Grand Central

Two effs ! That just shows that with the help of modern pharmaceuticals the porn stars of today can out 'perform' the boys of the past.

I think someone rather mockingly said that he looked as if he COULD have been a seventies porn star. Just the hair and moustache were the giveaway signs. Surely the Private Shops in Byker or Boldon used to stock that 'sort' of Mag. Back in the day.

What an awful thread. How strange for someone to start a thread that seems be just about making themselves look horrid, to the widest audience possible.

'Didn't bother to turn up' is nothing like the story. Berwick were well aware that the Aces were not coming that night. That was during the time when Berwick were becoming renowned for issuing rather rubberised cheques. If any at all. Home riders, including Kelvin Tatum, were none too happy and John Perrin was having none of it. This would be a very good one for Tony Mac to get his teeth into. This was the British Nordic Final in 1973. Another good one to go back to, but I think Eric covered it pretty well in the Retro Book 'Booey'

Speedway Star have clearly taken the most diplomatic of routes. A minimal, almost non-existent, preview of Tampere in this weeks Star. Always best to avoid talking about the foul smell when in company. You can never be sure who has the dog-mess on their shoe. EDIT. The Warsaw jinx strikes again. Just noticed that the cover claims that the mag contains a preview of the POLISH GP ROUND 2 ! I would have thought it was bad enough first time around ! Let's hope this is not an Omen for Tampere.

Now, now Tony. You really are being a little naughty, aren't you.? Asking for recollections of the five bullet points you mention spread over a TWENTY YEAR time frame. When ALL five occurred on April 18th simultaneously. Slap on the wrist!

The Pairs is a tournament that would be best revived in the old format of qualifying rounds and a single one off final. Perhaps just over a single week, alternating with the SWC every two years. One of my favourite meetings of all time was the 1977 World Pairs Final at Hyde Road. Wonderful night.

Sod the roof. How is the Starting Gate, The Two Minutes Clock, the referee's paranoia, Graham Brodie's Walkie Talkie, the track, Paul Bellamy's excuse-bank? And most importantly Nicki Pedersen's demeanor? P!ss wet shale is fine. It's the rest of the show, and it's potential for disaster, that will kill us. .

This really is fascinating f-s-p. And I genuinely hope you are right. That the Ratina track will be some sort of Soumi mash-up of of Hyde Road and Owlerton. After Warsaw, the huddled masses of SGP followers could do with something to lift our spirits. But I am intrigued by your (reverse) conspiracy theory From the race times you seem to have unearthed a fiendish plot that proves that the track shape is quite altered and much improved. And yet the promoters have told everyone that will listen, including the Speedway Star, that they could not do that and have not done that. Is this some unique form of Finnish public relations? .

.Er, Warsaw? Possibly. And the role played in the abandonment by those receiving payouts. In the face of paying customers who have received not a single penny of recompense. Possibly.. Cynical action on April 18, with more cyclical actions and words subsequently, demand cynical comments. It is the least we can do, in the circumstances, .

As PR moves go this is yet another corker for a company who - for some - can do no wrong. Are Ed Milliband's team now working for BSI? Can we expect their next public statement to chiseled in to a massive tablet of stone?

.No nothing sinister at all. And that is how it will be seen by all right minded people. Including those who travelled to Warsaw expecting to see the riders complete the meeting. They will be applauding this news loudly. .

What interesting timing for the 'brown envelopes' to be distributed. That should ensure that the Tampere track is regarded as having NO 'safety concerns' for the Jury to worry about. Whether the tapes work or not. I am sure Phil will be able to reassure us completely about the absolute probity of this payment. And to paraphrase Mandy Rice Davies "They would say that, wouldn't they?" .

Just for the purposes of balance. I do think the riders are to blame. We shall see in the developing future whether the resistance of others to that notion ends up solving problems. Or just creating bigger ones.

As Cilla would say'Surprise, surprise!' Sometimes it really does need an extensive enquiry. Across many countries, taking written and verbal evidence, and costing a pretty penny. Looked over by the finest minds in the land. Just to arrive at the patently, bloody obvious. Well done to all concerned. .

It did when Kirky Lane opened in 1988 and Odsal in 1986. Was there for both openers being rained off. Absolutely massive crowds turned away without seeing a race. And they didn't really come back in the same numbers later.

After suffering six weeks of 'spin' from politicians. Doesn't it all look a bit different a few days after the election. It now feels like we are in our own Speedway-time warp. Where the SGP/BSI spin is still applied to every single story. No matter how pointlessly.

.Oh for goodness sake. At least keep up with your own argument, even if you cannot follow others. It was YOU that first said you couldn't understand people who had a differing view than yourself. I was just sympathising with your - self confessed - inabilities.

aka Gelsenkirchen

Your inability to see some matters from another's perspective is unfortunate. And does not seem confined to this topic.

Indeed it is. But we still need to be reasonably confident of a full meeting being on Or the riders at least trying to get past Heat 12. After Warsaw. No one can offer me that guarantee, can they?

H&S have alerted me to the danger of responding to certain posts. The use of red type, underlining, multiple exclamation marks and italics are to me taken as warning signs. I must leave well alone and let the old dear calm down. Edited spelling

Only by snivelling, hiding behind the (false) safety issue and then keeping a public silence. Remove that, somehow, and then disciplinary action would have them sharing with Darcy on his hols.

Phil ... I think it is important to separate the two strands of your argument more completely. Strand 1 ... Ole just has not got these tracks right and no amount of wishful thinking can, necessarily, make it so. The moisture issue is the overriding one. And as so many factors relating to that will always remain out of his control he wil NEVER be able to guarentee sufficiently to avoid this being an on going problem. Strand 2 ... The riders lied. They said it was the track that was unsafe and really it was the starting gate issue that was really their problem. Bringing the strands back together. If temporary tracks in big city stadiums are to continue then the minor inadequacy of the track (as it was this time) will just have to be swallowed by the riders. Sometimes. And now we know that they will 'abuse' the safety concerns aspect; They just cannot have the power - in effect, at least - to cancel meetings themselves. .

That's the wonder of hindsight. In Cardiff 2013 and at Warsaw the first practice sessions were completely abandoned as the track was too bad. After that experience It would have been impossible to get the riders on board to go straight to racenight, proper, without seeing if Ole's overnight remedial work had actually worked. Even BSI - or PZM - could not have legitimately opened their doors on either night without the practice showing that there was a reasonable chance of success.