Pieman72 588 Posted September 24, 2018 In 2 weeks time I shall be on holiday in Yorkshire (lovely place and the folks). So why not help the cause and go to Sheffield Speedway an excellent track Owlerton. Speedway is perfect under floodlights on a crisp October evening oh and the smell of the castor based oil. Well £32 + wife is rather pricey + the petrol etc for Div2 but lets give it a go.....erm nope the season ended in August !! Am I on another planet or is someone 'having a laugh'. There is something fatally wrong with speedway when a track closes in early September....very concerning !! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nw42 2,048 Posted September 24, 2018 Unsure how reliable it is but Scunthorpe appear to have some Friday evening dates set aside for October, never been myself but only ever hear good reports about the racing, might be worth a punt. Agree re Owlerton, used to love our Thursday night trips over Woodhead for meetings there, first it was the smell of the bakery as you approached the stadium, then as you say the Castrol aaahhhh would kick in, always a fast well prepared track. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WembleyLion 407 Posted September 24, 2018 I know what you mean but you are also lucky to get Speedway in the Summer months at some tracks these days! 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
topaz325 1,827 Posted September 24, 2018 Speedway shuts down on summer for 3 months Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
waytogo28 2,054 Posted September 25, 2018 Fast forward to 2121 and there will be no league/team speedway in the UK in any month with a vowel in it. Plans formulated by the BSPA will ensure this comes about. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Pieman72 588 Posted September 25, 2018 Ha ha I like the 3 months. Is speedway finished or am I missing something. It's ok rapping on about wall to wall TV coverage and Cardiff’s fantastic stadium and temporary track but if there's no meetings or tracks it's game over. Well at least the midweek Premiership will give the riders some pocket money for the GP. Why not have British riders training schools and perhaps some racing? Mind you Brexit will see to that as all European riders will need work permits issued by the DWP good luck there !! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tigerblade 221 Posted September 25, 2018 It's a combination of circumstances as to why Sheffield finished so early this season. 1. Reduced number of fixtures anyway with teams only meeting each other the once instead of twice - which was introduced as a way to alleviate fixtures congestion at the end of the season (as you can see, that has been a roaring success ) 2. Failure to progress from preliminary rounds of Championship Shield/KOC. 3. One rain off, due to the mainly excellent summer. People can talk about Challenge matches/Individual meetings from the old days, but unfortunately nowadays they don't have the appeal, nor do half the riders want to ride in them. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Pieman72 588 Posted September 25, 2018 Very good points and fully understood but speedway is about entertainment. Is it me but what's not to like about 4 or more bikes racing under floodlights with a pint and a burger with your mates? To get the spectators in, try a different formats encourage young riders + different classes e.g. GT140, 250, 350, 500 Sidecars?? The current format doesn't work so why not change it? £17 + for 13 heats of the exactly the same bikes going in circles is looking a bit tired and very poor value for entertainment ? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
iwright71 206 Posted September 25, 2018 On 9/24/2018 at 4:37 PM, WembleyLion said: I know what you mean but you are also lucky to get Speedway in the Summer months at some tracks these days! You would be even luckier these days to get a smell of Castrol R 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tigerblade 221 Posted September 26, 2018 21 hours ago, Pieman72 said: Very good points and fully understood but speedway is about entertainment. Is it me but what's not to like about 4 or more bikes racing under floodlights with a pint and a burger with your mates? To get the spectators in, try a different formats encourage young riders + different classes e.g. GT140, 250, 350, 500 Sidecars?? The current format doesn't work so why not change it? £17 + for 13 heats of the exactly the same bikes going in circles is looking a bit tired and very poor value for entertainment ? They did stage an individual meeting for younger/NL standard riders, with slightly reduced admission, and it was an excellent meeting. However it didn't attract that many people. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Pieman72 588 Posted September 26, 2018 I accept the point but sitting on our hands doing nothing will not get the turnstiles going? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Weeyin 1,006 Posted September 26, 2018 23 hours ago, iwright71 said: You would be even luckier these days to get a smell of Castrol R I miss the smell of Castrol R 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hawk127 1,357 Posted September 26, 2018 9 hours ago, Tigerblade said: They did stage an individual meeting for younger/NL standard riders, with slightly reduced admission, and it was an excellent meeting. However it didn't attract that many people. It is a shame as fair few rave about the biggest individual meetings the GP yet cannot be bother turnout for this type of meeting and I really do not understand the obsession with league racing as it is today. I would rather see individual riders going for it and looking after number one with a pot of money for the winner then the drawn out league meetings that are so often what is offered up as entertainment. The other point is that riders need to be on track regularly and competively to improve and the punters are denying the riders the opportunity to show what they can do with regular riding by effectively boycotting meetings other than league racing. Any wonder the British riders struggle. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Pieman72 588 Posted September 28, 2018 Fundamentally I don't care what we have as long as long as it's racing. Speedway in the UK is now dominated by foreign riders and the GP and unfortunately we have to develop something that is affordable and interesting for the fans that is also viable.... a big ask. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites