Leaderboard

They are preseason challenge matches to blow away the cobwebs, just organised warm ups. No big drama is it ...

So you have a reserve that's flying on the night,,, don't put him up for a pick,, it's then chosen the under performing rider goes in 14,,,goes though tapes,, replaced by flying reserve. Can flying reserve also do heat 15 as wasn't original pick for 14

Oh the irony from the Starman of Manchester.......

But what's wrong with fans voting when it's not their team? Attendance 890 Votes 2035

The BSPA Keith Chapman Everyone's opinion of British Speedway right now (apart from the blinkered)

Wouldn’t say that’s strictly true. Made many gaffes while Rye promotor, but, give him his due he kept the club running. £15 is too much for speedway at any level in this country nowadays. Sport’s on the slide massively.

It's not just Somerset, the "we must reach the play-off" mentality of all promoters is killing Speedway........... but promoters cannot see it.

I can't believe any adult would think this cup gimmick is a good idea. Its meant to be a serious sport.

Why is it that a sport which has quite a few young riders cannot attract the younger fan base. Clearly this young rider base cannot connect with these fans and it is simply a sport that from a participation aspect is beyond the reach of the average youngster unlike it use to be when grass trackers progressed into speedway. It is costly to get into, not high profile enough and won’t make the newcomer a fortune or famous overnight. Perhaps low cost standard bikes etc and not the high performance machines that are used today might make it an option for a few more but in reality people will just have to accept that it simply does not work for a younger generation and never will given the choices that are available today. It is only a matter of time before it becomes a part time amateur status option for a few in the U.K. and those who are professional will have primarily Poland to race which continues to be a hot bed for talent and supporters something the U.K. will never replicate.

There is that word again! PROMOTION. Last season I went to all but what turned out to be the last meeting at Rye House. They have a large advert just by the road entrance which had the next meeting date and time. Trouble was on all but two meetings when I arrived it showed the details of a previous meeting. Talk about shooting yourself in the foot, surely changing that hoarding should have been the first job on the day following a meeting.

The product is constantly on the decline. Ramping prices up further is going to do nothing but drive more fans away. There are other ways to draw a crowd, namely promotion. I wish Rye were still running but towards the end I was picking and choosing my meetings because the sport simply wasn’t value for money. So no, not at ANY price. The generation of fans who are/were happy to turn up and lap up whatever tripe was being served up, up and down the country are dying out, just like British Speedway.

Well least see where 2019 takes us .... certainly a more positive vibe to last year With such a points reduction difficult to really forecast how teams will do and to be fair who would have predicted Workington's success last year ! With 3 heat leaders we should be competitive. and we are always going to have a strong 1st reserve whether it be Clegg, Lambert or Wether's Also we should be in with a shout for plrc, pairs and fours ... unlike last year Lets hope the support increases (here and elsewhere) Number 1 wish for season - a good tight competitive league with little between top and bottom and a mad scramble for the playoffs (really my number wish is for us to win everything )

Remember we come away from your place with the points a few times always good meetings between both teams

The thing is, if you're not interested in it then you don't have to do anything. Just watch the racing. 13 heats using to old race formula and 2 nominated races at the end. That's it.

It's the saviour of british speedway,,,, praise the lord

It doesn't matter. Managers will chose their top four riders and the fans will choose which pair ride in heat 14 with the other pair riding in heat 15 by default. Just because some people don't have smartphones isn't a reason to try something new.

Exactly. I don't understand why some people are struggling with this concept. I actually think it is a good idea, just with slightly uninspiring implementation.

Lens only doing the sums for the 65-25 mashings each week, even the home fans will get brassed off with that eventually

What a complete dogs dinner, which numpty thought this would be a good idea. Its clearly open to abuse and i'm seriously beginning to think my time as a fan is coming to an end ...

Yep, not good. I wonder what/who was behind it. It was - and still is - an avoidable clash. But I guess Buster & co don't give a flying one as a good few K/Lynn fans will be there to compensate for some Panthers fans opting for the Posh game. Another one to file away under "Speedway shoots itself in the foot".

I have been a supporter for nearly 60 years, in Edinburgh and now where I live in Somerset. BUT I will not be attending many meetings this year. WHY? Because of the ridiculous clearing out of riders at the end of the season. We were in the Premier league with the world champ riding for us. Now he's not and we are down a league, with only one rider from last year. Sorry guys but that is not the way to engender loyalty. No concession entrances so I will be voting with my feet. I like Bill and Debbie and what they have done but they have to work with a broken system. Accuse me of being a dinasaur if you like but it cannot be viable to keep managing the decline like this.

Are you really a Belle Vue fan, or are you another forum member posing under another name? Why are going on about the stadium like you are? Swindon fans know there are concerns, but we don't need supporters of other tracks coming here and taking the mickey about it, just because they now have their own new track. I think there's only one person who needs to grow up.

Mention Wulfsport and Lubos Tomicek immediately springs to mind.

I don't think tha a DVD disc will be compatible with his magic lantern

That was never debated. It’s obviously a race jacket, just as obvious as they are suits all made using the same design - Even John Branney’s wulfsport attire.

Ipswich Witches‏ @ipswichspeedway FollowingFollowing @ipswichspeedway More No break for @cameronheeps after injuring his wrist last Saturday. The Australian is having treatment and hopes to be fit for Thursday #TruPlantWitches just posted on facebook and twitter

It's a bit of a soft target, isn't it? Journalists are good at picking on them, when they need some column inches to fill. For me, the bikes are too quiet now (but my hearing's also not what it used to be) and that addictive aroma isn't all that addictive now. These take away a lot of the dramatic effect. The material that's needed to produce good racing tracks doesn't seem to available any more, or if it is, it's too expensive. So many other sports have upped their game massively when it comes to venues and their facilities, but speedway operates with hands tied behind the back for the most part with no source of capital to tap into, anyway. What was done this winter with regards to the second tier, should have been done a long time ago, and I fear it's a case of too late. If the promoters had been enlightened enough to have done it 6 or 7 years ago, you could now be seeing the benefits. Instead they pratted around with the reserves draft experiment in the top tier. I think that may turn out in hindsight to be the last chance to save the show, which sadly wasn't taken when it was crying out for it.

show off

Clearly a race bib on various race suits. You can see the fasteners on the bibs at the sides.

We need more of this sentiment, maybe in petition form that can be sent round to him.

Just wondering if he said why this meeting had to be moved - do you think it’s fixed or could it be changed again once they realise it clashes with the Posh fixture others have mentioned? If we know what the problem it makes it easier to understand.

In the old 13 heat format the top five riders had four rides and the two reserves had three. With two extra races four riders will have an extra ride.

This is where you can follow most meetings whether home, abroad, GP's etc ;http://speedwayupdates.proboards.com/ I saw you hadn't posted much so I was not sure you knew of this site

Honestly No they don't!!! Been in contact with Tony Jackson the Workington team manager all weekend (re: other matters) and just spoke to him on the phone again this morning to confirm my suspicions and Workington have never (ever) had official team suits (or supplied them to riders) and Jacko was the assistant team manager to Ian Thomas at this time; so sorry I think I am correct!!!! Plus looking at that photo you can see they aren't a team Kevlar some are wearing orange tee shirts ffs under the team bib. John Branney's tee shirt was even supplied by Wulf Sport... Also as advised earlier Ian Thomas was totally opposed to team suits. A team Kevlar incorporates all the detail (team name, and logo built into the front of the suit and a Velcro or stud area to the rear to apply the racing number/team position), negating the need for a bib, either new spectacles required to read the previous posts or to see a clearer view of the picture supplied or could just be another Prize Plum.... Either way pull the covers up as this is now surely put to bed? Regards THJ

Fair enough, I was just confirming with jenga which year Nermark rode for Worky.

I am an older person, i.e. retired; I do have a smart phone; I do have PAYG, even though I can afford a contract, but am sensible enough not to be sucked into living my life with it in my hand and running my life. (In fact I'm seriously thinking of reverting to my old Nokia, - just need to check if its WiFi is compatible with my car's system.) . No, I wont be partaking in the scheme, even if every stadium does have WiFi. - 2ndbbh is right to ask: remember, most supporter are of the same generation as me, and won't have or know what 4G or 5G is or means, and will be unlikely to convert for this scheme to become meaningful.

http://www.speedway-faq.org/miscfmts.html#BLClassic

I think it's quite a fun idea. When it seemed that it was a case of just voting for heat 15 it seemed open to abuse, but this way it works well, as it's for heat 14 rather than heat 15. I do think there should be some way of supporters at the stadium to vote, if they wish, without using a phone. I certainly won't be logging on to Twitter while at a match, although I appreciate some people will do that. I can't see it ever catching on, but as a bit of fun for a season opening tournament it might be ok.

Nermark wore orange (and bright green) before he rode for Workington .

Most teams starting in April this year and will finish by early September The world moves on - you need to get with the modern way

The same two riders can't be used in both heats. To me it sounds like your best 4 riders on the night will be in hts 14 and 15 the fans are just deciding the heats they would like to see them in.I think team managers would be foolish not to name their top 4 for ht14.

Precisely, we need to see it in action to decide whether it’s a good idea or not. Don’t see how it can be slagged off until then.

Lets hope the usual first meeting jinx we seem to cop most years hasnt struck again

Don't spoil it.. I am 51 and feel like a spring chicken when I attend a speedway meeting... Not many places in life that I attend where I am in the youngest half.. (Or maybe even quarter?)...

Lidsey and bewley both practised today

An excellent article which critically analyses the state of speedway today. 1) Speedway is stuck in the 1920/50's the engines are unique, expensive and have no longevity. 2) The promoters and riders are overpaid and aloof of the supporters. Who solely pays the wages, bills and running costs? 3) Looking for a Barry Hearns or any other benefactor while the tracks close and attendances dwindle, is definitely not going to happen. Unfortunately it's a slow but predictable decline.

When riders admit to joining your team merely because it fits in with their other commitments between the leagues and on foreign jaunts, it shows a disconnection between the importance of the team and the fan who is supposed to travel miles after work, pay a large sum of his wage and support a group of men who act as a team for a few hours and then disperse their separate ways to act as a team somewhere else. When a rider who was part of that newspaper article used British speedway to learn his trade against genuine competition and then sits on his lofty perch and feels he isn't part of the problem, not wanting to dirty his boots racing on these shores any more... that is another problem. And the rider I'm referring to isn't the only one. But he states that he is in the best physical shape he's ever been going into this season, so get some money on him winning the GP. To me, as a former fan driven away by this type of thing, I'd say that I'm not bothered about your individual aim. You don't ride over here for a club, so how can I get excited about your chase for individual profit? When Peter Collins had to quit in 1980 because of his shoulder injury, the first thing he suffered was being banned from riding in the British qualifiers for the World Championship. I know we're living in different times, but riders have just gained too much power over the years and now, it seems, get more out of speedway than the fans who pay them. British speedway has allowed so much of its grip to slip away. The start was letting riders race in other leagues across Europe. Loyalty is a two-way thing between competitor and supporter. Somewhere in time, it's been lost. Without the feel of a connection between you and your team, that need to get up off your backside and leave the house to support it at the track isn't as appealing. I feel that is just one of speedway's current problems. Supporters must have been lost because of it. I mean, it's an instant passion killer for a fan, when a rider grabbingly states something akin to these words: "Yeah, I'm happy to join the club because it fits in with my other meetings in Poland and Sweden, as well as my commitments to my Premier League side. Sorry, I know it's a Monday track... but who am I joining?"

I used to go to Hackney on a regular basis in the old days. Can't ever remember feeling I'd been ripped off. Racing was great and always a good fun atmosphere. I see that the kevlar issue is now becoming THE topic of conversation !!

And Jarek Hampel was spotted in Jack's Cafe this morning, having breakfast with Emil Sayfutdinov and Chris Louis.