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Fortythirtyeight

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Posts posted by Fortythirtyeight

  3. Posted

    4 minutes ago, ch958 said:

    at 2nd div level you could probably tempt loads of ex riders if the kit was cheaper and they could actually make a couple of quid. I can't say how the kit could be cheaper at 2nd div level as i have no mechanical knowledge bit it needs to be done

    but they gave up because the kit wasn’t cheap so …

  4. Posted

    3 minutes ago, gazzac said:

    Only trouble is did they really make the grade when they previously came over, not really, and probably worse now if still riding, and you would have to pay the current rate for a rider who's substandard championship level. It just again shows the damage the powers that be did by finishing off a competitive NL of a few seasons ago for self interest, I'm sure the conveyor belt of the Brennen's, Palin etc would have continued to a greater extent than it has since. I know it won't answer all the problems with rider shortage, but I bet Birmingham, Eastbourne, Kent and others would have stayed in a competitive NL, less teams in the championship so more riders to go round and continuing to bring through the young talent. Too much of a threat to the upper leagues though. 

    The NL was never a threat to anyone just got its pay structure all wrong. You seem to forget that those mentioned teams , plus Lakeside and Cradley were the teams that paid way above and beyond the NL rates thus making it a ‘ professional’ paid league for amateurs and giving easy money to riders who shouldn’t have ridden at the lower level meaning the end of the likes of Buxton, one of the few clubs who ran the correct way for the NL.

    The lack of UK riders is because the higher clubs sought foreign riders far too often when British riders were available and so your average second strings and below simply gave up the sport.

    • Like 1

  7. Posted

    47 minutes ago, *JJ said:

    And it was not just 'nomadic' teams which were abolished. I have just found this:

    The Scunthorpe promotion have dealt the Stags a major blow by deciding against any further action for the team, stating they think the Midland Development League is "a waste of time."

    And this is from the person who is supposed to be running British speedway!

    Whilst you might not like his decision, it’s his track and his opinion and that has nothing to do with ‘nomadic teams ‘.

    • Like 4

  8. Posted · Edited by Fortythirtyeight

    24 minutes ago, Speedway fan said:

    totally wrong on NIL . All those who were the nomadic clubs were actively seeking sites and some came near and this was monitored. The pandemic has made this difficult but there are active searches progressing.

     

    24 minutes ago, Speedway fan said:

    totally wrong on NIL . All those who were the nomadic clubs were actively seeking sites and some came near and this was monitored. The pandemic has made this difficult but there are active searches progressing.

    ‘ searches ‘ are not considered acceptable advanced business plans by the powers that be. Good luck to you and I hope every ‘ ghost club ‘ comes back into being but until you have land that has been approved for use, then it’s just speculating as far the rules go.

    Anyway….back to Birmingham issues.

  9. Posted · Edited by Fortythirtyeight

    1 hour ago, *JJ said:

    In my experience, all of the Development League teams were run by 'people on an ego trip', which is extremely unfair on those who were doing it for the love of the sport.

    You do not seem to have understood his not very well phrased point.
    Yes, the teams will have been run by very enthusiastic individuals but out of those ‘ ghost teams ‘ how many were actually trying to find land and build a stadium to bring that team back into existence ?

    Answer : Probably almost Nil.

    Both Halifax and Castleford , who appeared in the NJL, had advanced plans in place and Halifax even had land secured before the schemes collapsed and both teams ceased to exist as an entity in the league.

  10. Posted

    2 hours ago, Fromafar said:

    Winning in Poland means “your”Team won the League and the Prestige means something to riders and Sponsers.Over here “your “ Club won the League using every other Clubs riders during the season.Not a lot of Credibility in that IMO.

    Are you referring to the use of ‘ guests ‘ ? which some teams used more than others or the ‘ doubling up ‘ scenario that blights our sport ?

    Although riders in Poland ride in other teams in other countries too so not much difference but I do agree, in general, speedway has very little credibility now.

  12. Posted

    4 minutes ago, AndyPresley said:

    My point is that a conveyer belt of new talent isn't going to be available to Speedway because it isn't accessible to most people, which is what I think Give Me a B was saying. Nothing wrong with his post. Unless there are schemes to make it easier for those people who are not fortunate to have parents pay for everything, the emergence of new talent capable of becoming stars will always be rare. I believe Poland for example have much more support in place for 'newbies' and a bigger fanbase (therefore more interest from them), so they do have plenty of new talent coming through. But then again they have the money to do that.

    An inaccurate post is an inaccurate post. Speedway is cheap compared to any other form of motorsport.

    As for schemes to make it easier to get into the sport , that has always been the case in British speedway, no one has ever said “ here’s a fee bike and kit , see how you go “ and it’s no different in Poland, no one gives you free gear there either ! Yes, they do give ‘support’  to youngsters but only those that show promise not to joe public walking off the street saying “ his a go mister “.

  13. Posted

    1 hour ago, mikebv said:

    It will be a niche market given the overall size of the sports following but sometimes that is perfect from a business perspective....

    I personally have had no interest in watching any of the streams put out, however, that doesn't mean I won't be interested in the future...

    The big challenge for me to make it a success is to make each league have some actually meaning, other than just facilitating a system for riders to earn money, which is basically what the sport in the UK has been allowed to evolve into....

    If you could get that "this actually means something" into every meeting then streaming would have a much higher chance of success, simply down to more "neutrals" logging in...

    Poland get lots of "neutrals" watching every week from the UK because it has some real relevance and reward...

    Get that criteria into UK Speedway and it would make a huge difference to the streaming success I would suggest as circa 25,000 weekly regulars of the sport (with probably even more lapsed who still keep a pretty close interest), being a potential "huge" audience for its small size...

    Getting credibility into the sport could be an absolute game changer for the success of the sport as an overall entity, and streaming in particular, as it would open it up to all rather than just mainly be of interest to the fans of the two teams being covered...

     

     

    Just what is the ‘ relevance and reward ‘ then ?  How is winning the league in Poland different to winning the league anywhere else ?

    • Like 1

  14. Posted

    56 minutes ago, AndyPresley said:

    You're right, it is one of the cheapest forms of motorsport and I don't doubt that. Certainly not cheap and accessible to the average family or teenager though.. nor is any motorsport, so entry into the sport is always going to be be restrictive in comparison to ball or racket sports for example.

    So your initial post was just to agree with someone who you knew was wrong ?

    What is your point ? If you or your family are skint then you aren’t likely to try to get into any motorsport and yes, a ball game is a lot cheaper so no comparison to speedway whatsoever.

  16. Posted

    44 minutes ago, soupy said:

    I have read them all but was just pointing it out. One rider is still better than no one but not loads but it has happened.

    You obviously don’t get the thread !

    The proposal was to have multiple novice kids having a first ever ride on a bike in the hour leading upto the main match with their parents getting in for free to bring new people and kids in which is what we were discussing . Not one competent kid doing a few demo laps !

    • Like 1

  17. Posted

    2 hours ago, Ghosty said:

    So your solution to find the riders UK speedway need is?

    Never claimed I had one but trying things that were done away with in the past for logical reasons is not the answer.

    We could try and stop kidding ourselves that we need a ‘ Premier ‘ division and a ‘ Championship ‘ when it’s near enough the same riders who just get paid more in one than the other. Do away with doubling up, make the lower divisions weaker, pay the riders less, especially the NDL, make them consider being semi professional and amateurs riding for expenses only, if, as they claim, they need big money, then those that want to be full time professional can aim for it. Bring the costs down for the riders and the fans. 
    There you go, just an opinion as you have asked.

    • Like 1

  19. Posted

    1 hour ago, *JJ said:

    And the Midland [Northern/Southern] Development Leagues need to be reinstated. This was an invaluable stepping stone between training schools and the National League; now it has (mostly) gone, people wonder why there is a shortage of riders!

    They weren’t done away with,  the NJL has never stopped , the others simply ran out of ‘ ghost teams ‘ to fill them. There was nothing stopping the same riders being used by the host club but they simply weren’t interested in running juniors themselves so blame the clubs themselves not the authorities ( on this occasion ).

    • Like 3

  21. Posted

    11 hours ago, Ghosty said:

    What I'm suggesting is to go back to 13 heats & then with all 14 riders + 4 local talents in the second half with sponsored final.

    The objective being discover & encourage MUCH NEEDED new riders but also freshen things up. Keep this going until we have enough riders to fill our team places without the hated double-up/ double-down shenanigans.  

    So you want to go back to the ‘ old days ‘ ?

    Ask yourself why that was done away with in the first place . To provide more ‘ entertainment ‘ of the top level and do away with the mostly corrupt second half finals that were rigged by the riders themselves, as demanded by the dwindling fans who mostly walked out after heat 13.

    • Like 3

  22. Posted

    22 minutes ago, ruffdiamond said:

    Am sure there's a will to run such a thing, Tsunami used to run a training school at Newcastle. It wasn't done without effort and organisation and, he probably burdened the cost of it all. So maybe you need somebody willing do the same?

    If you bother to read the posts on the subject you will realise the suggest was to run it during the hour before the main match, Dave ran his at lunchtime, bit of a difference !

  23. Posted · Edited by Fortythirtyeight

    1 hour ago, The Dog said:

    Because we don't know its not feasible until someone tries it and proves its not. Like I said, it's just an idea. Someone might look at it and be able to adapt it and make it worthwhile 

    Believe me it isn’t feasible and yes, it’s been tried. A PL match was once put in jeopardy because the track concerned had the air fence damaged by an accident and the paramedics were then taken away to deal with the injured , never mind the last minute track maintenance .

    Have you ever watched a complete novice child try to ride four laps? Besides the painstaking time it can take, usually with an adult running along side to keep them ‘ steady ‘ how many kids are you going to get on track in an hour ? How many different size kits are you going to require? How many qualified ‘ trainers ‘ ? and so on and so on….

    As someone who helps run a training school with hire bikes I do know a bit about what’s involved.

    • Like 3

  25. Posted

    1 hour ago, The Dog said:

    I'm sure it's not feasible but it's just an idea to try and get people interested in the sport because offering free admission etc isn't getting newbies flooding in. And that's most tracks not just Birmingham. 

    Then why suggest something that you know isn’t feasible?

    If Redcars attendances have increased year on year since 2017 then they must be attracting new fans mustn’t they ? I dare say the same goes for Glasgow and Berwick.

     

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