SPEEDY69

We stayed at a small mountainside lodge in Lasko, was a great weekend and the GP only 40 minutes drive from there down one road.

3 GPs in Poland again and still they can't find a World Champion, will one of them do it next year?

Oh dear. Poole's title now.

Unfortunately he failed to get through the qualifiers, then got a wild card to the challenge final and failed to get into the top three. Zagar doesn't deserve a wildcard and I wouldn't have had Vaculik either. Id'd have had Dudek, Smektala, Pedersen and Madsen

Yep, doesn't work for me either.

I always wonder how Oxford and Cambridge always seem to make the final of the Boat Race.

Great thanks, can now look to organise ourselves. Pity they can't put that on their website.

He only had one more meeting for Ipswich at home to Berwick, so not missing a lot for them - I thinks it's all so that BV can strengthen.

I smell a rat here and suspect it was not his sole decision - will this enable Belle Vue to strengthen for the playoffs??

Is it? Where?

Agree. An emotive subject definitely and one which turns my stomach. In my view there is a difference between fantasist's and people who directly attack others - the internet would not have taken off so well without porn leading the way back then. Several people in speedway have been caught abusing drugs - the source and carriage/supply of these commodities causes all sorts of suffering, abuse and death but nobody seems to take the indirect effects into account when idolising people like Dudek or others. I've always thought our penalties are wrong - those who nick a few quid/commit fraud where only money is lost should not receive prison sentences (if any at all) longer than those who attack/murder other people. They should be hit financially for as long as it take to get the money back, which may be all their life. This man is obviously mentally unwell and the 'punishment/treatment' should reflect that, prison is not the answer without addressing that.

Who says they have to come with someone else?

There are lots of people who've been once or twice and never again - the ones that I know was because it was boring for them or their children or nowhere to go to get out of the wind or nothing to do most of the time as it's only 15mins of entertainment. When the racing is also bad then that makes it even worse but look at other sports - when they're dull people still have a good time socialising and doing other things. All speedway offers is people standing around writing in programmes......

Not really, because I think format is only important to current fans.

I don't know, I quite enjoyed it. In any case, I think the main problem in attracting/keeping fans is not the format of the actual heats but the experience of the evening - at most tracks nothing to keep you or your family entertained before/between or after racing, or dry and warm. There's usually plenty of space - make use of it. Format only matters to those who are already fans.

It was also awful for my only visit for the Sheffield meeting on 15th July but I put that down as a one-off, as were a couple of Belle Vue visits - perhaps I'm a jinx!

Really, I don't remember that and have been going since 1978 - they've always had to alternate gates for each side 1/3 or 2/4?

I can see the logic in having a smooth surface for the initial starting position. I don't think that with shale and the slope of tracks that you'll ever be able to reproduce that currently and the original post rightly gives some reasons. The biggest influence in this I think is the moisture to surface tension ratio (soft to hard). Generally the harder the start line the less grip was my experience. If gates were all made even then wouldn't the racing be even more predictable though because some riders are better than others at starting - at least the variance gives those not so good a chance to get out in front?

Ambulance/medical cover would be my guess.

Incorrect. Ht 13 & 15 but anyway, it was an example to support my point that passing takes place on all tracks, if the rider has the skill and the surface is conducive.

They are all there to be raced but take different skills from the rider to do so. Take the BV vs Leicester matches for example - Nicholls had no bother passing BV riders at Leicester but at BV only scored a point. Tracks are all there to be raced and I like the variety - if they were all the same it would bore me to death.

Does it run ok? If so, should be fine.

Absolutely agree with this, it's become a circus, without the entertainment value. I used to like getting to know a rider (not personally but their performances/ability) and then want to see how they progress. I now no longer have a team affinity due to the rapid fire changes every year juts before the play-offs and instead follow certain riders no matter which team they ride for. Hence I only see around 6 meetings a year now rather than the 30 odd in years gone by.

Doesn't make much sense to me that Swindon prefer Thursdays and Poole prefer Wednesdays that Leicester are at those tracks on the other day?

This is my view: http://www.speedway-forum.co.uk/forums/index.php?/topic/86663-no-word-from-the-bspa/&do=findComment&comment=3169007