SCB

And a World with human emotion. As someone who now works on game shows I can tell you this plays a huge part in how they work! Something might not make a different but you can perceive it will or vice-versa. It's the old TS vs new TR "fair" argument again!

On of the best thing speedway has done in the last 10 years is the point scoring system. Its a shame you always get 3 for a win now as the 2 for a win, 3 for a bigger win was better. It makes 90% of heat 15's mean something.

Just need a single round, run on a weekend.

Nicholls and Harris shouldn't be anywhere near Team GB. Both washed up has been a on the international stage. Woffy, Cook, Lambert and Ellis are the only 4 id say are close to certain. Then you have to work out of those left who is likely to be a regular in years to come. I'm not really sure any of those left will be so maybe we should just go for the British Champion? The alternative is one of the Worrall or Garrity really and you'd be made to look silly in the World Cup.

I never saw Todd Mk1, only the guy who returned from a horrific injury after may years away. To think that was a "lesser" version of the man means I regret so much never seeing (or at least remembering seeing) the original. We all know he could gate but I certainly never had him down as a "gating tart" and I don't remember him being picked off that often. OK certainly not the fastest rider in the World but fast enough as I remember watching him hold off a number of great riders. I've no idea if there is a DVD available of the meeting but Oxford vs Coventry in 2006 not long after Todds second come back. Heat 15 was a phenomenal race with Scott Nicholls and Todd Wiltshire riding literally inches from each other for the whole 4 laps. No actual pass but at no time would you have wanted to call the winner. Thats what Todd was good at, a good, safe, fair race and inch perfect precision. One of my favourites, even if he wasn't flamboyant, wild or exactly Mr Excitement.

Watt as a heat leader has been tripe but Watt on a 5.4 average and down to second string would be fairly decent. What you have now is Lindgren jnr at second string and I can't see him scoring much more than 5 or 6 which Watt would have done at second string and some more. I'd not have gone near Watt when Leicester did personally but having signed him, got his average down so he's in his rightful place as a second string(BTW someone, can't think who suggested all winter Watt was a second string and shouldn't be on the heat leader list!). The issue for Leicester is basically, Hougaard aside, they don't have a heat leader. They have the odd rider who can score a few in reserve or at second string intermittently but not as heat leader. When you signed Summers I laughed as he was quite clearly not a heat leader and his 3.59 average for 2016 proves that, it's only fractionally higher than Watts!

Only Leicester could keep "strengthening" but getting weaker!

As bad as Poole track is these days it still provides good racing.

Can you buy Sheffield meetings on DVD? Sounds liek there was a few good heats in this one and I love Garrity and Lambert so want to see what the fuss is about with their heats

But we had to get it going by protecting the riders as in season 1 they weren't good enough. It was a huge thing when Garrity beat a heat leader at the end of the season for example. Season 2 they needed a little help. Now we get to where we are today but IMO should be the proper format. Then next season we'd look to promote a new #7 for each club and have a rule that the #7 has to ride at #7 like the PL (the format means the 7 always rides a reserve in all heats) and a rule that you have to have any other 2 other EDR riders in your 1-6 so that the likes of Newman, Ellis, Starke etc can't be dumped. The season after that the protected #7 would be allowed to move into the 1-5 if they performed and the season after that you once again have a protected number 7. It would basically be a constant rolling 3 year programme.

My night is ruined if I don't get all the race times that have been recorded by an old guy with a stop watch when the referee lets the tapes go up!

Tinkering? It needs scrapping. It served a purpose and you could gloss over it's failing when it protected draft riders but it is rubbish now. I should have been one season with the "new" format and EDRs stay in reserve, a season with the PL style 15 heat format but reserve stay in reserve and then a season of the PL style 15 heat format but EDRs could move into the 1-5. Allows progression, not the crap they've come up with and used.

I don't get why people feel the need to explain the rules to the mates they take along, most people don't understand the rules anyway so if they're explaining them to their mates they're getting it wrong anyway! Why the hell is a newbie filling in a programme anyway to see about guests and r/r?

Except he did not. The rules were you could use your number 8 at any time for any rider for any reason.

Which was great until some of them start dropping to reserve or even second string or that reserves go to heat leader meaning the oppositions heat leaders have an easy time of it. A very short term gain for far more longer term pain!

Yet when Coventry turned up at Swindon in 2010 without Pawlicki and suing our number 8 (rules were you could use your number 8 in place of any rider at any time) Swindon kicked off and it played a huge part in the winter of 2010/2011 and ultimately Sandhu selling Brandon. Thats caused issue now 6 years later, so a week for a bit of moaning about Swindon doing it is nothing!

If the BSPA vote to change the rules because Poole have said its a good idea the rest of the BSPA are mad. Poole would be one of the biggest winners. Pooles original 1-5 are all capable of 7 or 8 in the 1-5 and then 10 in reserve (assuming 4 rides for simplicity) while Poole original reserve are capable of the same 10 in reserve but only 2 or 3 in the 1-5. Matt making out like he cares about the kids but really he just cares about himself. Once again, the issue is NOT riders moving into the 1-5, that has always happened. Its having a format that "protects" reserves so the reserves get inflated averages

It wouldn't watch adverts either, in fact I doubt anyone would. While I accept it has to be slightly sterilised it also has to have something in it to attract fans to watch and attend.

The frustrating thing is it only takes 4 or 5 more points a meeting to turn us into a solid home team and a team that can start nicking a point away in 90% of meetings, thats all you need to make the play-offs and form then on it almost anything goes.

The "problem" is that Woryna has not had a good meeting yet not one. Good rides yes but not a good meeting but he has had poor meetings. As you can't drop either of Sarj or Bates they're safe, it's stupid to drop KK or Bomber. Jason has found some form now and is safe, that leaves Woryna and King. Who is out there on a near 8 point average to replace King? Nobody. Yet replace Woryna with a 6.5 rider it means you'll get someone in who can score 6-8 points and King would drop to second string and could score 2 or 3 more a meeting AND we'd have Bates and Sarj in reserve rather than at second string. Replacing Woryna strengthens us at heat leader, second string and reserve.

Actually I'd say it points to the massive flaw in the system. Bates is still reserve standard, isn't really as good as Woryna but because he had more easier ride he has ended up in the 1-5 before Woryna got a new average. Had Bates moved up using the PL/old format then it would have earned it but this is just because the system is crap. In fact I don't think Bates has actually riden a meeting in the 1-5 due to World Under 21s and injury!

Theres no rush. You always used the highest two draft riders averages. You can use any 2 of 3 at any time.

If they come up with a format then it should be tested in computer models to see how much it screws up averages, what biases it has etc. Something the current format fails at badly, the traditional 15 heat format is not perfect but it's certainly better. I'd suggest that you have 3 pairs as 12, 34 and 56. Each pair contains a rider from 1-3 in the averages and from 4-6 in the averages as team managers discretion. 12 12 34 34 56 56 12 34 34 56 56 12 12 56 34 12 56 34 14 16 36 32 52 54 16 54 32 32 54 16 The order of heats would need tweaking as heat 12 and 13 has two riders having two on the trot but ultimately the first 9 heats sees every rider meet every other rider once. Then the 2nd 6 would just jumble it up a bit but still ultimately have a heat leader and a second string in every heat unless a manager decided to put 1 (or more) of his pairs the "wrong" way around but what he gains in one heat he'd lose in the next. It should even out. The idea would be 18 heats, 12 12 34 34 56 56 12 34 34 56 56 12 12 56 34 12 56 34 12 12 34 34 56 56 12 34 34 56 56 12 12 56 34 12 56 34 Run through once of gates 1&3 then again off 2&4. All riders meeting all others twice and you have a consistent race partner. But it means 18 heats. Does the not paying for a 7th rider allow a bit more money to pay for 18 more points each meeting? Probably not really as the average rider will score about 5-6 points. Or you could do with the first 9 heats then have 3 heats of 13,45,26 vs 13,45,26 but the rule is the 6 as to be your #6 and #2 has to be a second string. Then you nominate the final 3 races in any order the team manager wishes. Bit of writing as it 3 heats to write in but it's more tactical. The nominated heats could even be heats 7,11 and 15 so a manager has to plan nominates ahead and really think about it!

Yet want to get rid of the fast track in response to the question why don't we just use the "traditional 15 heat format". Proof that promoters don't get "it" and don't understand averages. Then we had blowing smoke up the arse of Natalie Quirk, the apprenticeship thing, Vatcher and even a bit for Phil Morris. No, sorry, it was rubbish and we learnt absolutely nothing from it other than Simon Stead thinks we can win the World Cup because we won a semi-final at Lynn against the very best (we've won no such thing as no such things exists) and that he wants to win the British title. They all spoke well but the questions were crap and when one decent one was asked the promoter showed how he doesn't understand the current system and how to make it work. Blaming the PL for the EL race format LOL

No. It's should be a general no but then there can be individual exceptions for riders who did a lot for the clubs, are club legends or maybe had a nasty life changing injury. But the expectation from every rider should be to have to pay. Otherwise as said I'm becoming a speedway rider today, I'll retire tomorrow and turn up to meetings 6 days a week for free!