HenryW

Maybe if you are really lucky they will pay attention and shut down coverage of the play-offs on Monday if they run beyond schedule!

But surely the top 8 is remaining reltively static because these guys are the best in World. The very best doesn't change very much from year to year, just look at the top few in the EL averages over the years.... Would you prefer that they shoved in riders that were worse than these guys just to mix things up? Maybe Tony, Jason, Leigh and Nicki could be left out next year....that would stop things from "stagnating".

Yeah, but at least Papa's "mate" came out for beers on Sunday which was more than you did.....Rico definitely won the drinking contest with you that day

lol....that'll be the ones. Someone clearly got to the tray before your photo....only seems to be 18 there! You can keep the rest of your photos to yourself, and I'll keep mine relatively private

It's a brave man that admits his own failings....Well done Papa B. I'm just glad you didn't publish the photos from Chesterfields. That photo of me and the dodgy blue drinks can stay in your private collection!

Very sorry to hear that the Pugwashes wont be able to make it this time around. Poland wont seem the same without them The spare room sounds interesting...Might be a bit more spacious than the one I currently have!

The helmet colors for FIM events are still Red, Blue, White and Yellow/Black. That would explain why you see the yellow/black in the GP and World Cup. The Green and Yellow colors are for UK competitions only.

I don't know how you survive in Denmark knowing that such a wonderful place is waiting for you at home

Yeah, obviously the Thursday.....read my post again. (what's that edited bit all about ) It is just Rico and I that will be making the Bydgoszcz pilgrimage this year. My sister and her boyfriend will be in Estonia that weekend while Tomek has shirked the trip this year for some reason (sure Rico can explain why). I've only done 2 days in the office since I got back from Wroclaw and can't wait to get back out to Poland again!!!

I'm not sure why I am bothering to post this as Rico is bound to come back with much better info, but..... Rico and myself are indeed flying out to Gdansk on the Thursday, but we are currently planning to stop over in Gdansk that night (assuming I sort out a hotel) so we could very well see you lot in the train station in Gdansk on the Friday....although that entirely depends on how good the night before was Personally I'd like to be down in Bydgoszcz for the practice to meet up with the local Net Fans again. The trains from Gdansk to Bydgoszcz are fairly regular, but I think I am safe in saying that Gdansk Glowny to Bydgoszcz Glowna is what you want. A quick check of the booking details tells me that we're flying back on the late flight on the Monday. Current thinking is that we'll stop over in Torun on the Sunday, although that has yet to be booked as well Are you on your own this year PapaB, or are there others coming with you?

I don't know what the actual laws are in Poland, but it shouldn't be a problem in the Brda as the bar is just part of the reception and foyer area, not a separate room as such....if that makes sense.

f-s-p You are very right with what you say there! I spoke to you a lot on the Saturday night, but when we met again in Oxford before the British GP you had no memory that you every met me!!! Lawrence - I'm sure some of us will still be in the Brda at that time on the Friday, or if not we will surely have moved to Chesterfields! What is it that you are going to be doing for BSI???

I, personally, really like the Pod Orlem, as is probably proved by the continual usage by Rico and myself! Chesterfields in the last few years has been great for a speedway fan. Plenty of speedway fans and "personalities" appearing there on the GP night. Whether I would consider it a great venue on any other night is probably up for debate The other slight concern this year is that the ELRC is the next day, so the rider's that are usually in there might choose a more conservative night....not everyone can be like Stoney...2001 I think it was when he partied the night away in Chesterfields, then won the PLRC the next day. Oh, and I have never seen "adult entertainment" in Chesterfields, but maybe I was just in the wrong place!

I thought you said that you wouldn't be going to Bydgoszcz this year Tommy? Did Rico manage to convince you otherwise during one of the 13 or so heats you spent outside drinking last Saturday As has already been mentioned, I will be there, and am already looking forward to catching up with everyone again!

There is actually a bar just outside the stadium, or least there was a couple of years ago. It doesn't look very appealing but it serves it's purpose as a provider of beer

But if you did this, would the 4 highest scorers after semi finals qualify for the final, or the top 2 from each semi? Would the winner of the GP be the winner of the final, or the highest point scorer? Either way it looks pretty strange. You could have a rider winning every GP but losing the series. Or, you could have a rider losing every final but winning every round, totally negating the point of having the final in the first place!

But if you did that, the losing semi finalists could end with more points than the losing finalists. Would that be fair? I don't think the problem this year is really the points distribution, it's the incredible form of Tony Rickardsson. Never before has the GP series seen such complete domination...and the knockers can't even whine and point to him getting the best gates every race Last year a rider finishing last in the semi final, as Jason did last night, would have received 11 points. Last night Jason got 12, and could have had 15...so the losing semi-finalists can actually do better out of this current system. Riders are rewarded for performing well in the qualifying heats, even if they fail in the semi final. Nothing wrong with that in my book.

Interestingly, the toilet is still better than Ryan Sullivan, Lee Richardsson and "Chazza Nofski"

That would be my reading of the situation as well. It's not just about the tuning or Tony's ability aboard the bike, it's about Tony's ability to read the track and give accurate feedback to the team he has, to ensure that the bike is set perfectly for the conditions as he wants to race them. The guy also seems to be more focussed, and has taken a step well ahead of the opposition so far this year. I think he deserves total respect for his domination in the first few GPs, not unlike that other motorcycle legend, Valentino Rossi. Motorcycle racing fans are living in a golden age for watching true greats in action, and should just sit back and enjoy it rather than complaining about the series almost being over already!!

For the "old farts" out there, here are the current standings with only heats 1-20 included (no guarantee of accuracy) : 62 Tony 51 Nicki 49 Jason 44 Leigh 43 Greg 37 Antonio 37 Hans 36 Tomasz G 34 Scott 32 Andreas 31 Bjarne 30 Jarek 30 WC 29 Ryan 23 Lee 19 Tomasz C 12 Kenneth

LMAO....you might want to edit that one! Edit: Damn...can't believe you beat me to it Subedei.

If a rider has won every singler race up to the semi, they will go home with 15 points, only 1 less than the last placed man in the final. Not exactly a massive drop there! What is the point of the Semi and Final? To ensure that the meeting builds to a climax, rather than the winner being known after heat 17, leaving the meeting to fixxle out with 3 pointless races at the end of the event, which is never a satisfactory situation. All previous efforts are not wiped clean at the semis. The highest point scorers get choice of gate, which should be a major advantage in this sport...Of course, Jason and Greg both showed that you can still get it horribly wrong when you have pick

No. Not sure where Steve came up with that figure. He possibly got a little carried away with Tony's victory and forgot that the other riders get paid as well. On current exchange rates, Tony will have received slightly more than £6,000 for winning the meeting. The actual total prize fund is US$84,500. Edit: Meant to mention that, if my memory serves me right, the prizes are paid by the FIM, so don't actually come out of BSI's takings for the day.

The scaphoid is a small bone on the thumb side of the wrist.

If you haven't already seen it, get a video of the 1984 World Cup Final from Leszno....The Danes turned tape touching into an art form in that meeting!