East End Fan

Old Bob of Herne Bay is quite right in pointing out many of the faults that exist in Speedway and we all get exasperated by them from time to time. But for me, the good times very much outweighs the bad times. Like Bob, I enjoy Central Park Stadium and it is the very reason why, when Arena closed, it was an easy choice to make even though it is a 45 minutes drive down the M2. Never paid £3 for a programme as he suggests though.

Do you think that promoters do not think about ways of cutting costs ? Of course they do, just like all business people. But since time began, prices have steadily risen in all things, food, materials and entertainment....just as wages have risen over the years. When I earned £5 a week it was 2 shillings to go to Speedway.. Sings wants the world to change to suit him. Well...It will not.

Glad to have the benefit of your expert knowledge. I'm sure Godden Engine Builders will appreciate your advice.

I think that most Speedways already use lots of volunteer labour already. What extra ones would make it all viable Sings ? And a volunteer who gets free entry is actually being paid whatever the cost of entry is, so the club pay one way or. another. If Sings does not consider the "Use or Lose it" philosophy to be true, he must come from another Planet. If we stopped going to Speedway, the sport would die...as it has in so many places in the past. If the "end user" does not pay the costs, then who does ? Every business is only viable so long as the income from the end user pays all the costs plus a little more for a profit margin. What other way could there possibly be ???

What a ridiculous viewpoint. If there are additional costs for ANY entertainment it has naturally got to be passed on to the public who enjoy it. All businesses are in being to earn a profit. That is what makes the World go round. Why on earth should a Speedway promoter be expected to put his hand in his pocket so that the fans can enjoy what he is paying for ? I am sure many of them actually do that...but NOT from choice, of that I am sure. If fans do not support their club, it will die and their pleasure ceases. Simple really and I am very happy to pay my share of the costs so that I can get my once a week fix of Speedway. Been like that since I was a teenager and that was a very long time ago.

I was told yesterday that Kent riders had been in action at Kings Lynn a few days ago. May not be true. Probably just a guess.

This comment from Mac101 highlighted for me how difficult this period is and has been for all the promoters up and down the country. They have all the normal considerations now added to countless Covid restrictions. And no one is giving them more money to compensate for the extra work ( and obviously extra costs too ). Yet there are some on this forum who are very critical of their own promoter or manager. Some seem so fed up that they suggest that their time following our sport is about over. Sad people. They need to consider the times we are living through.

I am pretty sure that the 8.30pm curfew...which is by miles the toughest in the whole country so far as I know, is set by the local council. I don't think there can be much doubt that this curfew is damaging and stops people who get home from work after 6 from attending. Less people equals less income. It's simple really. Does Old Bob want to lose Speedway in Kent ? Having lost my own club at Arena Essex, I don't want to lose my newly adopted club. I like my one day a week Speedway fix. I have no knowledge of the rental arrangements with Roger Cearns. ( I'd be surprised if anyone outside of the club knows either) and I don't know what it will be with the new owners. And so long as Speedway stays in place, whatever rent is paid is nothing to do with me.

Iwade Garage are the sponsors of our National League team, the Royals. NIce to learn that we have such generous people behind our team.

I was looking at some old stuff this morning and came across some news about the new Rising Star scheme. Must say, it all seems quite strange to me. How does a rider become a "Rising Star"in the first place ? Is there. a panel who decide ? And what are the benefits of being a Rising Star ? I think that every team has to have at least one Rising Star. ( or is it two ?). Can anybody explain the whole scheme to me in words of one syllable ?

If that had been the case, I am sure we would have had some sort of reports by now. Leicester sounds likely, but could it be Scunny ?

I have just heard that ALL Kent riders are booked for a team practice day at a Midlands track. Does anyone know where and when ?

I do not understand the reference to Wimbledon. Did ARC own Plough Lane ? I always thought that it was owned by the GRA ( in its more recent years anyway). Like many stadiums it stood on land that was more valuable than the income derived from sport, so it was lost. A story repeated a thousand times all over the country. I do not see Arena Racing Company buying the lease to Central Park in an effort to develop it one day. So, a great stadium saved for both Speedway and dogs. All the news items coming from Kent are positive. We hear that work is going on with the track itself and other stuff like that. Just a month to go !

Since Arena closed and I became more regular at Sittingbourne, I have noted that every meeting ( apart from a couple of odd exceptions) starts dead on at 6.30. Any delays are caused by riders falling and the like. Most weeks I am leaving the stadium car park before 8.30 and on odd occasions as early as 8,15, and that includes a fairly long interval when a lot of track grading/watering is done, always after heat 10. ( I believe that is when a result is called). So I agree with mikebv

A pal of mine is a schoolteacher and always went every year on a ski trip with the school. He tells me that all ski companies have not operated this Winter and no ski resorts have been open.

Mention of more dog racing likely with the new owners. This is in doubt as dogs are run every day except Saturday at Central Park and Speedway meetings have been run for quite some time after a dog meeting in the earlier part of the day. So where would they fit in more meetings ?

That is a very pessimistic point of view. An optimist would say that a major company with huge resources as stadium owners is beneficial. For the past 30 or more years, stadium after stadium has been lost to us because the value of the land for development was higher than any income that could be derived. It seems that this company are in the business of operating stadiums for gambling, not for development.

Only the most biased of fans ( from Eastbourne ?) could make such a stupid statement. I have NEVER seen any sort of delaying tactics by the Kent management, far from it. But it has been seen more than once by visiting team managers and riders and it is disgraceful. I am amazed that there is not some sort of official punishment for those that indulge.

Thank you Rebel. I was not aware of the new football stadium at Plough Lane. Given the good Speedway support in that area, I am surprised that no one got in there to include it. I have moved around rather like yourself. We have probably met without realising it !! Although I do not live in Kent, my journey down the M2 is not too bad and, like yourself, I will probably see my days out as a Kings fan. Must say it is very comfortable to watch, unlike Arena.

Can you enlarge please ? I have not head anything about a new stadium. Is it true ? Where is it ? A London club might suit me better than Sittingbourne so long as it has seating. I'm still a Hammer at heart..

Hello Teaboy. Have not seen you on here for a while. Been on holiday ?

Surely no Councils can go against government guidelines ? I do not know exactly what the rules will be, but there will be some, and they will be the same anywhere in the country. Stuff like distancing and face coverings, sanitisers etc plus limits on numbers, I would expect. Could include a negative test now that the test kits are free. Still 6 weeks away and a lot can happen in that time---good and bad.

Thanks for putting me right...It WAS a Midlands club. It was really quite a disgraceful move to deny the fans of a race they had paid to see.

Happy memories of Lakeside ! In spite of my love for the Hammers, the stadium was so basic that if the weather looked slightly doubtful, I stayed at home. So I was not there when the car park was flooded. Since going to Sittingbourne, every meeting that I attended was completed except for one and that was down to the curfew and the opposition deliberately delaying things ( I think it was Cradley). So bad weather has not stopped me going. The car park at Lakeside could get very muddy sometimes.

Easter Sunday comes with the news that trials will take place to see if Covid passports will work. Several big sporting events are selected for the trials including the FA Cup Final at Wembley ( so the TV news reports). But that is on May 15th with Speedway planning to open on 17th and Kents 1st meeting on 18th. Too close for comfort I think. Will see what Boris has to say on Easter Monday.