THE DEAN MACHINE

The frames are still made from the same crap steel they have always been, they have to be to flex, wheels still go round at the same speed they always have, they just lighter and not as strong, engines well apart from better conrods rods and titanium valves the rest of the parts are pretty much the same, they using billet heads instead of cast but it’s all in the name of going faster but facts don’t lie we’re not, yes tracks and silencers and tyres do play a part but the fact remains we are going no faster, I was reading this morning that in the national league at Birmingham in 2016 Lee smart went round Birmingham faster than anyone there last Monday, it’s not progress it’s money down the drain fueled by B/S that is pumped into the minds of riders looking for the next edge when in reality non take a step back to see if they been around long enough today they are not going as fast as they themselves used to, riders are literally peeing money up the wall to stay the same speed but the racing is no better but I believe you get more spaced out racing today than in the past, I would actually like to see someone try in race conditions a upright GM from the 90s v and laydown from 2000s v a today bike on different tracks with top riders on all 3 bikes, you say about reliability of the modern GM engine it lasts around an hour before the big end would start to break apart so they are changed around every 1/2 hour, this was a problem the GTR had, then big end pin started to break up and wasn’t caught because it wasn’t serviced every 30mins which was it’s selling point

Well he certainly up there but the point about the progress or lack of it with the bikes still stands

I don’t know the percentage that is paid but as I said you do also get revenue from all over the world which are never going to set foot in the stadium and to be honest I don’t think showing on BSN makes a that much of a difference to the attendance because you have to pay either way, I think it did on Eurosport because it was free, be interesting to see the crowd at belle vue this Monday because from what I’m told last Monday v kings Lynn it was very poor and this week v Ipswich it’s on BSN, will it be bigger crowd or smaller ?

Poole/bournemouth is quite a wealthy area relatively speaking with the likes of sandbanks in its locality so the financial struggles of the country will hit later than the rest, it’s all about the pecking order, those at the bottom will/are getting hit first

Without those Leicester fans that 3/4 bend would of looked pretty empty

Birmingham will see out the season and it will all end at Perry Barr the last week in august sadly without so much as a whimper or a farewell and tolley will move to either Sheffield or Leicester next season

For now

It’s happening everywhere

For those who get the speedway star, my point about bikes going no faster these days despite the money spent is on page 23 and just to add heat 1 at Sheffield tonight is the same time as Hans Nielsen in 1985 at owlerton

Let’s just be grateful they don’t have a drone

Bit naughty from sedgman there

On the subject of music played I think that karlito guy is rubbishe, at the German GP god know what music he was playing but nobody engaged with it, young or old, I’ve nothing against they guy personally although he does love himself too much, the conversation overheard on a bus in Germany was hilarious, the lady couldn’t shake him quick enough but he is trying to be woofy and his music taste is well not for the masses let’s put it that way, if you had polish tv you would hear the euro pop garbage that is played non stop on their music channels but you go to polish speedway and it’s rock music blasting out, mainly 80s rock too, you are never going to please all but some “DJs” know how to connect with the audience and clearly sone don’t

The sport need an independent governing body more than ever, someone who makes the rules for the competition and the bikes and then promotions and riders join up knowing where they stand, in the case of the riders and their bikes, the independent body say the bikes must have a square wheel( silly analogy) then the riders and tuners can scream all they like but that’s the rule and if you don’t like it go do something else

2020 was the year speedway should of used to rebrand, rebuild and forge a game plan going forward but it didn’t

Without going into details or individuals too a point what riders are paid per point isn’t really going to change much,it’s more the extras are getting out of hand

I believe BSN pay each clubs a % and as it can be streamed world wide so people in places like Australia or USA are contributing to the clubs and I subscribe and so I’m contributing to teams that I wouldn’t necessarily attend so yes it may discourage people from actually attending it is at least contributing to the clubs

Putting finances aside and let’s pretend all was well financially , 1 big league poses its own problems like enough riders and an equal distribution of those riders, now we could get more foreign riders and then you have teams like Workington who can’t run on a Monday or Thursday night as they have no lights and running sat or Sunday they wouldn’t be able to attract a decent no1 like bewley as he rides in Poland, I would like 1 big league but it has so many problems to overcome I just can’t see it

And if the cake isn’t big enough for Emil and Jason to have their share then what ? Exactly my point it’s not black isn’t as black and white as you imply

You think the problem is as simple as black and white, make it cheaper and people will come, they won’t, the sport needs a rethink and be cheaper but it’s not a simple as just reducing costs and rearranging the deck chairs, I don’t want to break confidentiality of some people but what is being paid out is in a couple of cases quite frankly stupid, not just riders, the product is poor and has been largely responsible for the decline in crowd numbers but the crowd figures this season are down to in some cases alarming levels because the country is broke and the public are reflecting this in all sectors not just speedway and maybe for the first time the people who run the sport realise this, as I said I was told about an idea but I can just see the reaction now and I get it but what’s the alternative because I don’t see one

We queued for over an hour and completely missed rival sons

Yes it was great value at £100 but some tickets were £300+. I would have loved to have gone to the black sabbath gig but I can’t justify that price of over £200 a ticket, did you enjoy the K2 security shambles of getting in to villa park ?

No they were fantastic and for a football stadium the sound was fantastic too, it’s not just GNR it’s all bands with the exception of the one off things like sabbath gig or oasis where it’s a new one off type of thing, from what I hear iron maiden wasn’t sold out either this week

Went to Guns n roses on Monday, wasn’t a sell out mainly because it was so bloody expensive,went in Birmingham city center before for a meal and after gig and it was deserted,pubs, bars and restaurants were open and had about 10 people in, yes it was a Monday but I’ve never seen it do dead, car parks were empty,folk are not spending money like they used too, I work in supplying hospitaity, bars,restaurants etc and they are struggling because people are just not coming, I have a stall at the classic off-road show at Telford every year and was talking to other stall owners this year from all walks of the motorcycle world and they all said people are just not spending their money here like they used used to

We know all this but it’s more than speedway itself now,the country is going broke, at this point unless the finance is changed nothing else will make a difference

Because the country is going broke, are you not listening ? Folk are feeling the pinch and picking and choosing, it’s not just speedway, it’s gone past speedways ills now ,I see it everywhere now,in everyday life work and play,folk are genuinely starting to cut expenditure and speedway unfortunately is way down the list, big events are surviving at the moment as they generally one offs and not every week but even those are not selling out like they used too