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Back to something positive with FEEDBACK - please read it all…. What a fantastic night. I thought I would just provide a few notes in feedback on my observations in case they are useful. Even now I could write twice as much and still have more to say Customer Experience Absolutely first class and something I have not experienced at speedway before. I arrived at the stadium at about 4.30pm (taking account of Barry’s earlier message about the damp parking conditions). First impressions count and my first impression was of two extremely friendly and helpful car parking staff. I didn’t get either of the ladies names, but they set the standard for the visit and I couldn’t have been more impressed. An absolute credit to you. Of course, it didn’t stop there. Staff on the entrance, selling programmes, at The Retreat, during the event and on the way out of the stadium couldn’t have been more helpful, welcoming or more efficient. First class The food at the Retreat was a better quality and value than at any speedway stadium I have been to. I don’t normally eat at stadia as the food is generally overpriced and poor quality, but made a point of doing so last night. I wasn’t disappointed, but glad I got in early as it was clearly popular. I’ll try the Premier Lounge next time. I don’t think I have seen so many young people in a speedway stadium for years. Whistles, sweets, quizzes before they even get to the grandstand, centre green visits, running races on the track, Pee Wee races and My First Skid graduates in the main meeting – riders they can relate to and aspire to be. No wonder you have them coming back for more each meeting. The stadium Immaculate. It frustrates me no end when I go to other stadia and they are unclean, grass uncut (either / or the centre green or the standing areas), dirty seats, toilets you don’t want to use and uncared for. None of that could be applied to Smallbrook. An absolute credit to you. All the air fence panels clean, all the advertising A frames prominently positioned to maximise exposure. Your sponsors must be pleased. The track I’ve never prepared a track, so wouldn’t claim to be an expert, but it looked really good to me, especially given the weather we have had. I thought you applied enough water to keep the dust down, without making it too slippery for the riders. As far as I could see, the riders looked comfortable on the track – and given the range of abilities on show last night to prepare a track to suit all is a credit to your team. Riders briefing I was outside the pits when the rider briefing was taking place. The instructions you all gave to the riders were spot on. They could be in no doubt what was expected – entertain the crowd, acknowledge and engage the crowd, take the flag and do a lap of honour after winning a race and ensure you are ready to get out on track as soon as the previous race has finished. So often now riders go straight back to the pits after a race and don’t come round for the supporters so it was refreshing to see that that is part of the show, and your expectation. All building the relationship. Pit walk Always a good option if you can do it and I had the bonus of talking to Gordon Kennett The racing To get so many races run in such a short space of time was impressive, but never in doubt given the rider briefing and the standard set in the Pee Wee and Ladies races. Obviously that could be a challenge if there is an incident and that’s a risk in any form of motor sport. I enjoyed the Pee Wee races – future stars in the making, and what an opportunity for them to ride in front of an appreciative and responsive crowd. In the ladies races I was quite glad that Steph Whitlock missed the gate in one, and then came from the back. Passing at an early stage – and this was only the pre-meeting! The main event 3TT was entertaining, but also of a good standard – and, given the challenges you have had to face in permission to use riders, exceeded my expectations. It was unfortunate that Alex Spooner was not available, but seeing Chad, Danno, Luke, Charley and Connor supported by all the others on show ensured the racing was both competitive and exciting. Every race had interest. I was a bit sceptical about the team manager handicapping option, because I feared that it would take away from the head to heads between the top riders – but Chad blew away that theory in heat 4 when he came from behind to beat Charley. The Upright Challenge was a bit one sided, but that’s clearly based on rider and engine availability. Despite that, the two races where Nigel Coates came from behind to win, using the banking to great effect, were as well received in the grandstand as any other races. The one thing I think that would have helped the newer visitors understand why there were some older and more substantially built (!) riders in these races would have been a fuller explanation of the background to uprights v laydowns, and the background of the riders involved. There were a couple of new attendees near me, and others around them provided a bit of background which clarified it – only a minor point in the overall experience. Bruce Cribb – well, what can I say. To ride one of those fearsome ice bikes at his age and I assume with limited practice was astounding. He may not be as quick as he once was but Bruce exceeded my expectations. Having seen the other ice bike on show on the first bend banking no one could have been in any doubt just how dangerous those spikes could be. I confess I only caught a short sight of the JAP demo as I was out the back talking to others, but it did take me back to the late 60s and 70s when JAPs were still in regular use. Nothing like a bit of nostalgia. I also liked the way in which you intersperse races from the different events during the programme. Social media So much content Constant promotion of sponsors, regular updates, Facebook live – brilliant. Giving the fans up to date information and insight – essential in this day and age Summary A fantastic, positive night out. If I lived on the Island I would be there every week without a shadow of a doubt. If Wightlink re-instate the later Fast Cat I’d come more often. To have a complete package in place that allows riders to come through the My First Skid programme, to progress to demos in front of a crowd and then into the Wizards and Warriors is brilliant. A real potential production line for British speedway. I haven’t mentioned the entry price at all – but it was the best £12 I’ve spent for a while. The value for money was exceptional. About 30 races including the demos. Why the BSPL aren’t talking to you about your operating model is beyond me. I believe any other speedway (or event) promoter who came to one of your meetings, and also looked at all the social media content you put out, would be bound to find at least 1 or 2 ideas they could put into practice to improve their product. You have an absolutely incredible team working with you and I would like to say thank you to them all. Thank you to you both for putting the meetings on this year, and for taking the risk in doing so. #TheWarriorWay

So the powers that be can rule with a rod of iron on things that don't matter? But they can't stage the national final on a decent day of the week and insist on the top riders turning up so they get a big crowd in. Hilarious as usual. And the bloke from Bowen's pies is the only person they can get to ride at reserve.

Thanks for the replies guys. So basically because IoW are 'only' doing exhibition type stuff and entertaining with speedway with a few other things thrown in the BSPA threw their toys out of the pram. As a result because Coles took part in an event promoting speedway and trying to get it to appeal to holidaymakers as a good night out the BSPA are bully boys and saying its their ball and Connors not playing with it as far as the british final goes Typical

So the BSPL have stood Connor Coles down for riding on the IOW, they should be absolutely ashamed of themselves and i shall be contacting Godfrey to let him know my thoughts on the matter, i dont expect a reply but hopefully he will read it, Promoting most of the BSPL dont know the meaning of the word, I hope Godfrey realises this works two ways he has just stood me down from ever visiting Scunthorpe Speedway whilst he maintains the attitude of the BSPL towards the IOW and riders that appear there. Meanwhile well done to everyone on the Island for providing fans and a few none fans with some holiday entertainment.

Craig Cook was warned after heat 5 for moving as Barry announced to the crowd. That was after he had tried to jump and made a complete mess of it. Yes the referee held the tapes a long time, but he did that the whole meeting. I noticed your team manager was still berating the referee after the meeting. This was one of the best meetings ever at Newcastle. It takes two sides to make a meeting, Newcastle just outfought Glasgow. Adam Roynon might have been the star man but the whole TEAM were the Stars. Special mention to Connor Mountain for his race in heat 10 when Stevie Worrall bust a gut to try and pass him even though he had more speed. Stevie caught up with him after the race to shake his hand and have a few words. Could that have been Aaron Summers last race at Brough and why he was so pleased at the win ?

What a race, didn’t know if Richard Lawson, Steve Worrall, Richie Worrall or Steve Lawson was going to win it lol

Berwick did it on Saturday with a 9.30 curfew and a delay at heat 2 were there's a will there's a way. Berwick are very good at giving the younger riders track time . If Birmingham have agreed the fixture they have to push the main meeting on no letting the meeting drag on they have to remember the juniors are traveling a long way for no reimbursement.

It doesn't (or it certainly shouldn't). Its a typically spiteful, childish and totally unjustifiable action.

That's amazingly helpful.

Obviously they see that as a priority, compared to some tracks that are on the brink of closure.

Like I said its Farcical from the BSPL. If I was in Manchester I'd get 16 Baseball caps emblazoned with Justice for Connor Coles on them and get the riders to wear them

Connor Coles not allowed to be a reserve as he rode on the IOW last week. Farcical from the BSPL

If it could be used for genuine injury replacement, that's OK, would be better than guests But to make wholesale changes and drop the riders that have got you to the playoffs, just because you can is wrong

You mean there isn't a 5 year plan? Whilst ive hated the drop in averages and especially how it was managed/imposed it would be worse if it was a 1 season wonder. Everyone who has championed it needs to reap what has been sown. Riders will be jettisoned, new blood (ready or not) will be brought in and the reduction continues. Might not be a pretty product but its what everybody wanted right?

Think it is central for a lot of fans, especially ones from further north and Scotland, the Midlands are about 90 minutes away as well

I actually agree with the professional, serious sport bit. But what that says is sticking to the same old methods and formats - that, frankly, are clearly not working. As examples, Newcastle and Birmingham have been to the brink of closure this year. I am reliably informed that Eastbourne are in serious financial trouble. In sharp contrast, a friend of mine who has watched speedway on the Island since it opened in the 1990's told me that the last two attendances at Smallbrook are amongst the biggest he has ever seen there. The Warriors are definitely doing something right and if that is what it takes to get people in, lets do it. One final thing. Speedway is a serious, professional sport but it most certainly has not been run like one for years, and that is one major reason why it is on its knees. Seeing is believing, Steve. I have been banging the drum for the Isle of Wight promotion since a cold April night in 2016 when I went to the second meeting after they re-opened and was hugely impressed with the enthusiasm, professionalism and hard work put in by the promotion to ensure that I, as a paying customer, had a good time. In all the meetings I have been to since - and that's a large number considering it is nigh on 250 miles from my home - they have never wavered. One rather obvious point : Barry Bishop is on here, engaging with paying customers, giving his viewpoints and hearing ours. How many others do that ? First of all, I'd remind you that Barry Bishop promoted Isle of Wight for 4 full NL seasons from 2016-19 and this is first time he has run a truncated programme. In doing so, he clearly took account of Covid restrictions - something the BSPL and the rest of the clubs effectively ignored and which has cost them very dearly indeed. I am sure Barry would do very well as a Premiership or Championship promoter but as part of his philosophy - unlike certain Championship promoters - is that income must cover expenses (or, at worst, that losses must be sustainable) he's never going to do that on the Island. The very fact that he has that philosophy marks him out. My understanding is that Isle of Wight's last two meetings finished at 9pm. What you want is one thing - and I am sure that there will be many who agree - but what is best for the sport could be something very different. What seems to me to be certain is that you want to carry on exactly as before regardless of the fact that we know that simply isn't working. In terms of attendances, Isle of Wight have been hugely successful this season (my friend told me that the food outlets ran out on Thursday). Not to give consideration to their style of format would surely be foolish to the point of madness.

I know it's a bit rich quoting my own post, but well done Adam superb all night. I just had a gut feeling it could be your night after watching you a few times this season. Keep the progress going, onwards and upwards. Bet Johnny is chuffed to bits as well.

Well done Adam Ellis.... Constant, gradual improvement with even more to come I reckon.... Shame the WTC was stopped as Ellis, Bewley, Woffy and Lambert would be a decent quartet...

Too many camera changes during a race, in my opinion.

What idiot decided to show us the line up at the tapes from the rear?

They do especially on social media, but the likes of Poole have always had an advantage over a lot of teams in that they must gain quite a few hundred (plus) every meeting from fans who walk or travel a very short distance, unlike all having to drive to Arlington, it's a 100 mile round trip for me. I remember the heady days of meetings at Exeter with Ivan Mauger etc, that really was a track( and what a track) where a large proportion of the crowd walked there, and the likes of me on holiday were a bonus.

No idea. Seemingly he did, though.............and now he's out. Truth is we'll get one side only. Frankly, though, I'd appreciate hearing the BSPL view as much as you would (and I suspect Isle of Wight speedway would too).

My view is if the riders cannot make one league pay, then they get another job as well if they want to continue riding. This happened routinely in the past.

But the almighty ruling powers don't want a stronger NDL because it rivals what they are serving up whereas the current weakened league can be run as a sideshow / aftershow proving how much "better" the higher leagues are. Its worked because for the past several seasons the NDL has been the best league in the UK, now the CL probably is......just a shame that its proving not to be sustainable in any way shape or form. It makes no difference how stable a few clubs run by the dictators are if there is no opposition there is no product. The loss of a renowned team like Eastbourne has further reaching implications, the disillusioned fans aren't going to just up and relocate to Kent or Poole every week, many sadly will drift away despite being good away supporters. The impact will be felt by the clubs left behind who will slip closer towards the same fate.

Totally pathetic. But why aren't I surprised, who would want to be a speedway rider under that organisation. Not many it seems.

Does not seam to affect Dan bewley every week !!!

Yes and no really. I did think with our crowd levels ( before covid) it would be a tight line financially, but with what seemed good sponsorship and the brilliant media side would be ok, but then covid happened. I do think alongside Birmingham and Kent to name a couple, we had a successful product taken away that was sustainable even now, and that was the proper National League of a few seasons ago and clubs like I've mentioned had no choice to go Championship or probably disappear as the NDL now seems a non event really, not a proper league and not as good a development tool. IOW bravely took things into their own hands which looks to have been a success for them which I comend, but does look a bit dire for a lot of clubs, we will see!

Back to something positive with FEEDBACK - please read it all…. What a fantastic night. I thought I would just provide a few notes in feedback on my observations in case they are useful. Even now I could write twice as much and still have more to say Customer Experience Absolutely first class and something I have not experienced at speedway before. I arrived at the stadium at about 4.30pm (taking account of Barry’s earlier message about the damp parking conditions). First impressions count and my first impression was of two extremely friendly and helpful car parking staff. I didn’t get either of the ladies names, but they set the standard for the visit and I couldn’t have been more impressed. An absolute credit to you. Of course, it didn’t stop there. Staff on the entrance, selling programmes, at The Retreat, during the event and on the way out of the stadium couldn’t have been more helpful, welcoming or more efficient. First class The food at the Retreat was a better quality and value than at any speedway stadium I have been to. I don’t normally eat at stadia as the food is generally overpriced and poor quality, but made a point of doing so last night. I wasn’t disappointed, but glad I got in early as it was clearly popular. I’ll try the Premier Lounge next time. I don’t think I have seen so many young people in a speedway stadium for years. Whistles, sweets, quizzes before they even get to the grandstand, centre green visits, running races on the track, Pee Wee races and My First Skid graduates in the main meeting – riders they can relate to and aspire to be. No wonder you have them coming back for more each meeting. The stadium Immaculate. It frustrates me no end when I go to other stadia and they are unclean, grass uncut (either / or the centre green or the standing areas), dirty seats, toilets you don’t want to use and uncared for. None of that could be applied to Smallbrook. An absolute credit to you. All the air fence panels clean, all the advertising A frames prominently positioned to maximise exposure. Your sponsors must be pleased. The track I’ve never prepared a track, so wouldn’t claim to be an expert, but it looked really good to me, especially given the weather we have had. I thought you applied enough water to keep the dust down, without making it too slippery for the riders. As far as I could see, the riders looked comfortable on the track – and given the range of abilities on show last night to prepare a track to suit all is a credit to your team. Riders briefing I was outside the pits when the rider briefing was taking place. The instructions you all gave to the riders were spot on. They could be in no doubt what was expected – entertain the crowd, acknowledge and engage the crowd, take the flag and do a lap of honour after winning a race and ensure you are ready to get out on track as soon as the previous race has finished. So often now riders go straight back to the pits after a race and don’t come round for the supporters so it was refreshing to see that that is part of the show, and your expectation. All building the relationship. Pit walk Always a good option if you can do it and I had the bonus of talking to Gordon Kennett The racing To get so many races run in such a short space of time was impressive, but never in doubt given the rider briefing and the standard set in the Pee Wee and Ladies races. Obviously that could be a challenge if there is an incident and that’s a risk in any form of motor sport. I enjoyed the Pee Wee races – future stars in the making, and what an opportunity for them to ride in front of an appreciative and responsive crowd. In the ladies races I was quite glad that Steph Whitlock missed the gate in one, and then came from the back. Passing at an early stage – and this was only the pre-meeting! The main event 3TT was entertaining, but also of a good standard – and, given the challenges you have had to face in permission to use riders, exceeded my expectations. It was unfortunate that Alex Spooner was not available, but seeing Chad, Danno, Luke, Charley and Connor supported by all the others on show ensured the racing was both competitive and exciting. Every race had interest. I was a bit sceptical about the team manager handicapping option, because I feared that it would take away from the head to heads between the top riders – but Chad blew away that theory in heat 4 when he came from behind to beat Charley. The Upright Challenge was a bit one sided, but that’s clearly based on rider and engine availability. Despite that, the two races where Nigel Coates came from behind to win, using the banking to great effect, were as well received in the grandstand as any other races. The one thing I think that would have helped the newer visitors understand why there were some older and more substantially built (!) riders in these races would have been a fuller explanation of the background to uprights v laydowns, and the background of the riders involved. There were a couple of new attendees near me, and others around them provided a bit of background which clarified it – only a minor point in the overall experience. Bruce Cribb – well, what can I say. To ride one of those fearsome ice bikes at his age and I assume with limited practice was astounding. He may not be as quick as he once was but Bruce exceeded my expectations. Having seen the other ice bike on show on the first bend banking no one could have been in any doubt just how dangerous those spikes could be. I confess I only caught a short sight of the JAP demo as I was out the back talking to others, but it did take me back to the late 60s and 70s when JAPs were still in regular use. Nothing like a bit of nostalgia. I also liked the way in which you intersperse races from the different events during the programme. Social media So much content Constant promotion of sponsors, regular updates, Facebook live – brilliant. Giving the fans up to date information and insight – essential in this day and age Summary A fantastic, positive night out. If I lived on the Island I would be there every week without a shadow of a doubt. If Wightlink re-instate the later Fast Cat I’d come more often. To have a complete package in place that allows riders to come through the My First Skid programme, to progress to demos in front of a crowd and then into the Wizards and Warriors is brilliant. A real potential production line for British speedway. I haven’t mentioned the entry price at all – but it was the best £12 I’ve spent for a while. The value for money was exceptional. About 30 races including the demos. Why the BSPL aren’t talking to you about your operating model is beyond me. I believe any other speedway (or event) promoter who came to one of your meetings, and also looked at all the social media content you put out, would be bound to find at least 1 or 2 ideas they could put into practice to improve their product. You have an absolutely incredible team working with you and I would like to say thank you to them all. Thank you to you both for putting the meetings on this year, and for taking the risk in doing so. #TheWarriorWay

Where is more central? Poole by any chance. Someone has posted there is only 30 miles in it between Poole to Manchester and Glasgow/Edinburgh and Manchester. That seems pretty central. You not going to please every supporter. NSS is a good race track, lots of chances to overtake, and can take more rain then most other tracks.

Well done to Newcastle, they fought hard in every race, shame that there wasn't more home support to enjoy the win, there was plenty Glasgow support . That is the best that I have seen Adam Roynon race, which is good to see considering how many awful injuries he has had. For my team, it was frustrating to see them so twitchy at the starts,the ref was holding the tapes for ages, again well done to the diamonds, hope you can consolidate and build some more support, would hate to lose another team

That was the most sensible piece of TV direction all night. Done because someone prepared ALL the captions from left to right instead of right to left.

Set up perfectly for Bewley on his home track. Reasonable meeting with a few decent races. A shame Lambert and Woffinden hold British fans in contempt and can’t be arsed to come over for this one.

Looking at the number of seats in the Grandstand still showing 'Red', I presume everyone is having their tea before going along.. I am currently stood outside in the queue with Sir Kier and chrismorton ....

Have you for one minute considered that it may be a sell out? No! You just come on here and moan I guess we'll find out at 7:15

Prize a £50 postal order and 5000 Green Shield Stamps.

At least you don’t have to rephrase things for the away meetings ,though I had read this post before.

Joke of an idea... for a joke of a "sport" Perfect

between Bewley, Ellis and Lawson. and Tom Brennan should have got the call-up, 100%

“We are all massively disappointed for Connor Coles who has been told he cannot be reserve for today’s British Final at Belle Vue solely on the grounds that he rode on Thursday on the Isle of Wight. We are all in a state of shock at this approach by the organisers of this meeting and had hoped they would reconsider this approach. The Isle of Wight is probably the only Stadium right now where tourist regularly have their first interaction with the sport and despite how we feel we commit to continue to positively promote the sport at all times, positively reflect and review our show and positively interact with you all, the fans our greatest asset. We just cannot see, at all, what anyone could possibly expect to achieve by preventing a member of such a great speedway family, legends in the sport, from attending this evening.

Accept that this year NDL has been a bit stop start however with Newcastle and Birmingham experiencing problems this year then a stronger NDL next season may be worth considering for Briitish Speedway.

Sadly once riders stop getting paid or paid on time the trust and bond between rider and club can break down very quickly. Its a good team established at Eastbourne this year but with public financial issues and internal grumblings signing riders next year could prove tricky (providing this season completes). Relying on having a viable NDL to drop back into may be a thing of the past though as it was a sustainable alternative product to the higher leagues and as such seen as a threat and dismantled.

Probably a way of Mr Godfrey to make more money, along with the tyre distribution

yes just one customer's point of view.... there are around another 50 or so from Thursday on our FB pages. This is one persons, sent directly to Martin which we have shared.

Robert Lambert won the British title in 2018. The meeting should be compulsory for all riders that hold an ACU license if invited. Imagine a Pole missing the Polish Final without good reason. Back in the day a rider would have copped a ban for missing the British Final, shame the powers that be have become so weak.

They probably want to wean you off of online booking and back to cash sales as cash is easier to erm... "account" for, ahem

Still no Brennan, u21 champ and on his home (second home) track but Lambert does get in? Baffling

In time for the Play-offs, no doubt, when it really matters.

You clearly haven't followed why it is that IOW are not in the NDL this year. It's nothing to do with covid restrictions.

To be fair they are not used to having too many Brits to follow for some time

I go to away meetings and possibly over think my journey and I get to near the location of the track at least 90 mins before the first race and then get a snack or coffee etc , I’ve traveled up and down the country with work and for example it states 3 hrs to destination doesn’t mean it will be 3 hrs give yourself time and add more time onto your journey it’s better to be in the stadium early rather than miss some races . Don’t blame Scunthorpe speedway for you not been at your destination on time