Sings4Speedway

My big hope is that the 3rd tier is allowed to govern itself once more. All promotions who have a team in the league get a say and all those that don't can bugger off. Let those who are affected by the decisions make the decisions and hopefully allow a fuller and more prosperous league to flourish. Yes fans clamour for higher league racing but they clamour for a team to support more and id happily wager that Eastbourne, Kent, Brum, Newcastle supporters would much rather turn out and support their NDL team (with all the balanced and exciting racing that goes with it) than no speedway at all. Dare i say it but could a breakaway league even occur? If the powers that be aren't going to get behind clubs and address the problems then perhaps the calls for more radical action are growing.

Its all a matter of what when and where development is considered to become paid entertainment. Ive always been an advocate of if you are good enough you will get a place. Currently its either young enough or willing enough. Not all but some teams are tracking riders far below the sensible and safe levels of ability that should have been developed in the amateur meetings and practice.

and if he was told it was ok only for a back track ?

Named as reserve before being booted by the BSPL. Perhaps all riders could do the parade without 1 boot on? Its sad and pathetic because they aren't brave enough to stop riders from a league meeting but still trying to throw their weight around and make a point that just doesn't need to be made.

But the almighty ruling powers don't want a stronger NDL because it rivals what they are serving up whereas the current weakened league can be run as a sideshow / aftershow proving how much "better" the higher leagues are. Its worked because for the past several seasons the NDL has been the best league in the UK, now the CL probably is......just a shame that its proving not to be sustainable in any way shape or form. It makes no difference how stable a few clubs run by the dictators are if there is no opposition there is no product. The loss of a renowned team like Eastbourne has further reaching implications, the disillusioned fans aren't going to just up and relocate to Kent or Poole every week, many sadly will drift away despite being good away supporters. The impact will be felt by the clubs left behind who will slip closer towards the same fate.

Disgusting petty action by the organisers. We are talking about a 2nd reserve berth but the chance to ride in one of the countries biggest meetings and therefore Connor was prepared to stand there and wait for a chance that may not come. To be denied by the "insert suitable expletives here" is just plain ridiculous. I believe Connor is down to ride on the Island again on Thursday and i hope he does, sticks more than 2 fingers up to the establishment and wins the meeting to boot.

Sadly once riders stop getting paid or paid on time the trust and bond between rider and club can break down very quickly. Its a good team established at Eastbourne this year but with public financial issues and internal grumblings signing riders next year could prove tricky (providing this season completes). Relying on having a viable NDL to drop back into may be a thing of the past though as it was a sustainable alternative product to the higher leagues and as such seen as a threat and dismantled.

You mean there isn't a 5 year plan? Whilst ive hated the drop in averages and especially how it was managed/imposed it would be worse if it was a 1 season wonder. Everyone who has championed it needs to reap what has been sown. Riders will be jettisoned, new blood (ready or not) will be brought in and the reduction continues. Might not be a pretty product but its what everybody wanted right?

And yet for some reason that was deemed a negative thing by the powers that be (or an alternative viable product to the higher leagues) and therefore dismantled.

There are plenty of people who i know have attended Kent to watch Greyhounds whilst the Speedway track has been in situ and had no idea that Speedway even ran from the stadium. If you can't advertise fully at your home venue to catch passing trade what genuine hope do others have (given that Kent still get reasonable attendance figures)

I agree with you that silly guarantees and points monies has to stop but you won't get anywhere insisting on "standard" engines, aside from what is deemed standard there would be a huge financial cost to riders to swap out their current redundant kit, monitoring it etc. Simply by reducing the monies a rider brings in they will naturally look at ways to reduce outgoings. Do i need to service the engine every 25 races or will 40 be ok? do i need that cam? do i need to go to that tuner for a service when this one charges half as much? I don't tell my employer how much money i need to live with all the mod cons, they give me a salary and its my responsibility to cut my cloth accordingly.

Mildenhall website says Smith signed in place of Compton but bit sad for Benji if there has been no public announcement. Greensheets don't reflect at present though so either taking it to the wire or needs to be re-draughted. If it is the case then congrats to Sam M for getting to number 1 and shame on Coles for dropping to reserve.

Certainly interesting that there is some sort of figure to use when noting the cost of staging a meeting at Newcastle. However i still believe that NDL teams could be assembled with riders earning just £10 a point. The riders are out there and are desperate to ride. On that basis £2500 to stage the meeting £500 for points monies is 300 through the gate at a tenner a head. Yes that would leave a shortfall on away points and travel funds. The shortfall for a season is likely to be a similar figure quoted as some single home meetings? Back to basics and let the sport grow from the bottom. Those riders who don't want a tenner a point can step away or try and ply their trade in the higher leagues until they all inevitably fold or drop down.

I think you are right, Brum and Newcastle look very costly meetings for the host clubs should either side not see out the season and i can see other teams ready to call off with far better forecasts than there is this weekend. Sadly Eastbourne are more representative of a successful UK speedway club and if they are facing financial difficulties and strong dependencies upon the number of people attending then it really is time to sit down and look at how the cloth can be cut accordingly for all clubs.

I am staggered that more clubs dont run chargeable practice days. They are 100% cash cow. There have been plenty of occasions where tracks have been hired and sub let in the past but it could be utilised so much more. Riders of all standards are crying out for track and happy(ish) to pay for it

Has Compton been officially replaced by Smith in the 1-7? Greensheets out of date/not released yet? Otherwise sure the Colts riding order is wrong.

Have Brum ever got 1200 through the gate?

A big problem that has been raised before is that Speedway Fans are split distinctly into two groups namely supporters of a given team and only have interest in that and supporters of the sport who have no team allegiance just enjoy the spectacle on show. I for one feel that the league format could be scrapped, needing to generate funds for away meetings off the home gate just isn't working. 600 fans trying to cover stadium rents, 2 lots of travel, 2 lots of points monies etc just isn't working and is leaving a financial hole. Organise your home meetings on the day and time that works best for your fan base and run the meeting formats that suit best. Even if thats 7 vs 7 team meetings the host club can build competitive opposition to help generate a better gate. Should teams then want to get together and run mini leagues amongst themselves should their attendances support it. But the primary role of any promotion should be to promote their own venue, its clear that there has been no sensible collaboration between clubs over the years and thats what has generated the mess so switch it back to looking after number 1. The clubs that look after their fan base best will survive and those who don't will fold but at least it gives all clubs a fighting chance.

Genuinely doesn't sound that daft does it. Paying out for away meetings basically paying 14 riders from each gate, if its a 12 rider meeting then saving is already there, then throw in that you can pick and match up the riders to create a good meeting and you don't have to pick the top stars to create good racing but still use riders that are on show every week at CL level for example. Then as stated bulk out with additional races, 2nd halves throughout the match with riders that would happily turn out and put on a good show for just a contribution towards their costs.

Looking across the leagues already this year there have been calls for higher attendances at Kings Lynn and Wolves in the Prem. At CL level Eastbourne, Kent and Leicester have made comments on crowd levels plus obviously Birmingham and Newcastle's recent pleas. Somerset has already gone, Swindon hardly sounds promising and there are plenty of question marks that could be applied to multiple clubs short term futures. The writing is on the wall and yet there are still those in charge who refuse to read it.

1000cc chairs do need the bigger circuits to produce their best but IOW, Belle Vue, Somerset have all hosted spectacular racing in the past, i think Kings Lynn has also. The 500 chairs can produce entertainment but it is a bit dialled down and don't quite have the thrill of the big chairs. That said lower power can generate closer racing, i feel that if the main solo class was downgraded to 250cc machines it would mean every rider would have to get everything out the engine and use track craft to get the wins rather than being reliant on having the best motor and the biggest b&lls which is often the case now. All of these require gradual changes over time but fastest isn't always bestest.

Im keeping my fingers crossed for the return of the 1000cc sidecars to the Island. Suits an end of season event as they trash the track surface but crikey do they serve up some brilliant entertainment.

Sadly all the above are just another list of things why Speedway at Brum is struggling. On site parking charges (never been a fan and smacks of extra profiteering), local free parking but don't get there too early and hope the meeting doesn't run too late (or even think about hanging around after for a drink/chat) and to top it off a route to the track is now covered by the congestion charge. It never rains as they say.....

Throwing more gloom on the doom but with Brum and Newcastle is precarious situations is it simply a case of who's next rather than if? There are plenty of question marks that could hang over many tracks with attendance figures and that's ignoring the threat of re-development of the venues. In 10 years time will there be 10 tracks left running and is that in any way a sustainable operating model?

Unless UK speedway changes its operating model these call to arms will become ever more frequent. I know the rent and operating costs hurt Newcastle but its likely to be a side built at the lower end of the wage scale (throw in that not all that many points are being paid out) and its still not sustainable. Many clubs are struggling to attract 400-500 paying fans but if thats what the limit is then the whole product needs to be marketed to work with those numbers and not the hope that another 300 fans might appear out of the woodwork. If UK speedway as a whole gained 300 fans combined across every track in a season it would be a miracle. I feel for Rob Grant i really do. He's taken on some bad advice, made some brave decisions (like getting involved in the first place) and faces going from hero to villain. Sadly though a bad business is a bad business and short term cash injections are clearly shown not to be working.