25yearfan

I've said all this before but it is still very relevant. The Louis/Godfrey vision of the 3rd Division is a novice League full of wobblers, no experienced riders and no standalone tracks which is so far from it where it needs to be in reality. Also forget about the pairs half hearted and aborted "British Junior" League. In 2021 the gap between the 3rd Division and the 2nd Division was way too big which is a major stumbling block to riders trying to make their way up the ladder unless as Barry Bishop stated they are exceptional talents that would have made it whatever system was in place. See this is where Chris Louis (like his father before him) doesn't "get it" cause he was an exceptional rider who became an 8 point 2nd tier rider after only one season. What British speedway has lacked since the 90's and it was in decline then was numerous British 1st tier and 2nd tier league journeymen, guys who wern't ever going to be World Champions but were regular, loyal servants to teams and being home grown local people took more interest in going to their nearest track. I saw this first hand from first watching at the Firs Stadium Norwich then the 1970's halcyon days at Ipswich, King's Lynn and Mildenhall. Locally based competitors is major reason why stock car racing is more popular in East Anglia than what speedway is. The 3rd Division has over its various guises since its 1994 formation been a less choppy water for new tracks to test the water, former tracks to reopen and tracks struggling in higher Leagues to run at a financially viable and competitive level. This is what disappoints me about Rob Godfreys stance on the 3rd tier cause he only reopened Scunthorpe (an area that struggled to run viable speedway in the 70's and 80's )in the 00's when it offered the beforementioned values. The likes of Birmingham and Eastbourne only kept going a few years ago because the 3rd tier was in place and offered a viable set up. Mildenhall I doubt would have ever reopened to speedway had the 3rd Division not been around. At this moment in time I suspect more than half the current teams running in the Championship struggle to be viable and would be better suited to racing at a cheaper amateur level. The 3rd tier doesn't need to be turned into a complete novice League because you already had successful junior Leagues below it in the well run Midland and Northern Junior Leagues to cater for novice riders. Experienced 3rd tier journeymen riders who won't ever make the regular step up to higher League like Luke Priest was in the past and Connor Coles is shouldn't be blocked from riding in the League if they wish to race cause they will provide better learning opportunities for newcomers racing against them than just racing against fellow novice riders and can provide good racing. Obviously there should be limits on the number of "old hands" in 3rd tier teams but wiping them out completely would be counter productive. What needs to happen is the top 2 Leagues merge into a bigger top flight at a level slightly better than the current Championship while those 2nd tier clubs that can't make it pay to drop down into a new 2nd tier that is at a level inbetween the current Championship and National League. Then 2 Junior Leagues below this level called the Northern League and the Southern League be formed organised in a similar way to what the well run Midland and Northern Leagues were.

Like his old boss Colin Pratt who passed away in the last couple of days Alan Grahame was a long term, top level, great servant to speedway in a racing career that lasted from the early 70's to the late 90's, even overcoming serious illness in the mid 80's to keep going. Probably one of the very few riders who would have rode League speedway on two valve and laydown machines which gives an indication of his longevity. I'll remember him for gaining countless numbers of points through sheer determination when it didn't seem possible. Very unfortunate way to go but Alan led a very active and successful life in his time.

Wonderful servant to the sport.

100%! My local National League track Mildenhall is almost perfectly functional and financially viable in the 3rd tier with its healthy crowds for the level they run at. I get the impression that the powers that be would rather Mildenhall stepped up into the 2nd tier but that wouldn't work out as costs would go through the roof, admission prices would have to go up but crowds probably wouldn't go up to subsidise the increases. And I doubt racing the racing would get any better cause race times would sometimes be 2 seconds quicker which would mean race times of under 50 seconds which would be a blink of an eye and make overtaking even harder! - Indeed with out the 3rd tier Mildenhall speedway would of probably finished permanently in 1992 when the track folded mid season in the 2nd Division and the track tarmaced over for stock cars. The reality is in present times most tracks in the 2nd tier don't get big enough crowds to afford to pay riders a professional wage. In fact most of them would be better of racing at 3rd tier level where the crowds would be more viable in terms of the reduced costs. Rob Godfrey has a short memory cause if there wasn't a 3rd Division when he got Scunthorpe going in 2005 its doubtful he would have even tried cause reopening Scunny in one of the two professional Leagues, a former failed speedway centre that failed to attract viable crowds in the better supported times of the 1980's would have been a massive gamble! I also suspect Godfrey is a tad bit oblivious to the struggles of other tracks in the Championship because his team is subsidised by being able to have almost unlimited access to his track which means he can put on lots of practises, amateur meetings, stock car meets and the venues available for private hire. The likes of Birmingham and Eastbourne only kept going a few years back when they had to drop down into the less expensive 3rd Division. The modern 3rd Division in its numerous guises has been one of the best innovations in British speedway ever since it was formed in 1994, in fact its something that would of helped speedway if it had been formed in the late 70's. - I suspect quite a few of the track closures from the late 70's to the early 90's may have been prevented had a 3rd Division been in place then? Apart from offering up and coming riders a constructive 6-7 person team League to race in the 3rd tier has been a viable water in which to reopen former tracks and for new venues to test the water. Also competent riders not good enough for higher Leagues but are still capable of providing good racing and passing on experience to young riders have benefited from the 3rd tier. Basically all this leads me to conclude that British speedway needs to go to 2 Leagues next season. - The top League called the British League will be an amalgamation of clubs in the current Premiership and Championship that can afford to run professional speedway at a level akin to the current 2nd tier. - This would be at most 15 of the tracks at present I suspect? The new 2nd tier to be called the National League to be a semi professional League stronger than current National League but not by a massive amount. This would contain the likes of Birmingham, Newcastle, Berwick, Kent, and maybe Scunthorpe and Redcar combined with Mildenhall, IoW, Oxford, Eastbourne, Workington and maybe a couple of reserve teams like Belle Vue Colts if they could afford to? - No foreigners except Commonwealth riders with a British League average under 5 or 6 allowed. 2 per team allowed. The successful, properly run, enthusiastic 4 person Northern junior League and the Midland Development League (rename it the Southern League to encourage Southern tracks to enter and for a equal North South split!) to continue for novice riders not yet ready for National League. Forget about the still born, half hearted Godfrey/Louis Premier junior League from this year. Allow teams representing defunct tracks to enter like Milton Keynes, Exeter, Reading cause these could possibly stir up enough interest to provide the inspiration to open new tracks at these lost centres like what happened at Scunny cause again Mr Godfrey who blocked such teams from running done exactly the same thing in 2003 and 2004 before Normanby Road opened in 2005! Things need to change thats for sure but what is certain is the National League has to continue albeit at a little bit higher level!

Increasing the gap between the National League and the two higher leagues will make it harder for riders to progress!

Needs to go to 2 senior Leagues next season! Top flight of up to 12 teams or 13 if Swindon return. The League of a similar standard to the current Championship. KO cup and 4 team tournament qualifying rounds so teams have a minimum of 13 home meetings. No set racenights or doubling up apart from lower end riders. 2 rising star British riders at reserve. 2nd Division with the rest, plus any new tracks, (Oxford, IoW, Eastbourne, Workington?) and current NL teams that wish to continue at a standard higher than the current NL. Riders who averaged 6 or above in the higher Leagues this season are ineligible unless they have no higher League place. Teams allowed 2 commonwealth riders but no non overseas foriegners allowed. Below this 2 junior four person team Leagues, North and South for clubs that wish to enter a team including teams representing defunct tracks if fans wish to run them and subsidise them at a nearby track -As in the cases of the trackless Middlesbrough junior team of the early 00's and the 3rd Division trackless Rye House team from 1999 these projects can lead to more tracks being built or reopened. Riders who averaged 6 or above in this years NL are ineligible regardless of whether they have a team place in the 2nd Division. The respective Midland development and Northern junior Leagues were functioning just fine until the BSPL in their wisdom decided to muscle in and create the Premier junior League of which we've seen ONE match all season.

Reading packed up in 2008 and for the last 15 years they ran, the speedway didn't attract very good crowds most of the time with the greyhounds subsidising it. That said I'd love speedway to return to Reading, has Smallmead been developed yet?

Lets hope Oxford return next season and as the Cheetahs AND in a sustainable League, please authorities don't push a new Oxford set up straight into the top flight to help prop it up! White City Rebels only lasted 3 seasons in front unviable crowds! Boston Barracuda Braves opened in 2000 using King's Lynn as their home base. Barracudas was the great original name of Bostons speedway team that ran in the town at New Hammond Beck Road from 1970 - 1987. The Braves nickname originated at Skegness in 1997 and 98. When speedway finally finished in 1998 they decamped to King's Lynn where they became the Norfolk Braves. In 1999 they metamophosised into the King's Lynn Braves. In an attempt to gauge interest in building a new track in Boston the same promotion with a couple of additional investors created the Boston Barracuda Braves! The most successful team to have taken another teams nickname is King's Lynn Stars who opened in 1965 after the 1964 closure of the Norwich Stars!

Absolutely!

Fair play to Ian Jordan for being very honest! The bottom line is that without the Dugard family speedway in Eastbourne would have been nothing more than a training track facility like nearby Iwade or Lydd. It probably was sustainable in the 1970's 2nd Division then the 1979 move into the top flight saw the Eagles struggle financially until dropping down in the 2nd Division again in 1985 where they had a few years of sustainability although the emergence at the time of Martin Dugard would of no doubt made any losses more bearable to the speedway mad Dugard family. Come 1990 and with Martin Dugard having flown the nest to the top flight the speedway promotion was sold to Gareth Rogers who only lasted a year. 1991 saw Eastbourne not start the season cause they wern't allowed into the newly amalgamated top flight until one of the promoted teams Wimbledon closed and moved in mid season. Top flight speedway was then staged regularly losing money until a few years ago when they made the sensible move into the 3rd tier to compete in more sustainable financial waters. Bottom line is without rich benefactors Eastbourne speedway is only going to be viable in a League like the National League or a League thats inbetween the current 3rd tier and the Championship. The time has come for speedway clubs in this Country to take a leaf out of Mildenhall speedways book and run at a level that is best for them financially and on a night/afternoon that is most ideal. - Two Leagues next season - No fixed racenights, Top flight consisting of up to 11 tracks that can still afford to run at that level. Ipswich, King's Lynn, Peterborough, Wolves, Belle Vue, Poole, Sheffield, Glasgow and Leicester are the only 9 current tracks I believe capable of being sustainable/ have enough financial clout behind them to run in the top flight. National League of a higher standard than the current NL featuring all the rest and any tracks brave enough to run a reserve team at this level. Northern and Southern Conference Leagues consisting of 4 man teams running alongside senior tracks for riders not ready for National League racing.

When a track closes down most of the tracks regulars stop going to speedway completely, a fair few may take in the odd meeting elsewhere and only a small percentage become regulars elsewhere! - I saw this in the 60's when my first track Norwich closed. - Many went to King's Lynn initially until slowly drifting away while Lynn eventually built up a large following of locals from their area rather than the Norwich area. Its looking a more than reasonable chance that speedway could return to Oxford in the near future years but I just hope that Oxford speedway reopening is not just a substitute for Swindons non return?

I believe when Plymouth reopened in the late 60's when the 2nd Division of the British League was formed the track was tarmaced and they used to put sand on top so the speedway bikes had less grip. No doubt such a top dressing just sitting on top of a hard stock car track would of made riding very inconsistent and tricky which is probably the reason why times were so slow? - Could this track surface of been the reason why speedway at Plymouth only lasted a handful of years until 1970 cause spectators grew tired of poor quality racing?

I can't believe those criticising Kerr! Hes been one of the few King's Lynn riders who can hold his head up and know that hes performed this season.

The meeting literally had the "rug pulled from underneath" it when it started raining right on at 3pm then stopped at 3.30pm which gave the promotors the idea of trying to salvage the meeting and prevent the Berwick boys incurring heavy costs by returning for the restaging. I thought the track looked tricky but rideable when Bickley and Jenkins had a spin and looked to ride easier the more they rode but they told the ref it wasn't so that was that. Not a good advert but like I said, circumstances were against the promotion.

You'd get few more in but not that many more cause I fear that the majority of lapsed fans who don't go can't be arsed with speedway full stop. A prime example of this is Mildenhall speedway. They don't want to move up to the 2nd Division even though the crowds are on a par with many in that Division cause crowd levels wouldn't increase by hardly any yet the costs would go through the roof. I'm afraid speedways a retro sport and when us 60+ age group, fans are gone their won't be many others left to make staging meetings worthwhile. In a way I feel blessed that I can still watch speedway in my retired years cause the few youngsters that attend meetings now I suspect won't have the same opportunity in their later years? - I hope I'm proven wrong!

I thought the racing was good tonight! The wider Ipswich track has been very poor for outside overtaking but tonight there was plenty! Ipswich woeful apart from King, Rowe and Starke. Crump quickly realised he shouldn't have ridden. Allen and Cook were out of form. Kemp, again the reality/ results isn't/aren't nowhere near as good as the hype. If he doesn't learnt to start mixing it more and riding harder he won't go further up the ladder.

A decent meeting I thought with quite a few overtaking manouevres, yes mainly up the inside. Peterborough look decent while Ipswich were virtually a 2 man team and very naive on their own track. Starke looks like it could be a struggle for him to get going and Kemp was backing of way too much. Cooks a class act who would have been alright at King's Lynn I suspect if they'd given him time to ride out a tricky start.

I think its been said (not sure if its documented) that in a democratic Country an organisation like the ACU can't stop a motorcycle club not affiliated to them from staging events, hence why the Mablethorpe Sand racing club has been running continually up to the pandemic for 50 years since 1970. Similarly there is still a handful of flapper greyhound tracks that are not affiliated to the main greyhound racing organisation. Like I said take this matter to a court of law and the BSPL would likely lose and British speedway is also in no position to ban a load of NDL standard riders cause the League would cease to be competitive and viable.

A similar situation used to happen years ago when ACU licensed riders raced sand track at Mablethorpe beach cause the club wasn't affiliated to the ACU. Some riders used to race under an assumed name but eventually riders stopped doing this cause it was proved that as long as proper rules, health and safety and insurance were provided then it was not illegal for the club to run outside the ACU. Essentially the BSPL is just one organisation, theirs nothing to stop a another organisation running events as long as things are done properly. Like Halifax tiger says, if 16 NL riders rode in an individual meeting on the IoW the BSPL couldn't ban them all cause there wouldn't be enough other up to standard riders about to replace them. At present you'd only need 10 NL riders get injured or quit racing and there'd be a major shortage of riders and teams would end up asking anyone with a bike to make up numbers. I'm sure if this matter went to court the BSPL wouldn't have a leg to stand on! The changes to the 3rd tier this season and the attempt to seriously hamper the existing successful Northern junior League/ Midland development Leagues really show Godfrey and Co in their true colours. - Rob Godfrey would look the part in a brown shirt!

They look like they are holding the executive box up permanantly!

OK thought I'd read somewhere that the track had been looked at and it was deemed good enough for speedway? Grandstand? - Do you mean the executive box on the 3rd or 4th bend or the actual grandstand on the home straight which was there when speedway was last staged in 1997 and hasn't got supports near the fence? I'm sure the stanchions holding up the executive box could have safety barriers covering them and wouldn't block any views of the crowd cause no spectators would be present underneath the executive box.

Still looks like a wonderful stadium! I read somewhere that the track was inspected by some speedway authority and it was said that the track passed all safety obligations which included the stanchions. They look very close to the fence so I wonder how you could make them safe enough to prevent potential serious injuries if a rider was catapaulted into them?

Yes I've heard that story about Joe Thurleys stadium mix up which was understandable cause the old Perry Bar Greyhound stadium and the Alexander stadium (now the current Perry Bar speedway track) were virtually opposite each other. The one stop shopping centre sits where the Brummies used to race until 1983. Them 2nd Division days from 1971 - 75 were great years for the Brummies as they were the powerhouse team of the Division and were very well supported. The success meant that the clamour to move up was strong but when they did in 1976 the club struggled until the 1981 - 83 Hans Nielsen years. Looking back had Joe Thurley not got his stadiums mixed up and went on to reopen the Brummies at the Alexander stadium how different would the history of Birmingham speedway of been? - Would moving into the Alexander stadium in 1971 have meant that the Brummies would have continued in League speedway every year up to present instead of closing in 1984 apart from open meetings and the 1987 to 2006 era when speedway was absent from Birmingham? - They only closed in 1983 cause of the imminent redevelopment of the old Perry Bar. Continuous racing at the Alexander would have meant that the 1984-86 Bordesley Green struggling spell would never have happened. Frustratingly Tony Mole bought the promoting rights from Tom Evitts and his partner who ran at Bordesley Green around 1987 and planned to go in at the Alexander but the owner at the time wouldn't entertain speedway returning there.

No different to all the other rising stars! Yes they were swapped around and that was cause Rowe was getting stuck in and producing the goods. Kemps had plenty of publicity but needs now to do his talking on the track. Rowes had little publicity but certainly looks the better bet.

Great to get back to the Heath for live speedway although I struggle to see how wearing masks out in a vast open space is necessary and I'm in the veteran age category shall we say! Another complaint about the draconian covid restrictions - The toilet block behind the main stand next to the pits had both the gents and ladies toilets closed with only the one disabled toilet open which meant that everyone requiring needed to use the one toilet! - Surely everyone using the one toilet is decreasing good hygiene levels? - Madness of the times we live in! As for the match, there was a few decent races in between the usual gate and go ones and the last heat decider was exciting. As for the Witches - I think the lack of an out and number 1 is going to hamper them and again they are relying on someone like Rowe has so far scoring far above his average and expectations. Crump looks decent if he gates but isn't going to get double figures regularly enough for a number 1 and Kemp needs to improve or it could be long season for him.