The Decline Of British Speedway

[New Science 1,059]

DARTS - a Sport. :rofl: :rofl:

Try playing it you might appreciate the skill !

[Vince 9,458]

I don't for one moment doubt your statistics but can you clarify 4446,000 spectators for speedway league matches throughout the season. My maths are terrible But dividing that overal fifure by 32 tracks we arrive at each getting a season overall of 139,375, then divided by 26 meetings a meeting attendance of just 537.

You also quote a 40,000 figure for the British GP. How many of these are overseas visitors, and how many of the type of person that just attends major meetings?

Sadly, it tends to put speedway from a spectator interest on a par with one of the leading non-league football competitions?

To be honest, sat here doing the figures off the top of my head I think my maths might be a bit awry but as I am only guessing numbers anyway and have deliberately stayed on the conservative side I suspect it's not a million miles out and the total figures including NL would be getting toward the half million.

 

No idea whatever on the make up of the crowd and as I was only making a comparison to overall figures for darts and cricket it's irrelevant anyway.

 

No surprise that Speedway is comparable to non league Football for me, suspect most of the riders wish the net pay was as well.

[The White Knight 9,039]

Try playing it you might appreciate the skill !

I used to play.

 

You are right - it is very skillful - BUT crucially - Darts is a Pub Game NOT a Sport. Along with the Darts goes the BEER. Hardly sporting that, I mean, look at the size of some of the contestants.

 

Just because it is shown on Sports Channels does NOT make it a Sport.

 

Never that!!

[Bruiser McHuge 589]

I used to play.

 

You are right - it is very skillful - BUT crucially - Darts is a Pub Game NOT a Sport. Along with the Darts goes the BEER. Hardly sporting that, I mean, look at the size of some of the contestants.

 

Just because it is shown on Sports Channels does NOT make it a Sport.

 

Never that!!

 

Whether it's a game or a sport is open to debate but in my opinion it is far more entertaining and watchable than present day speedway ...it's a fantastic game to play and to watch, either live or on TV and I can't always say that about speedway these days

[le sorcier 9]

But Speedway can be a fantastic sport to watch also.

 

But we cannot try and make matches more interesting/competitive by chopping and changing rules every season. For me, as a casual fan with no club of my own, the tactical double points rule has made matches farcical on occasions. It definitely HAS put me off Speedway.

 

What is needed is a competitive league with some sort of squad system. Then the fantastic racing will take care of itself without having to artificially make meetings closer. How this is achieved though is anyone's guess?

[moxey63 1,785]

Darts is like blow football, push penny... the sort of things you once witnessed on that ITV programme in 1970s Britain, was it Indoor League? It is skillfull but not a sport. The only reason it is popular with some, is because i's usually staged in public houses etc and the audience are usually sloshed and would not otherwise attend, but for the reason of beer supping.

[billybikespeedway 75]

Darts is just a sport which is very similer to Archery or clay shooting if you take it down to basics, and they are considered sports along with golf,

[stratton 1,491]

Sounds impressive. lets assume an average of 800 for EL matches and 600 for PL and completely forget NL.

 

Speedway pulls in 466,000 spectators to league matches compared to one of the fastest growing sports 120,000. Speedway sells over 40,000 tickets for just the one day British round of it's World Championship compared to the same sort of figure for 15 days for one of the fastest growing sports. 20/20 cricket pulls in roughly 50% more spectators despite the huge advantage of a mainstream press that thinks there are only 3 sports and a population bought up playing Football and Cricket from an early age.

 

Those of us old enough to remember the late 70's and early 80's will remember when Darts was far bigger than it is now with the likes of Bristow and Lowe being as famous as Briggo and Mauger were in Speedways boom times.

 

I'm not doubting the success that has been made of promoting either Darts or 20/20 Cricket but equally Speedway tracks that run every week cannot ever expect the same success from a marketing strategy.

 

Sidney, we'll just have to disagree on that one, I watched most of my Speedway in the late 60's and all through the 70's and every time I see the lads ride today I am impressed with the speed and commitment. I saw some great Speedway in the good old days but I also saw some terrible meetings, much like now really!

I agree Vince i go now and i am in awe of the skill of the riders awesome really.I have supported speedway from the same years as yourself and you are so right i did see garbage meeting's but i suppose because i loved the sport it did not matter.What I do miss is a good old BL set up we had the best league now that has gone what i have fond memories of are the derby meeting's against Oxford,Reading,Newport great days.

[The White Knight 9,039]

I still honestly believe that Speedway as a spectacle was better back in the Seventies.

 

It is all about opinions - and that is mine.

[Guest]

I still honestly believe that Speedway as a spectacle was better back in the Seventies.

 

It is all about opinions - and that is mine.

You should have seen speedway in the mid-1940s on those deep cinder tracks with spectacular leg trailers like Phil Bishop, Oliver Hart, George Newton to name a few of them. Their sweeping style of racing made the hair on the back of the neck tingle.

Edited September 28, 2014 by Guest

[orion 7,615]

 

Darts is like blow football, push penny... the sort of things you once witnessed on that ITV programme in 1970s Britain, was it Indoor League? It is skillfull but not a sport. The only reason it is popular with some, is because i's usually staged in public houses etc and the audience are usually sloshed and would not otherwise attend, but for the reason of beer supping.

Darts is classed as a sport it's as simple as that ..unlike speedway it's pure skill rather than who has the fastest bike .

Edited September 26, 2014 by orion

[stratton 1,491]

I still honestly believe that Speedway as a spectacle was better back in the Seventies.

 

It is all about opinions - and that is mine.

For me WK the standard was higher,more strength in depth,a top 20 then were all top dollar riders now even world wide how many are world class ? twenty maybe?

[Bagpuss 10,784]

Bwitcher must be on his way........

[moxey63 1,785]

Darts is classed as a sport it's as simple as that ..unlike speedway it's pure skill rather than who has the fastest bike .

 

 

Oh dear... So Phil Taylor could become World Speedway's next sensation , as long as he had the fastest bike?

 

Pure skill? Oh dear... I thought it was about the amount of girth you had around the old waistband.

 

Although I have to admit, that my bedroom wall has more holes in it than the dart board I was aiming at... and skill is indeed a factor in darts... I cannot agree, that the best riders simply rely on the fastest bikes. Of course, their rise has seen them acquire the fastest bikes, but Boris Johnson, for example, I wouldn't trust him near a speedway bike... but I bet he can play darts.

[New Science 1,059]

Sounds impressive. lets assume an average of 800 for EL matches and 600 for PL and completely forget NL.

 

Speedway pulls in 466,000 spectators to league matches compared to one of the fastest growing sports 120,000. Speedway sells over 40,000 tickets for just the one day British round of it's World Championship compared to the same sort of figure for 15 days for one of the fastest growing sports. 20/20 cricket pulls in roughly 50% more spectators despite the huge advantage of a mainstream press that thinks there are only 3 sports and a population bought up playing Football and Cricket from an early age.

 

Those of us old enough to remember the late 70's and early 80's will remember when Darts was far bigger than it is now with the likes of Bristow and Lowe being as famous as Briggo and Mauger were in Speedways boom times.

 

I'm not doubting the success that has been made of promoting either Darts or 20/20 Cricket but equally Speedway tracks that run every week cannot ever expect the same success from a marketing strategy.

 

Sidney, we'll just have to disagree on that one, I watched most of my Speedway in the late 60's and all through the 70's and every time I see the lads ride today I am impressed with the speed and commitment. I saw some great Speedway in the good old days but I also saw some terrible meetings, much like now really!

With that analogy I wonder what we are all worrying about ?

Darts is as much a sport as pricking spuds with sharp object to make jackets.

 

ONE HUNDRED AND EIGHTY!!!!!

 

Darts is the fat guys equivalent to the X-Factor or Strictly Come Dancing. It's all about the WOW factor, the audience that pi**ed, they don't even know why they are there... or indeed where they are. Sometimes they mistakingly appear at the eviction night of the BIG BROTHER shows, a rent-a-crowd which, sadly, speedway cannot afford to even rent.

If its that mickey mouse, maybe you should enter the World Championships, a cool £250,000 for this years winner ! At £35 to get in and £4.50 a pint there are much cheaper places to have a booze up than at the darts.Although having a beer is part of the night (not exclusive to darts, go to Twickenham for example) it overlooks the fact there any large numbers who follow the darts all over the country not just as a booze up but as a fan of the game,me included.

Okay, got that.

 

What's the plan then?

There is no workable plan I'm afraid !