Catabracadabra

Plans are already being put in place to acknowledge speedway being one of the founder sports at the Plough Lane Stadium. TheDonsDen (you can join this group on Facebook) will be in attendance at the last Motorsport event (26th) at plough Lane...... Watch out in the next few days for an update.

I have an number of speedway race jackets that I am looking to part with, please see list below; Tony Rickardsson final Lap 2006 England jacket Scotland jacket GP qualifier 2012 Formula Moto Ancit New Zealand Stoke Potters Newcastle x 2 Exeter Contra team ( Czech) Glasgow Berwick Mike Coles testimonal Darkerna If any are of interest just message me or text to 07870504378 and I can provide further details

Sent a message to you yesterday with cnotach Details, Kind regards

Hi Can anyone help, have they got or know someone who has one that wants to sell, a Devon shirts Walford lions speedway race jacket? These were made and sold by Devon shirts in 1997 when speedway featured on eastenders when ricky (Troy Pratt) used this design of race jacket. I remember them being sold in the speedway star for £15 plus postage back in 1997. It even featured on the front of the five-one monthly magazine at the time. If anyone can help please message me. Thank again J

Congratulations to all involved with this, There will be people behind the scenes, it takes a lot of planning and organisation and hours for a project of this scale.it is yet another massive achievement, within this huge project. I have read the public report and this project is massive involving other sports, this will bring something special to the Gorton area and it's a bonus that the project has been heavy based round the speedway.

It hasn't been held in Tenerife for many years now, it's normally in Bournemouth. So yes a trip to there around November time could be on the cards, the Element of surprise always works, so not organised on a media forum or media platform. Word of mouth and a group of people that would go round through the season at the different tracks without the promoters knowing, collecting data and peoples views and collate it together and organise the protest outside the AGM. In fact all would be needed is one person from each track and it could be done in a matter of weeks. Anyone interested it would have to be via message first, not on public view on here. Remember the element of surprise. Please message me with just a yes. If there is enough interest then I will kick start it off. I will provide the email address from which the communication will start. This is for the fans. Not promoters.

Out of interest what happened to the "speedway fans united" group that was formed few years ago? I agree that supporters are paying there hard earned money to watch a below par inferior product. Yes die hard fans do try supporting there team, but surely there comes a point where enough is enough. These people running these speedway clubs and more so the B.S.P.A will keep watering down the product for a quick fix or the so called 3 year plan ( how many times have we heard of this and that plan). Isn't it time that the speedway fans, including the die hard fans do a "walk out" like in the polish Grand Prix. You need a group like speedway fans united to organise and ideally do this at a televised meeting to maximise exposure of how fed up the fans are, maybe a B.S.P.A run meeting. Be outside the stadium but do not pay or go in, but has to be done in numbers. The clubs plod along year on, crowds very slowly get smaller, clubs beg for sponsors and hand outs to keep going, to balance the difference in crowd levels. If you keep paying to go in and watch rubbish, all your going to keep getting is rubbish. No fans, I mean no fans at all will really give them a wake up call. One or two protest meetings would give them a wake up call Would anyone do this, for the long term good, or be worried about the club folding? I'm not so sure. Maybe we should have a speedway fans union. Speedway fans are passionate And loyal, this type of Union would be strong and powerful. Most importantly unite the voice of supporters so they are not overlooked by these people running this speedway in the uk. After all if It wasn't for the fans there would be no professional speedway league.

Out of interest what happened to the "speedway fans united" group that was formed few years ago? I agree that supporters are paying there hard earned money to watch a below par inferior product. Yes die hard fans do try supporting there team, but surely there comes a point where enough is enough. These people running these speedway clubs and more so the B.S.P.A will keep watering down the product for a quick fix or the so called 3 year plan ( how many times have we heard of this and that plan). Isn't it time that the speedway fans, including the die hard fans do a "walk out" like in the polish Grand Prix. You need a group like speedway fans united to organise and ideally do this at a televised meeting to maximise exposure of how fed up the fans are, maybe a B.S.P.A run meeting. Be outside the stadium but do not pay or go in, but has to be done in numbers. The clubs plod along year on, crowds very slowly get smaller, clubs beg for sponsors and hand outs to keep going, to balance the difference in crowd levels. If you keep paying to go in and watch rubbish, all your going to keep getting is rubbish. No fans, I mean no fans at all will really give them a wake up call. One or two protest meetings would give them a wake up call Would anyone do this, for the long term good, or be worried about the club folding? I'm not so sure. Maybe we should have a speedway fans union. Speedway fans are passionate And loyal, this type of Union would be strong and powerful. Most importantly unite the voice of supporters so they are not overlooked by these people running this speedway in the uk. After all if It wasn't for the fans there would be no professional speedway league.

Totally agree with some of these comments. But I would agree rolling at the start adds a element to the racing and causes a talking point. It's not a bad thing. Some Speedway years ago had riders rolling at the start, the racing was still good. The meeting was quick and run at a fast pace. The worst thing these days is when the ref puts the red lights on for a re start. Come on, we want the meeting completed not dragged out till midnight. It's so boring keep watching the riders coming back for a re start than watching a rider maybe make the jump or anticipate the start. It's a sport but it's also entertainment. Rolling at the start is the least of British speedway's problems.

Great news, a lot of time will have gone into to getting it this far, the east Manchester re generation project is a big project in a big city, these things take there time. It is moving in the right direction, the people who have planned, spend lots of time, effort and general hard work on this project have my full support. Looking forward to the next stage of the development. Quick decisions and quick planning are not the answer, that's got British speedway into a mess so many times, long term planning and long term developments are the answer, British speedway needs to stop thinking of a quick decision, that quick fix or a Quick stadium! If anything is done quick it will fail as quickly as it became successful.

It is certainly positive news, someone with Mr Moles experience and knowledge is invaluable , as the need for a new stadium is a MUST, he can help to try and move forward down that avenue. while others get on withthe day to day running of the current club and team. Let's hope for some concrete news about a new stadium, in the near future.

Any ideas about tonight's Swedish match on eurosport? They don't seem to be showing it, correct me if I'm wrong?

Just for the record Billy Hamill won on an upright at the Austrian at wiener Neustadt GP in 1995, yes with others on laydowns

Yes I'm sure you are correct I remember watching jan pedersen on an upright in 1997/1998, quality rider. Lovely style. Bringing uprights back in would show up the true speedway riders to the ones that just turn the throttle and go and hope for the best, half the time some of these riders are on the brink of being out of control. But then again it that what brings the fans in, the thrill of the riders racing on the edge of control, this doesn't always produce top notch racing, just a spectacle to watch. Unfortunately when it goes wrong it can be horrific to the rider and there family if lifetime injury occurs. The diamond would need to be changed to accommodate. but leading links are fine with the upright frame as leading links were brought in before the lay down engine model in back in 1992/93, I recall Ermolenko being one the first to use the leading links, by antig frames

The only thing that this Grand Prix has got good going for it is..... The start line girls, absolutely crap racing and track. Bad advert for speedway. Sell out? Someone has been spinning a yarn, on that one.

It is about time that they bring in some ruling regarding the race suits. if you look at most of the suits being used at the moment, you will be surprised as they are mostly made of nylon with very little Kevlar material, if Kevlar is included in the suits is of very thin quality. These suits come with a high price tag due to the graphic design and time taken to print onto the material, Plus the demand for them, they have become the norm. Though most wear under armour protection, this is not checked nor is it incorporated when the bikes and helmets are examined prior to a meeting. These current suits give as much protection as a set of pyjamas, slide off the bike once and the material is torn and ruined, speedway is a professional motor sport, which is highly dangerous and expensive, no matter what level you race at the risks are the same to some degree, but on the other hand speedway is a relatively cheap sport to take part in when compared to other motorcycle and motorsports, if you can't afford a decent set of leathers that give full protection then you shouldn't be doing a Motorsport, quite simple. The sooner it's brought in the better for everyone.

I totally agree with your post. British speedway meeting throughout the country need more razzmatazz yes. Far more. There is too much of 'nothing happening' if your spending hard earned money to go in to these shabby speedway stadiums the least you expect is razzmatazz fun, exciting, lively, modern and that "something happening all the time". You go to a meeting in Poland and you get all that, oh you also see the speedway, the speedway is the addition to the entertainment. 15 minutes is the racing, only 15minutes and currently most clubs drag a meeting out for 2 hours with what.... Nothing. Not really value for money.

This is great news, the Swedish league is exciting, just the polish league missing off our sports channels. Another live meeting on a main sports channel is good news, another night of speedway action

Interestingly it may well be the start of a new era, may that be good or bad for speedway. I do fear that it could be the road to the end. It certainly isn't the start. If you stand back and just look at the past 20 years, how many teams have come and gone. Some new, but many few. The losses out number the gains. These clubs and stadiums earlier mentioned and now casted in a shadow of doubt have been the main back bone for some time, at different levels. Times are changing and you look at each season one at a time, but if you seat back and compare the difference from this season to 10 year ago, or maybe 20 year ago, or even more so different, 60 year ago. The pattern is clear to see by everyone. It has always been about just surviving the coming season financial and supporter wise, no long term planned or structured way forward. These clubs have seen it all through all these good and bad times, we all Presume they will be here forever, we must not forgot speedway are just tenants at many of these stadiums, no long term security. Money talks and money gives power and the upper hand or importance over the alternative. Speedway is not very high on the agenda, and nor is it given the respect from certain people within councils, officialdom and various doors that if opened can easy the way for morden stadium. Yes to develop these mentioned stadiums would be great. They are old and run down if you compare to the modern day football stadium or modern day speedway stadium on the continent. These new modern stadiums are an asset to the town or city, they give the place pride. But could a stadium of the standard of torun's motoarena be built at Poole or Swindon or the new belle vue stadium? That's what we have to aim for as fans, to be able to seat on a clean seat under semi cover in a well lite stadium. But can we rely on the promises and ideas of some of these people in providing us with such modern stadiums? You don't have to look that long ago to realise promises and ideas have never been fulfilled for the fans of clubs where new stadiums have been on the drawing board and never delivered. That is why doubt enters into every fans mind when news about stadiums going and being developed is announced.

I quite agree Michaelcroucher. What are the speedway people doing? Nought. Nil! That's what. I posted earlier on this thread about the wimbledon supporters, what they are doing about it, they have had no meeting or function to gage interest, I feel wimbledon speedway supporters like I mentioned in the earlier post are no where near as passionate as some ( cradley heath supporters). The Wimbledon speedway supporters have no leader or supporters club actively running. It was mentioned in the local guardian paper along with stock cars, that was from talking to one of the former riders. Who actively spoke to the paper in support for the speedway, where is the supporters club? Shouldn't they be talking to the local paper, because there is no speedway promotion anymore they are long gone.

Thank you for the links. They are very useful research links to the history and statistics for Wimbledon Speedway. I sometimes use them at times, thank you. What I was trying to point out though is, there is no web site currently live on the net about the current wimbledon speedway club, which is up to date, with current news, the views of the current Speedway club, and future aims of the club. The forum link is members only, I feel that a public web site, open to the general public in the public eye is better for speedway, it doesn't have to be undercover but out in the open. Yes we can talk about the past, most of us know the historical past Wimbledon Speedway has enjoyed, but we must develop our thoughts and ideas to the future, how where, when, and if we can re establish Wimbledon speedway to appeal to the youth of today and the public interest in the South london area. It needs to be transparent and open to everyone. Thought I fully understand contracts and dealings with tenancies are of a sensitive nature and would have to be kept out of the public eye. As far as I was aware and to no surprise Wimbledon speedway plc was dissolved in November 2010. So as passionate wimbledon speedway fans, we are under the impression that Wimbledon speedway plc would be talking to Mr Taggart. Or possibly one of the former directors. If that be the case then why has the Wimbledon speedway club not held a public fans meeting? To re establish the Club in unity, in numbers, the football fans can do it, can the Speedway fans do it? I would hate to think that in 10 years time we talk about how Wimbledon speedway used to be and you talk to people individually and they say "I would of supported them", "oh yeah I remember the speedway team" or the classic " whatever happened to the speedway at wimbledon, didn't they race at plough lane?" Individual talk is great but talking in numbers and as a team/ club is 10x better. The club should be heard and not forgotten. I live in South london, I work in South london, I meet many different people in the sw17 sw19 post code of all ages, races, and backgrounds. Still to this day there is people that don't know speedway, didn't know it was reformed in 2002, some think it's still there, others don't care. I am prepared to with the help of others reform the Club, for the FANS, by the FANS, is anyone else prepared to join me? I would hate to think that someone, whoever that maybe didn't try. As fans we are presuming someone else will step in and do it for us, but will they. I simply ask the question?

After using google, all That can be found is a very much out of date web site. The official site was last up dated 2010, 4 years ago. That's not very active supporters club...... Correct me if I am wrong.

Whilst the saga of planning and purchase sell of site 37 goes on. It was mentioned that it is a uphill struggle for the speedway to be heard. I agree entirely. As it is now going on 9 years since speedway was at the site, the management and team is very much well and truly dissembled. Has anyone given any thought about trying to re organise a management team, along with supporters to actually have a wimbledon speedway group. A bit like AFC and form a group that in numbers could show there is a want for it. At the moment it is just individual supporters shouting, and airing there wishes that one day there will be a revival. Dare I say it, but it does show that if the fans are passionate enough ( cradley heath supporters), that even after years of not having a team or stadium. There is a very big fan base, though no stadium, but a lot of support, in the news. If it is out of site, it is out of mind. I have spoken to people in merton council and the local area, speedway has not even entered anyone's mind, it's that long ago and that far in people's mind. Is the wimbledon fan base that big still or are they that passionate? There has not been one mention of a fans meeting or a public meeting to rally the speedway supporters. Is there a supporters club actively running? there has to be an active supporters club and some sort management team with the long term vision of speedway returning to the borough, just like the football club. The wimbledon speedway club has to be kept in the public's mind, whether it has a track, team or neither. otherwise it is just forgotten about, which sadly I think has happened. It is not too late. But something has to be actively happening in the public eye.

Having being at the public hearing yesterday I believe it's still up in the air. Robert yuile wasn't there to say yes or no to either idea or make judgement. But just to see if, from a planners view either has merit. The big problem with the football option is the transport and infrusture within the area, no way could it accom 20,000 fans. But I'm sure the football club will find a way round that. But could they really fill a 20,000 stadium I do not think so. This saga is far from over, at the end of the day Nama have control over site 37 (Merton councils listing number for Wimbledon stadium site) it's got to be used for sporting use i think that has been made plainly obvious. It will be who pays the most for the site. Who buys it is out of the control of the council. The council are not saying yes or no to either, AFC have got the numbers (fans) behind them, it's a shame Pascal Taggart isn't being backed more by the greyhound people, the speedway people need to shout a bit louder along with the greyhounds. On behalf of the greyhounds. Once a football stadium plants itself there that is it, final! Speedway did co-exist for years with them. Even if the speedway does not ever return there, at least there will be variety in entertainment in the area with having the greyhounds. It's a great night out and it would be a crying shame that another greyhound stadium would serum to the history books. Do we really need another football stadium in London, really?