sandman

odsal produced one of the best world finals as far as pure racing, in my opinion..

the only problem to this well thought out and knowledgeable post, is that mike had the best guidance, equiptment and support, through his father..who really does deserve a lot of credit for mikes quick rise to the top...of course andy lee was a champion in his own right too.

hey puggers.. free visa for you too, !! welcome to hell town, reckon you'd last bout maybe 5 minutes....

well guess i better mention the crabs came from sitting on ganja bills easy chair, thanks dude..is it true if ya leave em alone,... they go away? they are too fast for me to get em with the ice pick..no way im going to the local doc here.. god only knows what his remedy would be.

i was gonna tell him my problem was i got crabs and only an ice pick to fend em off with , but decided against it..

what's your problem sandman ??? i hate to get off topic,... but my swollen colon is bothering me..thats my problem ,. thanks for askin .. sorry... i just thought jesper b jensen was spelled funny. i mean shouldnt it read jensen b jesper? sorry dont mind me.. continue..

what the????

after telling that story, he probably really will have his kid kick my a**.

one time when i was a lad, i tried to get phils autograph after the races, he was leanin against the wall swiggin on a bottle of sour mash whiskey. i was scared and said sir, may i please have your autograph? i was shakin because of how nervous i was. he looked me square in the face with those wild lookin whiskey eyes, two inches away,..thought for a moment, then took his open hand, placed it on my little innocent face, pushed me away and said with whiskey breath, "get outta here kid before i get my son to come over here and kick yer a***.... been the sandman since that day..i did tell my dad, but all he did was knuckle rub my hair till it smoked and then called me a sissy.

where the hell did all these foreigners get these weird names? a game of scrabble? jeeze..

Wow! I could never put my finger on it, but you're right. He DOES look like a wolf! thats nothin, you oughta see my regulars here at sandmans bar grill and bait shop after 10 pm, welcome to hell town only if ya been whipped up on by an ugly stick for a month or two.. sam definately would not even come close to qualifying.. this thread just gets curiouser and curiouser..number one song on the juke box is welcome to the jungle, by guns and roses..... Are we talking Martin Keown ugly here? no ya swabby. im talkin sandman ugly.. when i look at m'self in the mirror my damn reflection keeps wincin. is that ugly enuff for ya? and to top it off, i could still win a beauty pageant round these parts!

Wow! I could never put my finger on it, but you're right. He DOES look like a wolf! thats nothin, you oughta see my regulars here at sandmans bar grill and bait shop after 10 pm, welcome to hell town only if ya been whipped up on by an ugly stick for a month or two.. sam definately would not even come close to qualifying.. this thread just gets curiouser and curiouser..number one song on the juke box is welcome to the jungle, by guns and roses.....

absolutely. it only takes a few seconds and helps keep the interest at a higher level. i think they should have a short piece on the bikes themselves, and current developments. to a lot of people, speedway bikes look like bicycles with engines, when in fact they are quite sophisticated, and ever changing...power to weight ratio is comparable to a f1 car..

it seems the press is only interested in projecting superstars living in huge houses, big cars etc. i think that no matter where a rider lived, it would be interesting to show the human side to them. different countries, family and friends... we can all relate to these fellas, and that... is the difference.. sky needs to get off its can and do these short pieces before the gps to perk peoples interest, thanks for the reply.. they are like all of us... and that is the point...

if you watch any race with the top flight riders, they all move off line out towards the fence when someone tries to pass on the outside. it is almost as if they are concentrating on pushing someone out more than concentrating on following their best line. if someone falls off its dirty riding, if they stay on its fair. damn near any first turn in a gp race is a lesson in you may be faster than me and if you pass me i cant pass you back so i am gonna take you out if you dont shut off you can hit the fence for all i care. some riders are just a bit more blatant about it, same thing just a different shade of paint. the pay back for the more blatant riders can be a bit more harsh. sometimes maybe an exclusion is worth a pay back. the more subtle ones can just say i didnt see you. all the same in the end. deplorable when one thinks of the severe injuries that can be inflicted on someone else.

was wondering if any forum members have any suggestions on how to improve the GP's, in order to increase the attendance figures, and a broader acceptance to help put this sport into the league with other top flight motorsports. here is a quick list i came up with. we need really good consessions, kosher hot dogs, real 100% beef burgers, good selection of different lagers of the world, courtesy tents, and i think tracks condusive to outside passes. i know i have said this more than once, so sorry, ways to identify individual riders better especially for the new fans, and once again, bio pieces on television showing at least one rider at home including his family, to humanise them a bit more for the audiences who have never been to a gp but might tune in. i do think that since speedway is a global sport, albeit a small one, it does have a foothold. i also think the atmosphere needs that f1 circus atmosphere, where over the day or two preeceding the event, more events planned for the fans and their children. i know i am scratching a bit but while we have television coverage like we do we must take every advantage we can to ensure the long term health of the sport and format. i do think that comments on here do help, and believe changes can come through input from the fans.

and all of this from a man who smuggled the great ivan mauger out of the stadium at swindon after a bit of controversy, even caught a brick on the bonnet of his 450 sel mercedes on the way out, from one of the swindon fans. its in an old speedway star somewhere. evidently there werent enough wiltshire coppers to protect mr. mauger on duty that night so crumpie took a step forward to save the champs life. wonder if ivan reimbursed phil for the damage to his car? a thank you note maybe? heh heh..

phil was not a stylist. wasnt photogenic. just 100% pure racer. a site to behold in his hey day. the only other comparable would have been egon muller on a 1000 meter grasstrack that was rough. broken leg, bit of broken spirit i fear for phil. but, being femur bone, totally understandable..sorry he felt he had to make a comeback when he was past it though, glad i didnt see it..

a nicer person one could never meet.. gentle giant comes to mind. great guy.

a shot o' captain morgan if ya please, and a round for my mates too. gotta go, think i see jj wandering up the beach towards my humble establishment. gotta see if he might want to buy a t shirt, key chain, cap or official bob marley roach clip. and remember, as my ol pappy used to say,.. rehab is for quitters..

Well the thread is called "The Greatest Seven riders ever". Seems inevitable that they are likely to have been world champions.... crumbs... pass the anorak!....again...

phil was a ruthless and fearsome competitor, who had he really believed in himself as his competition did, he most certainly would have been good for more than one world championship. i saw him on more than one occasion where my jaw just dropped. newport and swindon. kudos to the old man. no wonder jason is as good as he is..heard the problem with phil is he would not put his money back in his equiptment, big problem against the likes of mauger and co.. hope jason doesnt make the same mistake.. he really does deserve the title this year..

this thread was dying as most just named ex world champs. thanks chk good mix. i go with once again crumpie, louis, betts, k moran and all past world champs. course guess i am stuck in the 70's and 80's. chris morton and jessup, sigalos and schwartz, carter and plech and persson, all during the year..most of the good riders from the 50's, oh well... where is my anorak again? dave morton, ray wilson tommy jansson,,... only 7 huh? guess i will go with trick on down world champs for best but gotta include mauger.. personally, i was always a hailwood, roberts, spencer fan. james hunt too, and of course barry sheene. i quit. captain morgan rum has a grip on me, if i keep going i am gonna cry...

i think the reason may lay with the fact that the equiptment is much more forgiving nowadays and in general lack of dirt. 80 hp is much friendlier than 50 or 60. would loved to have seen the old man on todays equiptment with a rough, deep track, in his prime. certainly would have caused a few headaches for the current young guns. absolutely no disrespect directed to todays greats intended. As good and tough as history has produced, but for you old timers who remember, pause for thought..