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Theboss

British Speedway to be reborn?

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5 hours ago, PHILIPRISING said:

HAVE to say that I think Rob Godfrey is working hard and doing a good job under unprecedented circumstances

Ok, that’s all well and good saying that but he should explain exactly what he’s “working so hard” on what are future plans and let fans judge if he’s doing a “good job”. As I said history shows he is incompetent and way out of his depth and hasn’t done much to promote British Speedway. 

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3 hours ago, phillwhitewasmad said:

Problem is I do think most would still moan if the bspa came up with a eureka moment 

Didn't I read somewhere that a group of serial BSF doom and gloom merchants went for a drink together and spotted a sign saying "Happy Hour" so they  all left ?. :neutral:

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7 hours ago, Speedtiger said:

Ok, that’s all well and good saying that but he should explain exactly what he’s “working so hard” on what are future plans and let fans judge if he’s doing a “good job”. As I said history shows he is incompetent and way out of his depth and hasn’t done much to promote British Speedway. 

I think to be fair to any of those who run the sport, they are not 'proper' sports' administrators...

Just well meaning people who find themselves leading others of the same persuasion.. 

The top sports have a separate leadership team from the owners of the clubs,  which means professionals can be brought in to strategically move the sport forwards. With their performance being measured by the owners..

Many of these people will get their positions through previous experience in similar roles and (possibly most importantly), a list of business and media contacts who can get the cut through needed to generate the right financial backing and publicity..

Speedway (in the UK), has never countenanced such a notion, preferring to keep everything 'in house', within the 'speedway bubble', therefore we have what we have..

I seem to remember, (maybe last year),  a measure of success quoted was 'all clubs surviving'..

Maybe, even though appearing to be an incredibly low aspiration, that is indeed an achievement given where the sport currently sits in the UK within the wider sporting arena?

Whoever is 'in charge', without all the wide and varied infrastructure needed, and a team of people around you with the required skill set to 'run a sport', leaving you to plan strategy, and be the figurehead, it must be a difficult, and maybe even a thankless task..

Edited by mikebv
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Excellent post mikebv..

I have to admit i didnt realise Speedway had any particular strategy except survival, i did attempt to take a look at its rule book some weeks ago, then i realised it has more than 100 rules, i think it was something like 130+  so even though it has no strategy it seems to have rules for everything else. The BSPL were asked in the ask the Chairman online session recently about having someone other than the BSPL oversee the Sport and his reply was, seeing as the promoters are the ones putting the money in, they are the ones who should say how things are run, that was Rob Godfreys opinion.. so it seems they are reasonably happy surviving rather than drawing up plans to move forward, Though they do seem to have made some progress by engaging Hatfits to find Commercial deals for the Sport, though they need to realise its not just a matter of finding sponsors, Sponsors need to be worked with in order to continue those Sponsorships/Partnerships in the years ahead..

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46 minutes ago, greyhoundp said:

Excellent post mikebv..

I have to admit i didnt realise Speedway had any particular strategy except survival, i did attempt to take a look at its rule book some weeks ago, then i realised it has more than 100 rules, i think it was something like 130+  so even though it has no strategy it seems to have rules for everything else. The BSPL were asked in the ask the Chairman online session recently about having someone other than the BSPL oversee the Sport and his reply was, seeing as the promoters are the ones putting the money in, they are the ones who should say how things are run, that was Rob Godfreys opinion.. so it seems they are reasonably happy surviving rather than drawing up plans to move forward, Though they do seem to have made some progress by engaging Hatfits to find Commercial deals for the Sport, though they need to realise its not just a matter of finding sponsors, Sponsors need to be worked with in order to continue those Sponsorships/Partnerships in the years ahead..

Personally I've always thought the rule book needed looking into...was always open to interpretation and confusion and some promoters (Ian Thomas for one) was always looking for loop holes.

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57 minutes ago, steve roberts said:

Personally I've always thought the rule book needed looking into...was always open to interpretation and confusion and some promoters (Ian Thomas for one) was always looking for loop holes.

IAN offered to tear up the rulebook and rewrite it with far less pages ... pity the BSPA didn't accept it then and it is even worse now. 

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18 minutes ago, PHILIPRISING said:

IAN offered to tear up the rulebook and rewrite it with far less pages ... pity the BSPA didn't accept it then and it is even worse now. 

The rulebook wont become any more simple until you have enough domestic riders to fill the teams. With no riders you need all the d/u and guest and them rules to have a chance of full teams in meetings. The problem is not new at the top league, it goes back probably 30 years. 

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7 minutes ago, f-s-p said:

The rulebook wont become any more simple until you have enough domestic riders to fill the teams. With no riders you need all the d/u and guest and them rules to have a chance of full teams in meetings. The problem is not new at the top league, it goes back probably 30 years. 

Unfortunately I think that you are right.

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57 minutes ago, f-s-p said:

The rulebook wont become any more simple until you have enough domestic riders to fill the teams. With no riders you need all the d/u and guest and them rules to have a chance of full teams in meetings. The problem is not new at the top league, it goes back probably 30 years. 

Then give the Domestic riders team places, Check out the riders that have disappeared totally from the sport these were half decent National League riders from 3/4 years ago; Lee Payne, Rob Shuttleworth, Matt Williamson, Jake Knight, Mark Baseby, Ben Hopwood, Dan Greenwood, George Hunter, Danny Halsey, Jon Armstrong, Lee Dicken, Mitchell Davey, Tony Aitkin, Luke Priest, Jack P Blackburn, Liam Carr, Taylor Hampshire, Darryl Ritchings, Richard Hall, Ben Wilson, James Cockle, Zak Wajnecht, Alfie Bowtell, Adam Roynon, Steve Boxhall, Benji Compton, Olly Greenwood, Joe Jacobs, Rob Branford, Kyle Hughes.

Im not disputing the fact that some have retired after long careers, but most have given up because they got peed off trying to obtain a place in a higher League, granted none of them were ever going to be World Champions, but most of them were capable of winning races in a higher League, but promoters often decide to overlook them and go for a foreign rider that may prove to be the rider that is an 8 pointer on a 5 point average, whereas these mostly young British riders were only going to progress steadily.. Its down to the Promoters to give domestic riders Team places rather than filling the sport with often mediocre foreign riders..

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13 hours ago, Mr Ore said:

Didn't I read somewhere that a group of serial BSF doom and gloom merchants went for a drink together and spotted a sign saying "Happy Hour" so they  all left ?. :neutral:

This is what lies at the heart of the problem. The BSPA's increasing reluctance to see feedback as anything other than "doom and gloom" criticism. Of a group of five of us who got together six years ago to put forward a long list of constuctive ideas ( which were published in the Spedway Star at the time ) received not even an acknowledgement of our positive contribution  - never mind a Thank You. All five are no longer regualr attenders to matches. That is perhaps the not so funny part of it. They walked away like many others.

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29 minutes ago, greyhoundp said:

Then give the Domestic riders team places, Check out the riders that have disappeared totally from the sport these were half decent National League riders from 3/4 years ago; Lee Payne, Rob Shuttleworth, Matt Williamson, Jake Knight, Mark Baseby, Ben Hopwood, Dan Greenwood, George Hunter, Danny Halsey, Jon Armstrong, Lee Dicken, Mitchell Davey, Tony Aitkin, Luke Priest, Jack P Blackburn, Liam Carr, Taylor Hampshire, Darryl Ritchings, Richard Hall, Ben Wilson, James Cockle, Zak Wajnecht, Alfie Bowtell, Adam Roynon, Steve Boxhall, Benji Compton, Olly Greenwood, Joe Jacobs, Rob Branford, Kyle Hughes.

Im not disputing the fact that some have retired after long careers, but most have given up because they got peed off trying to obtain a place in a higher League, granted none of them were ever going to be World Champions, but most of them were capable of winning races in a higher League, but promoters often decide to overlook them and go for a foreign rider that may prove to be the rider that is an 8 pointer on a 5 point average, whereas these mostly young British riders were only going to progress steadily.. Its down to the Promoters to give domestic riders Team places rather than filling the sport with often mediocre foreign riders..

Nothing wrong with what you say. It's up to the promoters. Maybe they thought nobody would come and see the riders you mentioned because they are not good enough?

I know I would not fly over to see a weeks worth of meetings with that lot riding...

It's not simple to fix the rulebook.

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On 4/20/2020 at 9:41 AM, lynnboy said:

But the promoters only want to look after themselves and not the sport can’t see them wanting to give up assets. I think it sounds a good idea though but a lot of the old promoters are old school as you well know and don’t and won’t do change even if it’s for the better

...and why not? It's their financial resources that establish a track/club in the first case.

Edited by Guest
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38 minutes ago, gustix said:

...and why not? It's there financial resources the establish a track/club in the first case.

Fair point but it’s the fans (customers) who pay to keep things going and it’s a very poor business that ignores the customer. The proof is there for all to see...Speedway is bust and that was the case before the virus crisis!

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4 hours ago, greyhoundp said:

Then give the Domestic riders team places, Check out the riders that have disappeared totally from the sport these were half decent National League riders from 3/4 years ago; Lee Payne, Rob Shuttleworth, Matt Williamson, Jake Knight, Mark Baseby, Ben Hopwood, Dan Greenwood, George Hunter, Danny Halsey, Jon Armstrong, Lee Dicken, Mitchell Davey, Tony Aitkin, Luke Priest, Jack P Blackburn, Liam Carr, Taylor Hampshire, Darryl Ritchings, Richard Hall, Ben Wilson, James Cockle, Zak Wajnecht, Alfie Bowtell, Adam Roynon, Steve Boxhall, Benji Compton, Olly Greenwood, Joe Jacobs, Rob Branford, Kyle Hughes.

Im not disputing the fact that some have retired after long careers, but most have given up because they got peed off trying to obtain a place in a higher League, granted none of them were ever going to be World Champions, but most of them were capable of winning races in a higher League, but promoters often decide to overlook them and go for a foreign rider that may prove to be the rider that is an 8 pointer on a 5 point average, whereas these mostly young British riders were only going to progress steadily.. Its down to the Promoters to give domestic riders Team places rather than filling the sport with often mediocre foreign riders..

Think some of the wage demands from very average riders didn’t help their cause.

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Which brings us back to the fact the Sport as it is now can only support Semi professional riders, maybe the Premier should be for full time riders, with the Championship being for semi professional riders, with riders salaries to reflect that they are NOT professional, however its always difficult to police what promoters actually pay riders, even if books were verified by accountants, promoters can always pay cash or in kind..

 

Edited by greyhoundp
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