Sky 2014

[salty 2,202]

Interesting points as ever, Arthur. Unfortunately, I think the key difference between greyhounds and speedway will be the influence of the bookmakers. They have a vested interest in keeping the dogs on sky as the live coverage boosts their turnover. They also have the funds to help shore up the production costs. Speedway has nothing like that level of support and it will be the BSPA on its own that will have to come up with a package to entice the broadcasters.

[topaz325 1,859]

Reading between the lines in the speedway press most Elite league clubs are losing significant amounts of money even with the Sky TV money so there is actually no money to put away for a rainy day

 

From what i have read in the SS Eastbourne £70k and in the PL Glasgow £50k.....no doubt many more have suffered major losses again this year...then again we have had new clubs joining the Leagues Birmingham, Plymouth and Bradford thinking about re starting.

[crazysue 613]

In business, you move with the times, not get on about the good old days that will NEVER come back. Note you are 'like'd by old codgers, not folks in the business or attending fans. Blows your case really, probably time for you to move on.In any business, you concentrate your efforts on the ones that might come back, or start coming. Why bother wasting your time and efforts on someone already out of it and likely to stay out of it.

Would anybody waste their time with 'past it' folks like moxey or Oldace. There are bigger fish to fry.

 

Felt I had to post in reply to this, I fell out of love with the sport back in 1994 due to increasing costs (went to the first meeting of the season and that was it) and had absolutely no interest in returning for almost a decade. I was enticed back however due to the GP's on television and an old friend badgering me to go to a meeting whilst we were on holiday..and so, I returned to speedway in 2002.

 

In my time away, I didn't chase up the results, I didn't keep up with the news, speedway was completely off my radar, I had completely lost interest.

 

Never say never, although you may think a fan has been lost and is not worth the effort, you could be very very wrong.

[DiamondsRock 79]

From what i have read in the SS Eastbourne £70k and in the PL Glasgow £50k.....no doubt many more have suffered major losses again this year...then again we have had new clubs joining the Leagues Birmingham, Plymouth and Bradford thinking about re starting.

 

Then it's about time that club's got realistic with wages, and actually started to put some effort into promote. Hopefully with the loss of the Sky handouts, certain clubs will start to think about how much they can afford to pay out, and try harder to bring new fans in.

 

Should Sky return, then hopefully the promoters will use it to subsidise Sky match admission costs (rather than paying out unaffordable wages) - make the product look popular, and maybe it will entice more people along to regular meetings. A rolling one year contract (or no contract at all) may give them the kick up the backside they need.

[G the Bee 639]

Put simply, we must be the only sport who has had a decade and a half's investment from Sky and come out the other end in a significantly worse position than when we entered it.

 

A damning indictment of how the sport in this country has been run.

 

Clueless promotion, no long-term plan, stumbling along from agm to agm making rule changes on a whim...

 

Need I go on.

 

As far as I'm concerned the management team of the BSPA as a collective (and I know it's membership has changed over this period) has blood on its hands and owes each and every speedway supporter in the country an apology for the shambolic and ineffective way the sport has been governed over this period.

Edited October 20, 2013 by G the Bee

[Tsunami 10,219]

Felt I had to post in reply to this, I fell out of love with the sport back in 1994 due to increasing costs (went to the first meeting of the season and that was it) and had absolutely no interest in returning for almost a decade. I was enticed back however due to the GP's on television and an old friend badgering me to go to a meeting whilst we were on holiday..and so, I returned to speedway in 2002.

 

In my time away, I didn't chase up the results, I didn't keep up with the news, speedway was completely off my radar, I had completely lost interest.

 

Never say never, although you may think a fan has been lost and is not worth the effort, you could be very very wrong.

 

The most relevant part of what I said was about chasing old Codgers like Oldace and Moxey, who had already said on here they would never come back to speedway, and moxey said "even if they game me a free pass". In my reply to Conkers in Gravy, I did say I would seek the views of people who left, but I would priortise my efforts on folks who were more likely to come to speedway, say with kids, as they are the future, not spending time and effort to old codgers who haven't got a good word to say about the sport.

SCB has already expressed the view in other threads as to why would youngsters, who should be our future, come to speedway when the average age is as high as it is in speedway, listening to old music and with drab presentation. That is not the future, and we must get younger people to meetings. Imagine if these new prospective fans went and stood alongside those two. Don't think the new fans would even stay for the meeting. Harsh but true.

[crazysue 613]

I agree we need to somehow entice or even keep the youngsters we have. I've stated on another thread about my youngsters who have stopped going, eldest stopped 4 years ago when he turned 16, the reason? Too high a cost for someone still in compulsory education and too high a cost even at student rate whilst in 6th form...and now, moved away from the area for university.

 

He still loves speedway and would go if he could but it was just too expensive for him as a young adult and as a result, has only been to one meeting in the last 4 years.

 

Middle son went to his last speedway meeting this week just gone, the reason? Too high a cost for someone still in compulsory education and looking further ahead, still too high a cost for someone in 6th form even at the student rate.

 

Youngest stopped going two years ago, although his reasons are not the fault of speedway or the promotions, he just couldn't cope with the noise or surroundings (complex autistic). To be honest, it was a blessed relief for me, him and probably those people around us as it was a blooming nightmare when I was taking him along with us!

 

To entice the younger generation or to keep them coming once they are 16, the admittance fee needs to be affordable before promoters even start thinking about jazzing up the presentation etc. If the cost is too high, they won't come through the gates....

[iris123 20,990]

Felt I had to post in reply to this, I fell out of love with the sport back in 1994 due to increasing costs (went to the first meeting of the season and that was it) and had absolutely no interest in returning for almost a decade. I was enticed back however due to the GP's on television and an old friend badgering me to go to a meeting whilst we were on holiday..and so, I returned to speedway in 2002.

 

In my time away, I didn't chase up the results, I didn't keep up with the news, speedway was completely off my radar, I had completely lost interest.

 

Never say never, although you may think a fan has been lost and is not worth the effort, you could be very very wrong.

 

I'd have to agree with Tsunami really.Going after people who left the sport when they were in their 20s or 30s is different to trying to get back fans who are in their 40s or 50s or even older.I stopped following the sport when the Dons closed in 1991 just before i was 30.If i stopped going now when just in my 50s there is probably not much chance i would make a big comeback.Now you are older and from some of your posts over the past few years have also lost a lot of enthusiasm with the sport.If you stopped now it is probably unlikely that in 5 or 10 years time you would come back and be such an active supporter

[The White Knight 9,039]

The most relevant part of what I said was about chasing old Codgers like Oldace and Moxey, who had already said on here they would never come back to speedway, and moxey said "even if they game me a free pass". In my reply to Conkers in Gravy, I did say I would seek the views of people who left, but I would priortise my efforts on folks who were more likely to come to speedway, say with kids, as they are the future, not spending time and effort to old codgers who haven't got a good word to say about the sport.

SCB has already expressed the view in other threads as to why would youngsters, who should be our future, come to speedway when the average age is as high as it is in speedway, listening to old music and with drab presentation. That is not the future, and we must get younger people to meetings. Imagine if these new prospective fans went and stood alongside those two. Don't think the new fans would even stay for the meeting. Harsh but true.

 

Any ideas about Presentation then? It would not only benefit newcomers but it would also benefit us 'old codgers' too. Or do we not count.

 

You are right about youngsters being the future of the Sport - but you need to look after your LOYAL OLD Supporters too.

[crazysue 613]

I'd have to agree with Tsunami really.Going after people who left the sport when they were in their 20s or 30s is different to trying to get back fans who are in their 40s or 50s or even older.I stopped following the sport when the Dons closed in 1991 just before i was 30.If i stopped going now when just in my 50s there is probably not much chance i would make a big comeback.Now you are older and from some of your posts over the past few years have also lost a lot of enthusiasm with the sport.If you stopped now it is probably unlikely that in 5 or 10 years time you would come back and be such an active supporter

 

Quite probably...

 

As you have noticed, I am one of the wavering ones and have been for at least 3 seasons now, if it hadn't been for the Updates, I would probably have stopped going last year.

 

My reasons are not because of the rules, or the alleged shenanigans, the stadiums, the music etc though (although the shenanigans have not helped), mine is because I cannot bear seeing so many riders being so horribly hurt, it's just taken the wind out of my sails so to speak. Sometimes, I am so scared checking the results just in case there is yet another bad injury, call me a softy but it's just having a bigger impact on me now than it did even 5 years ago.

[The White Knight 9,039]

Quite probably...

 

As you have noticed, I am one of the wavering ones and have been for at least 3 seasons now, if it hadn't been for the Updates, I would probably have stopped going last year.

 

My reasons are not because of the rules, or the alleged shenanigans, the stadiums, the music etc though (although the shenanigans have not helped), mine is because I cannot bear seeing so many riders being so horribly hurt, it's just taken the wind out of my sails so to speak. Sometimes, I am so scared checking the results just in case there is yet another bad injury, call me a softy but it's just having a bigger impact on me now than it did even 5 years ago.

 

My reasons are the Rules - but you raise a good point about injuries - there seem to be a LOT more of them these days. :sad:

[rob tatum 175]

Brilliant post by Crazy sue. Spot on.

[rob tatum 175]

I read on this forum that the sky contract was £900.000 per year between all the EL clubs. Crikey sky must be skint but I guess when you blow all your cash on footie & F *effing 1 cut backs must be made. Or is it just that they think the EL looks rubbish on tv ?

[oldace 1,678]

The formula 1 thing is purely a smokescreen. If Sky have over committed on F1 then the last thing they would do is axe other profitable revenue streams, on the contrary, they would be eager to keep them to offset against other less profitable streams. Speedway (for reasons gone over on here ad infinitum) clearly doesn't fit the bill.

 

If speedway is to appear, in any form, on SKY from now on it is clearly going to be at the sports expense rather than SKY paying for the privilege but as Terry Russell has happily trousered 20% (?) of any money sky paid I am sure he will gladly pay 20% of any production costs.

[Tommy Sweetman 480]

I read on this forum that the sky contract was £900.000 per year between all the EL clubs. Crikey sky must be skint but I guess when you blow all your cash on footie & F *effing 1 cut backs must be made. Or is it just that they think the EL looks rubbish on tv ?

Not only footie and F1 where Sky are spending thier money,secured a 4 year deal with the ECB to show domestic cricket and home Tests for £300 million.

Add on money to the ICC for overseas matches,and you can see which sports mean more to Sky.

And speedway certainly aint one of them.