mikebv

Too much grip down low again... On the outside run you get slightly in front then the rider underneath gets grip and moves ahead... Been that way in the matches I have seen st the NSS this year...

That's why we only need so few riders in both the top leagues....

Lucky guess.... At least they have got some decent camera angles at the start, for once, and maybe have prioritised the seats to be sold which are to be in shot the most? Hence it looks a 'decent' crowd if you take away the far right of the grandstand as you look... Standing looks a bit 'socially distanced'....

Looking at the number of seats in the Grandstand still showing 'Red', I presume everyone is having their tea before going along.. I am currently stood outside in the queue with Sir Kier and chrismorton ....

Luncheon Vouchers.....

Having been in Manchester over the weekend to watch United, I did spend a fair few hours, with thousands of others, in and around the city centre.... I was a little surprised to be honest to not see any promotion of this event in the host city, especially with it being THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP of one of those "Elite" sports mentioned during lockdown... Today however, I now realise why no one had time to run a fan zone, or get some local TV coverage for the meeting... Clearly holding talks around banning a second reserve from the meeting was the most important thing to sort out... Quite right too. I am sure all Speedway fans would agree that this was far more of a priority than actually actively marketing their own competition to a conurbation of 2.5 million people... What is the first prize tonight to help hype up the meeting and attract a huge crowd? £30k, £40k, £50k? Or maybe its one of those GTR bikes they bought a few years ago?

The issue you have now though is that the more tracks you have the harder it would be to find enough riders.. The campaign to get Rye House back is laudable, and Buxton coming back could possibly work. Then you have Oxford and the strides being taken there to resurrect the sport.. Bottom line is, should all three come back, (and the IOW potentially too), where would those 28 riders needed come from? And as for the 2nd Tier? It's the same virtually as the top tier due to the riders needing to ride as much as they do, therefore you cant dilute the 2nd tier to make it cheaper for teams to run in that league as 90% of all riders have to compete (by necessity) in both top leagues.. Those who run the sport certainly like painting themselves into corners dont they?. How do they get out of it? Who knows...

Has it been officially announced anywhere that Coles is out due to riding at the IOW? If it is official, maybe Nigel and Kelvin will mention it tonight? ... After they tell us what starting system is being used obviously..

And there is the issue.. It tries to be the second option but fails by a long way.. And all down to its very own operating model, that they seem to want to protect come what may. Regardless of all evidence that it simply doesnt cut it.. Several countries over the years have been successful from a world class rider perspective without a "league system" eg's. USA, Australia, and New Zealand.. With their operating model in those countries being very much a full evenings entertainment, allied to serious racing, as well as showcasing other types of motorsport and covering all age groups... The riders that become "too good" within this system then moved to Europe (ironically the UK at that time given it was the "Elite" of all leagues).. But those days are gone, hence some now go direct to Poland and Sweden to seek their improvement to the next level.. Whatever UK Speedway currently is, it simply "isn't working", if you take so many "cries for help" as a barometer, so whatever it decides to do, "doing nothing" can't be an option on the table surely? It missed a golden opportunity during the Covid lockdowns to reinvent itself, be innovative, and set out a brand new operating model fit for a 2021 audience.. Instead it came back with the "same old, same old" that has been around for 90 years or so... Apart from dismantling the NDL model which appeared to work for a fair few clubs... Got to give them that, they did action some change there...

Not too shabby for a "sideshow" then..? I suggest 'one or two others' may want to look into doing a "sideshow" too... As circa 15 mins of racing, watching the same riders over, and over, and over again doesnt seem to be making the required cut through does it? Of course that wont happen because we MUST have seven man teams, and all riders MUST be allowed to ride for two teams, but also MUST be allowed to ride for any other teams on any given night, and 15 heats (circa 15 mins), of Speedway, MUST be, for most evenings, the only thing on offer, and admission costs MUST be greater than £1 a race/minute, (or more than circa £60 an hour pro rata), as it's the ONLY way to run the sport (in the UK).. Isn't it?...

90% of riders ride in both leagues... Just so they can get enough rides to make it pay,. The middle tier therefore is basically the top tier..

Quite a few tracks seemed to able to run comfortably in the old NDL...

Bet there is no grip at the Russian GP... Gaters paradise...

Exactly... It's not how you get there, its whether you get there... Ivan Mauger spent years almost picking his riding number for the "big night" by ensuring certain qualifying positions in the previous rounds.. Pressure was on tonight and the lad came through without a second glance... World Champs are born not made and have that level that the others cannot reach...

What a surprise... Doyley..... How many years has he done that?....

Cant see Woffy accept being an also ran... He is a 3 time World Champ.. With plenty of money earned, and plenty more to be earned in Poland and Sweden... The racing nowadays is truly cut throat and not sure Tai has it in him to be riding like that...

Woffy, once again riding far too safe and timidly... No place for that kind of riding nowadays... He may make the top six and if he doesnt will be given a wild card surely? If he wants one that is... Must be very frustrating to realise you are dropping down the order after so many years competing at the top..

Breaking News... Just heard that it is a "computer generated system" that's being used to release the tapes... Nigel just finally mentioned it... After many GP's.... The things you find out... "Smashing".. As someone may possibly say..

What has happened to Madsen?

Does anyone know what starting system is being used this year? I, for one, am really interested in finding out but it seems the commentators dont want to mention it...

The only way for me to meet the demands of the riders, have a credible league, and have enough riders, is five man teams in the top league.. 12 teams, 60 riders, all getting six rides a night.. Home and Away twice, meaning 44 matches, which equal 264 rides to make your money.. No make weights, all 4 points and over riders, and a clear demarcation in structure from the 2nd Division which would be similar to the NL that was in place pre Covid.. With the IOW, that's 8 teams in the 2nd Division, maybe seven riders per team to ensure plenty of team spaces for developing riders.. Professionals in Division One and Semi Pros/Developing riders in Division Two. Maybe Sweden and Denmark will open up more past Covid and more riders will not require so many UK rides as currently, due to it being their only option...? If so then more chance of some clear demarcation between leagues surely? Which can only bring that much required credibility..

I would suggest that this view is the No1 reason for so many "drifting away" from the sport as a paying customer.. With these tens of thousands though still keeping a high level of interest in the sport via the TV.. There can be no doubt that the current "Team" operating model doesnt encourage enough to attend and, ridiculously, seems to actively discourage plenty more from paying out their hard earned.. A great night out can still be had at the Speedway, given the exciting, raw material of the racing that is at the disposal of those who run it.... Seems crackers therefore that they keep flogging a clearly not fit for purpose plan, which ultimitely undermines their No1 key selling point which is four riders racing each other..

And even if "all you had" were holiday makers, the very fact you go out and promote EVERY MEETING as a stand alone event would mean they would come... It almost seems as if the attitude down there is "Promote this meeting as if it is our last"... And that is EXACTLY the missing opportunity for so many clubs.. You only have to see how hard all clubs promote "make or break" meetings to see the huge opportunity that exists if they did this EVERY week.. Surely they can see by the increase in crowds when "in crisis", (the majority of whom are their own 'non regulars' answering the call), that they should continue to market and promote themselves every day of the season in exactly the same way..? It truly wouldn't matter what your were "selling" in the IOW as the promotion mechanics you use would prick the interest of anyone within earshot, (and you certainly shout loud enough to make plenty hear I would suggest)... Whether in a "seaside resort" or not is truly irrelevant, as its "the locals" who will always be the "bread and butter" you budget for to cover the "basic running costs" I would imagine as they are not transient... "Motorbike dirt track racing actually takes place in many town and city centres"... That should be a "Wow Factor" alone when you think about it, and if promoted properly, should at least mean (if nothing else) some curiosity from those living around it.. A wise old coach once told me, as a young 16 year old kid who was lucky enough to play football at a decent level, to celebrate every goal you score as if it was your last, regardless of how many you have already scored that game or season, and regardless of whether you are hammering the opposition... "Because Michael, one day it actually will be your last ever goal"... And guess what, he was right!! Maybe some promotions should have that same attitude as given the run rate of tracks lost over the last decade, that last meeting may not be too far away for a fair few... More power to your respective elbows down there Barry, Chris and all your team...

I do think so much could be done so simply, and more importantly maybe, cheaply.. As I mentioned before. Literally thousands walk through town and city centres daily where Speedway tracks exist. Therefore. Now lockdown is over . Why not do a display in the local town centre at the weekend before a match? Hook up a few TV's to show highlights, car stickers, posters and pen giveaways, riders with bikes on hand, selfie opportunities etc.. (A "fanzone' if you will)... Give out a couple of free tickets to all the shops within the town centre if they put up a poster in their window for you. (Like a circus does when it comes to town). (No clown comments at the back please).. Have people handing out leaflets with money off vouchers, and not just one but several so they may return, as one visit might not make them 'a fan' but several may.. If savvy enough you will know by speaking with them who attends and those who dont so can target those who dont attend with the vouchers and just do some giveaways to those who do.. A family ticket for £20 with "as many kids as you want to bring" would get a fair few interested I would think. Families who would be considering the cinema, bowling etc might think £20 "not a bad price," for an evening out admission, before the usual food and drink costs that they will inevitably incur.. Give out say five of these vouchers in total and see if five visits means further visits down the road, as the kids take to it.. To control it you hand out one voucher at the fan zone then another voucher at the track when they attend and use the one given, and mark each one given out in turn to see how many they have had, (and also used as this would be an indicator of whether the mechanic has been successful).. Let's be honest, there may be a chance some regulars who attend end up getting in for a bargain, but most people you hand vouchers to wont have been anywhere near a Speedway track, so it's no loss to the tracks selling these tickets at a reduced price as these people dont attend now.. And councils are desperate to get people back into town and city centres so now is the perfect time to approach them for permission to do a "fanzone".. Maybe weekly, maybe fortnightly, maybe just one a month.... A Speedway club is the only one for miles given the way the Promoters set up licenses so it really should, at the very least, be recognised as in existence by the vast majority of the locals... And if you can get them to know about you, then you have at least a chance that some will go along and see what you have to offer..

The Aces have 2.5 MILLION people all living within 45 mins drive of it.. And have excellent rail, bus and motorway links.. And they also have a truly state of the art, modern arena with excellent facilities and a fantastic racing circuit... And are a 5 min drive from one of the UK"s most popular visitor destination cities.. A city which has one of the largest migrant student populations in Europe living there during term times.. With literally dozens of major chain, and budget hotels within the confines of the city centre.. A city centre that during the day (even in Covid times), will have tens of thousands of people walking through it using the many "street vendors" that frequent the area, and also congregate in various "open spaces" to eat lunch or just take time to relax.. Tens of thousands of people who will be handed leaflets by teams of people advertising various food and drink outlets with money saving vouchers... You also can break Gtr Manchester into satellite towns, areas, and another city, (Salford), with Stockport, Oldham, Rochdale, Tameside, Stretford, Wythenshawe, Sale and Altrincham, all within close proximity.. With Bolton and Wigan around 40 mins drive away, and St Helen's the same.. All major towns that could be targeted individually, as well as a huge city centre at the hub of Grt Manchester that sees weekly footfall in the very high hundreds of thousands.. The Aces seem to get around 1400 (ish), of these 2.5M people that all live in Grt Manchester, and have a total monopoly in being allowed to run the sport for around a 35 mile radius.. No other Speedway teams to follow for 2.5M people.. Just the Aces.. What are they doing to promote the sport? Given the tiny, tiny % of their potential market who attend? Not enough maybe? Or, (if they are promoting it), the wrong promotion of it possibly?