Nobblytriers

Have I missed something? Are we we actually going EL next year or am I reading it wrong? As for Nemo leaving, (some say he's already gone) is this true as well? Just asking

From the Lions website "“There has been a lot of talk that Leicester Speedway has signed Ryan Fisher and I can confirm that no written offer has been made from the club or indeed has a contract been signed between both parties contrary to what has been said in the media. First and foremost we have a duty to talk to our own riders about next season before thinking about changes and should we wish to make any new signing’s then the approach will be to gain permission from their club in the first instance before opening negotiations” stated the Lions Co-promoter Alan Jones."

Looking at the forecast it looks as though this meeting could be called off. If it's on, I hope the Lions can improve on their last away performances and maybe sneak a point.

For those who may have missed it, here's the link to the listen again. 6 minutes long and starts at just over 50mins into the programme. Interesting comments towards the end of the interview regarding the elite league and they also seem happy that we have a good base for a strong team next year.

What a load of cobblers!

OK, so you've made your point, again, but let me say this. Lets say that they do change the track in the close season and give you what you want, but the racing doesn't improve. What will you do then? It is not a foregone conclusion that by changing the shape of the track you will get far better racing. I've seen plenty of racing from Sweden and Poland, on big wide tracks with sweeping bends, and the racing has been mediocre and processional. Some of the stuff on Sky can be just as tedious, even on a racers track. Don't get me wrong, I'd love to see close racing with plenty of passing every week at BP but I'm not convinced it's just down to the shape of the track. We've had some good races at BP this season so it is possible with what we have now. By all means have your opinion but please don't keep going on about the state of the setup at BP on this forum. Try and look at the positive side. Get yourself back to BP and support your team. PS "all the talk about the riders dont want the track being changed is crap" How do you know this? Just asking. PPS "Of course people will moan.................because there is something to moan about." Yes, but some people will always find something to moan about no matter what is served in front of them. Whilst some can accept, others can't. Have your say, vote with your feet if you want, but there's no need to keep banging on when everyone knows it could be better and steps are being taken to make improvements.

My God!!! What do you want!!?? How many promotions would have done what DH and the team have just done? They have acknowledged that the meeting wasn't run as smoothley as it might have been and have also requested suggestions for other improvements. Over the (nearly) two seasons that The Lions have been back, improvements have been made and attempts to alter the track have taken place. This seems to imply that DH and Co DO listen to the fans and are more than willing to make further improvements. Will there ever come a time when will you will stop banging on about how poor things are at BP? Maybe you should get behind the team, both on and off track, and offer some support instead of spouting all of your negativity on this forum. Workington could be on the verge of closing, and two or three others have been mentioned as well, because of a lack of support. If you don't want speedway to go under in Leicester, may I suggest that you get yourself down to the track once in a while and shout for your team? It may not be perfect (for you), but I think they are heading in the right direction with the development, and the alternative is for it not to be there at all. What would you sooner have? I don't want to upset anyone but I get really fed up with the endless digs at Leicester speedway and the promotion. For heavens sake, give them some credit for what has been acheived so far!!

Just looks to be dull all day with no rain forecast. Good luck the Lions

Confirmed on Lions website as well, no new date as yet. Bl**dy weather!!!!!

From the Lions website:- Leicester’s Team Manager Glyn Taylor is keeping with the same pairing for Saturday’s away Premier League fixture at Workington with Magnus Karlsson continuing his partnership with Kauko Nieminen as the Lions opening pairing. With the new averages for September coming into effect for this match Jari Mäkinen and Jan Graversen change places in the team. Not sure if that's the same for Sunday Teams for Sunday Leicester: 1. Kauko Nieminen, 2. Magnus Karlsson, 3. Lasse Bjerre, 4. Linus Eklӧf, 5. Jan Graversen, 6. Jari Mäkinen and 7. Lewis Blackbird Workington: 1. Richard Lawson, 2. Tero Aarnio, 3. Rene Bach, 4. Rider replacement for Kenny Ingalls, 5. Adam Roynon, 6. Ashley Morris and 7. Carl Wilkinson

I think you're wrong! Apparently most of the riders agreed to leave the track as it was as it gave them an advantage. The fact that we're unbeaten in the league at home seems to back this up. Linus has only just joined the team so had no say in the matter. I think the same goes for Lewis. Lasse knew what it was like before he came so why come to a crap track? Nemo's been up and down of late, as has Magnuss, and this could be down to any number of things. I think I read that the track is due to be changed in November and if so, hopefully that will bring you the excellent racing you crave and stop your constant carping of how crap it all is at Leicester. I say hopefully because I do think there's more to it than just wide sweeping bends that create good racing. BTW, I'd love to see passing and re-passing in every race but that's a rare occurance at any track. We've had some good meetings at BP this season and some poor ones and the track has stayed the same shape throughout. So, what's the difference between those meetings? The riders? Bike set up? Moisture content in the shale? A willingness to win? Shale depth? I don't have the answer, but if they do alter the shape in the close season, and the racing stays the same, I'm sure you'll be back on here to slag Leicester off Robert.

Maybe, maybe not. No doubt about it, Auty was going well until ht 9 but we'll never know, though I do think we've improved as a team. Also, the track was coming good too but it appears it wasn't enough for someone on this thread who thinks that Glyn will make the track decent. Again, maybe, maybe not. I do hope so but time will tell.

Maybe it was because I thought he looked really happy. And I did say the team as well! I don't see how implies it's all about Nemo but then, if that's how you read it ...

Just as we seem to be coming together. After the win over Scunthorpe the team looked really happy, especially Nemo. We could do without this sort of thing.

I think wie-ja has a point, though I can't say I agree with the last part of his sentence I think that there's definitely been an improvement in the last couple of meetings, and this is without any change to the track shape. Maybe it's the amount of water, or the depth of shale or the type ... I don't know. Others have suggested that it's because the riders in the last two meetings have been more equally matched. Maybe so. What is interesting is what seems to be happening at Glasgow. They spent alot of money on track changes (I'm not sure when they were made - anyone know?) and despite winning the league last year, the crowds have gone. Winning on it's own is not enough. Apparently, the racing isn't very good, so I'm reading, so although they've changed the track to make the racing better, it hasn't worked. Does that mean that it's not just down to track shape and this is why DH hasn't gone down that path? If BP is shaped like Wolverhampton, how come there was a cracking meeting there just over a week ago? If it's just down to the shape then I would expect the racing at Wolves to be way below what was on TV a few nights ago and be pretty much the same as BP. I hope that things are on the up now for the Lions and for the racing at BP. We've got some good racers in the team and it's been good to watch them race in the last couple of outings. Keep going Lions.

That's what I was thinking and I asked earlier if anyone knew how the drains were constructed. I can't see it being a big job if it's as you've described but I can't find anywhere that shows you how the drainage system is put together. Can anyone shed any light on this? If that's the case then maybe BTFC's solution could still be used? Also, I've noticed some coloured markers around the bends on the infield at BP. Are these for where new drains could go ... or maybe the new white line? Is there something already planned and we've just got be patient?

Hi John, are you suggesting (or do you know) that we'll be racing against Cov next season? Would that be a one off thing or are we going Elite League next year?

As I've mentioned before, there's more to this 'sorting out the track' thing than most of us on here know. There seems to be many factors in producing a good racing track. Last nights Sky match, Wolverhampton against Poole, was very entertaining, I thought, with plenty of exciting, close racing. If I'm right, Monmore Green is very similar in shape to Leicesters track (I think the straights are a bit shorter) but that didn't stop the riders passing each other and providing some great racing. It had been under water the day before and the track staff had done alot of work to prepare the surface fit for racing. It would appear to me that grip, especially around the outside, is crucial to good racing so maybe the staff at BP should be looking at ways to increase that as a step in the right direction. That might mean a different type of shale, more water, more (or less) shale, a softer base ... I don't know. Maybe they've tried all of those things. and, like Vince above, I'm also talking nonsense! PS I did notice that they weren't using the wheel thing to grade the track at Wolves, they were using the older frame type thing. Could that make a difference?

Hi all, I found this while looking for some drawings as to how the drains are built at a speedway track. I sort of looks as though the track was laid out to the drawings from the SCB handbook but I don't know if Leicesters track goes with some of the recomended dimensions. I thought someone might be interested if they haven't seen it before. Going back to the drains, can anyone point me to a section or plan of the the construction of the drains please or maybe a very good description?

I'm going to have to stop listening to people and stop reading stuff on-line as it doesn't seem to matter where you get your information, it's always wrong. Appologies to Magnus if I caused him any embarrassment. Yes Neb, you're right. You can't please everyone. Some like it slick, some grippy, some deep, some big, some small ... and for the fans, some like passing, some just want a win, some just want to see the bikes go round and round, some like the social side and some like it all. I like the smell and it was good when there were no exhausts. No doubt I'll be down to get my fix next Saturday. The day I don't go will be the day the track comes good!

I'd like to think it will happen too and as I've said before, the racing does seem to have improved and the riders are closer this season too. There are many factors that make a track a good one for racing and passing, and therefore an entertaining one for the fans, and I hope that they all come together soon at BP.

lol, ok, maybe sheer determination was the wrong phrase to use, but even with that, passing at BP is at a minimum! Last week, Karlsson was behind Bowen the whole race and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't pass. Apparently Karlsson is one who likes the track prepared the way it is now but if it was prepared to allow passing then maybe he would have got past? As for putting the rider in front under pressure to make a mistake, a good tactic but hardly the definition of speedway.

That's something that I can't get my head around. Apparently the riders do say that the track is good (Crump gave it his blessing before it opened and Lasse rates it highly) and I think Glyn was told by them how they wanted the track prepared before the meetings. So, does that mean that most riders are happy that no one can pass them if they hit the front and that if they don't make the gate, not to worry, there's always the next race? That can't be right can it? But then what happens if they actually do want to pass? The track isn't prepared for that so it's only by luck or sheer determination that they manage it. Surley it's in everyones interest to prepare the track for passing and racing? That way, the riders who miss the gate stand a chance of making places up and we, the fans, get a chance to get excited and see some passing.

I vaguely remember The Mirror being involved but apart from that, I can't remember the press covering that many meetings, hence my comments. If that's the case then maybe we do need the national press to get on board and give us some coverage on a regular basis? It's interesting that speedway was very popular in the 40's and 50's, and it also seemed to be in the 70's when I started going, so maybe we should be looking at what made it popular then. It's sort of the same sport today as it was then, so what's happened to the crowds? Have we just become more demanding, or sophisticated, or spoilt for choice or ...? Is it any less entertaining? It's certainly quieter and doesn't smell as much as it used to. Were the stadiums OK back then but, with little or no investment or upkeep, they've now fallen into disrepair and become grubby places? I feel the promoters should be trying every trick in the book to get this sport noticed and people through the gate. Maybe they do, I don't know, but it's a bit worrying, in the case of Newport for example, that, so I read, you can have a decent (ish) crowd turning up every week and then for some reason, attendances drop off the cliff! Does anyone know what happened there?

I can't recall it being on either ITV or BBC every week during the season, and with the GP's as well, I think that's far more coverage than the sport's ever had. With regards to the press, I don't think the national papers have ever been that interested anyway, but our local paper seems to contain regular articles during the season, and over winter when news comes up. By coincidence, I'm just refitting our bathroom and on lifting the floorboards I found a 1981 copy of our local paper. In the sports section there was an article about a forthcoming visit by Ipswich and it was written by our then promoter, Martin Rogers. Maybe it's the job of the promoter, or someone in house, to provide the local paper with some copy that makes people aware of what's going on?