Rico

His birthday was 20th April - Queen's is 21st from memory. Rico

Adolf Hitler ?? Rico

If Addy can afford that lot with Travel Plus I really wanna get on her birthday gift list. April 20th my dear Rico

Great to hear Foxy has got himself a team place in Poland. I hope the Bydgoszcz faithful still give him the hero's welcome when he races in the colours of arch-rivals Torun Rico

As if I would do that to you LW. Just get yourself to Bydgoszcz. Rico

Terry, I always think it is more polite to go to a foreign country and know a little bit of the language, even it is just to say thanks, please, yes and no for example. Helpful couple of websites to give you a taster of Polish. BBC Languages - Comes with some audio on the basic phrases Single Serving - handy little website for going on tour. You even get taught how to swear like a native I found almost all of the people involved in restaurants/hotels spoke at least a little English. Apologies if I made you panic Terry ! The only time I've encountered difficulties in the past has been when booking train tickets but if I'm not sure I just make sure I've got the phrase I want written down in advance. Rough Guide does a very handy little phrasebook if you do feel inclined to try a little. Given the difficulty in pronouncing polish words correctly (from English being first language) it has phonetic pronounciation which comes in handy. Rico

Nie ma za co Terry (you best get learning your Polish !). I can't speak highly enough of Wroclaw both as a city to visit and a racetrack. The GP last year was superb. I think you've made a wise choice for your overseas debut. Rico

Keep an eye out on here and the SpeedwayWorld pages for when the tickets go on sale. Not sure when they are likely to go on sale. Rico

Fantastic posting Mr Bila Hora. I thoroughly enjoyed reading your comments, most of which I concur with, and it has whetted the appetite for what should be an exciting season in the GPs. I reckon the new format should provide a lot of excitement and the guarantee of each of the riders getting a minimum 5 races over the event night is good for fans and riders alike. I can see the last 4 heats of the 20 being a scramble to qualify for the semi-finals, with riders desperate to qualify yet already qualified opponents not turning off the gas as they know they might be throwing away a GP point if they fail in their semi-final. The semi-finals could be real harem-scarem stuff as the difference between making the final and not could be a lot of points to the riders. Edge of the seat stuff coming up I hope. As for predictions I've definitely let my heart rule my head and why not - it's a new year, perfect time to dream ! 1) Tomasz Gollob 2) Tony Rickardsson 3) Leigh Adams This I really see as Gollob's last chance saloon and he has (as has tRick) got a substantial amount of sponorship to fund his title challenge this year. I can see the above three together with Crump, AJ and NP making the vast majority of the semi-finals with the other spots being swapped around a few of the riders (Nicholls, Andersen, Hampel, B Pedersen, Hancock, Sullivan). I see a tough baptism for Lindback in the GPs and don't see him setting this particular stage alight just yet (no doubt he will in the future). Might scrape into a semi-final or two, which imho would be an achievment for one so young. Richardson I think will find the competiton a lot hotter this year with a lot less cannon fodder in the meetings and Chrzanowski will just find it too hot to handle. As you state the return to more permanent tracks SHOULD suit Gollob and hopefully he will have the equipment to match his undoubted talent. It's quality, not quantity with the narrowing of the field and I'm just praying the real cream rises to the top Rico

Queen Bee, There are allocated seats within the main grandstand, other than that it is all unreserved benches. I can't remember if it was a total free-for-all for the rest of the stadium or if you were given an entrance to go in and then sit within that area. For the open meeting I went to you could buy tickets for different entrances to the stadium (and they were priced differently) but I can't be sure about the SGP. I'll check with a man who will know though, failing that I'm sure that when tickets go on sale it will be apparent. Rico

Hey sjw, Crowd involvement - I've seen one or two I wouldn't mind getting involved with, that's for sure Lovely Polish ladies Last year we sat in the main stand and the view was great - I also went to a meeting at the end of last season and sat on the exit to the fourth bend where the view was perfectly acceptable. Given the openness of the stadium I don't think there is likely to be a bad view anywhere although I read somewhere that sitting far back in the main stand is not a great view. Assuming you mean atmosphere and just general craziness for the term 'crowd involvement' my suggestion would be on the back straight, toward the third bend. That looked pretty rocking and it's where I'm intending to head to in April. Rico

Watch out on the SGP website for details of when they go on sale. Last years tickets were available on the internet - see topic here. Rico

I'd imagine that you would be able to get tickets on the day (although obviously I can't guarantee it). First GP of the season will bring fresh hope and hopefully a bumper crowd but I'm sure the capacity of Wroclaw is close to 40,000. The stadium is technically all seated with benches forming most of the capacity but some proper seats in the main stand. Whether you use the bench / seat depends on how excitable the fans around you are. Last year we booked tickets in advance and picked them up at practice. It's probably easier doing it that way and you don't have to worry about the tickets. From memory it was a pretty easy process that the organisers set up (they took credit card payment unlike the organisers at Bydgoszcz). Rico

For the heinous crime of asking if any of his friends want to join him in a trip abroad ! HenryW I guess we must sort our trips out separately from here on in or jail it will be. Rico

Glad to hear that Rob. There was me thinking I was enjoying these cheap trips all by myself (cue song - Don't wanna be all by myself etc etc) Rico

Re tickets, you can order them in advance and pick them up on the day - that was what we did last year. The stadium is all seated (benched in the main) but whether people sit down depends on how crazy the section you are in is). I'll give you an example of a weekend I had in Wroclaw in October (for the GP last year we went to Warsaw first and spent a day there then got the train down). Flew WizzAir from Luton on Friday morning to Katowice. Train from Katowice to Wroclaw around 3 hours. Cost of train £8 single first class. Cost of flight free, only tax and charges. Hotel in Wroclaw, £40 per room per night in Mercure Panorama, stayed 2 nights. Probably about 300 yards from main square in town and easy reach of all amenities. Right next to the hotel are tram stops taking you all over the city. So total cost for the weekend was (excluding expenses) around £65 for flight and hotel, £16 for train, say £10 return for bus to Katowice from Airport - I make that £91. Beer is generally around 6zl for 500ml (£1), cigarettes, just over 6zl (£1.05), food to eat out is excellently priced and you can eat very well for under £10 a head including drinks. I was lucky with the Wizzair flights that I got being so cheap, but certainly the Ryanair flights are excellently priced and fly direct into Wroclaw, so no need for the train from Katowice. I'm booked up at the total cost of £35 return from Stansted. It'll be interesting to see what price the travel companies come up with for this trip as it really can be done so cheaply (as can most of the GPs). Rico

Given her passionate dislike for all things GP I really can't see Trees being in Wroclaw ! Rico

I'm disappointed you aren't going to Wroclaw F-S-P. Hopefully catch up with you in Cardiff or Bydgoszcz if you make it along there. As for Rye House, I'd wait to see what the track alterations are like before suggesting a visit there - racing has been poor on my visits, however there are promised changes afoot. They normally race on a Saturday night, but not sure if they will be racing on Sunday of the GP weekend. Rye House is in Hoddesdon, north of London and is accessible by train (station almost next to track) Of the tracks closest to Cardiff, Somerset would be my selection for the Friday night (if I wasn't having a night off speedway and treating myself to a night-out in Cardiff). I'd imagine Swindon will run on the Thursday night in the EL, all depends which airport you are arriving at (assuming you are flying in). Rico

Too much info Joanne I've got a pile in my house needing done, get yourself along the A404 then A4 and help ! I'd put Jeffster as our Czecho expert, perhaps along with Chris Brown and the delectable Bila Hora, however am happy to pass on my experiences of my two trips to Prague. I've replied to an e-mail from Phil off-forum and haven't saved a copy, however in response to the additional questions about taxis and websites I wouldn't worry about getting a taxi around town, the tram service is superb. Only time I have used taxi's is getting to and from the airport, websites - my good friend HenryW did the booking last year - hopefully he can fill that blank. Rico

Having shared that much with us Joanne, do tell us the full story Rico

Thanks for the links to various threads. Makes interesting reading. I'm off out to Poland on Friday with Wizzair and was glad to hear of their new funding being in place ! Hadn't particularly given it a thought previously that they might be in trouble. Rico

Just found out that AirPolonia have suspended all flights and are not selling tickets at present. Full announcement on their website. Hopefully no-one is affected by this. Rico

Whatever happened to "Get Lost with Joanne Tours 2005" ?? Bust already ?? Rico

Indeed - ball is in your court LW ! Rico

I can only again agree with HenryW's post as I shared said rooms with him. Radisson was the dogs bs that we wangled on a deal. Nice pensions right next to the stadium (where is the sarcasm smiley ??) Rico