Meeting Format

[Peter 0]

They seem to have probs if there is an injury, the ambulance situation could do with being sorted, hospital is only down the road! The fence always takes a time to fix too, maybe the proposed air fence will help with that!

It would help reduce the number of crashes if the stock cars stayed away from Kirky Lane. Belle Vue seem to suffer more than most from a stock car meeting.

 

If Belle Vue had an air fence all the way round the track, you would only be able to see from behind the glass and possibly the 2nd bend grass banking, so it would have to be on the bends only.

[Kevin Meynell 2]

The question is, would clubs be able to fit 23 races in under 2 hours?

It should be possible to run 12 heats per hour (1 every five minutes), so yes 23 heats in two hours is feasible timewise, if perhaps not affordable. Obviously you have to accept delays if there are serious accidents, but under normal circumstances there's no excuse for 15 heats to take longer than about 1.5 hours.

[stevehone 3,430]

a lot of the problem is that so much time seems to be spent before each race with the riders digging up their gate positions... if you were sad enough to sit there at a meeting and time them at how long they are in the start gate vicinity, it would probably be longer than each race takes!

the races last for 1 minute... how can they struggle to fit in 15 minutes of racing into a 2 hour slot???

maybe the referees need to get a push on or cut out the digging.

i don't know if he still refs but i always thought Frank Ebdon was the best ref at keeping things moving.

[Kevin Meynell 2]

how can they struggle to fit in 15 minutes of racing into a 2 hour slot???

I think it can only be a deliberate decision to slow-up the racing, otherwise it would be embarrasing if the 15 regulation heats were over in little more than an hour. When I started going to speedway in the early-1980s, I'm pretty sure the policy was to sound the two-minute warning as soon as the previous race had finished.

[Jeff. 2]

Kevin it used to be that the two minute warning was for a specific rider, i.e. the rider in red is on two minutes, if during that time another rider went back to the pits he would be put on two minutes and so on. Two minutes could last five or six minutes.

[Trevor 270]

I've often wonderd why we do not have the second half first! At Belle Vue say, the Junior races could begin at 7pm then at 7.30 the parade for the main match would start, even if the Junior races hadn't completed. They could complete after the main match. Problems of being over for a certain time would not then matter. You often hear riders say that the track will improve as the meeting goes on, so why not let the juniors race on it first? This would also boost the attendance for the Junior events and give the crowd something to watch as they arrive.

[Lioness 1,455]

Did Swindon not try something along those lines with a couple of races 'in the middle' of the meeting where riders had two in a row. I seem to recall someone did and they got slated for it.

 

Theres no pleasing speedway folk

 

Must admit we must be lucky as our promotion usually have some sort of second half-usually the youngsters-and have done for as long as I've been going. sadly I'd say the majority dont bother staying to watch

[Kevin Meynell 2]

Did Swindon not try something along those lines with a couple of races 'in the middle' of the meeting where riders had two in a row. I seem to recall someone did and they got slated for it.

I think the problem with staging support races during the main meeting is that they need to be sufficiently interesting to watch, and the meeting needs to be run swiftly. These days, matches are run so slowly that it's no wonder fans get annoyed by even longer delays.

 

I would put (say) three support races between blocks of heats (e.g. Heat 4, 7/8, 11 and 14) to give riders a bit more time between their programmed rides, and then run the whole meeting much more quickly. This would also allow the interval to actually be held at the half-way point, rather than 2/3rds or more of the way through the meeting.

[Mylor 0]

Wouldn't happen at televised matches Kevin but should work otherwise.

Edited December 29, 2003 by Mylor

[SCB 0]

Wouldn't happen at televised matches Kevin but should work otherwise.

Surely it's ideal at televised meetings, while Sky are having a break, put a few juniors on the track.

[frigbo 518]

The idea of junior races integrated into the main match is awful.

 

Swindon did so in 2003 and it totally disrupted the flow of the Meeting.

 

On a number of occasions matches had reached a critical stage when, loe and behold out come three or four Juniors to take the atmosphere and tension back down to snooze level.

 

Also there is the prospect of inexperienced riders crashing and potentially causing long delays to the main meeting, or even worse, a cancellation. That would do the sports fragile credibility the world of good wouldn't it?

 

Thankfully, Rosco has already stated that the Juniors will get their much needed racetime after the conclusion of the main meeting in 2004.

 

Hope all his decisions are that good this season, we won't go far wrong if they are!!.

[Kevin Meynell 2]

The idea of junior races integrated into the main match is awful.

What about staging the junior races before the start of the main match? That would allow people who get there early to see a few extra races, but it wouldn't matter if you were running slightly late.

[jill 4]

The idea of junior races integrated into the main match is awful.

What about staging the junior races before the start of the main match? That would allow people who get there early to see a few extra races, but it wouldn't matter if you were running slightly late.

exactly what trevor said

[jackofdiamonds 53]

This brings up what would happen if a junior was injured and the ambulance/doctor

 

was involved for a lengthy time.

 

And don't the riders want to race when the track is ( allegedly ) at its best.

 

I for one would like the two minute warning immediately after the previous race.

 

Let's have the meeting run as quickly as possible, parents would me more likely to

 

bring their children to a meeting that ends at 9 rather than 10.

[Guest Steve Piper]

Its intresting reading all the different comments and ideas. Frigbo I see you were not keen on the junior races at Swindon bettween the the main meeting heats.While I can understand the disruption to the racing we are talking only a few mins. for a race and being the father of one of those junior riders, the much needed race time during race conditions is vital for our young riders to develope and Peter Oakes worked hard to push the boundries for our young riders.

Swindon in 2003 helped no end to develope a new crop of riders, of who many I am sure will go on to have a great future in speedway.

With what I see at the Weymouth training schools I have no doubt that in future years that England will have many talented riders but we need to give them QUALITY track time.

Swindon were last season one of the leading lights in bringing much needed track time to juniors. At Weymouth Brian White is looking to help bring on the young riders and to that end I will work to give supporters weekly entertaining second half events. Hopefully we can keep pushing the boundries so that our Junior riders can develope and become major force on the world stage.