MajorMauger

All this squit about Robert Lambert on away tracks need to be cleared up! Hes ridden quite a lot at Rye House, one of the tightest, smallest tracks in the Country and had times on a par with the PL! I'd love to see him at Buxton where I'd suggest his PL level (at least) gating skills and speed to the 1st bend would see him win most of his races with maybe only Charles Wright able to seriously challenge him! That said after this year he won't need to worry about gettign around Buxton cause he'll soon bypass the NL! I've only seen 2 other riders like him at 15, Michael Lee and David Howe! Lets hope he gets to the same level as Michael Lee without all the bulls*it and has David Howes longevity and level headedness!

Very true Speigal regarding the likes of Lanham and co. Certainly the 70's were great times at Foxhall. I'm convinced with how speedway is nowadays regarding costs, chances to race/practise and opting for (in some cases!) ready made foriegners, riders like Lanham, Howgego, Dave Gooderham and even someone as good as Shrimp Davey wouldn't of gone as far in present times than they did back then! You aren't very complimentary about Chris Shears (WHICH IS UNDERSTANDABLE IF WE'RE BEING HONEST!) but then mention Castagna as someone who had status but the much maligned Shears signed him so credit where credits due! I know you don't go much on the present day Ipswich speedway but present times are different to the 70's early 80's with so much more things to do than in the past, and less disposable cash for most people. Yes I'll agree John Berry was a great promotor even though he was a moody so and so and very aloof unless you was in his inner circle but I think if the 1970's John Berry was transported via a time machine to present times I don't think he'd do any better than what the equally aloof Chris Louis is doing!

['waco' timestamp=1370163847' post='2291767] So Lambert has signed for Kings Lynn ,,Feel sorry for Len after all he did for Robert at Rye ,,Fortunately he is not riding on monday against the Kings..The young stars are now one of the strongest teams in the league ,if not the strongest . I'm sure its quite likely had Rye house still been running NL at Hoddesdon instead of decamping to Sittingbourne then Robert Lambert would of been lining up there! Hes only just turned 15 and is still at school north of Norwich. Riding at Sittingbourne on a Monday would of meant half a day of school at least! I'm sure if he shows up well enough for King's Lynn in this years NL then he'll likely be lining up for the Rockets in next years PL!

['sidney'] Did Kevin ride in amongst, A.Hines, Squirrell, Hunt, Fines? at Foxhall i see Kevin for Scunny a very good rider i am sure Tai,s dad Rob rode that day. Yes Kevin would of been around with them guys in the late 70's, early 80's in his early days in the sprt! Then again Kevins still going strong now so would of rode against countless numbers of riders spanning 35+ years! ['Vincent Vega'] Moggo was a good rider for Ipswich 1989 and 1990. Very true but around that time you had messrs Chris Louis, Mark Loram, Dean Standing, David Norris so Moggo didn't stand out like he would have done in a poor team! In fact throughout his career Moggo was good value for the vast majority of his time!

Yeah I don't want to be harsh but if a riders been riding adult speedway races (amatuer/junior league 2nd halfs and in the case of Woods riding abroad as well) ) for 3+ years and is still not NL reserve standard then its obvious that they will probably not get any better. I suspect one or more of the bottom 3 at Kent were only brought in order to accomodate the high average Boxhall, cause the new set up Kent understandably done their team building later than the other teams so had few options and cause they were also waiting for a certain R Lambert to complete their line up and be their trump card at reserve? As for Mason, hes not the rider he was and is on the wane but can still do a 2nd string job as well as pass on his vast knowledge to the younger riders. To drop him this early into the season is harsh to say the least. To replace him with a guy whos had a stop start speedway career to date makes it even more hard to swallow for Mason, though I'd suspect Compton (whos probably using this as a stop gap/practise till his home town team Bradfords likely return next year in the PL) would probably do better? Mason apparently brought a lot of people with to the speedway so this could have been handled better. Had he been struggling after 10 meetings then Mason himself would of taken it better and held his hands up not to mention others! But of course nobody can tell the now often niave and ignorant Len "I've been in speedway since the stone age, so I know more than anyone and I'm always right" Silver anything!! (Just to say that I respect Len Silver tremendously for whats hes done in speedway and he'd know more than almost anyone about speedway but he isn't always right which has been proved many times in recent years!) (I also hope that messrs Woods and Kirby prove me and many other people wrong and go onto have tremendous speedway careers cause afterall they are British, something which is an extremely endangered species in the sport these days!)

Very harsh on Mason who although struggling deserved more time than this! The problem is having 3 guys barely up to NL standard at the bottom end of the team is too much! Whilst I agree that the NLs about bringing on young riders, Sam Woods has been riding for a long while now without ever being enough good for NL reserve standard which says it all! Kirbys been knocking around for a while now as well, another tell tale sign! Hope things work out for everyone at Kent but moves like the one on Mason will not help things, particularly the PR side of things!

Anyone who really know their Ipswich Witches will see I made a mistake regarding the Ipswich Witches career of KevinTeager! I said he was never good enough to warrant a reular place in the Witches team which was true if your talking about the British League top flight glory years of the 1970's and 1980's! But Kevin was in fact a regular member of the Witches team in the 1989 National League (2nd Division in them days!) and the 1996 Premier League when the two top Leagues merged into one big League!

Guys like Mike Lanham, Ted Howego and Nigel Flatman were far better riders than they've been given credit for. Its just they were in such a good team at the time that they quite often went under the radar somewhat! Kevin Teager was a good 2nd Division rider who was loyal to the Witches but was never quite good enough to warrant a regular place in the team. The fact he dropped down into 3rd division racing when in his late 30's/early 40's and was a good heatleader shows how good he was. Hes still riding now and doing well in veteran events which is another example of his very good riding abilities. Shrimp Davey could have pushed for a world title win but for the bad injuries and maybe not wanting it as much as he could have done which was largely due to these horrific injuries!

Its well documented that in his school holidays John Lennon used to spectate at Fleetwood speedway in the 1950's when he used to stay with a relative out that way! Fleetwood FC who are now in the football League play their games at Highbury stadium where the speedway took place. Unfortunately all trace of the speedway has gone and the stadium has been squared off! Its also quite likely that some/one or all of the Beatles may have went to Liverpool speedway when it ran in the 1940's/50's cause in them days every other person went to speedway at some time or other!

I seem to remember reports of the 2000-01 attempts by the great resurrector of defunct speedway teams/tracks Tony Mole to reopen Ellesmere Port speedway saying that the bids were turned down due to noise and parking issues! I also remember it being said by someone that they felt the Council had an alterior motive in expanding a nearby retail park over where the stadium site is?? I remain convinced that Ellesmere Port speedway could be viable in present times in either the PL or NL if ran properly! Ellesmere Port Gunners is also one of the greatest speedway team names ever!

Rochdale speedway packed up in 1971 because it never got crowds of ay note! Trouble was the set up was basically Belle Vue running at aother track, it had hardly any identity of its own! Ellesmere Port was opened for speedway in 1972 by that great great promoter (Someone who did actually promote!) Ian Thomas. With it being not a million miles from Rochdale/ Belle Vue they always had a fair few links with them tracks and quite often second half riders from Belle Vue who were ready for National League racing went there. Riders like Chris Morton, Paul Tyrer, Graham Drury with strong Bele Vue links rode for the Gunners! If speedway came back to Ellesmere Port then PL or NL would be the most likely Leagues the Gunners would comeback in and again it'd be likely any promising riders in the North West could end up riding for them! Would love to see Ellesmere Port back cause I think if an properly PL and NL speedway could be viable there. Yes it closed two times in 82 and 85 because the crowds wern't great but then again Scunthorpe never had decent crowds in them days and look how successful they've been since coming back in 2005!

When Tony Mole tryed at EP in the early 00's he even went as far as having public meetings which were well attended and there was obvious much local support for the speedway to comeback, much more support than a few voices against it. The Council turned it down on noise grounds and the problems of parking which were both cop outs and aparently they had ideas of the nearby shopping centres and retail park spreading out and eventually swallowing up the stadium! Nowadays with the new silencers bikes are much quieter and with money beign spent on the stadium surely this means it will be around for a while yet and 25 nights a year of rental from a speedway stadium plus bar and refreshment taking would ensure the venue is more finanically viable and wouldn't be a noise problem such is the short time that speedway races take place spread over a 3 hour period? As for the nowadays very plush Boldon stadium, Sunderland, this would still make a very good venue for speedway and I know a few persons have looked into reintroducing speedway to the stadium since it was last staged there in 1974. Aparently the last person(s) interested just a few years back was told by the stadium owners that they'd like speedway there but they'd also like a 6 figure per annum rental fee for the pleasure! I also know that the Newcastle Diamonds promotion would be dead set against speedway returning to the venue because they reckon they would lose some of their crowd but I'm not sure how many peple from the Sunderland area go to Newcastle anyway? Probably like Norwich based fans who go to King's Lynn - not that many I suspect! While both Ellesmere Port and Sunderland stadiums are still standing theres always the chance that something might happen and whilst that chance is slight it is possible cause it does happen from time to time!

I see that Ellesmere Port stadium the former home of Ellesmere Port Gunners speedway team from 1972-1982 and 1985 has had a 6 figure sum spent on it and reopened for greyhound racing this month! With this sort of money spent on it surely they'd want to see the venue used as much as possible so could speedway returning be a possibility? Greyhounds can't run 7 days a week so surely one day a week could be set aside for speedway? I know Tony Mole had 2 PA's for PL speedway turned down in the early 00's but in the last couple of years a former Ellesmere Port speedway fan started a petition in support of reintroducing speedway to the venue and the Council said if they had enough names on it they'd seriously consider a speedway reopening bid! Worth a go, cause if a decent sized track couldbe built inside the greyhound track then someone with the finances could build a track and run the Gunners team in the NL with possibly PL being possible in the longer term if the venture was successfull?

Is anyone really surprised given (no!) stadiaUKs track record? Criminal really the amount of Bulls*it they have sprouted on the proposed new stadium over the last 5 years! Even more criminal is now 4 and half years after Smallmead was demolished not long after the end of the 2008 season, Reading Racers last season in the sport, the site just sits there doing nothing other than the old car park being used when Reading FC are playing at home nearby! All that stadium needed was a brand new main stand and it could of been one of the better speedway and greyhound stadiums in the Country!

Just been on the excellent www.speedwayplus.co.uk site and a guy on their claims that persons are trying to get speedway back at Craven Park Hull, the home of Hull speedway from 1995-2005! I thought that the Rugby club there had revamped the infield erasing all memories/physical evidence of the speedway track and new stand(s) were (are?) being built over where the speedway bends were which would square off the stadium and eliminate the possibility of speedway returning?? I think if ran properly speedway in Hull could be viable even with nearby Scunthorpe now fully established back in speedway, indeed the two clubs could enjoy a great rivalry at Premier League level! Be interesting to know if theres any truth in what the guy said!!?

Like I said before, Mildenhall speedway is the best racing in East Anglia regardless of the fact they are in the 3rd Division!

Cambridge is Mildenhall Fen Tigers speedway territory! Mildenhalls the nearest track to Cambridge and I know a fair sprinkling of Mildenhalls impressive crowd figures are from that neck of the woods! Mildenhalls also the best racing in the East Anglian area and also the cheapest!

The British speedways dying theme has ongoing since the early 80's yet here we still are with many new tracks having opened since then, others trying to reopen and most tracks that have closed in that time have only done so cause of other reasons than poor crowds, losing money etc! Indeed in my early years watching the sport in the 50's the sport very nearly died and it was only the mid 60's onwards that it recovered! We all know theres problems but speedway can still hold its own with most other sports and while I think it may have to sink lower in order to get better things aren't as terminal as we're led to believe. End of the day if all sports in this Country were required to be proftable in order to keep going we wouldn't have hardly any sport at all! The obvious problem is the cost which puts of potential riders, supporters, promotors and sponsors. I've always maintained one of the biggest mistakes ever in speedway was the move from 2valve to 4 valve engines becauses the costs exploded and the racing has got worse with it! Another problem is we have too much speedway in this Country so we all get saturated with it and sick of it. Speedways a summer sport so should only take place from April to September. Its no coincidence that crowds in Poland and Sweden are much higher than ours and they on average have just over half the meetings we do. My local NL team Mildenhall are another example of how having less meetings can result in bigger crowds cause supporters can't pick amd choose and stay hunger to go to speedway. On the other hand my local PL team Ipswich have definately suffered from having too many home meetings which dilutes the crowds. In the latter EL seasons at Ipswich many supporters wanted regular weekly action so welcomed the PL move. When it happened and more home meetings were staged many found it too saturated and subsequently many Ipswich fans pick and choose their meetings!

Considering the cold weather and as per usual for an afternoon Foxhall meeting slick track the meeting wasn't bad. I suspect with a grippy track the meeting would have been more than good! Crowd although big by normal standards, wasn't that big for a Good Friday, another 1000 would of been tempted out in normal weather conditions! The Witches made hard work of beating a Rye House team that probably won't be challenging at the top of the table! Barker done his job and will do better in evening meetings when he can build up more speed on grippier surfaces! Makinen - Very poor and only justified my huge doubts hen I heard the Withes had signed him. Looks very awkward on a bike and its hard to see where it will get much better for him! Tungate - Inconsistant as usual. Hopefully EL outings for Poole will bring out more consistancy in him! Risager - Again disapointing. Has always had potential and has nearly always not shown it in results. Needs to get better if Witches are to seriously challenge! Lanham - Slow start understandably after doing next to nothing all winter but got better and paid 11 was a decent return. Not a fans favourite but is more likely to deliver decent end product then other team members! Ellis - 3 points so got his average and done his job. Looks like hes got much potential to get better! Heeps - A winters riding in Aussie paid dividendsfor him. His high score won the match for Ipswich! Must get better if they are to challenge but its early days as yet! Plymouth on Thursday will be harder I suspect!

Freddie Williams was one of the biggest names in the early 50's, one of Britains greatest courtesy of his world titles! R.I.P!

The introduction of 4 valve engines! Previously riders would have one-two engine rebuild PER season, now its after every 4-6 meetings. Costs went through the roof for riders and promotors, the quality of racing overall went down (if you don't believe me watch a series of 2 valve races and then watch some 4 valve races), new riders found it harder to get into the sport and rider skill became less of a neccessity! The formula 2 speedway idea instigated by ex rider Pete Seaton is basically what speedway with 2 valvers was like!

I thought that when a PL reserve rider was unavailable for whatever reason then a guest from the NL was used? I saw this happen last season many times! Personnally PL teams should be made to include 2 British riders at reserve and a minimum of 3 Brits per team. I know theres many riders in the NL who won't go any further but these riders are still better than promoting a 2nd half nowhere near good enough to get into the team. At Mildenhall where most of my NL spectating is at, the Fen Tigers have a rider who fits into this category Dan Halsey. Dans still a decent entertaining rider and theres no one in the 2nd halfs whos anywhere near his standard or even good enough to get a reserve postion. Dean Felton the regular contributor to this forum is another who falls into this category but I'm sure hes provided much entertainment and passed on a lot of knowledge top younger riders who've used it to their advantage! Please remember that any rider who shows promise in 2nd halfs and/or the junior Leagues will get a chance in a NL team sooner rather than later!

['Ray Stadia') I know you can never be complacent, but the stadium is in the middle of heath and woodland, so it is unlikely that it would be considered viable for building houses........one hopes! People in Ipswich used to say the same thing about the old Ipswich airport - now buried under large swathes of housing estates! Foxhall stadium has been long rumoured to be in the sights of housing developers and I believe it nearly happened in the late 80's! The stadiums an East Anglian institution that provided thousands of people with great times so should be protected!

This has been on the cards for quite a while now! The previous owners Ipswich speedway Ltd who were nothing to do with the current speedway promotion or any other previous speedway promotion are the virtually same lot (passed down through family) who owned the stadium when it was built in the early 50's. Spedeworth are obviously pro motorsports, has spent money on the facilities, need speedway at the stadium to make it viable and the stadium now seems out of the hands of younger members of families who might be swayed by a life changing huge payday! Happy days!

Why is this the end of the line for Exeter speedway? While the fund set up by the late Colin Hill was intended to help with the resurection of the club, the money being put into Plymouth speedway will only probably be a % of the funds, not a huge amount given its only a part share of Plymouth speedway and if Plymouth is run properly then its proven to be a place which can attract big profitable crowds which would mean the trust fund would benefit. Plymouth speedway have only got a 2 year lease on the site and the owners want to sell the land of for development, so Plymouths long term future is certainly up in the air, let alone a currently defunct club! Whats to say in two years time Plymouth gets turfed out of their current home, then cannot find another location in Plymouth yet manage to find a site in Exeter? Then Plymouth Devils speedway would reform (Doctor Who changing into a new actor style) into Exeter Falcons speedway! Plymouths loss would be Exeters gain but speedway in the area would still retain a track! Saying that this is the end of the line for Exeter speedway is like saying that this is the end of the hopes to reopen speedway in Cornwall cause one the of the prospective Cornwall promotors (the guy Taylor I believe his name is) is involved with the new Plymouth promotion. For the record this Mr Taylor guy has already said that his involvement at Plymouth speedway won't have any detrimental effect on the Cornish plans which by all accounts are well advanced! While the trust fund set up by Exeter legend Colin Hill is obviously the main player in the (I hope) ongoing efforts to find a new site a for a speedway track in the Exeter area for the Falcons to fly again in the eyes of the BSPA, whats stopping someone/ others doing a Mike Bowden and finding a site for speedway in Exeter on their own? I'm sure the fund trustee holders would gladly forgoe any BSPA rights agreement they have if a site is found by others. Indeed if the potential parties had any sense then they would work together to make it happen? If a new site for speedway is found in Exeter then I'm sure they'd be someone (probably more than one person) prepared to bankroll the costs of building the facility, be it the the trust fund or not! Having been to speedway at Plymouth, Exeter and St Austell over the years, I know what a speedway hotbed the area is and I think the area could sustain all 3 teams running at the same time if they were run properly!