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I couldn’t agree more with this. In my professional life, we do exactly the same thing. In fact, we had a monthly meeting just yesterday where part of that is sharing "best practice" across different departments. We look at who is innovating, what’s working in one area, and then we roll those successful ideas out across the rest of the operation to ensure everyone benefits. It’s common sense in any other industry. If clubs like Glasgow and Poole have cracked it, why on earth isn't that being formalised into a national "Operating Model" for the sport? Work together. As you say, the on-track product is usually decent. The racing isn't the problem; it’s the lack of off-track leadership and professional marketing that’s holding everything back. There are individual clubs doing "good things", whether it’s social media, sponsorship packages, or community outreach. On that note, I genuinely can't understand why the British Speedway Podcast has been cancelled, along with the national media day. Surely the sport can manage to put on a media day somewhere. And as for the podcast what is the actual cost of production? It can't be that prohibitive. I stand corrected if it is. I listen to "That Cov Pod", run by three Coventry City fans. They put out an excellent show after every single game, and they’ve even managed to attract a couple of sponsors. I can’t imagine it costs them much more than their own time to record, edit, and post it. If three fans can produce a quality show for football, why can’t a national sport manage one? Who is taking these decisions to strip away the few pieces of media we have left? If one club finds a way to increase gates by 20% through a specific digital campaign, that blueprint should be shared immediately across the league. There is no excuse for the rest of the sport to be lagging behind when a few clubs have already demonstrated how to do it well.

What does Buster have to do with Northampton speedway? 😂

Just had my morning spliffie and feeling real mellow and the world's in great shape. Feeling REALLY positive about the Northampton thing. I'm convinced it'll make a REAL difference and provide a big boost to the project being a huge success. So, everybody just do whatever you do to get positive, create loads of positive vibes, and together we can make a big difference and overcome all of the so damaging negativity. PS I am not Donald J Trump

Over half a million have watched the fight between Wright and Allen last season.. If every club had its own YT programme they would have had a link to these 500k people, via the YT algorithm... A decent phone and a lap top to edit what you film...

Great Post.... In my ex world of business we often, store to store, region to region, shared "best practice" and all, as one, benefitted from ideas that invariably came from people who were innovative... With the more pragmatic who didn't possess such a skill set, (like me), building on these ideas to ensure profitability and legal compliance... Before we launched this "New Way Of Working" into the Operating Model of the business.. Glasgow and Poole, in particular, seem to be able to engage people to watch their teams, therefore why not, nationally, make what they do part of the "Operating Model"?.. There may be others who also do "good things" individually that could work for others, eg social media sites, selling yourself to sponsors etc, etc.. The on track action is, in the main, decent to watch, it is very much the off track leadership and marketing which hold it back... There isn't an excuse though when some can demonstrate how they do it well...

I notice they have put a race from Scunthorpe up on the British Speedway YouTube channel from last Sunday. While that’s great to see, it appears to be the first post in four months. Just because the season had ended, it doesn't mean the content should stop; you don't grow a brand by going silent for a third of the year.

When it comes to social media exposure Northampton and the rest of the premier league could learn a lot from the Buxton promotion, even using catchy slogans like get your backside trackside and tales from the dales

Following up on my post from yesterday, I think it’s important to clarify one thing: some people seem to confuse concern with criticism. My comments come from a point of genuine worry, not just for the situation at Northampton, but for UK Speedway as a whole. In Northampton's case, I can only assume the deal isn't fully over the line yet. As Karlito mentioned in his video, why wouldn't there be at least some social media activity? It’s free advertising, yet there’s a total vacuum. Speedway has been the backdrop of my life and my brother’s for over 40 years. We’ve had the highs and lows following Coventry, travelling the country together when we were younger. Mum and Dad taking us to Coventry away meetings in the 80’s are great memories. When the Bees weren't riding and we could drive, we’d be at Cradley or Stoke on a Saturday. Dad would take us to Long Eaton and Birmingham Wheels. When I moved to Woking for my first job after Uni, I was at Reading every Monday. Now living in Lincolnshire, I’m at Scunthorpe for every home meeting. This isn't just a hobby; it’s a lifetime commitment. My Dad is 80 this year and has been a regular since he was a boy. Now, he has nowhere to go. The sport hasn't even got a proper TV deal for him to watch — and yes, I know BSN exists, but it doesn't solve the visibility issue. If I were a promoter right now, I’d be turning to the one big asset every club has: its fans. I’d be appealing to the fans in the Speedway Star and the club programmes for help, because some of us might just have some good ideas on how to actually run a business and turn things around. Clubs seem to treat us as the enemy these days rather than engaging with us. I can think of one fan who runs a very successful business: Alex Brady. Yes, he’s been involved before, but I believe someone like that has incredible transferable skills. You only have to look at his company’s social media output to see that they know what they are doing. Both himself and his business partner, Jamie Minors, have gone from strength to strength from a cold start all those years ago. They are young people who know how to engage with a young audience as well. In my view, promoters and speedway managers should stick to building teams and using their contacts within the sport to do that. Yes, the promoter also puts his or her money in. But seek out people who actually know how to drum up paying customers. Not just wait for them to magically appear out of thin air. At Scunthorpe, I think they get a lot right. The price point is spot on, and the programme is a no-frills scorecard that does the job keeping cost down. Their biggest bonus is the track itself, which serves up terrific racing. They deserve bigger crowds. But the social media output and the website are poor. They could put some great races out on their social media as advertising from the EWR. I haven't been into the town centre, but I can’t imagine there is much around telling people the Speedway even exists, or in any out of town shopping areas. There is a big sign at the entrance to the car park....... It shouldn't just stop at Scunthorpe looking for fans, either. Lincoln isn't far away, and I’d be heading straight to Lincoln University and other UNI’s nearby as Lincoln isn’t the only one. I’d be seeking out the Media and Graphic Design courses and offering those students the chance to promote the club. Give them access to the social media channels and let them crack on. When I was at school, we were taught to keep a display book of our best work for interviews; this would give these students real-world results for their portfolios. I notice my own football team, Coventry City, have let Coventry Uni Graphic Design students handle some of their social media content and it looks superb. They also have a "City Unseen" video on YouTube—watch it, it’s brilliant. You could do the same at any Speedway club on a smaller scale. I’ve heard the "wait until May" argument for Northampton, but I try to imagine that logic in my own professional life. If my directors asked for an update on my latest £1.75m project and I told them I was just waiting until May to see what happens without telling anyone about it, I’d be out of a job. It’s not criticism; it’s concern for something that has been part of my life for four decades. If promoters stopped treating the fans like the enemy and tapped into the skill sets, we have, we might actually be able to help this sport thrive again.

Edinburgh run 25 miles from the city while in the recent past neither Eastbourne nor Somerset were anywhere near civilisation!

Yes, I see your point. Would probably find being called Northants Bombers or something less localised geographically may appeal to a wider audience. I know areas like Northampton and Wellingborough have quite a local rivalry. Somerset Rebels was a good example of naming a new team to appeal to more than just people from Highbridge.

100%... Everyone who follows Speedway, as close as everyone does on here, will want the venture to succeed, hugely.... That doesnt mean though that everyone becomes a "Happy Clapper" when discussing it... Let's be honest, some of those involved hardly have a fantastic record at promoting the sport at their own tracks do they? With many of them leading the sport to its current situation... Therefore, I think it is natural to have concerns as to how the launch will go.. And the longer the only message is "no news is good news", the longer the concerns will, quite naturally, grow.. PS. And if you are launching a brand new to the area business, "no news" (definitely, one million percent), isn't "good news" at all!!! Let's hope for the best for both Northampton and Buxton, as I, like many on here I am sure, look forward to visiting both this season...

I know what you’re saying, but my point is, it’s out in the sticks, between villages, it even in one. Certainly not Northampton, or in Northampton. For a “new venture”, that seems a bit of a drawback to recruiting fans, unless there’s plenty of transport laid on.

If it was in Northampton, both stocks and speedway wouldn't happen, or at least, would be constantly under threat from development. Mind you, my last point didnt help Arena Essex. 😔

25.03.2026: Sparring, Grudziądz v Toruń all heats:https://youtu.be/gF2RKcA77KA?si=P_-lnP5eXGzpNcF8

It would be a tad easier if the track was actually in Northampton. The fact that it’s out in the sticks won’t help!

Wouldn't be the worst idea for someone at Northampton Speedway to have a word with Karlito and see if he can help with spreading the word... I'm sure that the vast majority of posters on here are fully behind the venture at Northampton and hope it will go on to be a great success... Any perceived negativity is purely down to the fact that they don't seem to be giving themselves the best chance of succeeding... As Karlito says... it doesn't take a lot to get the interest started... and once it starts momentum can build... The total lack of news can only lead to many of us thinking that there are big problems that still need to be resolved and could be putting the whole thing at risk of ever happening...

Excellent post.

He didn't really have an answer but then it was a pretty big question. What he did say was that he thought the fines imposed are too large and it puts riders off from coming over here. I thought that strange. He said that riders can earn ten times the points money in Poland to who they can do in the UK but the social media side of things in the UK is good.

Listened to some of Fraser Bowes interview on the Poole 15 heats later videocast on Youtube Someone asked about the van incident late in the season that ended with him downing tools 😂 Knowing the story, it just shows how much of an entitled bloke the guy is, didn't come across very well at all, probably will fit in perfectly at Poole 😀 Him and Tate/Jacob for example are night and day in terms of personal character.

Noted the Press Day photos and the new kevlars, certainly much improved on last seasons "watch this space" version.

Great heat on You Tube and Social Media from BSN - showing what Pickering will offer at Scunny,

The longer the silence goes on, the more I think this isn’t happening… “Northampton Speedway 2026, the club that almost happened.” will be spoken about for years.

As "Karlito" says on the You Tube post this is a wasted opportunity to tease social media with information . Even if it was simple teasers with 4 potential team names / colours / kevlar designs etc .... Advertising the fixtures and the first meeting - just to gain traffic to the X / IG feeds. With everbody having no choice to Enjoy the Silence, the questions whether this will actually be ready in 30 days will get louder and louder.

Think you’re missing the point of peoples concerns

Well the season is now under way, and I feel that this my be my last season as a supporter, I am feed up to the back teeth of listening to Rob Godfrey talking absolute sh*t about the coming season. He was on SPEEDWAY 360 PODCAST, about 6 weeks ago saying '' in 2 weeks time there will be a major WOW statement ''. Was the ''WOW statement'' that Northampton was entering the Premiership, something we already knew about in January !!! And the SPEEDWAY FUTURES group were waiting to give us some news about the season and beyond into 2027. This SPEEDWAY FUTURES group, committee or whatever they call themselves, What the F*CK do they do, do they consist of , a MP , who no-one has heard of , Harry Redknapp, who has done absolutely ZILCH, since he appeared at Poole last season, and A.N.OTHER (another duffer who know bugger all about Speedway.) Its time for this mob to come out and state where Speedway is going, what they intend to do to bring in crowds and new teams to the league, and the structure in coming seasons. Have they got a 3 OR 5 Year plan, or are they just a bunch of non-entities with no ideas and Speedway is set to disappear in 2028, its 100 year anniversary. ''