Leaderboard

I am gutted with the situation at Workington.. I love my team very much. BUT I actually find myself not gutted for me as a fan but for the 7 lads who would have worn the big C with pride. It is a shame it ended this way for all concerned especially Laura & Jacko who bleed Workington speedway. As a loyal fan I will however endeavour in anyway I can along with my fellow die hards to keep the Comets memory alive in 2019 and we will do our best to help the Comets rise again however we can. #keepthefaith #Cometswillriseagain

Got to feel for them all but Mason in particular has been hit really hard by the what has happened at Worky. Hopefully we can return to racing in 2020 on a stronger financial footing. I would like to think that there is a strategy being compiled that can help us achieve this, one that all us fans can contribute to in whatever way and to whatever level we can. Gonna miss my speedway fix at Derwent Park of that there is no doubt.

Very sad indeed !! If there is any chance that Comets can come to the tapes in 2020 we need to do everything we can to help Laura bring it back....

August is traditionally the Showgrounds busiest period and has been for years. I am afraid it is what it is, I doubt it will change for the foreseeable future.

It's a shame, the Good Friday clashes between the Witches and the Stars were always very special back in the day, and always in front of big crowds...

Agree. Absolute cr@p fixture list.

At least we are starting with a couple of challenge matches this season, finally!

Can’t believe there is no Witches v Stars and Stars v Witches fixtures on Good Friday that for me was the one thing I thought for certain would happen- missed opportunity I think

quite an impresssive list there , makes it all the more dissapointing seeing it , that this particular production line was largely disregarded by the BSPA except for the revenue it collected by way of licenses and registrations . I very much doubt that in another 8 years you will be able to compile such an impressive list

Five home fixtures in 19 days in May, yet none between July 16th and Sept 4th, the seven weeks kids are off school can stay up later. Is the Showground shut for the school holidays. Very bizarre fixture planning ....

16th April meeting announced as the British U21 Semi-Final. Not bad

Anyone who believes ( including Rossiter ) that the new track can be completed in a week, never mind the stadium is beyond crazy. Clearing the existing site will take longer than that. Never mind the winter weather.

Kelvin it is very interesting to read your summary of that year . Heady days indeed. Thank you for everything you did in running and promoting it.

I think he feels his promoter does not listen and he will do exactly what he wants to.do.Yes he has every right to do that at Lynn and i respect that he puts his money in and that is his right.But overall unless there is an improvement in gates ( etc) and thing's look brighter he has to go as the front of British speedway.

You try reading Mason Campton article and tell me again that it's harder on the fans than the riders. I have full sympathy for the workington loyals. But I'm sorry, nothing compares to losing a job or in Campton case, a career.

I think Buster is trying to save the Prem. I don't think that can be questioned.. Why i'm not so sure. I think it is delaying the inevitable of 1 league for 2020 .

It seems a bit odd there are only 2 home fixtures in May which are 4 weeks apart. At least we have Speedway to watch I guess considering Workingtons plight.

Isnt Tungate 7.61?

This allows Matt to progress his other business opportunity abroad, whilst 'keeping the club amongst trusted family and friends'. Theres a good video interview with the new promoters on the Poole website now. Sounds as though the Digital Marketing Agency are working on something for the whole of speedway - not just Poole.

sorry yes of course Iv'e seen you on various Oxford related threads , dont know why i always associaite you with scunthorpe ..lol If only I could say I'll buy you a drink whenthe bees are at Sandy Lane , those were the days

Blimey. Your memory is better than mine

Lets hope that Jack Holder is a changed man

Rye house averages from 2018 have been wiped out ,so his last average from 2018 is the Redcar championship one which is 7.08 divided by1.5 =4.72

The meeting on 16 Oct was the 'Transatlantic Challenge'. (originally planned for Buxton I seem to recall) featuring the American Dream team and local riders Scratch Main: Michael Raines (US), Josh Bates, Rocco Scopellite (US), Richard Andrews Handicap Main: Raines (30m), Chris Widman (20m), Eddie Castro (US) (30m), Mikey Buman (US) (30m) Other participants included: Dean Felton, Lee Geary

I have no record of a meeting at Poole on that date.... Junior Champs. was won by Raines. (Don't know his first name).

Everything about Speedway is bizarre

If there's enough money to come from the bond etc. the BSPA will only pay standard rates not any inflated rates or guarantees riders where on! No winners in this whole scenario............

Would be good to get a few extra races.

Our neighbour in Newcastle has just had her Aussie Nephew across and he has had a 12 month visit on a none working visa. His mum is a Brit but he was born in Oz and is an Aussie Citizen yet he still needed a visa and I think the neighbour had to vouch for him as well (may be wrong) but he used her address as his temp/perm UK address. The criteria was he couldn't take paid employment! Not sure if Josh is coming over on something like this and he could still mechanic and ride as long as there is no official payments. (Which sounds about right for Speedway) Regards THJ

He - Buster Chapman, has done nothing but compound the problems of UK speedway. With Godfrey alongside him, they back up each others poorly thought out plans and bulldoze on in a downward spiral for the sport. No-one else in the BSPA wants to take on the poisoned chalice of "leadership" because they know the end of the sport here, as we know it, is fast approaching.

The youngsters who go are bored by what their watching, the 50's-60's go because they always have and its more a social than anything else.

GOOD point... it has been suggested that some tracks consider their rider assets (which, in fact, are not really tangible assets in the first place) as their bond.

I hope not

Or who had perviously had experience at the NSS.

Not sure I quite follow the logic here, presumably Harris would negotiate his own contract with the Rye House promotion so well done to him for getting a good contract. You might want to ask why the Rye house promotion were so daft to agree to a contract they weren't able to afford, presumably Nicholls, Kasprazak and co had equally lucrative contract, little wonder then that Rye House found themselves in the mess they did.

I plan to listen to views and suggestions at Kent's sponsor and meet the rider evening Sunday. Not sure the format Of the meeting butcivam preparing an introduction to myself and history in the sport. I then plan to table my own suggestions briefly. Mainly being around transparency and openness. And the need for a supremo independent of any club to take overall control of decision making. Then onto and in far more detail the main 3 or 4 issues the Kent fans bring to me. For example, my personal opinion is the play offs are a necessary evil that makes clubs decent gates, and gives the fans the sense of occasion. But the feedback I am getting is that Kent fans would like them scrapped, so that is the stance I will take in the meeting. I believe the expenses not being covered is probably less about saving money, but more so to weed out the potential trouble makers. I earn little over Nat Min Wage, and assuming they put the meeting somewhere central like Brum that's gonna cost me a hundred quid plus in train fares. That's probably half my monthly desposible income so Kent fans can rest assured I am taking the whole thing very seriously. Sure it may well fall on death ears, or get ruined by gob rubbishes, BUT also it may just work and our voices do get heard. Whilst I am representing my fellow fans at kent, I fully welcome views from supporters of any club current or former.

Certainly a better looking Bulls outfit this year which should help rectify the poor impression the development leagues can give (the standard gulf within riders last year was far too wide). Does make me chuckle slightly that several development squads have already been named despite AGM not taking place until Feb.

Have Faith you Swindon fans, the three wise men will deliver your super new track and stadium. Has anyone seen that wheelbarrow?

Would not be surprised to see Bomber, Danny and Rich all have a spell at number one with this line up. Should be an interesting year on the Heath...

As has been said countless times by riders, the practice sessions seldom reflect track conditions in the GP itself.. And flying out the night before is quite normal for riders.. As for injuries, riders ride now the next day with lots of minor issues and only serious injuries mean their absence (concussion, broken limbs etc) and getting them the night before or the week before would mean they still miss the GP.. I am sure common sense will prevail with regards to fixture planning, especially given the huge potential for Polish clubs to get even bigger crowds swelled by 1000's of overseas visitors flying in for the GP... Conspiracy theory Alert! Should this be Poland's backers' 'back door' way of trying to take more control of the GP's by holding riders to ransom (so they have to make a choice), it will at least mean BSI have to stay on their toes and up their game with regards to the rewards riders get for competing... Which is currently quite poor when you measure it against Poland's salaries.. I would suspect most riders would take the Polish meetings regardless of whether this would impact their GP place or not, given the financial rewards both currently bring. Especially now with the increased TV exposure for their sponsors... Being able to tell every one of your sponsors that their name will be on live TV every week must be a huge positive for both riders and the clubs themselves.. Time for BSI maybe to make their GP series 'unmissable'?

A pay as you go Play Off Harris is a worthwhile signing. A guarantee pay Rye/Glasgow one isnt Bellego as a 2nd string should be OK Overall I dont see this team being as far off the pace as many are predicting and it should be one thats entertaining at home Think we need to give it a chance and wait and see A solid start to the season is vital. Given the situation I dont see a huge level of tolerance if not

At the end of the day how many team have an out and out number 1? Maybe 2, Doyle and Lambert? At home we'll be hard to beat with King lawson cam, 3 who can ride foxhall well and allen who every teams fans wanted as hes a hot prospect! Harris will give 110% in every meeting. Bellego and Pieszczek are the crowd pleasers who hopefully learn foxhall pretty quickly. There's no team that's really that strong so lets stop being so negative until we've rode a couple of meetings

Be quite sad if Scotty doesn't get a team place in the Prem after his many years of loyal service to British Speedway....

Thing is it’s never been one leagues problem. You only need to look at the ever decreasing amount of 2nd tier teams to see my point. The problem has been the self centred nature of promoters and self interest of each league always working against each other. Speedway is in a terribly unviable state for people to become involved in, and this mostly starts from the head table causing some of these issues.

I read an article on the local newspaper site a few weeks ago about the council getting into hot water for not providing such a park for the travelling community, they are over there anyhow on a regular basis leaving a LOT of mess which has then to be cleared up by the council. I believe the provision of such park gives the council more clout when it comes to moving travellers on from laybyes and other land they choose to park on.

Why shouldn't a 7-team Premiership work when its worked fine in Poland and Sweden?

Great clip from a time when we had proper promoters who relied on speedway for their living, not fans with big egos who could/can offset speedway losses through their another business. Thanks for sharing and I'm glad I was involved during that period.

What a great race thanks for posting that. can you imagine Nige and Kelvin commentating on that good old Nigel’s head would explode.

All the team are still owed for 9 meetings and hearing from someone who knows it doesn’t sound like they will be paid anything.the bspa won’t pay them anything and said if they want paying they have to take BMR to court for it. My opinion Rye house should not be allowed to run speedway at any level(even practise days and make money ) until there debts have been settled.It is a complete joke. good look to all the owed riders for 2019.

Traffic is much heavier now, and we never had an hour of tractor racing at Saddlebow...