False dawn

I'm a neutral. Two teams separated by 8 points after 9 races with 6 to go. You can't declare a result in any circumstances. A result in the list of 24-32 is laughable, undefendable and frankly, a source of some embarrassment. And if you want to talk about value for money for the paying public I don't know where anyone can start with any credibility. And to top it all? A 4 point win. Come on, you're having a laugh.

Round 2 of the championship is at Somerset, this Friday 7.30 p.m. Entrance is just £10 I'm biased. I even changed my holiday plans to go to this one. However, I did speak to a fan who went to the Leicester round who knew nothing about sidecars. Her words, "That was the best £10 I've spent on entrance fees for a long time". Somerset has long been known as a venue for sidecar meetings. Racing is exciting, there is plenty of overtaking and for you petrol heads, the sound of those 1000 cc engines is unforgettable. For the regular Somerset speedway fans. You've got a whole week off from your normal Friday night fix. Risk a tenner and come and see something a bit different.

The key questions are... 1. Was the track safe at 2.00 p.m.? [Lots of folk around me thought so. In fact they were looking forward to Bomber giving large out in the dirt] 2. If yes, who brought about the track rebuild? [Lots of folk around me saw the riders healing the track and assume it was them that ruled the day] 3. If it wasn't the ref, why didn't he exert his authority? [believable? Well lots of folks around me thought so] 4. Did anyone look at the forecast? [No] 5. Are Leicester a little bit regretful about what happened given that they might have won heat 15 and maybe the meeting overall? [Lots of home fans went home flat, disgruntled and soaking wet] I'm just a homeless Coventry fan. I don't have any rights here. But I did talk to other fans, Leicester fans and they were asking all of the above. It's them you need to be careful of. A few hundred fans either way can make or break a speedway business in this country just now. We went from a track that would have been a bit heavy to over an hour later, a track that was bereft of shale. There was a dry line after heat 1.

I think we got at cross purposes. The track at 2.00 looked adequate. No more, just adequate. If there had been plenty of time, weather forecast wise and no one cared about the fans, spending an hour on further preparation might have been justified. Rain, heavy rain, was forecast sometime during the afternoon. The track the rider's raced on was as good as it could be. To get within a half a second of the track record proves that. Assuming you want to see that sort of track? The issue with heat 15 is that if the promotion / ref had told the riders to get on with it at 2.00, the rain would not have been an issue. My argument is with the riders in the first instance. The track was heavy at 1.45, but not unsafe. It was well prepared, even and would have dried out with a few races. The riders thought otherwise and the rest is history. An extra bit of grading is okay. Take the top 3 inches off the track, starting ten minutes before the advertised start time is not acceptable unless the track is sodden. Which is wasn't. The track staff did a great job. Just twice, unfortunately.

Now you've got me on a roll..... I remember Soldier Boy at Leicester. I remember the trumpet player from Ipswich. I remember the Tetley's at Halifax. I remember the big dipper overlooking the track at Hyde Road. I remember 90,000 people at Wembley when the most gifted speedway rider ever won the World Final. [yes you can disagree]. I remember Ole Olsen's helmet colour coming off and jamming his rear wheel at White City. I remember Bruce Penhall at White City..... (maybe I shouldn't finish that one?). I remember Nigel Boocock offering the no.1 race jacket to Ole Olsen. I remember Ole turning it down. I remember Alan Molyneux scoring at least 2 points a meeting more because he rode with Ole Olsen. I remember Les Owen's multiple waves following a race win. I remember Les Owen. I remember Peter Collins at Brandon on his new 4 valve Weslake. I remember Ole Olsen beating him on his 2 valve Jawa. I remember Sam Ermolenko and Simon Wigg on their laydowns at Hull when they were banned in Britain. I remember Telford (many times). Bring that one back. I remember going to Coatbridge for a challenge match in a car for over 6 hours, with 4 other guys. Arriving 30 seconds before heat 1 and then getting thrashed 50-28 (or there abounces). Circa 1973. I remember Danny King at Cardiff. Jason Garrity's 100% exclusion record in the GPs (so far). I remember Tony Rickardsson's wall of death at Cardiff. I remember Tony Rickardsson riding most of a GP at Hackney with a broken collar bone to secure a podium place for the overall championship. I remember Britain (England?) and Sweden, at Wembley, ending on a 39 point draw in the Daily Mirror World Team thingy at Wembley (okay so the memory is a bit sketchy). But I do remember Anders Michanek fetching off Peter Collins, after the meeting ended 39-39, in a run off and getting excluded giving us the win. We raced home and saw the TV coverage (replay). I remember Barry Brigg's analysis. I remember meeting Barry Briggs and Anders Michanek at the European Championship in Regensburg, 1973. Anders had won the meeting.

I remember Exeter...... Bob Kilby and Nigel Boocock giving it large and up high on the banked corners. I remember going there in 1971 (I think). We just happened to be on holiday in Devon when the Bees were there, so we went, as new fans of the sport. And we came away with a 40-38 win. Happiness or what? And then, much later, as a sidecar passenger, I was privileged to race there in the year before it closed. A thrill indeed, let me tell you. A fast track, of course. But to race in those famous tyre tracks was special. Sometimes you add together your life experiences and realise you have been given something special. The people watching you get ready to race in the pits from their bedroom windows was kind of interesting too!

Big mystery. He didn't look interested in his first ride which I put down to the conditions. Not a happy conclusion but kind of acceptable. Then he surprised me in his second ride. And then nothing. I saw him several times early season and he was impressive. What's happened?

Were you there? We waited for over an hour, with impeding rain, to go from a difficult track to a first class surface. I'm interested if you think that's justified? Especially considering heat 15 and the eventual result??? An interesting comment over the tannoy (spelling?) at about 14.00, "If you'd seen the track two hours ago, you wouldn't have thought there would be a meeting today. Well when we arrived 20 minutes before that, nothing was happening on track. So what had been done in those 2 hours? Either they had fixed the problems and had stopped work or what happened next was the truth i.e. the riders dictated what needed to be done, which could have been done two hours before. Sorry Leicester. You made mistakes which could have been avoided without a crystal ball. You prepared a tack that riders refused to ride on and then used up a significant chunk of the time before the rain came such that heat 15 cost you a chance of winning the meeting.

Unless you poke holes in the baffles. I'll get my coat.

Hey, I like the idea of a second (or even third) GP in England (that includes Scotland [just kidding]). But if F1 can have a European Grand Prix in Azerbaijan, why can't we have a US Speedway Grand Prix in Scunthorpe?

As a neutral... The track at 1.45 p.m. was rideable. As a former competitor and a fan of nearly 50 years I reckon I can judge what's safe. And trust me, there were many fans that felt the same. The sight of riders digging their heels into the surface only means one thing in my experience and that's trouble. The ref and the clerk walked the track and then gave in. Timid in the extreme. But hey, we all had plenty of time. Well no, the forecast was bad and rain was due anytime. In fact it was already spotting. Still we waited and a brand new surface was prepared. Well done track staff. Still the riders insisted on another inspection. If a refund had been available, a significant percentage of the crowd would have already gone home. But hey, we finally got on with this meeting. And what a meeting. Not too much overtaking, but a tight contest. A dry line after one race but hey, we needed the track rebuild didn't we. I was expecting a blue line and one Lions fan voiced (loudly) we might expect track watering. But all is well. Well nearly. Heat 15 decided the result and I'm sorry, but your earlier decisions, Leicester, came home to roust. The late downpour, after heat 14, meant that the probably draw, or even a home win didn't happen. The sight of Danny King at the back, pulling off his goggles in lap 3 dismayed me in the extreme. I wanted Leicester to win, but do what we do as fans. Look at the weather forecast, tell your riders to get on with it and stand your ground. You had the capacity to win this meeting but you went home empty handed. P.S. Heat 3 was 0.50 off the track record

I love it. Anyone could be World Champion. Freddie looked an early prospect (as good as ever there has been) and could easily come back from his "injury". But a track advantage or the odd crash could change the course of the championship. That aside, and I for one want to see a worthy champion, whoever wins this year will surely deserve the crown. The GP system is a marketing device. It's designed for television. But as one who comes from the one off final days, when there was no TV, I might be expected to take a different view. Well no, World Class Speedway is as high profile as it as ever has been. I know British Speedway is in the doldrums, but we are wrong to resent the profile of the top riders. It's not their fault they can earn more money elsewhere. We still have a great 3 tier league system in this country. Get your heads in gear. Do you want to see the best riders in the World or is it that you want to see good racing? At the moment, you can't have both. I want us to produce riders that can compete on the World stage. You don't do that by paying riders beyond your means, you do it by investing all you can in our youth. I don't know what it's like today, but when I was in the system, riders were competing in the Conference League for £5 a point and half their travel money. And there were lads (and girls please) that would ride their heart's out for that. We have an infrastructure to bring youngsters through to professional rating. The goods one will go on. To make it happen, we need your help.

Up to our ears in c**p with builders making our lives "fun" at the moment. Very sorry not to there to support our friends tonight. Given that we are in Rugby, it's nuts that we will be at the next round at Somerset (certain). Can someone post the results from Leicester please? We would like to know the whole line up if possible please. We do care, and would love have been there tonight.

Form can disappear. Class does not.

Speedway rule: The worse it looks, the more likely everyone walks away. No joke intended. The opposite is so often the truth. So glad to see everyone walk away. Somewhat beaten up no doubt.

Lol. Actually it's triplets. They're saving the really good brother for the finals.

Just a touch of water makes all the difference, eh? You're joking. I'll send my man to fix their electrics. How can you warn riders when they ain't sure the tapes are really going up?

Go and take a pee on the 4th bend. Might make it even with bend 2

Note to Poole: This is how to prepare a track. Oh, wait a minute. This is how you prepare a track. Oh wait a minute again. It's spitting. Standby for a good finish to this meeting How can that be? The tapes not working properly!! This is the World Championship. As a track, you should be under threat of losing your place on the GP circuit for that. Tractor racing!

Especially if they bring Erik, Jan O, George Major or Gordon Kennett. I'll get my coat.

I am reminded of the last time I can remember when a new engine won the World Championships. It was in 1983 when Egon Muller won the one off World Championship on a... GM

I was that man. The passenger that is. And it's worse than you describe. Roel, my driver, was indeed Dutch but rode on a German licence. I always rode on an ACU licence but it is the driver's "nationality" that counts. Funny, I found one of my German race jackets only today buried in the garage. My youngest son wanted me tried for treason at the time! So I guess Tai could get an Aussie licence or a Greek one if he wanted to. The fact he rides under the Union Flag is no small thing. I for one, hope he makes it up with the British authorities and once again takes his place at the vanguard of our national team

But only on average!

It was an omen. Just one big giant black cloud over Brandon now

We share a passion for technology. I don't know much about the internal workings of a speedway engine but things like titanium rods sound expensive.No disrespect but "What I've been told" is a long way from absolute truth. There is a lot at stake here. Getting riders to switch to a successful engine is money in the bank. What one sponsored rider is supplied with versus the out of the box version can be very different. Don't get me wrong. It has always been so. You can gas flow an engine and it's still standard. But it's quicker. A 4 grand engine and some clever mechanics beating the best engine tuners in the World? I remain sceptical. Anyway. Rock on Freddie. You're a great bloke who's served his time.