RobMcCaffery

I'm here. Thanks for the link. I tried the TVP3 locals but they were geo-blocked. Forgot to try TVP Sport. Daft graphics, leaving the helmet colours off.

Yes, that's the one they've been using over there for the past couple of years for these extra matches. Just wondering if the EL were using it in their tests too.

SF reports that the Leszno doctor has told Piotr Pawlicki to rest today after Friday night's battering so that he would be fit for tomorrow so it looks like there'll be another change. I wonder if this particular 6 man format is the one that the EL are trialling?

Superb! Many thanks, Pawel, an excellent story.

Certainly was. You can see the effects of sleeping in the Rye House car park then - all those ripples were me, not the knackered tape. There is some confusion since my namesake also worked in sport TV for Granada and Sky. I think he got my tax bill though. Thanks for the link - that's another one for the collection.

My family had the appalling timing of moving to the West Midlands just as Rye House developed into a rather good team (Infradex etc). This was then compounded by my starting university in Liverpool. So there I was, a teenager and relatively impoverished student supposed to be making a new start away from the south east and going to Cradley for my speedway instead. I signed up for their supporters club and started going on the away coach trips. I lasted about two months before I started sneaking south on Sundays, all of my spare cash going on fuel and admission. When there was an away match at Canterbury on the Saturday, not an uncommon event for the Rockets back then, there was no question of paying for accommodation, but there was no way having gone through the agony of losing the Rayleigh Rockets to Rye House just a few years before I was missing out on the glory days. I'd paid my 'dues'. Okay, there was a woman involved as well but could I entice her into the car? Believe me, being given a free breakfast by my first speedway hero (well, he was in 1971 and I was only 13..) was not the priority although they were my first experiences of being on the other side of the fence, before people foolishly started asking me to write and talk.

Well, of course the requirement is that the stadium owners/users encourage car sharing amongst their supporters and arrange for a bus service, presumably at their risk, from a park and ride site to the stadium. There is still as lack of clarity whether the centre green is still being considered as part of the car park. This really is a case of fact overtaking fiction.

We're lovers of speedway so will watch as much as we can out of interest and love for the sport. You should try it. Sorry, you only know hate. I enjoyed watching the meeting but didn't give a damn who won and I'm sure I'm not the only one. You really are wasting your time. Nobody gives a damn about your Mickey Mouse club over here.

Nobody cares.

More like completely - it's east of China and Korea - and due north of Japan.

Maybe they are hoping that nobody will check the facts? "Document not available" Which strengthens the argument to demolish the current stadium before building the new one. Risky, eh?

All dearly loved - okay, even Crayford Be glad I didn't refer to Sinderland. Forgot Berrington Lough and Coatbridge - how could I? At the latter I remember Brian Collins doing everything to help the Rockets - even reminding them it was green light & go. Must have had a row with the Tigers I seem to remember that every pane of glass in the end screens of Albion Rovers' main stand had been smashed.

Interesting extra trophy design, apart from the normal tin pot - based on a Polish army cap. Dudek's rehabilitation gathers pace. As for Marek, I wonder how much he had to pay nSport+ for that gig? Four hours with Daria can't come cheap.

Nice try by Janowski - trying to out his sticker in the final in red instead of the semi I think you'll find that's the Polish national team manager and ex White City Rebel Marek 'creepy' Cieslak.

Surprised at Zmarzilk and Janowski's performances. Four of the best......

Sadly not true. The site is a housing estate. See here - Stadium Drive enters the old site. https://www.google.co.uk/maps/place/Dudley+Wood+Rd,+Dudley,+West+Midlands+DY2+0DJ/@52.4753557,-2.085127,437m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x487090d3a23df6df:0x4bfae89754e4afde!8m2!3d52.4759743!4d-2.0866878

Rayleigh Barrow (both), Boston, Bradford, Canterbury, Cradley Heath, Crewe, Edinburgh (Powderhall) Ellesmere Port, Exeter, Hackney, Halifax, Hull (both) Rayleigh Leicester (Blackbird Road), Long Eaton, Milton Keynes (both), Newport, Oxford, Paisley, Reading, Rochdale, Romford, Sunderland, Wetmouth, Wembley, White City, Wimbledon. Okay - Crayford too I'm sure I've missed a few. Oh and, affordable speedway, tactical substitutes, World Finals, October BLRC at Belle Vue, test matches. And.... Rayleigh.

Thanks very much. The telling date on the website is the application date of May 26th. As you say, it's a fresh application. With your professional hat on is this normal procedure or are there procedural causes for concern? It's fascinating that it's being claimed that planning permission has been granted.

I'm glad and surprised to hear it given the nature and volume of flaws, as shown by the various council documents for which links were published here in the BSF and the queries raised in the article "Nine Years and Still a Work in Progress" published on 15.5.16 on http://www.speedwayplus.com/ Glad to hear things have moved on so rapidly after all these years! (EDIT: - I've looked up the application on the Swindon Council website and it confirms that the application was finally validated on June 21st. Those wishing to see for themselves, plus all of the back-up can see it for themselves here: http://pa1.swindon.gov.uk/publicaccess/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=summary&keyVal=O7RY9CPTHSC00 There has been quite a flurry of backup documentation dated June 27th, including the crucial amendment to stadium location and amended acoustic report. There is no indication that the overall application has been withdrawn.)

How to Win Friends and Influence People - Nicki Pedersen The Art of Zen and Motorcycle Maintenance - Chris Harris The Occasional Patriot - Tai Woffinden The Dummies Guide to Speedway - BSPA.

Naturally. If not keep going with snorkels. Goggles optional.....

Anyway, enough knocking of the car park - it served as my 'hotel' on many occasions in the late 70s. You try sleeping in a mini (car, I'm not a cross-dresser) with the only 'facilities' being a darkened, spider-infested loo block and getting a visit from the fuzz about 4 am. At least I got a free breakfast in the pit portakabin from Hugh Saunders inbetween him working on the track. As you can imagine those craters are a part of me - which probably explains a great deal.

There are times when I hear of riders wanting speedway to be more like F1 or Moto GP or Superbikes that they went off and raced in those sports rather than wreck the one they're currently in.

I think Glasgow proved that you don't need to bribe fans to watch TV meetings. When EL tracks are covered by Sky their fee appears to be considerably higher than that received by the PL which does help cushion the blow of dropping prices to £10. Without such financial assistance you can't blame Berwick and Glasgow for sticking to normal prices - and still got satisfactory or excellent crowds. Perhaps the rarity of such visits helps? This of course leaves the question - why do the PL tracks get a lower fee?

Football is a very different sport. It is stupid to compare. For starters: A runaway win, say by 6-0 in football and the neutral will thrill at the way one team has been able to play. In speedway no neutral will enjoy a 70-20 result. In football and other field sports the better the talent, the better the skill, the better the entertainment (well in theory). In speedway it's all about relative rather than absolute skills. You can have a meeting full of star names, no racing and a huge home win. You can also have a meeting of lesser-known riders with plenty of racing and a last heat decider. Which would you rather have? Broadly speaking there now seems to be two main forms of people attending speedway - those there to enjoy speedway or those who only want to see names and a win. The first group seems to be being squeezed out and that isn't healthy for the sport. Still, we live in a world where 'celebrities' rule, even if they do damn all.