PHILIPRISING

WILL look into that ... Rosco at least lightened the mood in the Harris camp with normally has a big black cloud hanging over it. Rosco has been a big help previously but who knows (no pun intended Andy) and time will tell. Starting with this evening. Now around 13.15 local time and its dry and should stay that way.

I UNDERSTAND the 2012 version will be ready and available for Prague

RIDERS are at liberty to request Paddock passes for their guests at each event. In Copenhagen, for example, the four Danish riders will probably have hundreds of guests arranged through their respective sponsors. Paddock passes do not include admission to the stadium and access to the pits is denied after 17.30.

TATUM did spend some time with Scott Nicholls in 2009 but it came to a halt when Scotty decided (as he was entitled to do) that he didn't want to go down the route that Kelvin suggested, which included a special diet, a very strict training regime, some adjustments to his riding style, especially off the start, and a number of mechanical changes. In my own opinion, but one based on first hand knowledge of how Olsen helped Gundersen, Mauger with Nielsen and, indeed, Briggs with Tatum and Adams, just about all of the current crop of SGP riders could benefit from having a top class former or current rider alongside them in the pits assuming that person had the ability and knowledge to sum up changing track conditions, to suggest minor but possibly significant set-up changes, and so on.

WHEN was Tatum with Harris?

COME along and have a look Andy. Think Monster were more than pleased with exposure, not least having had two winners in just two rounds.

LET'S not forget that there are only two Polish riders (plus a wild card on Saturday) in the 2012 series. However, bit early to declare Polish speedway to be on a slippery slope. Torun and Gorzow will be sell-outs and a GP in Warsaw next year is very much on the drawing board. Gollob is an almost impossible act to follow but there are undoubtedly some genuine talents coming through ... Dudek, the two Pawlicki brothers, Janowski and so on. Much sporting attention in Poland will obviously focus on the Euro soccer championships in June but, unlike the UK and indeed Denmark and Sweden, there remains massive media interest in speedway.

CHRIS failed to score in three rides for his Polish club on Sunday ... really is in the doldrums at present. You are right about the timing cover.

ANDY ... huge Monster hospitality rig outside the stadium, attracted fans like bees round a honeypot Friday and Saturday. Lots of other Monster activity there. Inside loads and loads of Monster branding, gantry above starting gate, new scoreboard bedecked in Monster, new lining up zone, lots of Monster presence in pits, their own photographers and media guy (grandson of Peter Oakes, very promising young journo) and so on. Probably had to be there to fully appreciate but, believe me, it was very proactive. And, of course, with two different Monster riders winning the opening two GPs they are over the proverbial moon.

OLE Olsen has absolutely nothing to do with track preparation at permanent venues. Considering how hot (over 80) and very sunny it had been during the day the Leszno guys managed to produce a good track, with inside and outside racing lines, although the surface material there is very strange. BIG stadium, holds around 25,000, but high ticket prices and lack of decent accommodation in Leszno didn't help. Their crowd for first home league match this year was 11,000.... just (eat your heart out British clubs) 7,000 for the second WHISTLES and boos were aimed at Gollob not Holder. Leszno crowd didn't like his attitude towards their own hero Hampel.

NIGEL and Jan Staechmann will be in Leszno this weekend ... providing the world feed commentary that will be taken by Sky amongst others

WE do but there is nothing wrong with HEALTHY debate. Right Humphrey?

IF you are talking about costs or fees paid to BSI/IMG it's because I don't know them and don't pretend to or guess. That's their business and the only one that should be and is in the public domain is what is paid to the FIM. There are many areas in which our frequently diverse opinions actually synchronise and I actually enjoy reading your posts although I do feel that now and again you pluck numbers out of the air with regard to the SGP. I do also disagree with you that BSI/IMG are not interested in speedway outside their own bubble. They are, even if for altruistic reasons, because the healthier speedway is in general, the cake if you like, the better the icing will be. You might actually be surprised at some of the initiatives they have tried to implement only to be thwarted or frustrated by various administrations. While they certainly wouldn't comment publicly, they must also get agitated by the machinations of the FIM at times. Only recently the FIM insisted that the proposed Clerk of the Course in Auckland travel to Prague from NZ, at his own (or Buckley's) expense, for a seminar. At it happened, Tony Briggs (who held a lapsed FIM licence) was able to travel from Poland and attend and officially take the role. A relatively minor issue, I admit, but one that illustrates while the FIM are happy to pressure IMG into taking the SGP worldwide they aren't ready to grasp some of the issues that are involved. The Under 21 championship is a case in point and it remains to be seen how many of the contestants actually turn up in Argentina when their interest in the championship is over. In an ideal world perhaps an international governing body that only embraced speedway could work wonders in harness with BSI/IMG but unfortunately there doesn't seem much chance of that.

BUT the freight wasn't handled by the airline(s) direct but through a specialised company who no doubt have arranged their own tariffs which are unlikely to be found through a cursory investigation on the web. It just so happens that Emirates proved suitable on this occasion but perhaps in the future Air New Zealand (London-LA-Auckland) might be more beneficial. I am only dismissive of figures that quite often appear unsubstantiated by fact.

THEY get massive support from the franchiser. Do you seriously think that BSI/IMG just sign a deal with an individual promoter and then just leave him to it? Far from it. They are heavily involved every inch of the way with every GP not just the ones that they promote themselves. Don't know where you got your freight costs from but given that you know very little about the volume, what was involved, the company that handled it, the deal with the airline (Emirates) and so on it's hard to see how your figures can be relied upon. BILL said from the outset that he never looked at this as a money making exercise or even that he wanted to break even. It was his dream to bring the SGP to Western Springs. Dreams don't always come cheap but the realisation of them can be worth their weight in gold.

WHAT makes you think he didn't get that?As for freight, overall cost might increase -though returning to Europe via LA or going via LA is quite simple - but if the bill, albeit larger, is divided by three then the unit cost will decrease. NOTHING like Australia for more reasons than I could even start to list.ANd whether organisers make or a profit or not is relevant to BSI/IMG. Why would they want organisers to lose money? That doesn't make any sense at all whether or not there are others waiting to step in. The more successful the series is for EVERYONE involved the better not least for BSI/IMG themselves.

PRESUME Torun will be an option but with only two Polish riders in the regular field the pressure for home grown talent will be that much stronger there and in Gorzow.

BILL, who I spent a lot of time with in NZ, certainly isn't planning an exit strategy and is fully committed to the next two years. As I stated, don't think you can fully swallow some of the figures being bandied around. He will be playing a tactical game. The crowd was certainly in line with if not better than expectations for the first attempt and all the evidence is that they will do better next time. Bill is unhappy with the lack of support shown by Auckland but the Mayor was at Western Springs and will come under greater pressure to get behind the event. And, as I said, he is also trying to tie down the council to allow motorsport to continue at Western Springs which has been New Zealand's premier venue for far longer than the most recent residents, who are kicking up a fuss, have been in situ. There are many similarities with the recent court case brought against Mildenhall by a couple who bought their house in the full knowledge that motorsport events were taking place on their doorstep. It reminds me of the remark allegedly made by an American tourist: "Why did they build Windsor Castle so close to London Airport!" Bill's love and passion is motorsport and particularly the solos and this is a fight he will take to the wire and having such a prestigious event at WS as a SGP can only strengthen his hand. No need to be negative about this, the meeting was undoubtedly a great success.

CANNOT really compare staging a GP in NZ as opposed to Europe. The cost of taking riders, mechanics, officials, personal, etc halfway round the world for starters. Then all the freight. However, Bill Buckley, a very successful and brilliant businessman, went into this with his eyes open and certainly not to make a fortune... something he has done already. And he quite naturally wanted a three year deal in order to amortise many of the major costs, and particular the materials used to produce a speedway track on top of a clay, sprint car circuit. All that material is now being stored at Western Springs, ready to be used again in 2013 and, hopefully, 2014 at least. Bill is still hoping to get some financial help from the City of Auckland and is no stranger to battles with them, not least the renewal of his lease at Western Springs. And the main sponsor this time was his own company, Buckley Systems Inc, which as I have suggested on another thread might at least provide his accountant with ways to legally mitigate some of the costs. Also, his chances of securing a significant sponsor have increased now that he has something tangible to show any prospective backers. Hopefully the success of the first NZ GP will manifest itself with more backing and a bigger crowd next time. He has something to build on and his own business record suggests that he is the man to do it. No matter how much dosh he has stashed away Bill will obviously not want to throw money into a bottomless pit but he has indicated his confidence in at least breaking even over the three year span of his contract with BSI/IMG, especially if he wins yet another battle with the council and is allowed to start the 2013 event at 7pm local time rather than mid-afternoon. In all this it should not be forgotten that Bill is a huge solo fan in general and speedway in particular. Money was never his motivation in staging a GP at his beloved Western Springs and the joy he undoubtedly enjoyed over the weekend cannot be counted in dollars. It's a balancing act, of course, but I rather suspect that some of his comments are deliberately aimed at the City who enjoyed the benefits of an estimated 1,000 visitors to Auckland and who like to see themselves as the sporting capital of NZ.

THE older Pawlicki will be the wild card in Leszno, his younger brother one of the reserves

HOPEFULLY a new batch of young riders will be ready to step up to the plate sooner rather than later... Ward, Woffinden, both Pawlicki brothers, Sundstrom, Jepsen Jensen and a number of young Aussies to name but a few. There does also appear to be some genuine efforts, belated though they may be, coming from the FIM to help new talent but, of course, there is never any guarantee that another Hancock, Gollob, Crump or indeed Nielsen and Rickardsson will emerge. If only ...

CONCUR with everything you say waikekeaces! but with Buckley Systems Inc. heavily involved no doubt Bill has a half decent accountant working on ways to legally mitigate some of the losses. Spoke to Larry Ross in Christchurch over the weekend and he says many people there, who resisted the temptation to go last month - fearing that the sprint car track couldn't be transformed - are already talking about going in 2013. Attendance was 15,000, give or take one or two.

THE parade of ex World Champions in Germany in 2007 was part of a celebration of the 100th SGP. The 150th will be in Gorzow in June.

THE referee has had a monitor in his box for a long time but the camera angle doesn't always give him a ideal view of the tapes and, of course, he cannot ask for a replay until the race is over. The FIM are looking at various options but the starting gate as we know it has certainly stood the test of time and it was only a couple of instances last year that brought it into profile. However, I wouldn't be surprised to see an improved version in operation at GPs in the not too distant future. But there is always a danger that you can get too technical with these things and as a result they are more likely to malfunction. THAT'S an old chestnut but you have to remember that in most countries other than the UK domestic speedway is actually under the control of the national federation which is in turn affiliated to the FIM. I think I am right in saying that track racing is the second biggest contributor to the FIM's coffers what with income from BSI, riders' licences, inscription fees and so on but at the end of the day it is the federations that determine how that money is spent or allocated. HUMPHREY, we know you are not the biggest fan or BSI or indeed IMG and that's okay but why do you may a sly innuendo like where speedway is 'supposedly' shown on TV. The countries and TV networks that take the GP are easily verified. There is no supposedly about it. ON a bit of a roll ... just got back from New Zealand. BY the way, don't think there is any appetite or intention to increase the number of GPs in Europe. And Poland has already suffered a league wipe-out when the 2010 GP in Croatia was rained-off and staged the following day. But the Poles have flexibility given that they own their own stadiums and have spare dates on their calendars. I really don't see this conflict between GP rounds and the Polish clubs that Humphrey envisages.

THE grandstand was a major topic at the de-briefing. Incidentally, this has nothing to do with Ole Olsen. He is responsible for laying the track, nothing more. The grandstand was erected during the week but there will definitely be something different in 2013.