TheWellBehavedWorrall

You call it a “silly rule”, but reality calls it a “legally binding contractual obligation”. You watch a rider every time he’s interviewed, picking a gate or standing on a podium; folding his arms to ensure his sleeve sponsor is visible, grabbing his branded cap to broadcast the logo or making sure the sponsored water bottle in his hand is clearly visible because it’s in his commercial contract, then try telling Zmarzlik deserved a slap on the wrist.

That’s very decent. I remember going to the World Cup final at Poole in 2004 and I’m sure the tickets were £40-odd, so £25 for a GP is very reasonable.

On the subject of the GP, does anyone remember a 16 year-old Leon Madsen signing for Glasgow in 2005, attending a meeting at Armadale on the Friday night, then quitting and returning to Denmark before he had even made an appearance? He said the facilities at Stewart Dickson’s garage weren’t a sufficient standard which I found wild because at 16, I’d put my machine in absolutely anything.

What happened with Madsen and Holder?

How much do tickets for GPs typically cost?

Having watched that, I hope Zmarzlik loses the world title because he’s let the fans down this weekend.

That’s a disgrace of a crash. Pijper causing a similar incident with Boughen at Ashfield was forgivable, given neither are old enough to buy alcohol, but this is a GP. That’s Doyle and Lebedevs now clattered opponents. Am I the one now being naive, or do you expect better? Chris Louis was spot on; he was out of control.

Fricke’s profile picture when he’s at the tapes is interesting. You could Chinese burn his neck.

That’s a great win for Holder, especially with Madsen appearing to be slightly quicker. I’m not sure if it’s an optical illusion, but it’s almost like the riders come to a standstill coming off the second bend.

If they don’t impose it, they answer to the sponsor or sponsors who Zmarzlik’s breach was at the expense of. Imagine the liquid damages associated with breaching a contract of a sport being streamed live on Eurosport. I repeat: naive to blame the GP organisers.

Best wishes to Doyle. That looked like a sore one. Having said that, it’s a wild lunge into the corner. Lindgren is very lucky he was able to walk away.

Exactly. Any frustration aimed at the GP organisers naive. Speedway requires as many sponsors as it can get and those sponsors - Monster, for example - will have their world class Contracts department implement specific advertising requirements into the GP T&Cs, to the finest detail. For the world champion to not bother his arse, the GP organisers have to apply the rules and implement their sponsor’s terms. A wild oversight from Zmarzlik, or a tactical move to ensure a world title win on home soil.

I appreciate the frustration at Zmarzlik’s disqualification from the meeting, but these rules are set in FIM contracts which the riders adhere to; Zmarzlik has no-one to blame, but himself. I’m assuming it’s sponsor-related. Any external investment in speedway is welcome and appreciated, so riders cannot pick and choose what they wear when it comes to advertising.

The showboating above the “o” in “Soren” suggests to me this man knows what he’s talking about.

They were there during my first visit to Shielfield Park in 1998, but I had a quick check on Google and it’s been the HQ of a company called Simpsons Malt since 1963.

I swear that’s what Neil Collins looked like riding for Glasgow in 1997. As for my guess, Barry Briggs?

Yessir.

I recently finished reading The Secret Agent which is a football book and it got me thinking about speedway, given the off-season is approaching. I’m intrigued by how a club’s off-season and subsequent team building plays out, but there isn’t a great deal - if any at all - information available on the subject. Perhaps we have some members currently or previously involved in the running of a club, or perhaps just those in the know who could shed light on any of the following questions; 1. Do clubs set transfer and salary budget, or is the market fairly flat, so there are no rich clubs and no poor clubs, as such? 2. Who builds the team? The owner, the promoter or the team manager? 3. Is there a list of which club owns which riders, accessible to fans? 4. How many of each club’s starting line-up is typical made-up of loan deals? 5. What sort of fees are associated with full transfers? 6. Are clubs allowed to approach riders directly, or do they have to go through the club that owns the rider? 7. Are riders able to approach clubs to express an interest in riding for them, or again, so they require approval from the club which owns them? 8. Factoring in relocation and work permits, what sort of costs are associated with bringing a foreign rider to the UK for the first time? 9. Do clubs scout riders throughout the season and typically have shortlists? 10. Are expenses paid for riders? Transport, accommodation, etc.

Armadale?

Nigel Crabtree?

That’s what I mean; intoxicated is when you’re visibly drunk or under the influence of drugs.

I’m not playing dumb here, but did they actually turn up intoxicated? If they did, I’d ban them for life. Is that why they were selected for testing? Being intoxicated and having traces of a substance in your system are two very different physical representations, but neither should be applicable to a Speedway rider.

I literally have no idea why I typed “East” when I had already said “West”. Sorry, it’s been a long day. When referring to UK speedway, I’d call Glasgow & Edinburgh ‘North’, Newcastle and Hull ‘East’, Workington and Belle Vue ‘West’ while Exeter and Poole ‘South’.