Aces51

Openness and transparency was also promised together with a new rule book. They did have the events on social media where fans had to submit their questions in advance so that the more controversial and embarrassing issues could be avoided. The current leadership has just presided over the biggest shambles of a season I have witnessed in my 60 plus years of following the sport and at the end of it we have the Chairman proclaiming that he wants to see more guests.

This 100 name list story has been about since last year. If it is correct then I find it hard to think of anything approaching 100 ex Belle Vue riders living in the UK who would qualify if you used the criteria of having ridden for the club for at least one full season.

In that case it is unfortunate that the Team GB manager can't see that running a NL is not just a straight commercial decision in terms of the numbers attending. Running a NL team can have the benefit of developing British riders who can become assets and then either progress through to the PL team, saving on loan fees or foreign rider air fares and increasing attendance levels because fans like to watch a rider develop through the ranks or, earn transfer or loan fees riding for other teams. I would have hoped, with one eye on his national role, that he would have also seen that the more opportunities that exist for young British riders the more likely some will progress to the senior national side.

Belle Vue gave him a free pass this year but he has chosen not to use it. They also invited Chris Morton, who has been helpful to the new promotion but he has not taken up the invitation. In Chris's case I can understand why he might not want to attend, the events of last year still being raw. I am sure that most fans would love to see them both at the NSS and hope that a way can be found which enables them to do so.

I would prefer to see all ex riders who have ridden a specified minimum number of meetings for a club given a free pass for themselves but not for any guests to accompany them.

It's very sad. Like many Aces fans of the 70's Peter was one of my all time favourites. However, there are two sides to this story which you will find explained in the Peter Collins Article topic. The other side of the story does put a different complexion on things. The new owners did try to resolve matters but I would still like to think that during the winter Peter and the new promoters can somehow reach a compromise.

£180 a point allowing for inflation is about £250 a point now but crowds are significantly smaller now.

There's definitely hope for the future. So far as I know the new owners do intend to develop the proposed training facility. Unfortunately, because they only took over a matter of weeks before this season began much had to be done to get the Aces and Colts on track and it had to be put on the back burner. The CEO, Adrian Smith, has said that he has many new ideas that he wants to implement but I don't know if that includes the training school for next season but I am confident that with their commitment to the Colts and Belle Vue's history it will happen. Dent Oliver's training schools were one of the major reasons for our success in the 1970's so it makes sense for that reason and commercial sense because of the income it would produce.

It doesn't sum up British Speedway. Belle Vue had over 200 people at their end of season awards, which was a £30 per person. All of the Aces and the Colts were there plus the owners, Adrian Smith and team managers of both teams. I am sure that other teams will also have equally successful events.

I think the are different situations. I think it wrong that teams can own an established foreign rider simply because he rides a requisite number of meetings for them. However, there has to be some benefit to clubs that take the time and trouble to nurture young talent. I think it's wrong that NL clubs can't own rider's registrations and gain some recompense for those that they help develop when they move on to the higher leagues. Likewise, Premiership and Championship clubs would be less likely to help and train novices if they gained nothing for those who become good enough to sign for another club. Similarly, under the present system, clubs own the registrations of riders they have bought from other clubs. It is only right that again they get some recompense, either through transfer or loan fees if those riders move elsewhere. If there is no incentive the likelihood is that even fewer teams would invest their time and effort in helping young riders through training schools, general help and advice, or running NL teams.

It was a good race by any standards, not someone plugging away on a ridiculously wide line but a rider with the skill and courage to ride a line that none of the other, far more experienced riders, were either brave enough to ride or, thought it the quickest line to ride. I would hope that most fans can appreciate and enjoy a ride like that from a young British rider, still with less than two years racing experience, slowly but surely hauling in and then passing on the run in to line a quality rider like Nicholls.

Mildenhall deserved their overall victory. Mountain, Armstrong and Kemp all rode well in the second half of tonight's meeting with Armstrong showing determination to win heat 15. All of the Aces guests tried hard. Davey, Hall and Hopwood scored well and Bowen did better than expected with his win in heat 2. Things may have been different in both legs with our own riders but that's how it goes sometimes. The Colts have been great to watch this year and those who decry NL racing are missing out on some spectaculor racing. There's a lot of pleasure to be gained from watching riders develop their talent and watching the progress they make throughout the season.

Thanks although In still not sure what the position is. Whatever it is I'm hoping for some good racing and it will be good to see Kemp again, he looks an exciting prospect.

So Kemp isn't eligible?

I agree that the rules should be followed although, as others have pointed out, there has been some confusion during the play offs. I didn't say I was blaming Glasgow I said it was caused by them rearranging their meeting last night to tonight, that is a fact. I don't know if they had any other options, if they didn't then it is just circumstance, if they did, then I might think otherwise. As for the Workington meeting, that was a meaningless fixture and I would guess that, as a good will gesture, knowing the good relationship between the clubs, Bewley and Smith would have ridden for the Colts. As for Smith, he is a Glasgow asset but remember that Bewley belongs to Belle Vue, so if you want to be silly about it you might want to consider who got the better deal. Bickley is determined to ride tonight so that is going to help but it is going to be difficult to pull back the 16 point deficit. The guests will do their best but are unlikely to match the scores Bewley and Smith would get and Kemp at reserve is a trump card for Mildenhall. On that topic I am puzzled as to how Bowen and Kemp can guest as this meeting is within 8 days of their last guest appearances.

He wasn't replaced because it was believed that his shoulder wasn't expected to be a long term or season ending injury.I think somebody recently did an analysis and r/r has not been as good as Payne's average. We have managed without Lee but tonight's problem has been caused by Glasgow rearranging their meeting last night for tonight. It wasn't ideal but we could cover Payne, Bickley and Mellish but to add Bewley and Smith makes it a farce of a meeting.

Could be another farce meeting tomorrow. Glasgow have rearranged their KO Cup match which was postponed tonight to tomorrow and are saying that Bewley and Smith will be riding for them. That means the Colts will be without Bewley, Smith, Bickley who fractured his foot last night, Payne who has a long term shoulder injury and Mellish who also has a broken foot. This leaves Shuttleworth and Woodhull. Whilst having sympathy with Glasgow why rearrange a meeting to a date when it was already known the Colts would be riding in an important meeting. No doubt we will have guests and r/r but it is going to be yet another shambles of a meeting.

2007!! You either did some serious research or that's a long time to have been fantasising about Craig being naked.

They're not going to the Bahamas for a month. I suspect that many of us could afford a few days in Tenerife in November. The flights and hotel are probably cheaper for most than the travel costs and a few days in Rugby.

As always there are at least two ways of looking at things. What you call Ford's "progressive" ideas may well have been seen by some of the others as likely to put many clubs out of business and as being disastrous for the sport. If the sport is to prosper it has now to live within its means. Progressive ideas are those which enable that to happen whilst rebuilding with an end goal of increasing the fan base and as more clubs are on a sound financial footing, enticing the top riders back and maybe even having squads. Many know that there is too much self interest amongst promoters and that it has resulted in many of the problems we now have. What we need are promoters who can see the wider picture and have the good of the sport at heart, not just the good of their club. I am not optimistic but as the crisis deepens it is more likely that enough members of the BSPA will see that action for the overall good of the sport can be the same thing as the action that is best for their own self interest.

The Colts were superb pulling back the 12 point deficit and going on to win by 22. Some good racing, a good crowd and another trophy at the end of it. Eastbourne never gave up, the Colts were just too strong for them but Bailey and Kemp were impressive. Bewley and Smith have already progressed through to the Aces and I can see Bickley doing the same. This is what the National League needs to be doing and hopefully, the three of them will eventually have long and successful careers at the club. Some Eastbourne fans had made the long trip and what a sporting lot they were. Supporting their riders throughout but applauding Belle Vue race winners and staying to congratulate the Colts as they collected the trophy. It was good to see Belle Vue fans applauding them for having made the journey on a week night and for the way they behaved.

Do people ever bother to read the rules. A rider missing a meeting because of sickness or a non related speedway injury must produce a medical certificate within 48 hours of the injury or sickness and is AUTOMATICALLY prevented from returning within 7 days by the SCB. The BSPA Management Committee have a discretion to permit a return within that 7 days. A rider who doesn't produce a medical certificate is suspended for his next home meeting and that suspension cannot be removed by anybody. Cook was given a 7 day period of inactivity so it appears he did produce a medical certificate. Otherwise, it would have been the mandatory next home match ban. We also know from what he has said that he is presently being prescribed medication so it would seem he would have no problem getting a certificate. Side effects are common with prescription medicines, just look at the printed list you get with every medicine these days and can be serious and debilitating. I suspect the same people who are critical of Craig would be the first to condemn him if he had raced, caused an accident and it was later discovered he was suffering from side effects that could have contributed to the accident. I can't imagine that any responsible referee would allow a rider to take part in a meeting if the rider told him he was suffering side affects from medication which may put him and his fellow competitors at risk of injury. What he did was correct and responsible.

The facts, whatever the arguments about what may have been, are that Wolves beat us in the play off semi final and we beat them in the KO Cup final and on aggregate in the league meetings during the season. Everything else is conjecture. Both sets of supporters can be proud of what their teams have achieved.

Sorry, yes 4 injured. I still think Cook and Fricke would have scored as many as those four and if Worrall and Nicholls were pants then so was Harris but they all gave 100%. We shall never know what would have happened if both teams had their full 1-7 but you certainly can be proud of the riders who represented Wolves.

It wasn't packed. There was a good crowd considering the number of guests, Cook's absence and the very strong cold wind. It's difficult to tell but I would think easily 1500 plus.