Mediman

What does it cost . lets start on a meeting draw thats 45 points per team. Across the board you would say 100 per point so thats £4500.00, the there are tyres, matchday staff including doctor, ambulance services, paramedic, starting marshal's pit marshall, inspector referee and timekeeper turnstile operators.track staff, tractor driver, fuel, et al. Now if this is my business i have to pay myself and any others, marketing, stadium upkeep or lease, power, maintenance the list goes on. I have only a window of around 20 meetings at home and i still have to pay the riders for away meetings the figures prove difficult reading if you think that a few years ago i was getting 80-90k from tv revenue and now I get 14. Would riders go part time some may but if they get injured how will this affect the day job and could they expect their employer to give them the time off to travel from the North to say poole. I dont have the answers but I do know that big big changes to the sport are due and one I would like is a management committee that does not have its head so far in the sand and so disconnected with its revenue paying customers.

Don’t forget many Polish teams fine their riders very heavily if they miss racing due to accidents in other countries this is quite common in contracts over there, so many top riders who earn top money don’t want to take the risk why would you if you are on €1000 per point and more. Until we sort out foreign commitments more top talent like Lambert and Bewley will be prized away from our shores for the money on offer and can you really blame them. With the BT deal worth so little , poor tracks , low attendances , high outgoings and a management committee not willing to listen to its customers its no wonder the sport is in the state it is in . Can it be salvaged yes but only if those who oversee the sport want it to .

While I agree to some extent what decent rider is going to race for those amounts let’s say I average 4 starts and get 10 points per meeting that’s £700.00 and I race 26 meetings a season and I keep up that average I get paid £18,200 . I have my transport costs , mechanic repairs food etc , sorry I would be lucky to clear 8k it’s not feasible. now if I am injured we’ll watch the figures plummet. speedway needs an overhaul totally agree it’s needs as I have said before an all party summit will it happen no

While I agree to some extent what decent rider is going to race for those amounts let’s say I average 4 starts and get 10 points per meeting that’s £700.00 and I race 26 meetings a season and I keep up that average I get paid £18,200 . I have my transport costs , mechanic repairs food etc , sorry I would be lucky to clear 8k it’s not feasible. now if I am injured we’ll watch the figures plummet. speedway needs an overhaul totally agree it’s needs as I have said before an all party summit will it happen no

Good for Matt these riders are available for any promoter to sign and keep on their books and if a club wants to loan them they can , To me it’s good business, same in many sports.its a risk if no one uses them but at least we have a promoter willing to invest.

Good for Matt these riders are available for any promoter to sign and keep on their books and if a club wants to loan them they can , To me it’s good business, same in many sports.its a risk if no one uses them but at least we have a promoter willing to invest.

To relay the track completely take it back to base and then apply all the layers would cost around 50k minimum someone told me Belle Vue was nearer 100k but that. Was from start. the problem with Poole is that drainage is so poor because of the tidal nature , when the new police station was built it was almost built on stilts to stop water coming up. My offices in Sterte have a pumping station attached in case of tidal issues. You can’t add drains as water has a habit of rising as well as falling. Would anyone spend that money when they don’t own the stadium and with the other issues . It has to be fixed and will be . There is a material called Edinburgh shale which is suposedly the best available however the amount needed and the transportation costs are massive. The best way to become a millionaire promoting speedway is to be a billionaire .

I write.as a new poster hi all I am one of the clubs sponsors which includes meeting and rider sponsorship . I read with Interest one post regarding who would buy Poole, speedway should Matt decide enough is enough. Simple answer to that is no one in their right mind would because of the way speedway is run at the moment. The whole set up needs a complete overhaul from top to bottom, rules and regulations need changing to attract the fans back and introduce the younger fans and the sport needs a rebranding to attract more sponsors and coverage. The tv revenue has reduced by more than 75% most businesses could not survive if such a budgeted part of its revenue was cut this much. i have personally seen how many riders Matt has contacted and he has left no stone unturned . Riders do not want to ride in the league in the UK and those who might consider you could not afford. We all know the money in Polqnd is far higher and being based abroad makes sense to cut down on travelling costs so British speedway is not able to attract the riders we would all like to see , so where does that leave us. Last year I wrote to the BSPA twice regarding new ideas and rule changes and suggestions of an open forum with promoters, sponsors , fans to discuss ways of making the sport more attractive and looking at ways it could compete in a very competitive marketplace , did I get any response ,not one acknowledgement and one wonders why the sport is struggling .. Burying your head in the sand while waiting for the fateful day to arrive is not the answer , the sport needs a new focus with people willing to listen and change, its still very much an exciting sport and could attract more followers but not in its current format in my opinion.. For me seeing how hard Matt works is testament for his love of the club on Wednesday following the call off debacle and I was their when it happened you could see the effect it had on him and though I don’t agree with everythinh]g he does I won’t criticise his commitment . I love the sport and am proud of my local team I know things at the moment things are not the best I believe changes will be made but I fear it’s not at club level most changes need to be made ..