaches to the league decider at Coventry in 1979 and 7 to the 1981 World Final at Wembley and we didn 't even have a rider to support as the late, great Ivan Mauger sadly DNQ.  Signing Ivan in 1978 certainly helped with away support, mostly there was a coach to every match anyway but Ivan's arrival guarranteed at least one and more often 2 coaches.  Best visiting support to Hull at that time was probably Coventry,  often bringing 2 coaches for a mid-week match.  Think a few away coaches ran when Hull retuned in 1995 but fans made their own way to away fixtures.  I miss the camaraderie of those away trips....

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Wimbledon hardly ever run coach trips to the boulevard. The only one I can remember was on royal wedding day in 1981. My previous visit was by train.

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2 hours ago, cityrebel said:

Wimbledon hardly ever run coach trips to the boulevard. The only one I can remember was on royal wedding day in 1981. My previous visit was by train.

I was on that coach!  Only time I ever went to Hull...  Midweek tracks were always difficult, although I was a regular on the coaches to the British Final.

Steve

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17 minutes ago, chunky said:

I was on that coach!  Only time I ever went to Hull...  Midweek tracks were always difficult, although I was a regular on the coaches to the British Final.

Steve

Remember me squeezing that air horn Steve, when Barbara was sitting in front of you. She got the right hump with you!

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I went to the Boulevard for Briggo’s farewell meeting.Was nearly a disaster as my dads car broke down on the motorway and had to be towed to Worksop for repairs!!Seemed like ages,but we did make it in time and got back to London safely

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would it not be possible for the bspa, or a marketing agency appointed by them, to distribute a questionaire at every club to be completed by fans who attend meetings asking what their ideas and wishes for the future are.One league?Doubling up/down?Squads?INDEPENDENT ruling body?Surely someone could come up with something easily completed and meaningful.Would any notice be taken of the answers?Doubt it unless the promoters get the answers they want but they can't keep telling us at the start of every season that they are full of optimism following life-changing decisions at a hugely successful conference and then the exact opposite happens every time.It sums up the basic intelligence of the bspa when they can't seem to understand that by ruining the sport by taking seriously unpopular and unwanted decisions they hit their own selves financially.

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2 hours ago, alang said:

would it not be possible for the bspa, or a marketing agency appointed by them, to distribute a questionaire at every club to be completed by fans who attend meetings asking what their ideas and wishes for the future are.One league?Doubling up/down?Squads?INDEPENDENT ruling body?Surely someone could come up with something easily completed and meaningful.Would any notice be taken of the answers?Doubt it unless the promoters get the answers they want but they can't keep telling us at the start of every season that they are full of optimism following life-changing decisions at a hugely successful conference and then the exact opposite happens every time.It sums up the basic intelligence of the bspa when they can't seem to understand that by ruining the sport by taking seriously unpopular and unwanted decisions they hit their own selves financially.

Don't think you would find anything conclusive. Most posters on here all want different things. Supposedly 81% of speedway star online wanted fixed race nights. Now about the same amount on here don't 

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11 hours ago, alang said:

Doubt it unless the promoters get the answers they want but they can't keep telling us at the start of every season that they are full of optimism following life-changing decisions at a hugely successful conference and then the exact opposite happens every time.It sums up the basic intelligence of the bspa when they can't seem to understand that by ruining the sport by taking seriously unpopular and unwanted decisions they hit their own selves financially.

Clearly, the BSPA don't mind taking a financial hit from falling crowds almost everywhere ( and falling interest levels too ) from their poorly thought through decisions which alienate fans even further after every winter conference. Nothing, it seems can stop them in their lemming-like progress towards killing the sport in the UK - as we know it. They just won't listen - that has been achieved under Buster's rule ( or at least made worse). Eventually, they will of course say " I am taking away my ball and not going to play any more" and blaming the fans.

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19 hours ago, moxey63 said:

Like how far our heads can get in the sand before we stop breathing?

There is no urgency, the sport is still alive and well, I think we are glass half full, glass half empty people me and you.

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