Brian Buck

Would agree with that. He was way off the pace at Birmingham too, and with respect, didn't look ready for National League racing just yet - and must be expensive to bring down from Scotland as well. I wish the lad all the best for the future though.

Must admit Brian I didn't get there till 7.15 so it must have just been changed. Why not leave it till after the meeting starts though. Seems strange to me Well I could do that but if I did I would miss 3 or 4 races and would have to to be lightning fast to keep the scoreboard up to date!! If I left it till after the meeting has finished, it would have to wait till I had dismantled the scoreboard, unlocked the changing rooms and filled in my Environment Report, so have a heart - I'm an old timer of 76 now!!!!

Many congratulations to Eastbourne on their deserved win at Perry Barr last night. The Eagles have built a fine team this season and had they started the campaign with the same seven that they have now, they are unlikely to have lost more than the odd match. The Brummies made a good comeback from arrears of 12 points last night, but Eastbourne were always the better team, and there was an especially impressive performance from Georgie Wood - a real racer! Well done Eastbourne. I hope we can give you a good meeting in the return, but in all honesty it is a mountain to climb for us.

It seems that a hard core just don't understand that Birmingham and Cradley Heath need each other. If one goes to the wall, then the other one will as well, so every sensible supporter from both clubs will accept that although we both want to keep the old rivalry, we need to work in tandem and to support each other.

Don't quite know what sort of "record" this will be. I can remember Steve Bastable's sister Pauline racing a match race against a Danish girl at the "old" Perry Barr track in 1978/79. The Danish girl won by a street!

There was a bit more to deciding on the alternative starting procedure than people might think. The referee Margaret Vardy gave all the riders the chance to give their preferences and was I thought, very fair with them. Some riders wanted a flag start because they thought that the bungee elastic might be difficult to see, but this was overcome by attaching four pieces of white cloth to it. One rider rather hopefully suggested that the referee go easy on riders moving at the start "on account" (he said) that she "might not be able to see the elastic rope!" She shot that idea down in flames very firmly, stating that there was nothing wrong with her eyesight - as the rider concerned would quickly find out if he wanted to try it on!! Ms Vardy listened to all the views but in the end she made the decision - which is how it should be. She even listened to my suggestion that we moved the four starting "boxes " to the right so that the rope wouldn't catch in anyone's front wheel! The elastic rope was released in all of the races by The Speedway Control Bureau Manager Graham Reeve who kept his back to the riders "cycle-speedway style", and although I agree that the delayed start was an irritation, I think the alternative system worked reasonably well and was much more preferable than having a flag start.

Yes I thought there was a decent crowd at Perry Barr last night - pretty much on a par with the attendance for the Cradley v Coventry match the previous week with a number of familiar faces from the Black Country amongst them which I was pleased to see as I do fully agree with what greyhoundp has written - it is crucial that we support each other in the way that he says - even if some do secretly hope to see an away win on alternate weeks! (nothing at all wrong with that - this is normal). I'd have to say that last night's meeting didn't produce particularly entertaining racing with the riders being well strung out in most of the heats and with a marked difference between the abilities of the more experienced riders and the tail enders being very evident, and I'd have to agree also that Rye House didn't have the best of luck and that there was never a 10 point difference between the teams. I'd agree also with Martin that the Birmingham supporters who come to next Wednesday's match are unlikely to be rooting for Eastbourne!!!

Birmingham will be without the injured Sam Chapman and will also be without Adam Ellis due to a family bereavement, for this Wednesday's visit of Rye House. Dan Greenwood who had an excellent meeting for Coventry in last week's match against Cradley Heath at Perry Barr, and will use rider-replacement for Chapman.

No need for any of these gadgets. All that is needed is for the rules to be applied consistently and rigidly, but I'd suggest that races be started not by the referee, but by a starter who cannot himself see the riders - and can't be seen by the riders. That way there would be no distraction for the referees. I also believe that a rider excluded for a starting infringment or under the 2 minute rule should have no reserve replacement. This I think would dramatically cut down on the high level of "trying it on" by riders and team managers'.

Both Khalid Mahmood (Perry Barr) and Roger Godsiff (Small Heath) were useful allies during Birmingham's fight to get a planning consent, and Khalid was especially helpful in standing up to the University and shooting down their fanciful objections as well as intervening on our side with Birmingham City Council Officers whom I have found from long experience, really resent an MP involving himself in their affairs. Looking ahead though, I think one major need is for the Parliamentary Group to come up with some kind of noise level requirements which can be universally accepted in all parts of the country. At present, an acceptable level in say Manchester, isn't always acceptable elsewhere - different Councils can and do decide for themselves what they will or won't accept. As an example, Belle Vue have had no difficulty in getting a planning consent for their new stadium even though the site is practically surrounded by houses, yet Cradley Heath couldn't get even a modicum of support from Dudley Council for the Oldnall Road site where you could only see the distant roofs of the nearest houses. This is cardinally unfair. Prospective Speedway Promotors should know exactly what the maximum noise level has to be.That way, there could be no argument over planning. If they can't comply with a universally agreed maximum - then they don't get approval. If they do, then they get it.

I have never been in favour of riders being allowed to ride for more than one team and cannot see that any benefit at all has come from doing so. All it has done is deprive about 30 riders of a team place. If it has to continue (and I suppose it will now that promoters have created a situation that means it cannot be done without) then I suggest that Elite League clubs should always have priority. That way, the rule would regulate itself since only the genuinely ambitious riders would want to double-up if they were deprived of the opportunity of always taking the easier option of riding for their lower league club. I have long believed that there is a need to change the race format so that no reserve could ride 7 times in a 15 heat match and by doing so, have such a massive influence in the result as we have seen so often. The old 16 heat format of 3 pairs and one reserve which was used in the 1950's has some merit. The reserve was only programmed to take 2 rides with the remaining members of the team taking 5, but could also be used another 3 times to replace an off-form colleague. (ie he couldn't have more rides than any other team member). If this format were re-introduced, it would be possible to bring in a "young British rider only" as the reserve since with him only having to take two rides his impact on results would usually be minimal and promoters would be more willing to persevere with him rather than keep chopping and changing for shot term gain. I would definitely do away with the nominated heat too. This always gives an unfair advantage to the "top heavy" teams and virtually gives them a "free" 5-1!

I once saw a very poor quality clip of a film called "Britannia of Billingsgate" which included some speedway and was apparently shot at the old Lea Bridge track in 1934. The story seemed a bit bizzare and the clip I saw had a rider lose control, crash through the safety fence and ride up the terraces and into the bar!

It would be good to see Ellesmere Port back in action, but we need to remember that it closed twice because attendances were never good enough for the promotion to pay its way. Getting planning permission would seem to be a major obstacle. I have worked with Tony Mole for over 20 years and I know how thorough and knowledgable he is in respect of planning matters, yet the two attempts he made to resurrect Ellesmere Port foundered over the planning issue. I don't believe that there was a great dealof opposition from local residents so this suggests that the Council themselves remain the stumbling block. Whatever their faults the new silencers definitely make a real difference and there is no question that Birmingham Speedway would not be operating now had it not been for their introduction. The reduction they have made to the noise levels (which was between 5 and 8 decibels) enabled the planning officer to change his recommendation from refusal to conditional acceptance and the planning committee then approved permanent planning permission subject to these silencers becoming compulsory. This is a very important point and could be used to help Ellesmere Port and other prospective new or resurrected old venues.

Wembley world finals were never a 100,000 sell-out due to the fact that for some unknown reason, there was a limit of 92,000 for events held there on any day other than a Saturday. Until 1956, the World Final was always held on Wembley's normal race-day which was a Thursday, so the attendances were remarkable given that travelling was very difficult in those pre-motorway days and most supporters living any distance from London had to travel by train. I never saw a Final before 1956 because I even though I saved up the money for the fare and the 3/6 admission price, I was either at school or at work. My parents wouldn't let me miss school and I couldn't get the time off from work.