Wee Eck

Ah! Never heard him called “Ken” before. Thought it might have been Ken Eyre. Or Ken McKinlay!

Sorry if I’m being thick, but who is Ken?

FRN has always been the wrong expression. The agreement relates to priority. Subject to the agreement of the teams whose standard race night it is, any team can ride on any night. The problem was (a) getting your own 1-7 together on the chosen night and (b) getting an opposition 1-7 willing to come. PL operated in 2018 with the protected race nights of Monday and Thursday but that didn’t stop Poole and KL regularly, and others spasmodically racing on a Wednesday, a night on which Denmark has protection.

Erm, like what? Ford put together what many thought was a winning 1-7 only for it to fall apart at P&P when Holder had to admit he didn’t have a work permit. So Kildemand signed on a short term deal in the hope the Holder situation would resolve. Which it never did. So he kept plugging away trying to get a winning team. Which eventually happened. He didn’t give up like many others, or run for months on end with r/r. In speedway, there is no magic so no guarantee that decisions will always be good. But, a team that fell apart before the beginning of the year that ended up being league champions can only do that if there were more good decisions than bad. 5 league wins in the last 8 years is hardly evidence of someone who makes poor decisions.

Looking at this post, it would be understandable if would be promoters just gave up, knowing their audience was ungrateful supporters. Of course they care for supporters and the advancement of the sport, otherwise we wouldn’t have had Redcar, Leicester or the NSS. Various people have tried to get a site for Bristol, as they have for Cradley and other places. Each attempt costs time, energy and money. They don’t give up because they don’t care about supporters but because there are too many hurdles. In future, someone thinking about Bristol may well look at your post and think all supporters are like you, ungrateful of their efforts, and query why they are bothering.

Hasn’t changed the fact that he’s got a face like a wet weekend and behaves like he’s a superstar when he’s still got much to prove

With respect, I struggle to see what good - for the rider and the team - having Kyle Bickley in a Premiership team would be. He has failed to reach his 2 point Championship starting average and really needs to substantially exceed that before moving up. I’m not knocking him in any way - in my view, he arrived with too much hype and needs to gain more experience, and points, before thinking about moving up. The bravest thing for him to do would be to say no to the top league until he has become a Championship top scorer.

Where does it say Ostergaard will be allowed to race? The last I saw was Lakeside - correctly - objecting to his inclusion

Your first paragraph is exactly what I said about the factors that need to be taken into account in deciding whether or not having a rider on your retained list constituted a money making - or money saving - asset for accounts or value purposes. I’m not sure of the relevance of your point about banks - no one has suggested using retained riders as collateral, but I agree a lender would need some persuasion to lend on a rider. But the same would be true of an ageing air fence, tractor etc. Your second point is moot - the rules on loan fees are as dictated by BSPA and agreed to by BSPA members. A track using a rider on another team’s retained list pays the fee as set by the rules that all teams have agreed to. “Business men” or women or even non business people can’t cherry pick the rules.

Incorrect. As long as you can obtain a loan fee for a rider on your retained list, they must have a value. Indeed, the true value of any rider could be calculated using averages and average working lives, adjusted for a drop out rate for those that choose not to ride in UK anymore. For example, a rider heading towards retirement, but likely to race in UK would be worth 1 times or perhaps 2 times their loan fee. A similar rider in his early 30s might be worth 4 or 5 times. The lure of the Zloty or Swedish Crown hasn't gone on long enough for any British riders to turn their backs on UK permanently so who's to say that, even though Robert Lambert is likely to commit less to UK, and concentrate of Poland and Sweden, that he wouldn't look to come "home" in years to come? Indeed, who's to say that Tai will never race in UK again? So, if the gamble is that they'll return, then whoever is holding their registration will either get or save a loan fee. Which then means they too have a value. There are plenty of riders who are very unlikely to come back to UK, Hancock, Hampel, Janowski, Pedersen etc, so they are the nil value ones, but Holder (C), AJ, Lindback, Lindgren (F), Zagar etc may well return which will earn - or save - someone something. My view is that it's a horrible system, perpetuated by Championship League who need to sell riders to make the books balance, but it's not illegal, as no one is forced to ride anywhere they don't want to, and it does create an asset class for teams holding registrations.

Does that include the fairies that feed you these stories?

Dividends are paid from retained profits, not solely the profit for a particular period.

Have you allowed for the Swindon vs Belle Vue match that was raced after the cut off for the October GSAs?

Is that comment deliberately mocking Darcy Ward’s disability? If so, shame on you, what a disgusting remark. If not, then please be more thoughtful of your comments

When did KL have an Australian line up? I remember Peterborough having one in the early 2000s maybe, but not KL

I’m not sure I’d agree about the reserves. Yes, Simon Lambert has had more poor than good matches at Poole, but MPT is in blistering form and I’d expect him to beat Worrall and Jacobsen. Too close to call in my view but Poole certainly need a good lead to take to KL who seem to score 50+ each meeting

Summers seems to be a bit in and out with his health. Injured himself at Redcar on Thursday but still completed the meeting well. Then rode - again well - at Berwick on Saturday but is now claiming a wrist injury? Howarth for BWD and r/r for Summers. Stronger or weaker? Over to Gavan and SS!

You can eat in the Diamond Lodge Hotel - just up Kirky Lane from the stadium. I think they start serving about 5.30pm. Big helpings and reasonable prices. Or else, If you’re coming along Hyde Road from the motorway, there’s a Subway beside the Tesco on the right hand side and just afterwards, a KFC, again on the right.

Fair enough. Do you know who doesn’t allow this? One Sport, BSI or FIM?

It doesn’t look like GP riders couldn’t take part as Pawlicki and Sayfutdinov were racing. But, I wonder, other than making money for the promoters and, I assume the riders, what’s the point of the SEC? There seems to be no kudos attached to the title and, comparing how certain riders perform in it compared to their Polish league appearances, they don’t even appear to be using their best equipment. Add to that the generally poor crowds - where were the alleged 30,000 spectators hiding? - and the no more than average racing, with last night being the worst of them all. But the great news (!) is that the promoters, One Sport, are trying to get the license for the GPs, by out bidding BSI. So we have more of the same to look forward to

Best option as a guest has to be Zach Wajtknecht

Tbh, I think you’re kidding yourself about the “professionalism of this promotion”. They were handed a ready made stadium, a ready made track and a ready made team manager and done what exactly? Where are the new sponsors and the new supporters? Look at what Glasgow have done if you want to see professionalism. Turned an absolute dump into a smart welcoming little stadium with good food and bars, clean toilets and promotional activities that are almost unmatched. Plus entertainment all through the meeting and new sponsors. The result is that crowds have more than doubled and supporters are properly engaged. That surely is professionalism.

I’ve seen the posts by Scottish fans that Glasgow will make the play offs but Edinburgh won’t, but I’m not convinced - though I might be missing something. If Edinburgh beat Berwick tonight, then they’ll have 38 points. Lakeside have three meetings planned for today and tomorrow and have to win all three to be ahead of Edinburgh. Although these are “Home” meetings, two are at Rye House which has to be thought of as neutral ground, and one of these is against the league leaders, Peterborough. All could change depending on Workington who will secure a play off spot if they win tonight. And who do they meet? Peterborough!! A Workington win tonight with Lakeside losing one of their home meetings would give Workington 39 points and Edinburgh and Lakeside each on 38. It would then come down to points difference which seems currently to be Edinburgh +125 and Lakeside +89. Mr Blobby shouldn’t put his Jimmy hat away just yet

This is WORSE than official BSPA policy. If a meeting is abandoned before heat 10, you should get in to the restaging or another meeting for £1 per race staged. So, if only one heat, then admission is £1, if 9, then £9, so, as abandoned after 6 heats then admission should be £6. There is no logic to offering £6 discount as that would mean, the more heats run the greater the amount of money off.

Arithmetic is off - you multiply by 4 not 5 for an average so your answer should have been 8.62. BUT, CMAs ignore bonus points so correct calculation is 26/13 x 4 = 8.00. Now recalculate BK on the same basis for a true comparison.