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Mildenhall confirmed as going to the tapes in 2023

You’ll do as your told.

I'm not 100% sure Arthur54 and Trackrat aren't the same person. Would explain a lot.

Trying to win an argument by claiming someone's views should not be given an airing because of a "brain injury" is a bit low. I find PC's points of view fascinating, and if I were him, I would be more critical about the genuine injuries he sustained while riding for the Aces—the leg in 1977 and the shoulder in 1980—which cost him at least another title and another three or four years at the top. Having read the book, both injuries were the club's fault. Added to that, Belle Vue knew his father had died but didn't tell him until after he'd scored a 12-point maximum for them. I'd have gone ape. Even more illuminating, the poster worried about PC's account of his career being affected by his brain haemorrhage doesn't seem to shy away from criticising someone like Barry Ayres for not succeeding in his racing career. By all means, give free admission to anyone who rode for the Aces. The truth is though... speedway is so far from the halcyon days when most of them raced.... they wouldn't even want to attend.

That's the 2nd time you've brought up Peter's brain injury, very unfair of you in my opinion. I too suffered brain haemorrhage in 2010, August 1st as it happens, which I think is about a month or so before PC had his, I underwent 7hrs of surgery at North Staffs, had platinum coiling inserted, so a fairly serious injury I'm sure you'd agree. Within 2 months I returned to work, in the insolvency industry, so fairly high pressure and no room for error, yet I managed fine, continued in the role for another 4 years with no issues related to the injury. So I have to wonder what makes you think that Peter should not be taken at his word? As for your comments to Tony Mac, well if it weren't for him we would probably never have got to read in such interesting detail about Peter's early life and career, I found it just about the best speedway book I've read and I've read most of them. Backtrack- well it was bound to run out of steam since it was dedicated to such a short period in the grand scheme of the sport.

To be fair you do a pretty good job of it without pretending .

Never been the biggest fan of afternoon racing esp on hot sunny days but will be there rain or shine and work allows just hope a few more like me feel the same,plenty of people off the big red bus been asking when the comets are starting again allways bang the drum for it,might be worth a free ticket me bain

Ben Cook (2,2,2,0,2)only missed out on a semi final place to Masters (1,3,0,2,2) due to Sam's one heat win! Not bad in that level of competition.

Well said, nw42. You wrote what I was trying to put together. Sorry you suffered, must have been very worrying, glad to hear it ultimately not affected you too much. Listening to his interview on tv I think Peter has done very well. As I read his problem was acted on quickly as Angela had to go back to the house for something she had forgot, found Peter not well, and got medical attention to Peter quickly. The quicker the medics can act the better the likely outcome will be.

There's a young up and coming rider who rides Foxhall really well available on a bargain 4.93 average

One night, years ago now, we attended a Crewe 'Kings' Reunion. When we we were returning from the Function, we shared a taxi with 'Taffy' Owen and Pete Kelly. I have never laughed so much in my life. The stories they told were so funny. I will ever remember that trip in the taxi with fondness and appreciation. Thanks for the memories. Two great lads. May they both Rest in Peace. +

Much of the site will probably have to be demolished and made safe before any thoughts of speedway returning. I wish all those fighting the cause good luck because speedway needs a thriving Coventry.

Panthers made mainstream terrestrial TV today when they were the question/answer on the The Chase. The Chaser got it right too!!

Track rat is a complete Bell ???

Linlithgow used to race on a Saturday afternoon in the 90's as did the Dale Devils in the 00's.

Regarding Barry Ayres, from where I sit he more than succeeded at speedway, he got to race it, I never got any nearer than sitting astride Soren Sjosten's bike in the Hyde Rd pit car park as he was preparing to load it up after a meeting, my dad did ask him first, I was 7, wish I'd known at the time that this would be the highlight of my speedway career. Coulda woulda shoulda

Your final point here is the big one really.. Thompson may not seem that inspiring but compare him to every other No 7 and suddenly he looks a good signing.. not sure i currently see any that are better than him... Even if Poole name Roynon I'm not sure he's ahead of Thompson at this point

Steve: they have the single most important thing - a TRACK...

...as a postscript apparently according to PC ex ACU referees are entitled to free entry at any track which strikes as "double standards'" to me?

Makes no sense to have Doyle on such a high average and still be under the points limit.

You are on fire Lisa. Oh wait that was the Plymouth track wasn't it? Sorry!

The FIM should have no jurisdiction over British Speedway. We voted for Brexit.

Wouldn’t it be cheaper to flatten and start the grandstand again? It could even be re-built using factory unit material.

He was a very loved and a complete rider, he did very well in a 60's Provincial League at BV I remember, and was a throughly good person to know. After being transferred to Newcastle Speedway from Stoke he moved to our area with his family and continued with his Painting and Decorating company. Always cheerful, he also looked as if he was upto something with his boyish cheeky look. Sadly after emigrating to OZ with his family he later deteriorated and for many years he was in a home. RIP Peter.

Sorry yes i forgot i must say Poole are the best thing since sliced bread!! You have lost a top quality heat leader and you are hoping that Cook steps up...........he may or may not and all i said was he has an extra league to contend with so is a risk..... I also said Poole will be there or thereabouts because they always make changes if needed I also think that my side Ipswich will struggle if we dont get a big heat leader in to support Doyle Trouble with all you lot down Poole you always believe you are the best and nobody can have a different opinion or they are a troll

It does if the threat was "no league at all".

Having read the chapter in Peter's book about ex-riders visiting their track free of charge I have to agree with his views 100%. He goes into it in great detail and personally I don't see it as a problem and the initiative would only benefit the track involved with good PRO and supporter involvement. It's a shame that his friendship with Chris Morton appears to have been badly affected with events that the new Belle Vue and it's regime's policy adopted (no image of Peter Craven in the lounge dedicated to the great "Ace" beggars belief!). The talk of a museum within the new complex was also met with apathy apparently by the those in charge at the time. Ex- Cheetah, Mark Lemon, appears to follow the same directive and it's all very sad and helps creates animosity...no wonder speedway is in the state that it now appears to "enjoy". I would be aghast if I thought that my own team expected the likes of Eddie Reeves, Rick Timmo, Gordon Kennett and Dag Lovaas ( yes that name again "Chunky") were expected to pay on entry to Cowley?

Plenty of time. He should be fine.

Quite right, Shovlar's opinion is the only one that matters (in his own head that is ).

2006. The reason I remember is because Daniel Nermark signed for Edinburgh in 2005 on some stupidly high converted average, around 11.34. He was one of the most frustrating riders I've ever had the misfortune to watch, home and away, and finished the season a smidgen over 8 (8.06?) It was during that winter when the powers that be decided to exclude bonus points from the team building averages / green sheets, thus lowering DN to 6.74 or thereabouts (I'd need to check my spreadsheet for the exact figures, but it's not exactly important). He left the Monarchs and signed for KL alongside, from memory, the likes of Tomas Topinka, Kevin Doolan and a very young Troy Batchelor. I'm sure Mr Bagpuss will tell me if I've got any of those wrong. Of course, after being next to useless in our colours, he suddenly became untouchable around all UK second tier circuits, and the Stars ran away with the league title by the proverbial mile

And we are very grateful he saw the light.

No Russian/Belarusian-licensed teams are approved to enter motorsport competitions in the UK No Russian/Belarusian-licensed competitors and officials are approved to participate in UK motorsport events No Russian/Belarusian national symbols, colours, flags (on uniform, equipment and car) to be displayed at Motorsport UK-permitted events Emil on a Polish licence not promoting the Russian flag is fine for 2023 IF he decides to agree a deal to ride for any said club

Wish the diamonds were

Bert van Essen

If you mean the graphics shown on the broadcasts that was Cmore or rather the production company Cmore used (outsourced it to a Latvian company IIRC). I agree about website, but Svemo.se is only results (and general administration regarding rider licenses and such/rules (publishing + providing referees)) Technically Elitsepeedway Sverige is running the league , with PR, schedules, etc and their website has highlights, post meeting reactions and etc. https://www.elitspeedway.com/ Attendances are way done post pandemic and the league doing one season with no spectators probably cost most teams (especially Vetlanda and Masarna) allot of money even if ESS president claimed otherwise. Add to that rule changes the past decade (or so) for engines/exhausts/air fences which increased costs allot for riders and teams and it's not a surprise teams are bleeding money. Last season it was pretty close for 4th-6th all the way to the end though. The biggest problem was Smederna steam rolling the entire season and paid the prize by busting the average cap. Most riders have a fixed payment or kind of ladder system. Will see if Cmores absence will affect anything, the money the paid the league/the clubs were just peanut money anyway. Speedway/motorsport in general has never attracted neither large national sponsors or large media attention, perhaps for being considerd to be a small town/rural sport far from the masses/media coverage in the big cities. Football/icehockey/handball/skiing is what gets attention/sponsors. Bauhaus extended their contract for 2023 and the league now has 4 official partners (Bahaus, Svenska spel, projob and Kaeser compressors) but I don't think the team gets that much money from them. At least not for it to be crucial for the survival. Most speedway team relies on local sponsors. Look at Smedernas sponsors, the vast majority are local companies even if there are sponsors from other parts of Sweden (like Dreamhack).

Its also supposed to be family entertainment; somewhere to take the kids; So 7:30 on a Friday night may not be ideal for families as its in from school then back out again with the kids after a week at work for the parents; then likewise on a Sunday (day/night) as daytime Sunday lunch (if any one has that these days) and night-time its school the next day!!! so are you just thinking of yourself here as to what suits you sir (ooooh suits you sir!!!) as a Saturday morning or late afternoon doesn't really impinge on much for the locals; they can come and watch their Speedway with the kids then go and do the Football or the Rugby in the afternoon... when it was the other way round I know quite a few guys who used to come to the speedway after watching either sport but often missed due to the drinking culture so you only seen them when either sport was away from home... Jenga comment just landed in and this covers his thoughts as well... Regards THJ

Are there any speedway teams running on a Saturday afternoon and has there ever been speedway anywhere ? i hope its not a failure running meetings on that day @ 3pm ish . i do know a few regulars that will not be able to attend because of work commitments , but we also dont know how many fans who could not turn up Saturday nights @ Derwent park . i hope the dream comes true for all the people who put the effort into get this up and running works out . perhaps Sundays .

Surely the next move "should be" to arrange the Fen Tigers home fixtures around the stock car fixtures to give plenty of time for "ideal" track preparation. This could also incorporate practice/training sections if planed well in advance. Good luck to better times this season then the last few, the Fen Tigers have a rich history of unearthing speedway talent, it would be great to see another Mike Lee, Melvyn Taylor or Carl Blackbird emerge from the Fens.

Certainly a different appearance, compared to when the Ochiltrees handed the stadium over to Sandu! Nuff said!

I'm sure he came out in the rerun

It didn't look like White City to me. The seating area had, what looked like red and yellow boards, in front of the seats? I think Plough Lane had something similar, but it was wasn't Wimbledon.

Indeed... It does look like GB Speedway now doesnt it, with plenty of similarities... Missing the days when they ruled the world, particularly with TRick, which generated strong national coverage.. Empty terracing everywhere, giving the impression that "no one is interested", and those who do attend being 40/50/60 somethings in the main... Play off places often sorted months in advance resulting in too many "dead rubbers" which fail to attract crowds... And meetings ran with very little atmosphere generated by anyone off track during the 90 mins or so of down time that naturally happens... You cannot see too many major sponsors lining up to have their names associated with something so visually lacking to the casual viewer, with a small number of ageing demographic of followers to advertise to... Are Bauhaus still involved? Should they go then it would be "game over" I would think..

If you feel like doing more of those then please do, really interesting

But we don’t need a 3 pointer. If we signed a 3 pointer we’d have over 9 left for a heatleader, we’re not signing a 9+ pointer. Baldyman has listed some good talent who would come in on a 4, on the basis of signing Sayfutdinov on an 8 point average.

Personally I don't think that it would be anything near that figure. Take Belle Vue's record breaking Triple Crown winners of 1972, for example (as Peter highlights in his book), where only three riders are still with us. My team's starting line up (Oxford) in my first year attending (also 1972) only two riders have survived and one, Rick Timmo, lives in NZ so is unlikely to visit regularly. With many teams traditionally having a very cosmopolitan make up the likelyhood of there being a great influx of "freebies" is negligible in my view and those who were domiclied in the UK during their riding careers how many used to live within easy distance of the track they represented including the British home-based riders? When Oxford ruled during the eighties we had Nielsen, Rasmussen and Sorensen (now all living back in Denmark), Cox (Thailand I believe?), Taylor (Mildenhall), Grahame (Birmingham), Dugard (Brighton) Butler (Australia) with only Nigel De'Ath and Jon Surman still living locally (?) and therefore wouldn't be visiting Cowley on anything like a regular basis and dare I suggest most teams would have similar examples. Of course it will become even less of an issue in the future with teams now filled with foreigners and the loss of tracks ever increasing. However if the issue was to allow riders free entry to any track then that's an entirely different matter altogether but I don't think that what's been implied?

Nah,,, we would be better with a Miskoviak, Cierniak,, Kvech,, Salonen,, Pedersen.. Lampart

Some good teams in the league but the pirates always deliver in the end

Come on Lisa, your one of the better ones

He said that you look weaker than last season, that the Cooks need to step up and riding in the Prem might effect their form and that he doesn't think you will win the league without some changes. I think that's all fair enough and quite a few people would agree with that.

Kurri kurri (rd3) aren’t live-streaming, but it will b up on YouTube a day or 2 after the meeting. I’ll post a link up from the NSW titles or the Boxing Day meeting from the fella that does them.