RebelDan

I think the 4K limit was for indoor venues , for Football when crowds returned from 17 May for outdoor events it was 10,000 or 25% of your capacity whichever was lower. Clearly some Councils took a different view if they had spikes of Covid cases from the Indian variant.

750 apparently was the limit

It was great to see some live Speedway again and thankfully all the riders came through unscathed. A decent crowd, a beautiful Devon evening and even the slight delay and intermittent tannoy system didnt stop the smiles. The racing despite being largely processional was close and competitive. For Kent, Nicholls tried his nuts off and Gilkes and Tom Bacon were excellent, for the Devils Danny King was an brilliant guest, Bjarne did ok and will get better and Cook improved as the evening went on. Ruml tried hard and looked quick but just couldn’t gate, there definitely looks potential there, Goret was the concern and looked well off the pace and clearly needs more track time and support. Overall a good start for the Plymouth promotion.

Just back from Plymouth and this is no criticism of their set up I wish them every success and will be back again this year for multiple visits but it made me realise how special the race track is/was at Somerset. Tonight hit home what a loss to the sport this club is and how lucky we were every week. I can’t pretend tonight I wasn’t gutted but it was great to see some live racing again.

Does anyone know if the track is remaining in place ?

Gutted to hear this what sad news. I’ve witnessed several remarkable seasons of action at the OTA so thank you to the Hancock’s all riders and volunteers over the years you have facilitated fantastic entertainment it really was a pleasure attending every week - you cannot beat the Friday night race nights for me. I just hope their is a miracle and someone takes the reins on however unlikely that is in the foreseeable future. Best of luck to all involved and thank you for the memories

For anyone that was at the meeting today were the four Plymouth riders who failed to beat an opponent as bad as their scores suggest or were there any signs of optimism?

Ok thanks pal

Just out of interest why is the update on the SGB website today saying tickets go on sale on 11 May if Plymouth are already selling theirs or is this because it’s just for the first two matches ?

Well done to the Plymouth management they have assembled a very attractive looking team - Crump and Pedersen will be box office at this level. Used to follow Reading up until they folded and then moved to Devon and have watched Somerset since 2014. I’ll definitely get down to Plymouth this season with the Rebels not running and I suspect a fair few Rebels fans will. It will just be great to see some live racing and the smell of methonal again. Hopefully all of the clubs that run make a success of it.

Somerset was always Friday night racing until the last few years if you recall- I for one will be delighted if they revert back to Fridays it’s a great start to the weekend.

That’s a shame I’d personally prefer Becker over BWD. Becker is improving year on year I think Bradley has found his level and will struggle to achieve his average.

He was the master of no nonsense. It took my three kids 3/4 of a season to get a high five off him on the victory lap after a race on the back straight but they eventually cracked him ! He was an excellent servant for the Rebels.

No not the case apparently as they are still talking the full amount from 28 March to 27 April for my March monthly direct debit. The suspension can only kick in the month after - hence 30 days notice during which they are charging you for something they can’t provide. Doesn’t seem fair to me.

Did it online yesterday via the Sky website takes 30 days to activate which is a bit of a cheek considering there is no live sport in the next 4 weeks. Reduces my monthly dd by £20 - you still get to watch all sky sports channels during the suspension

Unless the rules have changed (?) Luke will have to start at No 5 as he is 2nd in the averages.

Well done to the management a terrific replacement considering the circumstances. Im sure he will be great around the OTA once dialled in.

That’s my point as he is though !

Makes a mockery of not waiting to get Covatti back in the first place

Good luck to the lad I hope he gets his Visa sorted.

I just used Rowe as an example, I don't think he will either but another rider could or collectively the team could. I agree I think there's a fair chance there will be a change or two with this team come May/June.

Seriously ? Why would you start the season knowing you have a rider on an inflated average - don't sign him in the first place if you think that! Imagine if Rowe increases his average by 2 points after the first set of averages are out, you are then stuffed bringing anyone else in if BWD average does drop. I don't see the logic unless you are telling riders to blatantly reduce their averages early in the season which makes no sense. Why not start a season with riders who you feel will increase or at least attain their starting GSA, sounds novel eh?

I think Rowe is the only one I would put money on to up his average. Barker and Bates 'may' up theirs and they 'may not', that's the point, they are probably riders with averages that reflect their ability, you don't look at either and go they will 100% increase their starting average. I hope they do and I will support them, but I don't see either as great value compared to others on similar averages who have a better chance of increasing their starting average IMO.

This team looks worse than last years when the Rebels were never really in the mix. BWD is a decent rider but he isn't a No 1 IMO. Ellis or Covatti were much better options and a point lower average. That extra point could have then been used to get a better heat leader than Barker or an upgrade on Bates. I would have also had Starke all day long over Bates on the same average. I can't see this team challenging and they will get some hidings on the road. There doesn't look many riders with a good chance of upping their average which is what successful teams are built on. They maybe entertaining at home but don't look that solid. Just my opinion

No to Vissing thank you - that would be a dodgy heat leader trio as it I can’t see Schlein upping his average and Barker is inconsistent