Pride Month

[HackneyHawk 64]

2 minutes ago, HackneyHawk said:

See this is the average intellect of the Speedway fan and I have to say organisers/promoters too.  Speedway is dying out and a large part of the reason is that many people involved in the sport are as thick as sh*t

No to Speedway celebrating Pride. Not because Pride isn't worth celebrating (it really is) but if Speedway did it, it would be an embarrassing, clumsy load of old crap along the lines of much of the way British speedway is run/presented generally 

Edited June 3, 2021 by HackneyHawk

[Vince 9,454]

39 minutes ago, HackneyHawk said:

See this is the average intellect of the Speedway fan and I have to say organisers/promoters too.  Speedway is dying out and a large part of the reason is that many people involved in the sport are as thick as sh*t

But clever enough to know that somebody having a different point of view and expressing it politely takes more intelligence than name calling! 

Edited June 3, 2021 by Vince

[Ray Stadia 1,064]

On this forum, we are constantly told the average speedway fan is upwards of age 50. Upwards of age 50, is likely to mean they are less tolerant to gay celebration events, so, in my opinion, I don't think it will go down very well with the average supporter. It's a generational thing. I'm 63 and I have no issue with LGBTQ+, but at the same time, I don't want my nose 'rubbed in it', which is what society seems to want to do, with many issues. 

[ch958 2,392]

5 minutes ago, Ray Stadia said:

I don't want my nose 'rubbed in it'

costs extra

[Jonny the spud 2,281]

21 hours ago, Haywood said:

I note that it is Pride Month and wondered what Speedway clubs are doing to celebrate this, if anything anything?

Ice Hockey had a Pride Weekend and it was a great success.

https://www.eliteleague.co.uk/article/827-eihl-s-pride-weekend-arguably-most-impactful-in-pro-hockey

I was a bit sceptical at first and didn't really understand the concept. And, to be honest, I couldn't even tell you what all the initials in the acronym LGBTQ+ stand for.

But all the players and fans really embraced the concept and I did find it helped my engagement as a fan, even though I have been a season ticket holder for the Guildford Flames for 15 years. I soon realised it was just about celebrating difference and coming together as a community. It really made me feel I was, in a small way, a part of a community I was genuinely proud to be a part of.

It also helped turn a standard League match into more of a special occasion.

Definitely seems to be an idea worth considering.

 

 

It’s an entirely sensible and good thing to do. 
 

 

therefore speedway won’t be adopting it. 

[Haywood 30]

3 hours ago, HackneyHawk said:

No to Speedway celebrating Pride. Not because Pride isn't worth celebrating (it really is) but if Speedway did it, it would be an embarrassing, clumsy load of old crap along the lines of much of the way British speedway is run/presented generally 

I can understand where you are coming from.

Other sports like Cycling and Ice Hockey are having challenging constructive debates about diversity and inclusion. Maybe Speedway (or at least this forum anyway) is not ready for that debate. But what does that say about Speedway's future?

I do find it puzzling that fans of a minority support show so little empathy to minority groups.

Edited June 3, 2021 by Haywood
Correct typo

[dontforgetthefueltapsbruv 10,692]

1 hour ago, Haywood said:

I do find it puzzling that fans of a minority support show so little empathy to minority groups.

Perhaps then we should be having a national speedway week or month.......

It would obviously need to have at least a 5 minute slot in every msm news bulletin and anyone not attending a Speedway meeting in that time would be labelled as a narrow minded bigot

[Deano 1,318]

13 minutes ago, dontforgetthefueltapsbruv said:

Perhaps then we should be having a national speedway week or month.......

It would obviously need to have at least a 5 minute slot in every msm news bulletin and anyone not attending a Speedway meeting in that time would be labelled as a narrow minded bigot

A “Speedway Matters” movement perhaps? We could take down or demand to be taken down any statues related to football history.

[bluebee 199]

1 hour ago, Haywood said:

do find it puzzling that fans of a minority support show so little empathy to minority groups.

That is quite an assumption. This forum has many different voices and just because there does not seem to be wholesale support for your  chosen minority does not mean that there is no empathy for at least some of the  LBGTQI+ cause.  As a successful  promotional initiative in basketball  I have looked at your link and it is a rather subjective report.  It doesn't really prove  that it was a success beyond the fact that some who took part enjoyed it.  There can also be a negative reaction to what may be seen as jumping on a social bandwagon - look at the kneeling at football matches, it has become increasingly controversial and divisive I think. I think speedway needs to focus on its  real problem which is promtion of the sport not social issues.

[Haywood 30]

13 minutes ago, bluebee said:

That is quite an assumption. This forum has many different voices and just because there does not seem to be wholesale support for your  chosen minority does not mean that there is no empathy for at least some of the  LBGTQI+ cause.  As a successful  promotional initiative in basketball  I have looked at your link and it is a rather subjective report.  It doesn't really prove  that it was a success beyond the fact that some who took part enjoyed it.  There can also be a negative reaction to what may be seen as jumping on a social bandwagon - look at the kneeling at football matches, it has become increasingly controversial and divisive I think. I think speedway needs to focus on its  real problem which is promtion of the sport not social issues.

Thanks for your response.  And thanks for taking the time and trouble to read the link. Maybe it is an assumption but the way some posts were framed gives me the impression there was something disliked about 'minorities' in general. Maybe I am misinterpreting them?

I wouldn't say it is my 'chosen minority' - I have had no involvement whatsoever with Pride events or movements other than attending a single Ice Hockey match.

 

[Ray Stadia 1,064]

1 hour ago, dontforgetthefueltapsbruv said:

Perhaps then we should be having a national speedway week or month.......

It would obviously need to have at least a 5 minute slot in every msm news bulletin and anyone not attending a Speedway meeting in that time would be labelled as a narrow minded bigot

We could have a minutes silence at the beginning of each speedway meeting, to respect all the defunct tracks. Also, maybe a remembrance day, for all the defunct tracks and wear some kind of badge or flower. Perhaps a badge resembling a can of Castrol R?  

[bluebee 199]

40 minutes ago, Haywood said:

wouldn't say it is my 'chosen minority' - I have had no involvement whatsoever with Pride events or movements other than attending a single Ice Hockey match. 

I hope that did not sound in any way sarcastic, it certainly wasn't meant that way. 

I really think that this area of spot highlighting issues is becoming a problem. A good example is football and the knee. There was general acceptance of the Kick It out campaign but the knee has a connection with a political movement that has had well documented Marxist leaders. As for LGBTQI+  causes that has problems as well for many people and they are not all  conservatives or reactionaries. Trans rights promoters such as Stonewall  have drawn the ire  of many including feminists who seek to safeguard women's rights. I think speedway has enough issues at the moment. Although the Speedway Matters posters may sound risible there is an important truth in it for all on the forum. The focus must be on promoting the sport in the most effective way.

[Dempo 124]

19 hours ago, Daniel Smith said:

Why is being gay worth celebrating?? 

We're all the same, we should treat all as the same. 

It would also be classed as Homophobic if there was such a thing as 'straight pride'.

Perhaps its a celebration of that legally being the case in this country and to pressure other countries into the same thing?

[Haywood 30]

1 hour ago, bluebee said:

I hope that did not sound in any way sarcastic, it certainly wasn't meant that way. 

I really think that this area of spot highlighting issues is becoming a problem. A good example is football and the knee. There was general acceptance of the Kick It out campaign but the knee has a connection with a political movement that has had well documented Marxist leaders. As for LGBTQI+  causes that has problems as well for many people and they are not all  conservatives or reactionaries. Trans rights promoters such as Stonewall  have drawn the ire  of many including feminists who seek to safeguard women's rights. I think speedway has enough issues at the moment. Although the Speedway Matters posters may sound risible there is an important truth in it for all on the forum. The focus must be on promoting the sport in the most effective way.

That's OK. You are making quite serious points.

So how does Speedway promote itself? To me part of sports is engaging in the local community and that is part of promoting. It is difficult to know where to draw the line. Should they not get involved in local charities in case they are deemed to be controversial? It is a genuine question.

[Ray Stadia 1,064]

3 minutes ago, Haywood said:

That's OK. You are making quite serious points.

So how does Speedway promote itself? To me part of sports is engaging in the local community and that is part of promoting. It is difficult to know where to draw the line. Should they not get involved in local charities in case they are deemed to be controversial? It is a genuine question.

Speedway, in my opinion, has never been good at marketing itself. There have been some promoters who have had a go, but marketing requires money and time. Most speedway promoters have businesses to run and can't afford the time. As for the money for marketing purposes, speedway promoters don't have the spare cash. Even if they did have the cash and the time, would it put more 'bums on seats'?  I think speedway needs to concentrate on cutting its costs, it needs to be more of an amateur sport than a professional sport, to allow promoters to at least break even.