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Pieman72

Extortionate Admission Prices

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7 hours ago, uk_martin said:

a) what's wrong with offering cheap alcohol? Pubs have been promoting student nights on just that basis for years. Ibiza holidays are promoted on the back of cheap alcohol too. Damn, that word "promoting" again. So alien to the "sport" of speedway
b) £17ish for an adult at speedway and free for kids, and Birmingham are threatening closure because not enough are coming through the door at those prices.  Cricket charges £25 for adults and £7 for kids and is regularly sold out, If that's not a failure for speedway, then what is?
 

That fasle myth that mikebv blows out of the water so well, that Polish speedway is cheap for the fans. It may look like it to us but it isn't to the Poles. Wherever you go, entrance to speedway is about the same as 4 or 5 pints of beer down the pub, whether that's in Poland or in the UK. You get better value and more bangs for your buck in Poland though. I've seen parades of classic cars, demonstrations of other sports, parachutists, aerobatics displays overhead, and all sorts in the mini-break after heat 10,  It's a simple thing. Polish speedway is not cheap, but you get great value on track with the best riders for your money and you get value added additions added to the mix to send you home happy and wanting to come back for more. And it works.

 

It's a difficult one to juggle. I went to two American Football "Wembley Bowls" and can't say I really enjoyed the experience. Because of the stop/start nature of the game what became more important apparently to the fans was the off pitch entertainment. The game itself became of secondary importance. I used to enjoy watching edited highlights of American Football when first broadcast on Channel 4 but when they decided to show games live I lost interest...too much padding.

Edited by steve roberts

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11 hours ago, JamesHarris said:

Not read through all of the posts so sorry if I'm a bit late to the party here, but are admission prices extortionate? It's a hard one to answer. It's not as extortionate as say paying to watch Premier League football but it is a very expensive night out. The question you have to ask is are you getting value for your money? Sadly I think the answer to Speedway here is no! 

Speedway has always played to a selective typical working class audience. The demographics of that audience tend to be older people and die-hard supporters. What promoters risk doing is pricing those die-hard supporters out and then you are in trouble.  Promoters have to cover insurance costs, medical cover, stadium rent, staff costs, rider wages etc, etc and also make a bit for themselves (it is a business after all). It's a very fine line but you do have to ensure that you are giving the punter a good night out for their hard earned cash. 

I mentioned on the Poole v Leicester thread..

£27 quid for me and my 18 year old student lad last night. ..

If I went with my wife the two of us would have paid £34 which I would have regarded as "too much" for what is on offer to be honest..

To stand at the NSS now it's "all open" again, two adults costs £40 which isnt value for money in my opinion,  especially to watch mainly the same riders in the top division that you see in the second...

That £25 to £30 price point that I paid last night for two "adults" seems around "THE' price point for any Speedway in the UK I would say...

And ride on the night you can get your best crowd in...

Looking at Poole's attendance last night, traditional Wednesday night racing brought them a couple of thousand or so I would suggest...

From a business model perspective they race on their best night to get a crowd, presumably pay out less for 2nd Division pay scales,  and can charge their fans a few quid less than they would need to, to pay 1st Div money out....

A fair few boxes ticked last night by Poole I would think...

 

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58 minutes ago, mikebv said:

I mentioned on the Poole v Leicester thread..

£27 quid for me and my 18 year old student lad last night. ..

If I went with my wife the two of us would have paid £34 which I would have regarded as "too much" for what is on offer to be honest..

To stand at the NSS now it's "all open" again, two adults costs £40 which isnt value for money in my opinion,  especially to watch mainly the same riders in the top division that you see in the second...

That £25 to £30 price point that I paid last night for two "adults" seems around "THE' price point for any Speedway in the UK I would say...

And ride on the night you can get your best crowd in...

Looking at Poole's attendance last night, traditional Wednesday night racing brought them a couple of thousand or so I would suggest...

From a business model perspective they race on their best night to get a crowd, presumably pay out less for 2nd Division pay scales,  and can charge their fans a few quid less than they would need to, to pay 1st Div money out....

A fair few boxes ticked last night by Poole I would think...

 

And they've managed to track 3 Premiership heat leaders into the bargain!

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On 7/26/2021 at 11:42 AM, topsoil said:

Isn't this a case for all sports though, other than football maybe? I know going back to my own experience, I was speedway daft when I was a teenager, Then I started to go out, alcohol and girls took over. Then you settle down and lose interest in the "chase". Then you go back to what you used to enjoy.

I would bet that the only sports which attract teenagers in any amounts are one which also have alcohol nearby? Football (because it is media wall to wall), T20 cricket, darts nights out (sold as a night out rather than a purely sporting attraction).

So if you want to attract teenagers, maybe you need to turn speedway meetings into a stag party atmosphere?

Mine lost interest once it became unaffordable for them to attend at age 16 and whilst they were still in their last GCSE year. They couldn't pay the student price because that was for 6th formers and uni students, so had to pay adult prices. Even at the concession prices, it was too far out of reach and unaffordable to go week after week.

Eldest still likes speedway, keeps up with all the news but has gone to maybe 5 meetings and two GPs since he was 16, youngest has gone to just one GP and no league meetings but still has a passing interest but middle son stopped going the week after his 16th and has absolutely no interest whatsoever....they were all massive fans at one point.

None are interested in football...or any other sport come to that, speedway was their love and they would have continued going and still be contributing to the sport had the prices been more sensible for them to do so.

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I now use the www.trolley.co.uk website to "plan" my shopping 

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If the Isle of Wight Warriors goes well then that may be the future. Speedway in it's current format will probably cease but something will come along to replace it. There are too many riders officials and supporters around to let it die. 

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31 minutes ago, Pieman72 said:

If the Isle of Wight Warriors goes well then that may be the future. Speedway in it's current format will probably cease but something will come along to replace it. There are too many riders officials and supporters around to let it die. 

varied formats of racing that work best on the home circuit whilst utilising a selection of riders to give both diverse levels yet balanced teams, running on race nights that suit them within the peak operating window, with excellent presentation and value of their customers......that lot on the IOW are barmy and long may it continue.

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7 hours ago, Pieman72 said:

If the Isle of Wight Warriors goes well then that may be the future. Speedway in it's current format will probably cease but something will come along to replace it. There are too many riders officials and supporters around to let it die. 

I watched a couple of You Tube videos of that meeting and there didn't seem to be many there. Of course, there might have been huge crowds just out of range of the camera, but the main stand seemed a mass of empty seats.

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18 hours ago, Prentice1874 said:

Speedway does not have extortionate prices and it never has. In terms of your own lifestyle, earnings or priorities then YES Speedway does have extortionate prices and is bottom of the feeding barrel.

It's a dying sport and it'll be gone very soon in GB unless there is a massive shift in peoples thoughts.

All I read is moaning about the cost being too high, not value for money, 15 minutes of racing shouldn't cost blah blah, not enough passing, riders doubling up, guests, rider replacement, rain offs, poor track conditions, poor stadium conditions and the list is endless.

Well guess what, Speedway is almost finished in the UK so enjoy it whilst you can. 

Everyone go as much as possible for the next few weeks as it won't be there next season.p

What a load of rubbish

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1 hour ago, mickthemuppet said:

Speedway is almost finished in the UK so enjoy it whilst you can. 

It's Sayonara then to UK league speedway as we know it and have been stuck in the historical rut of for 20 plus years. Fewer and fewer do want to pay for it and that is the final arbiter. No paying punters and or No sponsors means that it is not viable. We have You Tube to watch this extinct creature when we need a dose of nostalgia. That's life! Every "craze" has it's time and speedway had a very good run for it's money. Too long really because for many it had become  Yawn, boring, lacked passing, thrills excitement and lost it's tag of "racing" ( in the main with 3 or 4 of the heats in a match containing any) and was for many too expensive or poor value for money. It will stagger on in some form for a while to a diminishing group of spectators. If it is really Bye Bye time, so be it. Plenty of opportunities then for re-unions. By the way I was an addict for 40 plus years but managed to wean myself off it, over the last ten years. Phew!

Ooops it was Pieman who said that, sorry Mick.

OOps it was in fact Prentice 1874 who said that!

Edited by waytogo28
additional point made - again

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7 minutes ago, waytogo28 said:

It's Sayonara then to UK league speedway as we know it and have been stuck in the historical rut of for 20 plus years. Fewer and fewer do want to pay for it and that is the final arbiter. No paying punters and or No sponsors means that it is not viable. We have You Tube to watch this extinct creature when we need a dose of nostalgia. That's life! Every "craze" has it's time and speedway had a very good run for it's money. Too long really because for many it had become  Yawn, boring, lacked passing, thrills excitement and lost it's tag of "racing" ( in the main with 3 or 4 of the heats in a match containing any) and was for many too expensive or poor value for money. It will stagger on in some form for a while to a diminishing group of spectators. If it is really Bye Bye time, so be it. Plenty of opportunities then for re-unions. By the way I was an addict for 40 plus years but managed to wean myself off it, over the last ten years. Phew!

Ooops it was Pieman who said that, sorry Mick.

I don't think it's dead but it does need to evolve. If I'm honest I haven't been to a meeting since the end of 2013 as I wanted a complete break from the sport. I am tempted to go and watch a meeting this year (probably at Leicester) but even though I am fortunate to be financially comfortable, I am still asking myself is it really worth it at £18 each and then £3 for a programme plus food and drink? If I was going to see some of the best riders in the World and be a part of a buzzing near to capacity crowd  I wouldn't hesitate but deep down I know I won't be getting good value for that money. I could go out for a really  nice meal and drinks for less. I could go down to my local non-league football club and watch a decent game with a decent sized crowd and have a good laugh for £7. For less than the two adult admissions and programme we could go to the cinema or the bowling alley and have a much better time. 

The promoters need to understand their audience and what their audience expect for their cash. You just can't take them for granted anymore. The days of opening the gates and expecting  the same crowd plus more to come and watch more of the same are over. I've said before that speedway in the UK is mostly played to a die hard working class audience. One you price those loyal customers out then the game is over. 

The biggest problem speedway has IMO - you are basically seeing the same riders race all the time. Just in a different race jacket depending on what night of the week it is. 

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It’s a shame there couldn’t be a “have a slide yourself”, perhaps during the interval. I acknowledge it’s completely unworkable and impractical, but might add some humour to the evening.

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11 minutes ago, JamesHarris said:

I don't think it's dead but it does need to evolve. If I'm honest I haven't been to a meeting since the end of 2013 as I wanted a complete break from the sport. I am tempted to go and watch a meeting this year (probably at Leicester) but even though I am fortunate to be financially comfortable, I am still asking myself is it really worth it at £18 each and then £3 for a programme plus food and drink? If I was going to see some of the best riders in the World and be a part of a buzzing near to capacity crowd  I wouldn't hesitate but deep down I know I won't be getting good value for that money. I could go out for a really  nice meal and drinks for less. I could go down to my local non-league football club and watch a decent game with a decent sized crowd and have a good laugh for £7. For less than the two adult admissions and programme we could go to the cinema or the bowling alley and have a much better time. 

The promoters need to understand their audience and what their audience expect for their cash. You just can't take them for granted anymore. The days of opening the gates and expecting  the same crowd plus more to come and watch more of the same are over. I've said before that speedway in the UK is mostly played to a die hard working class audience. One you price those loyal customers out then the game is over. 

The biggest problem speedway has IMO - you are basically seeing the same riders race all the time. Just in a different race jacket depending on what night of the week it is. 

You haven't been for 8 years. You raise many valid issues but it's too late. It's too late for opinions and it's too late for talk of 'evolve'. It's not happening and the sport is almost dead in the UK. 

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20 hours ago, Prentice1874 said:

Speedway does not have extortionate prices and it never has. In terms of your own lifestyle, earnings or priorities then YES Speedway does have extortionate prices and is bottom of the feeding barrel.

It's a dying sport and it'll be gone very soon in GB unless there is a massive shift in peoples thoughts.

All I read is moaning about the cost being too high, not value for money, 15 minutes of racing shouldn't cost blah blah, not enough passing, riders doubling up, guests, rider replacement, rain offs, poor track conditions, poor stadium conditions and the list is endless.

Well guess what, Speedway is almost finished in the UK so enjoy it whilst you can. 

Everyone go as much as possible for the next few weeks as it won't be there next season.p

 Are you a rider or promoter or one of those stupid enough to invest good money after bad in a business where effectively the staff (riders) dictate how, when and if a meeting goes ahead.?

Riders are suppose to entertain but if the track does not suit them or the weather is not right, they rarely ride to their capabilities and simply go through the motions, hence extortionate prices to watch demonstration races and it is the riders and promoters who need a thought change unless you run the IOW then they have already provided what the punter would like to see in terms of value for money and various disciplines.

Stadiums generally are crap and only speedway fans would put up with poor facilities etc. and actually pay for what you rightly say is fifteen to twenty minutes of races in two plus hours.

It will not die but it might end up with part time riders and amateur competitions. Failure to crack on with changes and reinvent itself over the past twenty years in the U K finds the sport where it is today. Even the body that manages the sport has failed miserably to ensure that regular and reliable t v coverage, which should be the window on promoting the sport in the U K , is up to the job. When Eurosport can cock up the Olympic coverage what chance for a second rate down on its heels sport like speedway.

In terms of what is wrong with the sport, from a fans perspective it is endless. From a promoters perspective all in the garden is Rosie and for all its faults it is basic enough, four riders and four laps yet the rule book has taken away the simplicity. It needs to go back to basics and each club really ought to be run as a business but not a hobby for a few entrepreneurs who, if it was their main operation they would have liquidated a long time back and put their money into something  that might generate a return over and above bank deposit rates.

I hope you local club survives.

 

 

 

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