Wild Man Vic

I have said for many years that "Speedway Star is probably a better magazine than the sport in this country deserves". With all the goings on this winter that statement is probably more true than ever!

Condolences to Gary and the rest of the family on Brian's sad passing. Brian certainly left a positive impression with every club that he rode for and he always had the best interests of speedway in his heart after his retirement whether as a team manager or promoter. Whenever I caught up with him he always had time to chat about the sport - both the good and the bad things about it, and he was always good company. RIP Brian

I was speaking to one top Championship level rider that was doubling up about 9 or 10 years ago and I remember him saying in a busy season the previous year he had earned just under £120k. But, when his machinery, tuning, mechanic costs etc were all taken into account they had cost him £109k. So, basically he had risked his life racing speedway all over the country for around 7 months to be left with £11k. When you see it like that nothing makes sense, which is what I said to him. With a wry smile his reply was; "Yeah, you are right, but at this stage in my life it's better than having a real job!" I think that sums up how costly it is and why they do it. Although, I bet the amount of money that ends up with engine tuners over a year is quite eye watering!

I am pretty sure that when a rider fills in his application for a British Licence prior to the start of the season there is a box to tick if you wish to compete in that seasons national championship, so it is not compulsory. But I am sure virtually every rider ticks that box - but, the option is there to not bother with it.

I think it was Lewis Kerr that said when interviewed that the riders had been told that there would be no watering of the track between the semi-finals and the final - which seems a fair point - it doesn't happen in the Grand Prix where they also just run the three races. However, the track was watered between the semi-finals and the final and I can't help but think that could well have been a contributory factor in the incident happening, especially as the part of the track where it happened was in the shade, which would probably have made it a little greasier than where the water was placed on the other bends as they were still in the sunlight.

Yes, I sense history will ultimately show electric cars to be "the Betamax" of the motor vehicle!

R.I.P. Uncle Len A really great character who could occasionally ruffle a few feathers with his opinions; but he always spoke from the heart about the sport that he cared so passionately about. A great promoter and the last of that generation of promoters from the 70's when I first fell in love with the sport. I was fortunate to chat with him on quite a few occasions down the years and he always had an interesting tale to tell or an opinon to give - and, even if you didn't always agree with his opinion, it was interesting to hear nontheless and always gave you something to think about. Great memories and I think I will make a point to sit down and read his book again this week. Condolences to his family and friends at this very sad time.

Two that stand out for me from years ago are Steve Waplington (Rochdale & Belle Vue Colts if I remember correctly) and, that Aussie mate of Phil Crump's, Gary Flood (Crewe). Both looked set for great careers but then just walked away from the sport at an early age. I also think Jim Airey left the sport too early too.

Yet again Eurosport proves that it is not about the budget at your disposal, but it is how you use it! The brilliant BSN blows it clean out of the water on just a fraction of the budget!! IF ..... Discovery had any intelligence they would say to BSN: "Can you provide us with the speedway coverage next season please?" - the end result would be a saving to their budget and a far better production!

Ipswich cost themselves points with various falls etc. but the standout element of the night was the truly dreadful refereeing! I think she needs to watch it back when she gets home and then realise it is time to hand in her licence because that refereeing performance was an absolute disgrace!! Come on Christina - if that's the best you can do in such a crucial meeting then do the right thing and pack it in! We should all be talking about the meeting not the refereeing!

Yet again, both Cami Brown and Peter Schroeck demonstrate that neither of them know the rules!

No, that is not quite correct. ONLY the race leader needs to have completed two laps for the referee to be able to award a race.

So very sad to hear this news. A really nice bloke - he was always happy to chat and talk about speedway. I never heard anyone have a bad word to say about him. A great referee who seemed to have the respect of riders, team managers and promoters too - which is a very rare thing in our sport. And, from what I have read, he was involved in so many behind the scenes aspects of speedway in the UK and at FIM level, which will be a big miss with his knowledge and experience too. But, especially to all of his family and friends he will be greatly missed and I send my condolences to them at this very sad time. RIP Tony

RIP Tiger John "Tiger" Louis was one of my first ever speedway heroes when watching in Division 2 as a youngster - when he came to visit everyone went to see him race! And, then when I attended the 1972 World Final at Wembley where he so nearly made the rostrum - he finished joint fourth as I recall - what a night that was! Then, three years later, I was back at Wembley in 1975 to see him claim a well deserved third place in that year's World Final. Another great night. I even had his picture, wearing those "Tiger" leathers, sellotaped to the front of my file at School - what a legend. And, many years later when I got to meet him he was great to talk to and always polite. Just a great bloke all round. They say don't meet your heroes - but I was absolutely delighted to meet that particular hero. Condolences to all of his family and friends at this sad time - and I hope that they can take some comfort in the fact that he was so well respected in the world of speedway.

Yeah, thought Cookie at least would have been a certainty to be in it.