uk_martin

Hands up everyone who has ever changed jobs because they can earn more at X than they used to at Y....keep your hands up while I count...because you are the very people who should not be commenting on how much anyone else is allowed to earn. A speedway rider who risks his life and limbs every time he gets on a bike is just as entitled to earn as much as he can get as you are. Also, please explain what an "extreme" wage is. I'd love to know.

As I understand it, this whole asset thing is all about teams pumping money/vans/bikes/equipment/accommodation/whatever into a rider at the start of his career, in return for the value that he brings to the team later in his career. That value can be either in the form of points for the team or £££ in loan / transfer fees, So imagine for a moment that this didn't happen. What then? I don't remember any of this happening in the 1970's and 1980's, Back then riders sank or swam on their own abilities, Now they are helped if they agree to sell their souls. Back then if a rider was transferred it was a full blown transfer, not some kind of glorified loan. Now, things are a lot more complicated and intertwined. Back then, the whole world was a simpler and cheaper place. Now the costs of the sport mean that backers are needed. So it's an imperfect world and this asset thing is an imperfect part of it. But what are the alternatives? Anyone can say "bah humbug" but who can come up with the alternative solution? Is the American Football franchise system a better way forward? If the whole league owned all the assets in it, there would be no arguement over who's an asset of whom. If all the promoters were shareholders in the league, with each having a shareholding of a value of what they put into the league, in the form of assets, then they will all get a split of the profits of the system, according to their shareholding too. Damn, they might even all start pulling in the same direction on occasions. At the end of the day, as has been said many times, a rider will ride for who he wants to, so what difference does individual team asset ownership make to team strengths in that way? I dunno. Just an idea for the pot. But at least it's an idea.

Imagine though...virtually anyone who is anyone would start life as a and NL asset. Scunthorpe could have earned a fortune on Tai Woffinden and Boston could still be in existence today on the back of their loan fees for Darcy Ward. The problem is though that without material returns EL and PL teams won't invest in the riders. Then where will they be? This is also true, however unpalatable it may be.

Whose discoveries actually? My recollection is that Zach and the others were "discovered" by Phil Morris thanks to to the knowledge and contacts that he gained in his SCB appointment in the GB Youth setup, and recruited by Phil Morris to Birmingham. What does Phil Morris get out of all this?

Youcan't apply Elite League principles in the National League. Cashing in this and loan fees that. It doesn't apply. "We developed Zach"? Really? He developed. Wherever he had been, he'd have developed. The National League developed him and now the higher leagues, and in time Team GB will get something for him. My god, have I missed something? Is he now NOT going to the the Brummies #1 this year or something? I've not seen anything to say he won't be at Birmingham this season. Why is there this panic? We'll see him this year and then his career will progress somewhere else. Kids can't stay in Infant School forever. And Infant Schools for speedway is exactly what NL teams are. And if you think that Birmingham are "owed" for developing Zach, then how indebted to the MDL are the Brummies for the two Jumping Jack Flashes that they will have at reserve this year, not to mention all the MDL track time afforded to some of the Brummies riders last year?

I still go but it's more about hooking up with the people who I've gotten to know over the years. Can't take the racing that seriously any more though. In fact last year we were all having bets on how many tumbles there would be during the course of the meeting. That said it's nice when you see a genuine talent blossom and stand out from the crowd. One day, hopefully I might be able to say that I saw Zach W's first laps etc. like those fans of Boston can boast about seeing Darcy Ward when he was still in nappies. But that's just it. The NL isn't about being able to cash in. It's about contributing to everyone else's greater good. It's about developing talent for the higher leagues and hopefully, one day, Team GB. That's the whole point of the NL.

What did Boston Barracudas get for "discovering" and nurturing Darcy Ward?

Does Belle Vue's infamous "plumber" get his name engraved on the water mains pipes that were laid under the back straight?

Reality check time. The National League, when compared to football is the Sunday Parks League. When a Blue Square Bet Football Conference team, or god-forbid, a Football League team comes calling, what's a rider / player supposed to do? They have their careers to think about, not the welfare of the pensioners strolling by in the park when they play there. Good luck to Zach. I'm not sure that Lakeside is the best of options for him given their uncertain future, but it's a step in the right direction. Don't get fooled by all the Drury-esque propaganda about the Brummies being a "big club". It's not! End of. Reign in your expectations accordingly. It's a bottom tier club at the mercy of all the bigger fish in the pond. The Brummies should be proud that they are contributing to what the National League was set up for, which is to nurture future British talent. The fact that Brummies fans won't be there to see that talent in full bloom goes with the territory in the NL. For all the fans who wanted a future in the NL, well this is all part of it. Get used to it.

If it can't be engineered for Poole to in the thing, then they won't want to play. Simples. It's all well and good them being a big fish in a little pond, calling the shots and twisting the BSPA round their fingers, but in the WSL they will be up against much bigger fish than them and they obviously don't like it up them, Mr Mainwaring...

And never take your pet dog with you to a Vietnamese restaurant...

Please publish your version of an Indian Premier League cricket team. It'll give the Police a real reason to arrest you for a racially motivated outburst, as xenophobia against Poles doesn't quite cut it in British law just yet.

An interesting read...especially the bit.."there will also be a training centre. This will allow youngsters to learn about bike mechanics and animal husbandry." So in future there will be some well maintained bikes and some well pampered Robins then?

Just to be safe a bit of homework is advisable. Some matches, notably those between Stal Gorzow and Falubaz Zielona Gora and some other local derbys are habitually sell-outs. If there is a likelihood of that, then a nice e-mail to the club explaining you are coming from the UK etc etc,...usually does the trick.

The photo I was sent says the 2016 Speedway World Cup...blah blah,..then it gives the dates as 29th & 30th July 2015. If I could upload the photo on here you could see for yourself.

Too late, If you check out all the big billboard posters springing up all around Manchester, some will confirm that the SWC actually took place on 29th & 30th July last year.

You think so? Check out the dates of the events on those billboard posters - July 2015 = Total Coq-Up. Yet again speedways organisers make the sport look stupid and amateurish to the eyes of the general public.

What did you expect? This is one better than a BSPA "shared" event...this is an entirely BSPA event, so instead of it being half a shambles, it's a complete shambles.

What's the point? You can get all the lies and rumours you want on BSF.

My eyes are welling up. There should be a facility on BSF for people to download and print out their own Kleenex tissues.

That's the difference between the British Speedway establishment (BSPA / SloSpeed) and FIM Europe / OneSport. For once Poole aren't being engineered a title.

So would a German map of the Atlantic have "Insel Himmelfahrt" off the African coast?

The Bash Street Kids v the mighty Stoke Potters in just about 6 weeks time...I can hardly contain my excitement.

Is Denise Drury still the Child Protection Officer at Birmingham? Imagine the team manager living in fear of the consequences of shouting at his younger team members in case it provokes a "domestic". :rofl:

Any truth to the latest rumors that the CovComp spares truck at Perry Barr will be sponsored by Mothercare and Toys'R'Us this year?