Alex Harkess - Resign

[Starman2006 2,356]

i propose Starman

Yeh lovely, happy to oblige. I'l propose Matt Ford as my righthand man!! Ive always said, you should have somebody to run the EL, and somebody to take charge of the PL affairs..

But with also a top ex rider who is totally impartial to Sanction the proposals of both leagues, so it is done properly and professionally.

Edited September 6, 2014 by Starman2006

[Seymour Dix 2,030]

What is not in doubt is that Speedway is a spectacular exciting sport, it just needs to be managed properly.

Maybe what is needed is someone maybe not associated with the sport, to stand back look at the structure , the riules etc of British Speedway in depth , grab it by the scuff of the neck and say ' this is what has to done '

[StevePark 2,805]

Why blame Alex Harkess? All he is is the Chairman of the BSPA Committee. If you are going to blame anyone, you can't just blame one individual, you have to blame all the others too.

 

Being independently governed might be the way to go, but, I fear, they (whoever they may be) would still be full of self interest, that's if you can find someone in the first place.

[Arson fire 4,785]

Why blame Alex Harkess? All he is is the Chairman of the BSPA Committee. If you are going to blame anyone, you can't just blame one individual, you have to blame all the others too.

 

Being independently governed might be the way to go, but, I fear, they (whoever they may be) would still be full of self interest, that's if you can find someone in the first place.

He is the figure head that's why.... And I assume very instrumental in the goings on and direction of the managment commitee?? Of whom it's obvious some have more say than others....

Least you recognise ' they' are full of self interest.

 

Be interesting to know who decides things like blocking certain team changes with in the rules, granting a facility for one team but denying for another in re arranged matches, deciding for eg Brady Kurtz was a 3 then a 5... When he should have been a 7??.... The Dennis Anderson farce of Poole getting him on a 4 point average ... The list goes on.

Harkess pulled stunts like burger gate, so it just goes to show how stupid the sport he is figure head of is really.

[Starman2006 2,356]

He is the figure head that's why.... And I assume very instrumental in the goings on and direction of the managment commitee?? Of whom it's obvious some have more say than others....

Least you recognise ' they' are full of self interest.

 

Be interesting to know who decides things like blocking certain team changes with in the rules, granting a facility for one team but denying for another in re arranged matches, deciding for eg Brady Kurtz was a 3 then a 5... When he should have been a 7??.... The Dennis Anderson farce of Poole getting him on a 4 point average ... The list goes on.

Harkess pulled stunts like burger gate, so it just goes to show how stupid the sport he is figure head of is really.

Ah i wondered when it would start. Nothing like bringing Poole and Somerset into the argument..

[StevePark 2,805]

He is the figure head that's why.... And I assume very instrumental in the goings on and direction of the managment commitee?? Of whom it's obvious some have more say than others....

Least you recognise ' they' are full of self interest.

 

Be interesting to know who decides things like blocking certain team changes with in the rules, granting a facility for one team but denying for another in re arranged matches, deciding for eg Brady Kurtz was a 3 then a 5... When he should have been a 7??.... The Dennis Anderson farce of Poole getting him on a 4 point average ... The list goes on.

Harkess pulled stunts like burger gate, so it just goes to show how stupid the sport he is figure head of is really.

 

That, surely, has to be a committee decision. It can't be down to just one person?

[Arson fire 4,785]

Ah i wondered when it would start. Nothing like bringing Poole and Somerset into the argument..

They are factual examples of strange decisions.... See little man syndrome is still rearing it's ugly head with you

 

Btw I didn't mention the teams as a bias I was more on about the strange decisions

 

That, surely, has to be a committee decision. It can't be down to just one person?

he is head of the said commitee, a commitee that constantly makes different decisions/ outcomes for the same scenarios.... The buck stops at the top IMO.... But you're right who decides that Lemo gets a facility for being at the World Cup??.... Who decides the same tracks get the same meetings each year etc...how Scunny get a facility for klindt as it was a re arranged fixture, but newcastle didn't for lindgren v Berwick in the re arranged sky match... Be interesting to know really. Edited September 6, 2014 by Arson fire

[Trees 2,814]

Surely he is just Chairman of the Committee, it up to them all to come up with the ideas, sounds like my Parish Council.

 

I've always thought that they should risk assess every decision, the trouble is the clever ones amongst them probably stay schtum.

 

Take this transfer/signing deadline and Lynn losing their number one, there is no way that we should be denied the signing of another rider IMO, how stupid is that. Same goes for Poole and the situation they're in. I'm guessing it's been done so no team can change their team for the playoffs but I feel it should have conditions! If they had taken possible scenarios into account then things might be different. At the end of the day it's penalising the fans. Same as not allowing guests of equal quality when a team member is racing for his home country team, again the public are denied!

 

Same as the ftr list, put every young rider on it, to stop the farce that happened at Coventry on Thursday night?

Edited September 6, 2014 by Trees

[5 FURROW 97]

Ok Harkess goes, what then, who takes over that would make that much of an improvement.

it would be one selfish clown out to be replaced by another selfish clown

[StevePark 2,805]

They are factual examples of strange decisions.... See little man syndrome is still rearing it's ugly head with you

 

Btw I didn't mention the teams as a bias I was more on about the strange decisions

he is head of the said commitee, a commitee that constantly makes different decisions/ outcomes for the same scenarios.... The buck stops at the top IMO.... But you're right who decides that Lemo gets a facility for being at the World Cup??.... Who decides the same tracks get the same meetings each year etc...how Scunny get a facility for klindt as it was a re arranged fixture, but newcastle didn't for lindgren v Berwick in the re arranged sky match... Be interesting to know really.

 

Rules may have changed from when we had to go with McKinna at Berwick last season, compared to Klindt this year (I don't know, just wondering)?

 

Lemo was technically classed as a rider (I think), as, this year (for the first time) he had to sign to the World Cup and couldn't ride elsewhere whilst still in it, just as all riders had to do (it only effected him as Manager), so he had no choice but to miss a meeting for Redcar (or relinquish the Aussie Team Manager job).

 

I'd also guess that it will be a committee decision where all 'Events' are held, although I don't know how many (if any) tracks, throw their 'hat' into the ring to stage those meetings. If none do (except those that already host the meeting) then that event (e.g PLRC at Sheffield), will be held at that venue.

Edited September 6, 2014 by Steve Park

[New Science 1,059]

Good Post Dean.

 

You are right - the Sport needs a huge top down overhaul. There are lots of things to love about Speedway but sadly there is a terrible lot wrong with it too. You have listed a number of them in your Post.

 

Speedway will never be as good as it once was for all the reasons you say - but - another couple of reasons may be the loss of the Smell and to an extent the Noise as well. Neither of these things the Sport can do anything about given the Legal situation these days regarding the Environment. It is amazing how many folk that no longer attend Speedway say - I used to love the smell (so did I) and the noise. I reckon that those factors will not have helped the Sport either.

 

Regarding Mr. Harkess - he is probably doing as good a job as he can in the circumstances - ie: the people he has to deal with - as anyone else could do. I see nobody,sadly, at the very top of the Sport who seems capable of taking Speedway by the scruff of the neck and really sorting it out. THAT is what it needs. I am certainly not sure any of the current top people could do any better.

 

Speedway also needs to do something to restore it's credibility as well.

Agree,as a youngster the things that hooked me were the noise,the smell and the speed.Now only the speed remains,I wouldn't be hooked now if I had just started watching the sport.Amazing how when the noise was reduced it also took the atmosphere with it, since 2011 the atmosphere has been like a morgue at most tracks,and its not coming back,another reason why the sport is in steep decline. Edited September 6, 2014 by New Science

[mikebv 10,381]

No point blaming any one person for british speedway's current farcical situation..

 

When you get promoters ringing you up saying 'if I cannot use rider x tonight I will close my track' what can you do??

 

I remember a couple of years ago one of the management committee said he left the MC due to the flack and pressure he got from fellow promoters basically holding the sport to ransom to get what they wanted..

 

The other nights farce with Cov trying to use an illegible rider could have had MC approval as it has been documented before that promoters often phone one MC member after another with the same request until they get a 'Yes'....

 

The sports decline has been inevitable over the past ten years or so due to a complete lack of independent leadership and an absence of a clear vision for the sports future development and growth...

 

That is not the sole fault of the current incumbent head of the bspa..

 

He has just been incapable of turning round the fcuked oil tanker of a sport that is british speedway...

 

As many before him have also abysmally failed to do...

Edited September 6, 2014 by mikebv

[R87 476]

I remember (not long after he took the job) that he rubbished the notion of an independent body running British Speedway as "speedway works here very well".

 

The fact that as the chairman of the BSPA, he was in office during the farcical winter in 2010/2011 would have seen him out of a job in most other sports. Lets not forget also that he promotes a club which had to go cap in hand and plead poverty to their own supporters - these two sagas hardly make him the most credible of chairman.

 

Sadly, with the way the sport is current (mis)managed here, moving him on and replacing him with another current promoter will be like shuffling the deckchairs on the Titanic.

 

I think there are a lot of forward-thinking promoters within British Speedway (Rob Godfrey at Scunthorpe has always impressed me), but with too many older promoters set in their ways and determined to keep things as they are just because it "suits them", then I don't see speedway moving forward - I hope I'm proved wrong, but I don't see it.

[TheReturn 1,724]

The Chair does not make the rules of the sport (unless he has a casting vote), he is merely chair of the committee, the committee make the rules.

[spanner47 336]

Being the Chairman of a self-interest organisation can't be easy. Even when a promoter does comes up with a sensible idea, it doesn't suit someone else so it never happens.