steve roberts

...I've never understood it personally.

...my uncle used to one of those collecting his deck chairs passing us on the pits bend terracing so as to get on the road back to Banbury!

Got mine as well...looking forward to reading it!

...hopefully some other team may take a chance with him?

...anything about anything really?

Brilliant stuff!

Any news regarding the "Cheetahs"?

...crumbs! That's mt bath reading material out of the window!

Yes I well recall reading about Geoff Curtis (Sydney Showground). Strongly rumoured that he was to join Oxford the following season. Used to lodge in Oxford I remember. Alan Sorensen who was Geoff's protege came over in 1974 and rode in second halves at Cowley and Swindon.

...Certainly wetting my appetite!

...only a few days to go before I open my Xmas stocking and settle down and have a read of it!

Yes he was a Coventry Junior (used to wear those Honda leathers I recall) and rode for Scunthorpe during the middle seventies.

...remember watching him as a rider.

I recall a time that British riders were given a reduction in average to encourage declaring a team with a smattering of Brits?

Agree entirely.

Agree entirely especially when it comes to the middle order and/or reserve riders however I do also advocate some sort of continuity which unfortunately points limits doesn't particularly encourage by and large.

Trouble is riders are sometimes "declared" because their average fits rather than based on ability especially at the bottom end. Also the "assessed" average was/can cause issues and has in the past been open to "interpretation and/or confusion and/or manipulation" on occasions. Recall Mitch Shirra admitting that Coventry riders were under orders to throw points toward the back end of a particular season so as to lower their averages in readiness for the following season's declaration! I'm sure that this was common practice that was adopted by many teams...recall Malcom Simmons doing same so that he could drop down a league with a re-assessed average. Also middle order riders were the ones that tended to suffer when teams were declared. I well remember when one of my favourites, Jens Rasmussen, was "sacrificed" on two occasions because of his average and as we know he eventually went to Rye House which opened up a whole new can of worms!

One time Oxford Promoter Bernard Crapper had similar views I recall?

There was Rayleigh also.

Good news...good luck to them. Only visited the once and unfortunately the meeting was postponed due to rain but the track looked to be a good shape.

...I could comment but no doubt would raise the wrath of "Toady!"

...different, I know, but I recall a pensioner getting on my local bus who looked to be well off in appearance showing her bus pass to the driver who refused to accept it as it was before the time allocated (pre-9-00am). The time was 8-55am and she stood there arguing that by the time the bus got to the next stop it would be 9-00am...he gave up in the end and said "I can't be bothered arguing as I have a timetable to keep to so get on the bus." The fare at the time for a senior was 50p!

The old 13 heat formula was followed by a couple of scratch races involving juniors/assets plus four heats and a final involving those who took part in the main match so normally, although it varied from track to track, consisting of twenty heats. 4TT were run over sixteen heats. 3TT eighteen heats. Best Pairs 21 heats and Individual Meetings over 20 with run-off's if required. Test matches were run on behalf of the BSPA and were priced differently from what I remember.

15 minutes based upon fifteen heats (?) but I remember the days of Second Halves when either the "main players" took part with a smattering of assets/juniors (we had the likes of Eastbourne & Peterborough riders take part due to the promotional tie-up at Cowley/White City) and later Junior Matches plus, of course, the occasional Golden/Silver Helmet Match Race(s) thrown in plus Individual/4TT/3TT/Pairs/Test Matches which had a variety of race formulae. Meetings often had up to twenty races at times. It's often argued that many left after the main event and that was their prerogative but many stayed on to catch all the action and therefore got more for their money.

...I say to my aging mother that she and her like are a burden on society and cause tremendous financial strain despite her generation getting the country back on its feet after the Second World War. But seriously It makes me angry when some people condemn the aged and, yes, there are some who are very well off but there are many struggling with finances and life generally especially during these uncertain times.