woofers

So they had no say in the fixture arrangements ? They didn't agree to any of the dates , they were just told when I ride ? I think not.

Isn't he Woofindens PR man ?

Nice to see Jason Doyle at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, entertaining the crowd with prolonged wheelies on the main straight and hill climb. Most of the crowd there are car people but the bikes are getting a decent showing in recent years, increasing in numbers and the spectators are becoming more appreciative of the riders skills. All the wheelies are greeted enthusiastically and get a great reception. Good on you Jason (and Greg Hancock who, I think was the first speedway rider appearance a couple oh years ago).

Hmm, once every 4 years the Football World Cup takes place - it is probably the biggest sporting event on the globe and attracts a massive following. The success of the English team this year has surpassed expectations and bought a sense of unity and pride across the country. Quite a few folk will be watching the national team on Saturday. Whilst England's progress couldn't be anticipated it shouldn't have been beyond anyone's planning abilities to see that this period would see reduced attendances and from a purely commercial perspective perhaps fixtures should have been arranged differently in the first place.

May I suggest replacing "naive" with "stupid". This is struggling to be a professional sport, and announcing signings before approval smacks of rank amateurism ......... unless of course you know full well that there is likely to be a stink whether it comes off or not and the resulting PR is what you were after all along.

"Still in Pearson's world it was 2 great nights of speedway" What would you have him say? To be fair to Nigel, he can hardly saw "this is rubbish, I don't why we bother with this... etc etc" can he ? I think he feels some of the things we all do, I remember a TV meeting at Eastbourne v Poole when Bjarne Pedersen (riding for Eastbourne at the time) had an off night, you know the old "Agent Pedersen" quips were prevalent at the time, and speaking briefly to Nigel in the car park mentioned how Bjarnes off nights coincided with him riding against Poole. He smiled and said something like, "Yeah, but I can't mention that on air...." I don't think Nigel and Kelvin do a bad job in trying to promote something that requires major surgery........ in fact Boris Johnson's recent quips about polishing something spring to mind.

Back in the 70's, in my late teenage years, I used to go along to watch the Reading Racers at Tilehurst. When that closed I moved onto other interests, mostly moto cross and getting on with other things in life and a career that saw a move to Sussex. In 2004 I upgraded my TV and got a Sky subscription, and by chance scrolling through the channels, came across speedway. Remembering that it was a decent spectacle live, I recalled there being a team at Eastbourne so checked it out and have being going, through thick and thin, ever since. So, yeah, you could say Thank You Sky for getting me back to speedway. As everyone else has pointed out though, the failure to use their money wisely isn't their fault is it ?

If speedway is to survive, let along prosper, that track needs to be redesigned, and soon. No one in their right mind would go along and watch that procession week in, week out. I have only seen the TV meetings from Leicester and they have all been very poor, can someone say that what we witnessed isn't the norm ? Very disappointing advert for speedway - BT should be taking advice as to which tracks and meetings to broadcast - trouble is where would they get reliable advice? No one on the BSPA is going to say, "don't go there, it's crap" but if they want to promote the sport that is what is needed.

So who was at fault tonight ? And any penalties ? 15.2.4 .................... This 2-minute time allowance is signaled by an audible siren and flashing amber lamp and if present (mandatory at a TV Meeting), be shown on a Countdown Clock.

Do we think it was an 'off night' or does it strengthen the case that we should be in the Championship league ?

Two good posts. Surely enough is enough. No one really wants to see a track close but neither do we want to hear of injuries or farcical circumstances further damaging speedways fragile reputation. A suspension or closure may be a blessing.

Difficult to disagree with you. All part of the re-branding, new colours, racesuits, name, etc. etc. almost everything was thrown out, (including those running the track shop and the tea, coffee and snacks outlets). Only the burger and chips concessions are the same as last year.

Dean, that's a hell of sentence.......and question. If I have got the gist of it though, I think you are saying that the modern engine, as set up, is only suitable for perfectly prepared tracks. Therefore, if a track is less than perfectly prepared, riders need to adjust, or de-tune, their engines accordingly. Or, if possible, ride a little more carefully or not so fast. So if the meeting was called off because of an 'unfit track' it is really down to the riders inability to negotiate said 'unfit track' and nothing to do with the home clubs preparation ? A bit like comparing the Isle of Man TT races to the Moto GP then ?

Thanks for your reply griffo. I inadvertently thought that the title Clerk of the Course carried some weight in the safe running of a meeting, and that the failure of the red lights would be a critical factor in determining whether a meeting was safe to continue. I concluded that if there were to be a serious incident when it was known that the red lights were not working then the Clerk of the Course would carry an element of responsibility and most likely be 'in trouble' (I did not mention being reported). My thinking and conclusions would be wrong though. It would seem that under Speedway Regulations it is OK to run without working lights if the Referee says so : 9.2.6.2 If the Lights malfunction for any reason and the Meeting Referee considers it safe for the Meeting to continue, flags will be used under the jurisdiction of the Referee. No doubt you will have carried out your responsibility under 14.2.1 g - bring matters concerning H&S issues to the promoters attention, as well as complying with the Clerk of Course Aide Memoire which requires you to Liaise with the Track Electrician to confirm that all track lighting and signals are in good working order and checking that an Electrician remains on duty throughout the meeting and arranging means of contact. So it looks as though I owe you, and other officials, an apology. It is OK to run a speedway meeting without functioning lights. Only the referee would have it on his conscience in the event of an accident. For all the other officials, it was 'nothing to do with me'.

Very disturbing. The referee should have tested the lights before giving the go ahead to run heat 15. If they failed the meeting should have been abandoned. The referee is now in a quandary. If he mentions it in his report but failed to take action, he should be in trouble. And rightly so. As should the clerk of the course. If he fails to mention it in his report the problem 'doesn't exist' and those in authority can 'rest easy'. Or can they ? Have the promoters, referee and officials no conscience ? it seems that there is no 'rider power', so perhaps you should get in contact with speedway authorities at a higher level, BSPA, SCB, the ACU even, and relay your observations. This sort of thing cannot go unreported, ignored, 'swept under the carpet' or pretend it didn't happen. Someone could be seriously hurt, or worse, if it's not dealt with provisionally and responsibly.

I think you are correct in that this Saturdays match will be fairly one sided - again!, and I know you can only beat what's put in front of you. I wouldn't want the marketing mans job at the moment, anyone coming along to the opening matches wouldn't be coming back in a hurry, many of the 'races' are really 'riding around' with only the die-hards appreciating the riders efforts. So, I really hope that things pick up pretty quickly in terms of entertainment, Mildenhall, Kent, Coventry all look interesting. I have been attending Eastbourne since 2004 so am fairly well versed with the ups and downs of the club since then, and I have welcomed the NL as I like to think some speedway is better than no speedway. I also appreciate that the NL riders are mainly new to the sport and mostly 'hobbyists', so I have no axe to grind there. I just wonder if Eastbourne might be better off in the Championship ? The Dugards obviously have a competitive instinct and ambition, and I'm fairly sure the crowds would support professional speedway riders - the fortunes of Lakeside may well be worth keeping an eye on this year.

Probably because they are unpaid, unprofessional and just reacting to a situation. They haven't the time (or ability ?) to think things through or consider various scenario's on how that rule my be interpreted or acted upon. And they are not an independent body, so they are unable / unwilling to consider the ramifications of their actions outside their own interests. And that's why speedway is considered a mickey mouse, joke 'sport' and why people are walking away from it, let alone joining. I know it's a touchy subject on here, but just look at the difference in the running and professionalism of the GP series compared with league speedway.

Excellent news. No doubt that was the plan all along......

Particularly as both are the sole shareholders of the company. Wouldn't you ask "What's this £93,485 we owe to Other Creditors then?"

Unfortunately the accounts for Lakeside Hammers are not very positive and make sorry reading. Losses of £16,670 during 2015 and £71,461 in 2016. Amounts owing to creditors up from £49,988 at 31.12.15 to £93,485 at 31.12.16 Net worth £88,031 negative at December 2016 Let's hope that last year was able to make a positive contribution and make some inroads into this.

Yep, that's my point, I thought they would freshen up the existing website, the one everyone knows and goes to for info..... And we are grateful for his enthusiasm and sponsorship. But he doesn't own the Eastbourne Eagles, and really how many fans will be customers of Forman IT? Maybe there are some corporation tax reasons behind this.

Thanks for that, although I think you may have misunderstood my request. I know about, and have looked at, the new website, this was covered in some earlier posts. What I was asking for, was with reference to the announcement made in December about the change in colours and sponsor, and which other posters have said included mention of a new website, or a link from the old one - I still can't see this and none of the earlier posters have put up details of such. My beef is the perceived requirement for a new website altogether - what was wrong with the old one ?

Well I look on the Eastie website. And I know about the change of colours, I know about the change of sponsor from IT First to FormanIT, it's in the News bit dated 14 December. But I'm still not seeing anything about a new, dedicated website - I see a reference to a new, dedicated trackshop, both online and off line, but believed this to be something that would be incorporated within the aptly named Eastbourneeagles.co website. As before, feel free to ping me the bit about, and link to, a new website.

Which is great if you're signed up to social media, Facebook, Twitter, etc I suppose. I'm not. Sure, move forward and try to appeal to a 'new wave' of supporters but don't forget or alienate those who chose not to live their lives on mobile phones. Those of us who have supported the club for many years, through season ticket purchases and contributions to various initiatives and funds would like to think we are still valued, and should be communicated to appropriately. Do we have any idea, or would like hazard a guess, at what proportion of the current Arlington crowd are active social media users?

Just wondering why this is confined to the Premiership section of the Forum ?