Halifaxtiger

On the first point, I think you're right. On the second, though, all legislation is subject to interpretation. What happens then is that a ruling is made which becomes binding in circumstances that are the same in the future - ie it becomes case law. That doesn't happen in speedway, so what you get are inconsistent decisions made by interested parties. I'd maintain that until the adjudication process is in the hands of an independent, unbiased person or body it doesn't matter how many new rule books you write. Thing is, though, is that that is never going to happen.

The problem Phil is not that the rules are too complex or that there are too many of them. The problem is that they are subject to biased, inconsistent rulings by jealous people with vested interests. The Craig Cook and Richard Hall decisions recently are two clear examples. Fans don't get angry about the sports rule book so much as the way it is manipulated to suit the needs of individual members of the BSPA. Even if you drew up an entire new set of rules if the same process of adjudication is in place nothing whatsoever would have changed.

Another highly entertaining meeting on the Island. Always close and spme decent racing thrown in. Blocked in in the car park, so it looks like attendances are increasing. Nothing less than the excellent promotions furious attempts to get the word out deserve.

Lets make it a bit more optimistic : going to be a very close one. The last two meetings I have seen at Smallbrook have been very entertaining indeed and I see no reason why this one shouldn't be the same

Because, as Pirate Nick has pointed out, this is nothing to do with a lack of ambition - a comment that I suspect was motivated by spite - and is all about a lack of rides. Its not a bad move for Kurtz, its a very good one. Hopefully he will both make a lot more money and get the additional confidence that winning races as a PL no1 will provide while still having the opportunity to compete at the highest level. Good for him, good for Poole and good for Plymouth. To return to lack of ambition, my understanding is that initially Kurtz stated he didn't want to go back to the PL. I'm not going to get carried away by this signing - as some seem to have done - regarding Plymouth's play off possibilities but it does give them (at least on paper) a very young, attractive side. Lets hope that they get the attendances that this team deserves.

Any more news on this one ? I can't see anything on the Warriors website and while Belle Vue has the team against Stoke there's nothing about Thursday.

If its Gerard Richter (and I think it is) he's anything but clueless. Word I got was that it needed ripping up and completely relaying about 3 years ago but it simply hasn't been done and now he can't do anything with it all. Down to Matt Ford, it seems.

I have said many times that we do not need an independent controller for the sport but we do need an independent adjudicator. This is one such occasion that proves me right. That's not why he's been blocked, so its irrelevant. You're also wrong about senior riders. While I wouldn't want the NL taken over by them, having one or maybe two per team is a very good idea indeed. Jon Armstrong is a classic example : a vastly experienced rider who is always more than willing to share his knowledge. What could be better in a team of young lads ?

I don't agree. Been to 25 meetings at 17 different tracks this season and easily the best was Lakeside v Poole. In addition, with one exception Coventry have been pretty rubbish away from home all season whatever the shape of track.

I got it too and ignored it. Been on updates hundreds of times without any issue or problem. I will let Sue know,

​There are(and always been and always will be) an awful lot of people on here who are very good at gambling with others money.

The last time I saw him - at home to Poole - he was amazing. Fired up, skilled and gutsy. Last night he just didn't seem to want to know. There's no question in mind that he's good enough, it must be attitude. That's pretty much how I saw it - not brilliant but not rubbish either. I thought the crowd was good, especially for a Lakeside match.

Thoroughly entertaining meeting and a big advert for both NL and IOW speedway. All credit to the riders, hope the injuries aren't too bad. Nice to have a chat with a promoter who listens even when you are critical.

Some close racing but sadly the track was poor (to be fair to the curator, he would have had to deal with rain, sun and wind) and there was little passing, nor did anyone really look like doing so. Another hugely impressive performance from Bewley, and I was once again impressed by Hume.

Wonder if newsman would care to comment on this one ? Greenwood & Mudgway were competitive but the rest were poor. Even Blacklock had a bad day at the office. Stoke looked good, though, and I am wondering just how Belle Vue beat them so easily.

I have had my share of arrogance and contempt from the Stoke promotion which is why its the only track in the country that I will not go to. I know others who are the same. The thing is when they are doing badly you can't wait to come on here and stick the boot in, ruining any possibility that your thoughts might be objective.

Check your mobile, Susan.

I have as a little time for the Stoke promotion as you do. The difference is I don't take a deal of pleasure in watching the club fail.

I think you are as wrong to write off the EL as those are who write off the NL. They can both be equally good. Its brilliant to see that the Colts meeting last night was excellent (not for me - I was due to go but my car had problems on Wednesday night coming home ) and there's no reason why the Aces meetings can't be the same. While the full force effort put in by the NL boys is an attraction, there's no doubt that the skill and experience of the EL riders means that you are more likely to see something special. Only been once but that's what I thought. I don't think there's a noticeable difference between EL & NL gates at Perry Barr.

Actually, its so not so much a matter of passing as knowing that the rider behind is able to pass. That's the difference between good racing and follow my leader, however close together the riders might be. As an example, I went up to Berwick the other week and the riders weren't particularly spaced out but there was one pass all night. The thing is standing there you knew that no matter how close they got , no-one was going to be able to catch the one in front (at least after a few races you knew that, anyway). You got maybe 5 seconds of excitement per race and that was it. As you say, each to their own. You might have liked that, I didn't. I think its true to say you could ride mid track on Wednesday and still win. Every single pass, though, was on the inside, often when riders drifted away from the kerb. I think my point was if you gated and stayed on the line, no-one was going to pass you. I have no doubt that, properly prepared, the NSS will be a fantastic race track. As I said, I think that my reaction was partly due to expecting something special and getting nothing like it. In that, I think I am anything but alone. Take it from me, the one thing Belle Vue does not need is extra stewards. There are dozens of the blighters.

I commented negatively because the racing was rubbish, simple as. It says everything that the Belle Vue supporters on here haven't ripped my post apart as they know I have a point. On Friday night, Jon Armstrong pulled off a stunning ride by taking one of the Colts on the inside and one on the outside as he went from third to first. I believe its on Facebook, so take a look. If he could do that in the first meeting, why does it need 3 months to bed in ? I also said that my disappointment was much greater simply because of the expectations that I had. If Armstrong could do that, I was wondering precisely what the likes of Cook and Zagar could do. Thanks to the track, it turned out to be very little. And that's really my point. I'd accept no track produces fantastic meetings every time (although its rare that I have seen a bad one at Scunthorpe, for example) but the size, shape and banking at NSS is so impressive there's every chance Belle Vue fans will see an awful lot of them. That's if the track is prepared correctly, of course. If it isn't, it will be no better than Leicester - as we saw all too clearly on Wednesday. Of course he can take a holiday. But why bring in someone who got sacked a few years ago for disastrously ruining a track surface leading to a meeting being called off ? As some have said, this was close to an opening meeting and there are a lot of good track curators about. Why not get one of them in ?

It wasn't, Rob. It was, as New Science has suggested, a rider drifting off the inside. If either rider had stayed on the kerb, there would have been no passing at all. Make no mistake, the shape of the track is superb - the entrance to the bends has to be seen to be believed - and there's no reason why it cannot be as good as its predecessor at Hyde Road. Jon Armstrong's brilliant ride last Friday proved that. But it needs someone - like Colin Meredith - who can prepare it properly. Otherwise it might as well be square and full of holes.

Not in the south stand it wasn't. It was near deafening. Absolutely spot on about the presenter - gave the impression that Friday was the first speedway meeting he'd ever been to, and that's inexcusable. I know my old mate Kevin Moore (King's Lynn, Peterborough, Mildenhall) one of the most professional announcers in the game used to have what he'd say planned well in advance.

Fine response Phil has said Tony Swales was doing the track and that speaks volumes. Wasn't he the bloke that got the sack the other year after completely sodding up the preparation for a meeting ? To be honest, it should be a case of purchasing a grandstand ticket and sitting where you like, thus doing away with the haggling at the ticket office. If season ticket holders have reserved seats, they can be marked. The thing is the track is such a superb shape - I can pay it no better compliment than to say that it reminds me of Hyde Road - so preparing it badly is unforgivable. In my experience, that's dead right (and not just in speedway).

Perhaps I was expecting too much after looking forward to this meeting. It was very disappointing indeed. I arrived at about 615 and found that you could purchase a specific seat in the grandstand, rather than just a seat. This meant that people were taking 5 minutes to do so which might not seem a long time but when there are a 1,000 or more doing so..........it didn't surprise me the start was delayed. I wanted to stand on the first bend and was given a ticket for the south terrace. I was then assured I could go on the first bend, only to be told by security staff that I could not. I was then told that I could gain access to the first bend from the south terrace, which you can if you are prepared to walk on the track. First night maybe, but that's a shambles. I hadn't been impressed with the presentation on Friday but last night it was worse. The announcer constantly made mistakes, while the presenter is a graduate with honours from the Mike 'I am the star of the show' Bennett academy. As I said on Friday, bring back Natalie Quirk & Ken Wrench. Of course none of that would have mattered much if the racing had been good and after Jon Armstrong's fantastic ride on Friday I was certain we would get a lot more. We didn't. It was a gaters paradise in which if you jumped from the start and sat on the kerb you would win. Any passing that there was came from riders drifting wide and it was painful to watch the likes of Zagar, Cook & Nielsen hammering round the outside only to lose yards. I don't know who prepared that track, but I'd be surprised if it was Colin Meredith and one fan on the mic even wanted to go back to Kirky Lane. I'd go as far as to say that the track played a substantial part in Belle Vue losing. The way I saw it, and for anything but the first time, British Speedway had a superb opportunity to promote itself and blew it.