Bagpuss

A Cradley fan moaning about other supporters giving a rider grief, really?

How on earth can you say that when he is sixteen? I believe he set the fastest time of the meeting at Poole the other week, he has the speed already......just needs to gather some experience and better gating and he can achieve whatever he wants to IMO.

Tonight proved more than ever that we need to get our riders appearing abroad a lot more than they are now. Stead and King looked very naive at times but I feel for them, not their fault they are among the best four available and its not Rosco's fault either. Hopefully the five year plan involves our youngsters riding on the continent and that Rosco gets more support from the BSPA than Rob did. As for the meeting fantastic last heat from Puk, top class. Feel a little for Poland but thems the rules. Australia disappointing apart from the excellent Doyle. Danes really ought to have picked MJJ but really pleased for Mads.

Who makes out its heavenly? Have you had a run in of some kind with Buster at some point? Seems like you never miss an opportunity to have a go.

The difference for me with the NP / Bjerre incident is that Bjerre was in front, Nicki overtook him with heavy contact. Last night Krcmar was never in front, Nilsson rode the same line that everybody else had been and was ahead. As for Hancock I agree he is a polished professional with bags of experience and its a great testament to him that he is still competing at the very highest level at his age. But he gates 99/100 times and on very fast bikes is rarely caught. Can understand why people like watching him but he's just not my cup of tea.

To me Nilsson just took the racing line that everyone else was, the Czech lad showed his over exuberance and inexperience by trying to ride on a part of the track where Nilsson was always going to be.

Great meeting. Ref decision was a stinker but I think the Aussies would have won anyway, mainly because AJ was awful from the gate all night, not good enough from a rider of his stature to fail to win a heat. Hancock on a different planet but just doesn't excite me at all, apart from pressuring Nilsson into a mistake in heat one he was yards clear by the first bend every time, not my cup of tea. At least Monster will be happy they have their two Aussie riders in the final, and I'm sure that had absolutely nothing at all to do with Lawrence's dodgy decision. Really hope to see Berntzon and Krcmar in the UK at some point, two excellent looking prospects.

Any ideas why Bailey & Kirby had three non starts between them?

Calm down, dear. Its been established that its only on SWC night.

I believe there are notices around the box office and turnstyles at Lynn forbidding food and drink being taken in, however I've never seen or heard of them searching bags for a Stars meeting.

I'm not convinced he had to be honest. We'll never know I guess until he starts riding on the continent regularly.

Not surorised they haven't picked Kenneth but MJJ really ought to be in.

Assuming this information is accurate how on earth can the best two riders not meet each other despite having three rides each in a six heat format?!

I think the Danes have made the right choice personally. Kildemand might be a bit lairy but he has the most speed of the four who rode last night and Mads top scored so deserves his place. Bjarne as and Hans just wouldn't be quick enough IMO regardless of their experience. Poland will win it in any event.

Hampel Kasprzak Protasiewicz Kolodziej Woffinden Harris King Stead Iversen N Pedersen Kildemand Korneliussen Ward Holder Batchelor Doyle IMO

Going by what the Danish TM said last week it'll be four from six with none of the younger riders getting a look in this year.....personally I'd have gone with MJJ to join Puk & Nicki plus probably Kildemand from tonight. But I think it'll be Mads and Killer joining the big two for the final.

PL sides are more balanced but I'd argue that the EL format creates just as much balance. Peterborough was a great racetrack in the EL.....the others all would be too IMO.

The PL has the best tracks in the UK, stands to reason the racing will be better. Swap Somerset, Scunthorpe, Sheffield & Peterborough for Eastbourne, Leicester, Poole and Lakeside for example and things would be a little different.

Go look at the kind of racing that 'circular' tracks like Somerset, Peterborough, Plymouth, Scunny, Mildenhall, Sheffield, some Swedish tracks etc can produce. Probably not a good idea to dismiss the idea of altering Lynn's dimensions completely out of hand. Especially if bikes are going to become faster and more powerful still, which I'd say is inevitable.

That is one of the things I've suggested recently, the tracks with shorter straights and longer bends tend to provide the better racing nowadays, tracks with longer straights tend not to. Makes you wonder if taking the white line in all the way round at Lynn to make it more circular might be the way forward.

Wolbert's inconsistency this year come as very little surpise to me having seen him at Lynn a couple of years ago beat a heat leader in one race and then trail in behind a reserve in the next. Lovely chap but makes you want to tear your hair out and just hasn't been good enough as a PL number one this season.

As a GB fan if Stead rode tonight and picked up an injury which ruled him out of Saturday's final I'd be a little cheesed off. You don't see footballers playing for their club side during THE World Cup!

You could well be right screamer but I remember 2011 being a very entertaining season; a televised match early on against Lakeside had passing in nearly every race, Freddie Lindgren coming from last to first wearing black and white in heat 13 v Wolves, Emil and Kenneth overtaking each other and others for fun v Coventry on Sayfudinov's UK début, etc. We get three or four decent races out of fifteen nowadays unfortunately, although a good race at Lynn is usually a better.

If you think the racing over the last couple of seasons has been as good as 2011 or pre 2003 you are in dreamland. I've never questioned Buster's skills, I've said prep has always been good BUT there is some reason why racing isn't as good as it was. The track always looks immaculately prepared but passing is limited nowadays, the idea of different shale is one I've suggested along with one or two others on different threads. It's not moaning, its stating my opinion as a regular customer. And if you don't believe me ask some non Lynn fans who don't wear your star shaped specs I like Halifaxtiger or Bigcatdiary. And it was squit not tripe

Its not been great for two or three seasons now.....up to 2002 in the top division it was one of the best racetracks in the country but it was never great in the PL with a lower standard of rider and although 2011 in the EL was very good in terms if racing its not been great since. The track prep is good but perhaps the shale is more suited to cars than bikes?