Grachan

I hope I'm allowed to do this - if not feel free to delete me! I've just bought myself a Video Capture card for my PC so I thought I'd try this out. If you want to see a good race from the 1973 World Team Cup final, click here, or, better still, right click the link and 'Save Target As'.

Pointless Trivia 1) Wild Angels is the name of a motorcycle movie from the late sixties. It starred Nancy Sinatra, who was also in an Elvis Presley film called Speedway. Pointless Trivia 2) The inventor of Tippex was actually the mother of Mike Nesmith from The Monkees.

Me too. The sport was, how to say, dragged kicking and screaming into the modern age and I started to go to meetings after a (shortish but significant) break from the sport. I really think it works well, and while there may be a bit of a problem with gate positions, it can hardly be called an unfair system as it goes on form over a whole season.

I totally agree. I don't. How can Nicki Pedersen be a cheat who holds on to the bike for his life yet win the World title over a whole season. I feel a bit of team bias going on here, but fair enough. I'd use it too if I could, but I don't think Jason Crump is more on the wane than Tony Rickardsson. If anything he's (slightly) on the up and Tony is on the wane, having dropped to 3rd, though I do think there's at least one more title in TR. On Falcace's comments it's certainly a valid point about Nicki winning rather than Tony. I predicted Jason Crump would be World Champ within two years. That was 2 years ago. He wasn't. I could say 'oh well, I actually meant 3 years', but I won't. Oh, sod it, yes I will. Jason Crump - World Champion 2004, as I predicted.

Reg Fearman tells a story on the History of Speedway video of how Tyburn Gallows made the national press and caused a bit of of a fuss by hanging an effigy of a Cradley rider on the centre green during a match against Cradley Heath, just at the time the anit-hanging lobby was in full swing.

Don't know why, but I'm getting extrememely wound up by this topic. Most strange. I really think this is such a bad move. Maybe I'm just a negative kind of guy, but it seems to me a few Speedway purists will wallow in the glory of a return to the old system, the crowds will drop in the GPs due to the rather uneventful nature of them, Sky will pull out, even less people will go, War will be declared, the World will end. And a few guys will study their programmes, work out the finer details of the qualification, and barely notice the GP's return to Coventry and care even less about the carnage around them. God help us all! Or maybe I'm over reacting!

Personally I don't think it's a good idea to revert to the old formula. The current system is much easier for people watching and every race has meaning. I actually think it could prove a costly mistake if they do this. The cut and thrust of the GP is what has made it such an attraction. It may be what some fans have been asking for but I don't think it's likely to be as attractive to the casual spectator. There is still going to be semi finals and a final, so in effect you will get 20 qualifying heats, some of the later ones of which have no relevence whatsoever, with just 3 meaningful races at the end. If they are going to do it, though, I agree that the first 2 should be seeded direct to the final. Thinking back to Leigh Admas Testimonial meeting, Jason Crump scored a 15 point maximum, then failed to qualify from his semi, which seemed a bit unfair to me. Anyway. Bad idea all round. I think the KO system is what makes the GP what it is - unique.

What strange logic you have and an amazing ability not to be able to compare like with like. Those meetings were run on a fair format, everyone met everyone else once and once only, everyone had to have at least one race off each gate position. None of those riders beat the champion twice. None met twice. its crazy to use a format where one rider can score 3,3,3 but then be knocked out by a sudden death semi-final after being given a poor gate on a poor slick track by the toss of a coin, whilst an opponent can score 0,2,2,R,2,2 and then be handed the best semi-final gate on the toss of a coin. There's no criticism of Nicki Pedersen whatsoever. He and his team perfectly exploited a flawed system and well done to them. Its a great achievement for an 8 point rider to lift the title ahead of better riders. What you seem to be forgetting is that this was decided over a whole season, not just on this one meeting. If a rider is consitently good over the year then he will be World Champion, as is the case with Nicki Pedersen. It's as simple as that. If it were still a one-off final then maybe you'd have a point. But it isn't. So you haven't. Wonder what would have happened in 1978 if Dave Jessup had been given a second chance instead of his hopes being wiped out by ef. Who's to say which way is the fairer?

Well done to Nicki Pedersen. Does this mean Jason will never be World Champ? He'll probably never have a better chance.

So is that guy on the right wearing a Fleetwood Mac? Ho ho ho!

Please

Bugger Frigbo! I've just remembered!

No it's not Tiddler, but you have got the right surname grachan. ( I remember a Turner at Ellesmere Port in the 70s, but not sure of his first name. I keep thinking 'Steve' but I'm probably getting confused.

20 - almost certainly Alun Rossiter. It's definitely not Martin Yeates.

It's not Ian Turner is it? Looks a bit big.

Is it John Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch?

13 - or possibly Pierre Brannefors?

You're probably right, but originally I had 3 Gundersen, followed by 3 Neilsen followed by 3 Jonsson and it all looked a bit predicatable and unlikely, so I thought I'd try to think of one less obvious winner. Per was a bit inconsistent sometimes, so I thought I'd put Jimmy in as my 'Mark Loram'.

Bearing in mind I have no memory of injury to anyone. 1973 - Anders Michanek (Jerzy Szczakiel) 1974 – Ole Olsen (Anders Michanek) 1975 – Phil Crump (Ole Olsen) (The year of the 4 valve I think) 1976 – Ivan Mauger (Peter Collins) 1977 - Peter Collins (Ivan Mauger) (If it's good enough for Ivan then it's good enough for me) 1978 - Peter Collins (Ole Olsen) (Despite disaster at the British GP, Coventry) 1979 - Mike Lee (Ivan Mauger) 1980 – Mike Lee (Mike Lee) 1981 - Bruce Penhall (Bruce Penhall) 1982 – Bruce Penhall (Bruce Penhall) 1983 – Kenny Carter(Egon Muller) 1984 – Erik Gundersen (Erik Gundersen) 1985 - Erik Gundersen (Erik Gundersen) 1986 – Erik Gundersen (Hans Nielsen) (Erik does him again! Unbelieveable – and after Hans had led throughout too) 1987 - Hans Nielsen (Hans Nielsen) 1988 - Hans Nielsen (Erik Gundersen) 1989 - Hans Nielsen (Hans Nielsen) 1990 – Jimmy Nilsen (Per Jonsson) (Taking into account how well the GP seemed to suit him when it started and remembering that I thought he had a good chance that year.) 1991 – Per Jonsson (Jan O Pedersen) 1992 - Per Jonsson (Gary Havelock) 1993 – Hans Neilsen (Sam Ermolenko) 1994 – Tony Rickardsson (Tony Rickardsson) A bit of Swindon bias, perhaps, but based on reason and logical argument naturally.

Not sure about Hans Neilsen winning more at the expense of Erik Gundersen either. My image of a typical GP from that era - Neilsen the best rider all night, Gundersen just scrapes though to the final. Gundersen wins it.

One more go - Peter Craven?

Is 61 Soren Sjosten?

Maybe. I've already thought of that! Perhaps they added it later??!? Then again, maybe it's not Oxford!

I'll have to think about this one when I've got a bit more time. I know Ivan Mauger reckons that he would have won in 1976 instead of Peter Collins and Peter Collins would have won instead of him in 1977. I don't think Dave Jessup would ever have won though.

I'm referring to picture 63 here by the way. Just noticed everyone else is on about number 60 In 60, is one of the Poole riders Odd Fosengen (or something like that). All old Poole phots seem to be of Odd Fossengen (or something like that).