greyhoundp

To be honest, so long as he helped Buxton be competitive, I wouldnt have a problem with it, didnt Seemond Stephens have something like a 6+ PL average when he signed for Plymouth ?. There are only so many decent Heat Leaders around this season, and most if not all of them have already been signed up, So yes it may be a 3 pointer who misses out if James rides NL, but Teams have to have Heat Leaders.

So asset wise, it seems Danny Philips is signed to no one, Michael Neale is signed to no one, and Nathan Stoneman, is not signed to anyone, now i dont have anything against Matt Williamson, but if Cradley are to have them as 3 pointers, i dont see anything to be gained by training up another Teams riders. I firmly believe 3 pointers should be used to build up your own asset base. Looking forward to seeing who we announce as our 3 pointers in 2014, any 2 from the 3 above would do for me, including a fully fit (2012) Nathan Stoneman.

Are you saying Deanno, that this debt needs to be cleared before an Airfence can be considered ?. Thats one heck of a loss for an NL Team, and equates to around 1k for every meeting the Islanders rode in 2013, and impossible to sustain that on gates of 100/120.

And thats just the situation that needs to be avoided. How on earth can the Kent Team manager on one hand be talking about a return for Rye House Raiders, whilst on the other be managing an opposing Team absolutely incredible, and amazing that the BSPA can allow it. Talk about a clash of interests, i can imagine the possible Team talk to the Raiders or vice versa, now listen guys Kent need a 55 point away win to sew up the League title, go out there try your best to look like you are trying, but let the Kings win, they will pay your expences... hahaha I forgot, its Speedway we are talking about.

Im not sure about that one Parsloes, but Coventry I think run the Storm meetings on GP weekends/fridays, so Im pretty sure Leicester could do a similar thing. Even if Leicster were to say only enter the NL Trophy just to test the water so to speak, actually thinking about it, 1 or 2 other Teams might consider that also.

To begin with The NL was more or less amateur, only paying basic expences, in recent seasons it has sadly begun to move away from this. With the Big 2 as i see them, and now Kent in the NL. The NL was originally a way of young riders aided by more experienced riders to learn there trade, and gain experience, but also a way for new Tracks to develop there set ups, improve there facilities, such as Plymouth did, and then progress to the PL etc,etc. This left the truly Amateur Teams such as Buxton, and various Clubs junior Teams; Scunthorpe, Kings Lynn to find the young riders and bring them on with little or no pressure, but now we have Cradley and Mildenhall, 2 Clubs who have an entirely different objectives, The first has a great History and Tradition in the Sport, with a supporter base, many are envious of, The 2nd has tried and failed to survive in the PL for the same reasons IOW are struggling now in the NL, it cant financially live with the big boys. Okay so pay structures cannot be policed, riders expences are difficult to control, therefore the smaller Teams face an uneven struggle to compete, i see the time getting closer, where IOW, Buxton, and even Stoke could no longer afford to stage NL racing as we now know it, The uneven contest between the have and the have nots will see the end of these smaller Teams. Here is a suggestion; why dont we bring back a form of rider allocation, whereby riders are allocated to Teams, this way it will give the smaller Teams an equal playing field when it comes to the signing of riders, and hopefully it should help to control riders pay in a supposedly amateur League. This will give the IOW,s, Buxtons, Sittincbournes, more incentive to carry on or even come back into League racing, and see the riders who see this as an easy payday move up into the PL and leave more openings for younger guys, to break into the sport. Hopefully more suggestions could be made, to help save Teams like the IOW.

Be careful Ray, do some research, Jonny is a little bit more than just a sponsor, but of course he is that also. Hows Adams injury coming along jonny ?.

I dont know, but from the outside i see Kent coming more and more under the control of Mr Silver and his Team, now seeing where this has got Rye House thats a shame, because Kent have a fantastic facility, which has the potential to become an Elite League Team, and certainly enough fans to support such a venture. Can they do this under the guidance of Len Silver? i dont know. What i do know is in 2013, Kent did a pretty good PR job, with new modern approaches taken on board, now it seems to be falling back to the same old tried, trusted and failed ways of other promotions, Kent are an opportunity to do there own thing, which Mr Cairns or Len Silver prefer not to want, and prefer to go with AP Media, and now we know why the previous PR Teams were allegedly dismissed, its all very, very sad.

I see from a post by Malcolm Vasey, the closing date for applications to join the NL is 31/1/2014, With Leicester having blank weekends now, it would be great to see them entering a National League Team, with some mouth watering Localish Derbies against Storm, Mildenhall, and Cradley Heathens. Coventry made a success of it in 2013, there is NO doubt in my mind, it would prove equally successful for Leicester. There would also be a slim chance that a Long Eaton NL Team could run from Leicester.

So we can see the problems potentially caused by weekend racing, we see the lack of support for Tuesday racing, what do you guys suggest the IOW do?, rather than throw in the Towel.Its pretty apparent relying on locals and a few holidaymakers, just isnt enough.

Malcolm, I have a lot of respect for what you have achieved in Speedway over the years,and i would hate to see you end on a low note at Stoke, so for that reason alone i hope you achieve some success before you retire. However what i see as a Speedway fan in general, is that there is a danger of being tarred with the same brush so to speak, and i would hate for that to happen, as you nor Stoke Speedway dont deserve it. Good luck for 2014.

Its all very well saying weekends are not an option, but its pretty apparent, IOW struggle to survive on week days, and they cant rely on locals to support the Team, thats been apparent for some years now, so the alternative is change to week ends, and try to draw more support from the mainland. Now this thorny problem of rider pay, there is absolutely NO way this can ever be policed, so we have to live with the system as it is, Buxton havent done to badly over the years, though its become apparent with each year that its become increasingly difficult for them, and 2 of the main culprits i would imagine are my own Team, and possibly Mildenhall, the first who have fantastic support but NO Track, the 2nd Team are generally to strong for the NL, but cant sustain a PL Team. Live within your means, Im pretty sure Cradley & Mildenhall do that, but there means are far greater than Buxton, IOW, and KL. The alternative to that is to reduce the points limit further, so that the Teams with greater financial ability dont have such an on track advantage bcuz of there finance.

Hahaha, so how many were saying Starkies average was too High ?. Im very pleased to see Paul and Tom back, but even more pleased now to see we have slightly changed our strategy. Im pretty sure now this means Nathan has agreed to sign, and it obviously means Gareth has been released, which leaves us with the opportunity to sign 2 good young promising riders who can be our OWN assetts. Yes Im well pleased not only with the signings, but with the change in strategy taken by the Club for 2014. Now who might they be ? My choice would be Michael Neale, Impressed with him when he rode against us. Danny Philips seems to have improved no end since he rode for Scunny (but i believe he is a Scunny asset). Matt Williamson whom Jayne says may give 2014 a miss, but myself i doubt that. Then there is a rider many seem to have forgot, thats Nathan Stoneman, 2 years ago he rode the best i have ever seen a visiting reserve (British) ride against us in his 1st appearance at Monmore. Im pretty sure looking at the 3 pointers it will be 2 from those four, James Shanes average is to high to fit him in.

7.26 was Kennis last EL Average.

I think the rule is, If Stefan is in a declared PL 1 to 7, then he cant ride for a NL Team, however if he signs for a PL Team after the season starts, he can ride NL, Im sure someone more knowlegeable than me, will clarify this.

Yeah, every year it pisses me off, to have this annual dragging out of Cradleys signings, this constant drip feeding and hints, like we are in talks with Nathan, and Tom, yeah we have known that since the end of the season, we probably have all 7 signed up by now. Last year i had the word Starkie was signed up weeks before it was announced.

Im still hoping for Michael Neale, won the 500cc youth champs beating Reece Downes, Josh Bailey and our own Nathan Greaves, also scored some useful points when he guested against us at Monmore, and having Philips alongside him would do for me. To have the Heathens tracking Cleggy, Greaves, Philips, and Neale. would give me great pleasure to watch those four progress in there career at Cradley, added to Worall, Perry and Starkie, that would do for me.

To be honest Parsloes, after the way he was treated by his PL Team last year, who can blame Stefan, and probably a wise move, to concentrate on just the 2 Leagues. well I aint a dutchman, so welcome to the Play Offs..lol

Im surprised NO Pl Team signed Stefan, which has made him available to sign for Storm, its a good signing for them, and puts them in a strong position for 2014, That Top four is looking the equal of any so far announced, and if that Team doesnt make the play offs, then Im a Dutch man.

Its a shame, but it seems the mystery potential last minute backer has just as quickly pulled out of negotiations. I believe rather than get frustrated by trying to meet the January deadline the IOW should opt to not run NL meetings in 2014, but carry on raising funds with the aim to be back League racing in 2015. I hate to see any Track close but it seems there is NO other option now. The IOW can do without the negativity, there has to be a way around this, nothing is impossible. The Club has a great bunch of workers, and deserve at the very least, to see IOW Speedway continue, Yes it requires a little more, that maybe an outsider can see. but is not visible from within. My own thoughts on the IOW and the average gates of around just over 100, yes everyone could possibly do more to promote there Track/Team, not just the IOW, I doubt the Islanders can survive just on locals alone, nor on annual visitors to the Island, more needs to be done to encourage spectators to come from the mainland reguarly, then they could target some advertising there also, To this end the raceday HAS to be changed, this to me is THE single most important decision the Islanders can decide, lets look at Tuesdays, I live in Bournemouth, if i want to watch Speedway on the Island which i do, i need to get time off work, odd occasions yes, but reguarly no, now if the raceday was Saturday/Sunday afternoon or evening, then thats a different scenario altogether, and Im pretty sure, thats the case for many supporters from the mainland. Who wouldnt want to spend a weekend day on the Beach, afternoons/evenings Speedway, and an evening in a Pub, for me That HAS to be the way forward, Thats the single most important decision that can be made to sustain The IOW Speedway going forward, and if Wightlink can be brought on board, with a deal similar to what they already offer, then this would be brilliant. Also one needs to consider riders situations, and the travelling involved on a weekday, yes i know the holiday season could prove difficult,but thats only on a few occasions, whereas weekday traveling is week in, week out. I sincerely hope some of my ideas would be considered, maybe not for 2014 now, but certainly for 2015 and years to come, weekend racedays has to be the way forward for The IOW Speedway, even if it only means an additional 50+ spectators, that would be a 50% increase on the average gate, many Clubs would give there right arm to see such an increase, yes i know its a low figure to start with, but its a start, and best not to be over ambitous with figures. I sincerely hope there is a way the IOW can be saved, as the people behind the scenes deserve it, the supporters want it, and Speedway can ill afford to lose another Track.

To put it simply, the IOW can do without the negativity, there has to be a way around this, nothing is impossible. The Club has a great bunch of workers, and deserve at the very least, to see IOW Speedway continue, Yes the aforementioned people, and others have worked hard, but yes, it requires a little more, that maybe an outsider can see. but is not visible from within. My own thoughts on the IOW and the average gates of around just over 100, yes everyone could possibly do more to promote there Track/Team, not just the IOW, I doubt the Islanders can survive just on locals alone, nor on annual visitors to the Island, more needs to be done to encourage spectators to come from the mainland reguarly, then they could target some advertising there also, To this end the raceday HAS to be changed, this to me is THE single most important decision the Islanders can decide, lets look at Tuesdays, I live in Bournemouth, if i want to watch Speedway on the Island which i do, i need to get time off work, odd occasions yes, but reguarly no, now if the raceday was Saturday/Sunday afternoon or evening, then thats a different scenario altogether, and Im pretty sure, thats the case for many supporters from the mainland, who wouldnt want to spend a weekend day on the Beach, afternoons/evenings Speedway, and an evening in a Pub, for me That HAS to be the way forward, Thats the single most important decision that can be made to sustain The IOW Speedway going forward, and if Wightlink can be brought on board, with a deal similar to what they already offer, then this would be brilliant. I sincerely hope some of my ideas would be considered, maybe not for 2014 now, but certainly for 2015 and years to come, weekend racedays has to be the way forward for The IOW Speedway, even if it only means an additional 50+ spectators, that would be a 50% increase on the average gate, many Clubs would give there right arm to see such an increase.

It seems to me, with the late offer, and somewhat early withdrawal, its becoming to late for the IOW to stage League racing in 2014, the other problem they will face is most of there riders appear to be signing for other clubs, so even if they do run in 2014, what standard of Team will they be able to put out?. Im sad to say it, but it may be best if the IOW do not enter the NL in 2014, but continue to raise funds, with the object of returning to league racing in 2015. Now if IOW can raise the amount that they have so far allegedly 9k+ to somewhere over the 15k region, then surely it would be possible to pay the remainder over a period of time.

yep, big welcome to armo.

If not, Im sure there is a Team more or less on his doorstep, who will be very interested.

I just hope the person concerned can help to save the IOW, be it either as a loan or an investment in the Club, I know its difficult to get people to watch Speedway on the Island, but Im sure with the right promotional activities and perhaps sponsorship of some kind, it must be possible for IOW to attract attendances of 200+ on a regular basis, even if it means tying up with a local company (Wightlink)to help even more, in this respect. At least now there seems more hope for the future of IOW.