salty

The meeting last night had a 2 or 3 good tussles, which was definitely more than what we got at Wimborne Road the week before.

Edgbaston hasn't had the crowds for T20 that other counties have enjoyed either. The Oval has always been a tad pricey compared to other grounds, but you can't argue with their attendances which are excellent. Nonsense to say T20 is a snorefest. The Cricket is generally exciting enough, but all the other aspects of the presentation and facilities are what help make it such a success.

I'm currently reading the Bert Harkins book (free on Kindle unlimited). Some very interesting snippets about Middleton from when they rode together out in Australia at the end of the 60's.

I'd have to agree. My kids jump at the chance of a night at the Ice Hockey. They have no real interest in the sport, but enjoy the "event". My local team, Belfast Giants, get good crowds and the atmosphere, facilities and presentation are enough to encourage them to attend. The last time I took a couple of them to a domestic Speedway meeting (an awful drawn out affair - damp,cpld and boring) they wanted to leave before the end.

Sad news, RIP TJ

Only the close scoreline to maintain any interest because the racing was fairly dull. Amazed how many jumped starts the ref let go, so fair play to Bomber for doing it in the last to clinch the meeting.

I just dont get why Tai chased Laguta down! He should have let him go and concentrated on slowing Emil down. It was all about not finishing 4th! I know its easier said than done but was the only way to win

Much more enjoyable than Saturday's fare. Good to see the riders from the lesser nations getting stuck in and upsetting the big boys. You see the advantage of the pairs format as it allows France, Finland etc to be more competitive than the WTC format.

Team riding is definitely a dying art. Too many tracks where the outside line is too fast meaning its close to impossible for the guy on the inside.

To be fair the TV feed had the correct scores displayed, but I agree its daft that Pearson and Tatum are having to rely on their own scoring. I'm sure someone mentioned earlier in this thread that in the early days of Sky's coverage Bryn Williams used to make sure that Tony Millard was kept au fait with the permutations of the scorecharts.

Not the Not the point. A professional sports presenter/commentator shouldn't be making such a basic error. Last day of the Football season when promotion/relegation scenarios are changing all the time the comms teams always seem to be on the ball. As it happens I think the Nige/Kelv partnership do a good job, but it was a bit of a ricket to not realise that Heat 21 still had a strong bearing on the meeting. By the way tomorrow I will be on the mike for about an hour and a half hosting a presentation in front of about 150. No doubt I'll make a mistake at some point!

But they're doing their jobs wrong aren't they - or Nigel is anyway. Telling us before Heat 21 that Slovenia and Latvia were both out and Ukraine were in Heat 22. Keeping the score correct shouldn't be beyond the capabilities of the commentator should it?

Got my copy yesterday. Again I have to echo the sentiments of Steve and TWK, it is a superb publication. Well done to the Backtrack team!

Rode in the first meeting I saw in 1968. RIP Cyril.

Malcolm Brown?

Belatedly saw this. Apology accepted - legal hounds have been called off. But it's Salty, not Salt.

Mike Curoso? Always seems a bit of the forgotten man when we talk about the American invasion. Two years at Hull and one at Poole. As I recall he was a solid second string who was certainly capable of making further progress. Can't remember why he didn't return, I'm sure he would have had a good enough average to get a work permit. Having said that my main memory of him is pushing his bike for the best part of a lap at Dudley Wood one evening.

Just saw this. Rotten to hear, but given the way he'd suffered in recent years I guess its a wee bit of a sweet release. The man was immense and brought the professionalism of the sport to a whole new level. RIP.

A terrible precedent that was set a few years ago when Poole called off a meeting against Lakeside as it would affect their planned team changes.

Can only echo what TWK said, RIP Alan

Sad to hear this, RIP Vaclav

Further to my earlier post I have to mention Dave Shields. Returned to Cradley for the 1981 season after 2 years away from Britain. After a slowish start to the campaign he became a key component of our Championship winning team ending with a League average of 6.12 from reserve, bringing the house down against Hull when beating Mauger and Drury? from the back. Never returned to these shores, but a key signing to help bring that title to Cradley for the first time.

Sore point after the Norwegian issue!! No hard feelings really though so I'll have another go. The 70's started with a load of Aussies in the British League yet by the mid -80's they were struggling to get a decent WTC quartet let alone a Test team. My favourite Aussie of the 70's was (of course as a Heathen) Johnny Boulger. Came to Dudley Wood in 1974 (the year the Swedes were banned) and in 3 seasons for Cradley proved a genuine Number 1, which if I recall was his motivation for moving from Leicester where he was in the shadow of Ray Wilson. I loved Johnny B - I can remember me and my mate spending over an hour on a car journey down to Poole singing "NaNaNa, NaNaNa, Wheyhey, Johnny Boulger" until my Dad threatened to turn back at Devizes! Crucially gave Cradley some respectability after a rotten 1973 season. Shout out here to Bob Valentine, who just had one season at Cradley before returning back to Aussie but had a super year. In the 80's as top flight Aussies got rarer I had a soft spot for Billy Sanders. I had a mate who was a Lynn fan and during Billy's year for the Stars we watched him at places like Reading and Hackney where I loved to see him blast off the fourth bend. Always had hopes that the likes of Steve Baker, Mark Fiora and Rod Hunter would break through to International class, but the latter two at least were big hitters in the National League. As a Plough Lane regular in the 80's I have to mention Todd "The Fastest Alive over the First 25" Wiltshire who oozed class and also Nathan Simpson who we saw develop so much as a Don. I always liked the Aussie riders in those days, which is why its sad when you read the negative comments on this Forum about so many of the current crew from Down Under.

Another excellent issue. Will definitely get the sister publication to read more about Jim Airey. However, was shocked to read in the article on Norwegians that my comments about Reidar Eide and Odd Fossengen were attributed to "Sidney the Robin" rather than myself. Can't say too much as the matter is in the hands of my legal team, but Sidney getting the credit!!!!!

Good 1. That first meeting at a dark, damp Dudley Wood at the end of the 1968 season. Hooked straight away. 2. Becoming a Dudley Wood regular from the start of the 1969 season. Getting a first hero in Bernie Persson 3. Bernie getting so close to winning the World Title in 1972. 4. Cradley winning their first league title at Eastbourne in 1981. Hitched down from London, but was able to get a lift back on the supporters coach. 5. Late 80's at Wimbledon. Having moved to London 10 years before I became a Plough Lane regular but really enjoyed the Russell Lanning seasons with the "Montine" Dons. Bad 1. The riders who lost their lives or suffered life changing injuries. 2. Dudley Wood closing - and the subsequent loss of the legal battle with the loathsome Barratts. 3. Wimbledon closing - even though I'm long gone from London, watching the decline of the stadium under the stewardship of Luke Johnson and his money grabbing venture capitalists has been very sad. 4. Erik's accident at Bradford. 5. Watching the slow decline of the sport in the UK.