dirt

Firstly, assuming my quick mental arithmetic is correct, Australia and New Zealand combined have provided 8 riders who have lifted the World title for a total of 19 times, while Sweden and Denmark combined have provided 10 riders who have lifted the World title for a total of 28 times....So, yeah, Australia and New Zealand combined are "2nd to none" as long as you don't let any other near neighbours combine as well... Have they fought side by side in a war? are their flags remotely similar? are they both isolated from other land masses on this planet? do them countries share the disadvantage of being so isloated from other speedway areas? Thats irrelevant really, as Australia has taken up the slack has it not? World Cups, U21 champs galore, u/21 finalists galore, world finalists galore, GP Riders galore, while it took a long time for an Australian rider to get his name on the World Championship, Crump got their to lift the GP W.C. - he showed class to do it another couple of times also, showing the dedication and esteem riders from Down Under hold this sport in, and regard it. New Zealand are a strange one but they produced arguably the greatest ever contributer in the glory years, in Mauger, so they should have the right to benefit from a GP or 2 in their neck of the woods. (Australia) Spin it as much as you like, but you should know as well as everyone else that Russia has changed its name more than its rulers underware garments, who knows the truth? Latvia! Prague! Czech GP! If they arent parts of Russia nowdays they used to be! and must be pretty close I would assume? If Poland divided its country every year after holding a GP, would you say they have never held a World Championship? Whos fault is it they cant keep their country together? is it Australias fault, as it now looks like we have better treatment as we stayed as one country instead of confusing the world with constant separation and changes of name regions and parts of 'Russia'. Since they must deserve a lot how many World Champs have come from their? Who cares about that anyway its next door to a lot of current GP tracks compared to Australia! and if they didnt seperate, Latvia would be called 'Russian'? unless im too confused. WTF? Do you think that the leagues in Europe would die without Australian riders coming over to race here? You misinterpreted my sentence. I meant if world speedway wants such riders coming through the system and helping the world sport, why dont they give just an inch of help, for Aussie promoters in the winter months in Europe, and entice or help 1 percent... with travel -bike shipment costs etc? or isnt that plausable. The production belt and sport needs youngsters to get the bug, and get involved as a rider or fan and then the whole family follows and nobody is disappointed , but no BIG meetings is like starving a Lion it wont help anybody. The riders cant afford to run big meetings back here, promoters cant risk spending fortunes and loosing money, the fact is the governing body should give the dog a bone....for once and do what they say they will be doing for years!!! stage some meetings in Australia just for the sake of this sport not being over run by Europeons/poles/latvians and Russians/danes etc. at least two Swedish lads themselves want to ride and enjoy it in Australia this season so that proves its not hard or expensive!! No brainer actually....its bloody snowing back in the regions! Something. Like the promised GP which cant be arranged!!!!! maybe oz is a goldmine but theylll never know by refusing to risk a few dollars by financing it themselves, instead they want an Aussie to foot the bill and incurr any losses. Hand over cash...what is this a mafia deal in 'insert chosen illegal trade' Its their sport they run it...they sell TV rights they own it .....why ask seperate 'promoters' to pay? they should have their own promoters - who can do the job well. Again you nicely avoid the main factor.... our speedway season starts when all internatiuonal riders have just finished gruelling schedules so arent always happy to come and start another less profitable one with more travel, etc, esp when their teammates in Europe and competitors can relax and recover! We cant run a big enough league in our winter!!!! to keep our best riders, as its winter. Why blame us for the worlds weather patterns. we have bolsted british teams for years and had major players in World Finals and GP series and you know it. Even greats dont always win World Champ's. Im sure it could be arranged but 50/50 at least should be paid by the governing body, with sure if a reasonable amount was needed to be put up by someone, they would go for it, but obviously all costs are expected to be paid which is asking too much. Prob overquoted also such is the FIM or governing bodys unfair/poor decisions they continue to make in not the sports best interests. when you get greedy you never have enough money and just want more and more! Not in the bloody winter with travel considerations - however its perfect for summer - but the riders often want a break. How would all the teams leagues from Europe go running a league in their winter? As I think a promoter could take a punt and would but I dont believe he should pay every cent and foot any possible losses, as lets be honest it is an untried area and exact costs wont be known. For an initial Gp venture the promoter (since they need such a person to risk his own money???) should be quoted for not the full bill, or just hand the cash over!!! that is corruption. Work out the approx costs and promoter if affordable and likely to succeed pays his share or what he can and the BSA FIM governing body fronts the rest of the bills, until it is established exact costs for future ventures. What other international sports are run by businesses, where fairness in not considered, and money buys you everything, including home track adavantage! what a waste of time - see you later.

ohh No losing to the Fairy machine....dont worry, itll just make the next victory over 'em even better. hopefully in a final! Jeffreys standing at that club must just about be as high as any man could reach. He deserved back 2 back nicholls medals but maybe wasnt the ump's pet, but I know he deserved them...as a veteran playing off half back. Truly brilliant player in Magpie colours. Dave 'old son do use in Darwin still get the abc NTFL replay on sunday morning??? or anything? When I first came down to perth, they were showing NTFL game of the week replays from the week before on Saturday arvo on the new channel ABC2. Now ABC has 3 or 4 channels and they show less football than ever, only 1 WAFL match live on a saturday during the season. I thought ABC2 would be great and show all the leagues around the country SANFL, NTFL, VFL etc, replayed even at night, but no we get crap , crud and more useless crap 24/7. I must have seen 2 NTFL games before they scrapped that idea...I rememberr st fairies in one match and Tiwi bombers in another! what a waste of a channel!

any heat details for the curry old mate. I would be precautionary in saying Ward finishing second is normal service , its almost certainly going to be a harder to beat Darcy when the circus rolls through the town. in Jan*15

Why would any touring party be interested as you say theres no money and a request to play a 5 match Ashes series or Poland v Aust etc, whats in it for Poland, or England will be their first question. You are wrong about the FIM they are just too usless at arranging a venue, and implementing a track. Or use established great tracks like the new one at Kurri or proven world class venue at Gillman (not bushland, inner Adelaide) and have temp grandstands erected and hired I spose it works, cant be too hard. You have Melbourne which support most known sports like they are going out of fashion, with Etihad- Telstra stadium, a possible ideal arena as it is designed for close to the action seating. It holds close to 50,000 and would get at least 40,000 IMO. But I dont like the idea of drop in tracks or temp tracks at all myself and I'd prefer to see a proper track like no1 Gillman, simply try and use temp seating which shouldnt cost much to set up. and no hiring of the venue or big costs would have to be paid except temp grandstands. IN future other tracks could rotate it for a GP, with Kurri a possibility as is Wayville showgrounds but if they have a big fence, you can forget it in my opinion. I dont know how much money temp stands cost so that would be the only hurdle for me- nor how many or how much seating you could hire? Nor the areas it could be set up at Gillman Kurri tracks,etc Sydney has possible venues too but the grounds wont appreciate a dirt speedway track being set up, as they would fear it would wreck their surface and contract with League or AFL etc. Sydney has been starved of solos for so long they may be better to do Melb if you want a one off temp track. Everything isnt impossible there are so many options that can be tried, if it doesnt work out great change the method and get it right...Telstra Dome Melb or similar sporting Grounds could make a temp track like cardiff! maybe 1st best option, just shop round for an affordable good venue. 2nd clear option build seating and temp stands at Gillman? or possibly Kurri in future. 3rd FIM announce their intentions and let the public know what they discuss in their talks instead of globetrotting around the world looking at venues,,,then stay mute and give no hope , or idea , to interested Aussies. Our best promoter that I know currently is Gillmans Dave Parker: Who is getting things right. Grahame Boyd is promoting Kurri Kurri rnd of Oz series this year, and hes promoted Newcastle speedway before -has unquestioned amounts of drive to run these things and is especially good at getting sponsorship/sponsors. Owner of Suzuki Newcastle. Your right promoters are rare for our bike tracks, but we have some and one of the best and consistent performers including track presentation and media releases is Gillman guru Dave Parker. He should start the new breed, and show others how it should be done. Kurri will follow suit and quickly we will have great tracks with promoters. When they can build a bigger version of Pinjar Park, it will truly replace Claremont with the added bonus of no big safety fence to see through. The current track is good but questionable for the biggest meetings. I wonder how long it will take....to build the big track out the back of the current one.

Speedway needs sentiment! it is not a main line sport like Athletics or Gymnastics or Swinnming which Countries pay millions for training facilities/coaches/stadiums etc etc....for nothing more than being competitive at Olympics or winning Gold Medals. With this type of funding unlikely, sentiment and doing whats right for the sport, should be done. This sport needs to look after itself as Governments seem uncooperative, and that means looking after current fans because I dont see a huge influx of young fans jumping on board with little promotion or dodgy decisions being made left right and centre through vested interests and promoters wanting to make money for their back pocket ONLY. Current fans if looked after could increase revenue significantly if a PPV service was adopted by leagues/clubs/tracks etc. Like the meeting tommorrow morn (perth time) from California which is free, it proves webcams can work and be set up. W****channels showed live speedway and got 500+ viewers at a time and 800 odd who become a member so to access it, and it wasnt even advertised. you think paying a few bob or dollar or two, one or 2 pound etc would stop these people wanting to watchit, this is live figures too with some areas 2am in the morning, if an archive service got set up it would be even more popular.

Any chance of some updates from your buddies at the tracks BFD? if you arent there yourself? NSW open would love for updates. Jack Young Trophy also, and QLD if possible? not even just updates Id be happy to just know the results soon after completion as there 3 hrs ahead of us sandies. Pity to have to wait days until they officially announce it on club sites etc. Poor form! If you hear anything Dave msg/txt me on 0428....actually PM me if you want me no. or if you can post results on forum sweet. Dewa mata

any news from the NSW 350cc u/16 titles supposed to be held at Tamworth ? fascinating lack of announcement. the other u/21 I think senior meeting went on with placings mentioned but still ive heard zip about the 350's. Joakeable.

I dont believe I found anywhere with the 350cc u/16 NSW titles recently held at Tamworth. A list of top 3 or 4 was given by Boyd on the Australian Forum, but that was the seniors I believe, no mention of the 350s which were also meant to be running. I will check back on Aust forum, but that would be my last resort, as I certainly searched all other sourses for info with nothing coming up. Great site and with the co operation of tracks and organisers and fans you might be able to have a very comprehensive detailed all round speedway bike site which is just whats needed. Like the BSPA or similar stuff detached from the actual tracks/clubs. and its free, not like at least 2 speedway pay news sites which is a bit much IMO when a lot of info can be found through searching this forum/facebook/club sites etc. Pinjar is a well run unit which gives results etc, more so than others.

QUOTE:How the hell do you get to the conclusion that Carter was inches away from winning the world title? When Carter fell off, he was in third position and would of taken 1 point from that race. Not enough to take the title outright. And before anyone say's Penhall knocked Carter off, i suggest they have a look at the footage from the CBS cameras that were set up on that bend (footage released after world final) The footage clearly shows that not only did Penhall not touch Carter in the bend but he also left him enough room to cut back under Penhall. But Kenny being Kenny, he chose the wrong option and paid the price! That is correct he payed the price, but he was the man to beat and looked the goods after 3 of 5 rides. Even reportedly on Dunlop rear tyres too, which if you read and believe Carters book were much slower and worse preforming than the American tyre which was used by all other riders as it had more grip and I think was wider also, anyway Carter was on the slower British made Dunlop and was still the quickest fastest looking rider on show up to the interval. What happened after that in his 4th ride could have gone either way, with it ending up a nightmare conclusion for Carter, but if he had the best tyre that everyone knew gave better grip, he probably would have smoked Penhall, you'd have to agree? as there was nothing between them all race, and Penhall had the much better tyre, against the old british made Dunlop Kenny decided to stick with, or his old man insisted on? much to the dismay and disbelief of his manager Ivan Mauger who knew the difference was massive. WOULD CARTER OF DRIFTED SO WIDE ALLOWING PENHALL A HOLE TO GO THROUGH, IF HE HAD MORE GRIP? THAT IS THE QUESTION YOU SHOULD STUDY BEFORE BLAMING CARTER FOR NOT WINNING THAT RACE. CARTER DID LITTLE WRONG IMO, JUST HAD TOO MUCH SPEED AND HIS DUNLOPS COULDNT HANDLE IT. That enabled Bruce to sneak the inside pass line he did. Dirt, I can't believe you are spouting all this rubbish, and it is rubbish, about a rider that you never even saw ride! It's no wonder your opinion of him as a rider and as a person in general, is so bizarre! At the time of Bruce Penhall's retirement from the sport, he was the best rider in the world, bar none! you don't win back to back world titles unless you are at the very top of your profession! FACT yes that could be regarded FACT, I agree. Would get a thrashing riding against todays riders. at his peak I mean. He was a bit lucky when he was at his peak, Lee had dropped off and there werent many talents around. Weren't many talents around!!! YOU CLEARLY DON'T KNOW WHAT YOUR TALKING ABOUT! Ole Olsen was still a formidable rider, and one of the best in the world! Tommy Knudsen was a rider that could beat anyone on any track! Dennis Sigalos was a top rider! Peter Collins was back in '82 and was a hard rider to beat! Dave Jessup was a top rider at the time! Billy Sanders was a top rider! Kenny Carter was a top rider! Les Collins was a top rider! Hans Nielsen was a top rider! OK there were some good competition but the fact remains we will never know how he Penhall would have ended up on the scale of good-great riders?? ever...because he wanted to do some hollywood thing. Just for interests sake did he repay his contract with CH after he nicked off for hollywood, or at least refund some of his agreement as it wouldnt of included or they wouldnt of expected such a manouvure by Bruce?

Charmer...I certainly seen Penhall race from the comfort of my living room on old DVDs. well old footage converted to DVDs. Not a bad rider, and would have liked to see more... No better than he thinks he is, and no better than heathen79 thought he was. Would get a thrashing riding against todays riders. at his peak I mean. He was a bit lucky when he was at his peak, Lee had dropped off and there werent many talents around. edit: (Besides Carter) who had bad luck in 81 and 82 and deserved 1 of those titles IMO but it wasnt to be. Back to Penhall, In his best years put him against todays best and he'd get flogged. IMO! cheers.

Yes , but Im talking popularity in the context to get 100,000 plus in for an event like they got in 81 Wembley and had done for many years previously for World Finals, and prob got for years after 81..... when it was a one off event. USA was an experiment and could never get big numbers because of all their fairy games like gridiron baseball hockey basketball etc. Also individual events got huge crowds over europe and well generally when Penhall was riding 78-82 it was attracting way bigger crowds in England which is where Penhall rode and the big World Finals got big crowds almost anywhere they staged them, there were some huge individuals and the potential for the top riders was huge $$. World Champion was even another stratosphere, with a million dollars (big back then) easy to rake in after winning it as was the demand to see the best! Perths Claremont speedway in OZ got 35,000 fans in the mid 70s to see Mauger for the first time and although that figure may not have been beaten since im not sure Australia could still produce worthwhile crowds id imagine in the early 80s late 70s. Carter came over numerous times to Claremont so basically it must have been viable and a World Champion could have made in excess of a million pounds in 1 year if they desired to make the most of it.

, Carter never got close to winning the world title! Id think he came within inches in 82 and couldnt of possibly got closer to winning than that, unless he lost a run off, even then it could be argued Carters effort in 82 could not be bettered unless he ended up champion. He had it in control before Penhall sneaked through a gap and drove Carter towards the fence, and in effect stole the championship there and then and he was in control after that. Not everyone is only interested in mega money! have you been sniffing glue??? "Money isn't the factor for riders generally" You ask Ivan Mauger, Barry Briggs, Ole Olsen, Ronnie Moore, Peter Collins and Egon Muller if they thought money wasn't a factor! Ivan Mauger and Barry Briggs fought tooth and nail in the 1970's for riders wages to be increased greatly. Many riders even threatened to go on strike in the early 1970's. Yes Ian Chappell fought for pay increases for the players also in the 70s with one day cricket making a lot of money that didnt get filtered down to the players. They threatened all sorts of action to get a fair slice of the pie and what they thought they deserved. It doesnt mean they wouldnt of still played for a lesser amount they just wanted a fairer deal considering ACB or Cricket Australia were raking in tonnes of money compared to the actual stars , the players. Not all sportsman want mega money and it is mostly just a bonus (hence why amateur: footy,soccer,cricket thrive, EVEN amateur speedway solo bikes) but for the best talents competing in the top level which are semi-personally funded motorsport, it is necessary to strike a good pay deal, to keep machines at the best level, tuned by the best, made by the best and maintained. Penhall didnt stay around long enough to have to bother much about maintenance or much new machinery either! But i'm not that naive in thinking it's about anything other than money. Why do amateur level sports have record numbers of competitors!!football,cricket,soccer,etc etc,,,do they get paid? Most sidecar riders in Australia (just as or even more dangerous than solo bikes) and many solo riders for numbers of years going way back rode at tracks whenever they could for nothing, and they still do! and many of these riders especially sidecar teams are far from ordinary infact a lot of them are world class, and they are lucky to get tow or fuel money or travel expenses and still often have to pay for admittance to the events and nomination fees. Bruce Penhall reached the pinnacle of his chosen profession, speedway. You can't go any higher than being world champion! FACT nobody not even Bruce Penhall himself will ever truly know whether he could of won more world titles! FACT. correct, but he is far from the glamour boy who could do no wrong.

This was hardly a debate Heathen you wrote a whole book glorifying a rider who quit, and I expressed the honest reality and feelings from a speedway fans point of view. You can sugar coat anything you want but Penhall ripped off everyone he ever dealt with as he wasnt a team player, only out for himself, but worst of all he didnt have the guts to stamp his name as a great, instead fleeing after two great victories for a dud career of attampted acting and powert ski racing which has and will never be as popular as speedway. Speedway had huge crowds back in his riding days and was popular worldwide...who knew anything or rated such a sport as powerboat racing back then? even now its not even a big sport and its only accessable by the super rich. As for him trying his hand as an actor that shows him up perfectly, he was never a sportsman. Prettyboy maybe but not a sportsmans bootlace and although he learnt to ride a speedway bike quite well he couldnt get near the greats like Mauger Olsen and everyone else who rode longer than him. Longevity is what its about. Penhall didnt posess any of it. Flash in the pan. It would have been better to not even mention his powerboating or failed hollywood career as they were just a waste of paper. More should have been studied with his rivalries with riders and his speedway stories, not just statistics and even powerboat stats. lol Should have been called: Penhall - Career stats/achievements and overview. Because it goes into no detail on the man himself. Hope my feedback is helpful as you acknowledged my comments in my first appraisal. For review purposes id give it ** stars out of ***** stars. matt the rat. aka dirt

He wasnt worth nothing though was he...in the end? I wonder if he told the Cradley boss he was likely planning to consider hollywood acting or at least in his final contract did he mention he might walk out to start an acting career, in a film or TV series staight after LA World Final? Very dishonest to speedway it isnt just a sport - its your employer and you are an employee working for a boss/business. He not only let CH down but the whole sport by not promoting anything or being a good ambassator after winning the World Final which was very important part of it all back then. Most selfish greedy thing you could ever want to do! Im deadly serious. Even Carter questioned why he wanted to win it in 82 if he was about to retire... or QUIT the sport. Couldnt agree more. Why his name is now popping up writing articles is an absolute travesty and some sort of practical joke as he would be a hypocrite in everything he writes as he did worse than any rider to ever ride. Not everyone is only interested in mega money! or money even at all. Sportsman do it for the love of the game /sport or speedway riders well a lot of them anyway do it for the thrill and fun of riding the bike, and making fans happy also for some riders if they are good enough. Money isnt the factor for riders generally. When you have plenty of money anyway even less of a concern is money making potential, although you certainly earned a good living back then and actually earned a good crust doing a hard job and something to be proud of. The exact opposite of What Penhall decided to switch to! He has his claims to fame sure and they cant be taken away, but he did not reach his potential as a sportsman and never will deserve much respect for quitting so young and wasteing a career. I bet he cherishes his wins, but everyone else would be wondering why he didnt achieve/do more.

Not one bit. Do you?

1. Yes they werent short of a dollar to the point of entering power boat spending, but why was he known to be the most stingy money craving dealer when it came to his speedway contracts and negotiations if he was involved in a huge family business and already was wealthy? 2. He contributed by choosing to run at the worst possible time hence why I believe he got scared. Lee was into the wrong substances but still fighting and riding admirably, as so other yanks (reportetly), Carter was a wild consistent cannon with more guts than anyone, but the sport required a stabilising proven influence instead they got a pretty rich boy to claim 2 in a row then flee off to the big screen acting business leaving a huge gap impossible to fill straight away. He isnt solely to blame - but no petty reasons will fool me from the fact that he hasnt opened up to the true reasons. It basically doesnt need to be said really- its clear he wimped out. The only question left is why think its worthy of writing a book about it? To say you respect him more for taking up those fairytale opportunities given the fact they failed rather than going for some more crowns and giving the fans what they would have liked is utter moronic coming from a speedway fan. Or are you just a Bruce fan rather than a speedway fan? Im more than happy to let bygons be bygons you can worship him I couldnt care one iota, but unless Bruce went on to something bigger and better which he did not it was a misjudged failure of a move. You only change sports or careers for that matter if you are better at something else!!!!! he clearly wasnt, so he made a mistake . End of story"

Top of the sport? Did he surpass Ivans record did he? Not even close. Not even Olsens. He jagged or managed two championships you could say, then left with no explanation. obviously a very niaeve young pretty boy as that massive TV series turned into a fizzer and he threw his career away for nothing/squat. Then was too stubborn or scared to put the leathers on again and show what he could do! Though he still must have had plenty of money to throw about on his power boats.?ahhh His name should be erased from the history books IMO. He drained every cent he could while he rode speedway, then left it in the crap! Never has a rider retired after indeed winning a world crown. He denied K. Carter the opportunity to win for nothing more than showing off in front of his home crowd! what a twit. Carter never recovered from that, and Penhall was responsible for Carters downfall.

Steve you dont have to make a book into a controversial story by asking certain questions. Did it cross your mind to ask him why he gave it away at such a young age????????????????????? Probably that query along with similar mysteries regarding why on earth he would give up the best, most exciting sport in the world when he was approaching his peak and had at least 10 years ahead of him. If im not mistaken you didnt answer any of these or anything at all of any interest. What changed in Bruces mind? because as you wrote his dream was always to be a speedway rider and become world champion, which he did with great skill, but his dream as a youngster or ambitions were NEVER anything about powert ski/power boat cruising. Compared to speedway bike riding that is something to be ashamed about, like a gardening contest or flower bouquet competition. With respect all you gave was a list of his achievments and summary of his career, when the important questions got ignored. Im not saying I could do better, but dont try and disguise his wimping out by glorifying powerboat racing as it isnt even a sport and more like a waste of petrol and thrashing boats for fun. The more you glorified his good looks and great relationship with the fans, the more it seems he let the sport down by giving it up for no good or any reason. Hollywood aspirations and power ski racing are nothing to be proud of. Far from it they are a decent reflection however of his attitude and selfish self orientated personality, and how he would do anything to get ahead perhaps even get his ambitions mixed up with his capabilities in the pursuit of greatness, when he was never even that good. If he had won 4 or 5 Crowns and been at the top for a while not just a flash in the pan, then he would have been ready to move on to other pursuits. with some respect still intact. I spose you think his hollywood career was actaully successful?

anyone know what prize Darcy claimed for winning? Didnt need to vote Darcy could have won that award with his eyes closed and just goes to show even more how hopeless the FIM and MA bodies are by not promoting the best sport they have on offer ! Other sports can p!ss up the creek as far as Im concerned.

I am exploring the possibility of a new team entering the elite league in 2012. with the right planning and approval from the BSPA I believe the pigdogs could make an instant impression on the league and have an instant impact in their inaugural elite league debut year. a couple of Aussies on a 3, combined with the cream of the Australian riders will shape this side as the one to beat with the bookies likely to instill outright favouritism as soon as the squad is announced. Just like Poole in 2010.hhhehheehhe but a slight difference, they wont choke. manager: Shane Parker promoter, Johnno Steve Johnston. thoughts? would you like to face this ruthless bred side?

cAN i JUST CONCLUDE by saying this meeting was brilliantly set up and put on by the smcwa who deserve all the credit. This track has potential and is unique re its size and gives visitors a new challenge which should never be taken lightly, and on this occasion the fast freddie lindgren did his part and made it official; this track is no sunday arvo stroll inthe park, it has to be attacked and ridden for what its worth, and Freddie came good and well done to all competitors , a truly great effort from the Wolverhampton riders who must just about start next season as favourites after they showed the tream spirit and closeness they have at wolves by visiting and putting on a master class.

sure, but if there still gonna ride the little 125s cant they get a bigger frame and chuck in the 125 engine so they arent squatting down to ride it? mind you ive wondered over the years if a tall rider say 6 foot 3 - could use a bigger frame or higher frame off the ground to accommodate his center of gravity or stop him having to crouch down say. If he thought he needed a higher seat position say can you modify the bike, because they all seem the same. can you simply build a custom frame and exact seat height in senior solo, if you think it will help, as your a tall person for instance?? and has it been done much before? any known examples? Thats an easy question for you Dave old 'Son. Gooothe Maggies! North Darwin

Hopefully Heeps can come over and give them a run for their money. but he might be better off worrying about the 350's. Does it be known if a 250cc Titles will start being held as well? what a feast it will become with 3 different bikes before the 500's. Chuck in long track and dirt track and everyone can be competitive at something. a 250cc straight from the box with a chinese engine make was displayed and shown off by a rider at Pinjar last night with it lacking the power through the bends, and accelerating outa them, but differnt size tracks would be interesting for this machine. a heavy rider might also slow down such a bike and effect it. I have to wonder why some riders dont use a bigger frame in their 125ccs when they start getting too big or outgrowing it, as they look to suffer from being too tall for the small bike sometimes and hard to handle as they really need something bigger.

I was just saying he wouldnt of been happy with what happened all night and he was unlucky when managing to fall when looking good more than a few times. It would have been frustrating for him as he was doing well but its a fine line to setup the bike so as to try and avoid the sudden lockups or pirouettes which seemingly come out of nowhere - in the middle of a turn. Similar to what Bryce Johnson experienced in the opening night of the season. The wheels seem to get a sudden amount of extra spin and it may be just throttle control, or bad -timing, or an ill-performing bike set-up which causes inconsistent bursts of power, which cant be handled for some reason. Never didnt rate his ability or potential! or bag him, he looked great and gave it all. Simon was riding a Woffinden bike, as was Ludvig all night I believe, and it would be interesting to know what they each were on during the night and watch it all again if it was recorded from what would be the correct angle. A DVD or youTube of it all will def be coming soon. and 180m old chap' is a generous measurement with it more like 142. and the young Swedes both came out twice for practice runs together on the night before the first heat and an ideal time to dial in, practice and set- up or adjust the bike. Just proves this track is not easy to race - One (Kling) could manage it, and the other (Pontus) couldnt quite do it or get it on the night but they were hard to separate looking from practice and looked just as good to the naked eye. edit: judging from this performance Proctor will be a GP rider. His professionalism was first rate, and sounded mature when interviewed. He rides small tracks like this better than most in the world and has steady but sure development and improvement each visit to Perth. If the GPs were on small tracks like this (technical I think is the word)starting tommorrow he would be up with the best of them. Wolves have a great asset. and he is a genuine tip for top 3 in Ozey Champs, if not better. Looks to have beefed up arms / upper body a bit and is a tantilising prospect, with his head screwed on right. Gonna take some beating in the future. Near future!

Interesting evening at the small track and no prisioners were spared in a rugged tussle to the bitter end. My report wont be much good as I didnt take my usual position on the first bend to the Heeps Hill, where you can actually feel like your on the machine, such is the brillant vantage point and track shape. I do however know what I saw so will still give a wrap up. Ht. 1. Pontus Aspergren 0, Stead 3, Proctor 2, Qualifier - comments: Proctor obv should have had a practice on the thurs night instead of watching, but he knows he will respond later. Ht.2. Winchester 2, Ludvig 3, 2 qualifiers - comments: dont remember, but Ludvig looked impressive during some of the night and shows balls and a useful style. Ht.3. R. Kling 1, Qualifier - ,Johnno 3, Fred 2 comments: Johnno made the start and wasnt headed with Lindgren not making an impact on the unfamiliar track! not easy to pass all night mind you. Ht.4 Smart 1, Tai W. 2, Joe Haines 3 Joe moved before the tapes rose and anticipated it though to sneak out in front and maintained it by solid riding. Ht.5 Smart 3, Pontus F/ex, Winchest 1,Kling 2 Smart got in front and although Kling had the speed he couldnt get around the cagey veteran on his home soil Ht.6 Woff 3, Lud 2, - -(qualifiers) think it was this one where Wuff looked superb running high and low for fun and smooth and ultra fast. looked likely winner at this stage, for overall honours. Ht.7 Johnno 3,Stead 2 Ht.8 Proctor 3,Haines 1, Fred 2 Ht.9 Johnno 3, Lud 1, Pontus 0, Haines 2 Pontus claiming a hatrick of ducks. Ht.10 Fred 3, Winch 2, Qualies - - Ht 11 King 3, Pieman 2,Tai 1 Bad trapping is bad racing and a costly 1 point from Tai when he couldnt afford it all coz bad trapping. Ht 12 Proctor 3, Smartie 2 - - Proctor was carving up the track at this point and displaying an amazing amount of power when in a half lock and a classy individual with a future. Rides this track like he owns it. Ht 13 Fred 3, Tai 2, Pontus 1 Fred obv trapped and couldnt be reigned in. Ht 14 Smart 2, John 3 easy pickings for johnno, and combined with great starts from his first 3 rides has been on the money with his setup and reactions out of the traps - first bend! Ht 15 Haines 2,Pieman 3,Winch 1 predictable. Ht 16 Re run after 1st attempt had no Ludv in it so they decided it must be done right with 3 starters inc Ludv this time round. Proctor won the race btw beating Kling. Race stopped as proctor was gaining on king and about to overtake him, proctor shakes head at his unluck, as its reran x3. Proctor 3, King 2, Lud 1 Race of the decade with Proctor getting just rewards this time by snatching it on the line in almost a photo finish if you were slightly blind. Typical grinding gutsy riding from Ty and best pass all night If im not mistaken. typical from Proctor to do that when he could have been spitting chips after twice being unlucky, but no he decides to reel in Kling like a queenfish and gaff him on the line! Ht 18 King 2 , Haines 3 Kling made a mistake about turn 1 and Haines went by and made him pay. Ht 17 should be above^ Aspergren completes a mare by overlocking it and doing a 360 pivot when in command in front of 2 locals. Rips his helmet cover and i think goggles also and throws them down in frustration and disgust with himself. is ex as a local had to drop his bike and rerun for the locals. Ht 19 Pieman 2, Fred 3,Smart 0,Lud 1 Fred starting to show some balls and ride like he means it, after coasting in a couple of 2nds to start with.Time 41.47 only 10 /100ths of a second slower than the opening heat won by Pieman in 41.37, proving the track holds its speed consistently. Ht 20 Tai 3, Proct 2, Johnno F/Ex, Winch 1(think) Tai had command of both runnings with Proctor using the high line to catch Johnno in 1st run and pressure him into submission and buckeled under the pressure being applied through Proctors speed and johnno almost clattered the fence but has the skill to avoid damage and layed it down instead. Tai did well to gate and win this in hindsight, but it meant nothing as he still had to win the repercharge. Bit stiff there. Repercharge 4th - 7th. Little announcement or preperation before this heat just came out of nowhere and were about to start. Haines was there but did nothing , Stead , Kling and Wuff race stopped; Woffy was fighting like a terrier after i think getting past one and giving it all to reel in the leader but hit a rut that developed in turn 3-4 area as he was going high and wide and had to eventually bail out as was heading into the wall, just in time it seems he got off and the bike was worse for wear after tumbling down the track after slamming the side of the wall and cartwheeling. Woffy stayed down initially and riders ran over from the pits but he got up and looked a bit worse for wear but most likely just bruised up and a few sore spots. He is a tuff campaigner. rerun. Stead couldnt catch kling but it wasnt for lack of trying, he really cranked it on and was partly out a control and like a loose cannon in his quest to reighn him in, but just desperation and confidence to ride it like that, but to no avail this time. Good preformance from stead, on one of Woffies bikes. GRAND. dunno who chose what gate but from inside: Proctor, Lindgren, Johnno, Kling Lindgren literally flew from the tapes and got a good jump start with Proctor soon confirming he was the only man to be able to make some ground back. Proctor gave it a shake but fell a few meters short, but was ready if Fred made a slight mistake even at the end, to pounce and claim what he came for, and finish the job he intended to do. Johnno 3rd from Kling 4th. Great dispay again from TYron, and Tai was unfortunate not to be straight into final. Fred was able to master the track well enough and make the important start in the final, but not sure he had more pace than Ty or Tai when they found space, they looked awaesome. Fred managed to get the job done and congratulations to the visitors on a fine display and hard riding. I just got the feeling fast Freddie didnt like or enjoy the small track overly much compared to tai or ty who seemed happy to ride it and have been quoted as regarding it their favourite track in the past so its not surprising Freddie wasnt instantly in love with the requirements for this track, but as I say he improved and got the job done. just wish I was in my usual spot, so I could have seen his technique a lot better. Well done to the Wolves blokes for showing great dedication to the commitment needed for individual encounters over here. They deserve a lot of credit, hope its only light bruising for Tai, and if they ride a few more meets at this track watch their records jump next year as they will develop 100% You learn more at this track than big flat out wide open tracks, its just not a lot can ride it well enough to hang in and persist for very long. Proctor said this track enabled him to go to England, and he will always be happy to give back. edit: He actually said if it wasnt for this track, he prob wouldnt of made it to England, so is happy to give back. Ricky Kling deserves mention too and was ultra impressive. Watch the DVD.