cyclone

I have really enjoyed this thread and find the level of research by Ross Garrigan, and Norman Jacobs in particular, to be very impressive. I doubt anyone will ever be able to unearth incontrovertible proof of where the first pukka speedway event took place, given the mention of earlier claims from the USA, South Africa, & England also. Regarding Australia, are there any reports of when bikes without brakes are first mentioned, racing anti-clockwise on cinder surfaces, etc. ? In fact when where events first advertised as Motor Cycle Speedway/ Dirt Track Racing ? Re John Hoskins, imo his lasting contribution was to bring the Sport to a wider audience by the large number of venues he was involved in at their birth, together with the high profile publicity he generated for Speedway.

To remind you, the above is what you originally posted, which you later stated was "confidential". You now quote the following:- So where in the quotes attributed to John Campbell does he state that "his demands are excessive". ? Do you have a comprehension problem in being unable to differentiate between "very expensive" and "excessive demands" ? If I was offered a Rolls Royce at list price it would be very expensive, whereas if a dealer was to quote the same price for an Hyundai, that would be an excessive demand. Given that you originally claimed that the information was confidential, you are certainly guilty of embellishing what was already in the public domain BTW I do know that Ryan has previously included the cost of bringing his family across to the UK as part of the package he negotiates, and perhaps this factor contributes to the "expensive" tab.

More bluster trying to cover up your attention seeking comments. You make an allegation and when challenged to name the source, it suddenly becomes "confidential". Aye it was confidential when you spouted it out in the public domain in the first place. Probably about as accurate as your spurious claim on here that no Edinburgh fans were at Plymouth vs Edinburgh on 29th October

So the clique of gossip know-alls back up each other up on here, surprise, surprise ! FYi being a Monarchs supporter, where Ryan rode from 2008 - 10, I never heard any utterance that he was not good value for whatever he was paid. That you admit disclosing alleged confidential information, which could be prejudicial to a specific rider's future job prospects in a public forum, is hardly praiseworthy conduct. .

So in other words unsubstantiated gossip which you are happy to spout on here as quasi-fact. Of course an awkward GSA figure had nothing to do with it or did that never cross your mind ? BTW if "said in confidence" as you allege, you're not very good at keeping such information privy

Well that will come as news to the 20 odd Monarchs fans that were present, including myself. As your first assertion was incorrect, on what actual factual information do you base your claim re Fisher's excessive demands, or is it just another vacuous statement from someone claiming to be in the know ?

Believe that riders who moved from EL to PL full time are permitted to return to the PL under their last PL GSA. However this facility is available for one season only. Therefore the alleged 6+ EL GSA restriction to return to the PL does not apply. For instance, as Larsen and Fisher rode in the PL in 2010,, they could return,to the PL, whereas Simon Stead did not ride in the PL in 2010.

T IMO the days of the asset system are numbered as I very much doubt their legality. It smacks of serfdom where riders are tied to a club, but receive no recompense when a Promotion deems they are no longer required, but still expect either a loan or transfer fee should some other team wish to employ them. We have witnessed where some clubs have acquired a bloated asset base, in some cases where the riders signed, have yet to ride for their so-called parent club. A fairer system would be to sign riders on a single season contract which could only be dissolved by mutual agreement by both parties during the actual season.

I actually agree that Mr S is correct in civil law that once a rider's contract has expired, he is a free agent. The fact that the Promoters operate their own domestic system, this will still prevail unless someone challenges their arrangement through the courts. When clubs dispense with the services of riders, as far as I know, these riders do not receive compensation, so the converse should apply. Maybe the answer is for clubs to offer riders longer term contracts to protect their investments, as is the case for football, but they should be prepared to pay compensation to the rider if they break the contractual terms. Re Nick Morris, I guess this was just an example that Mr S used to make the point and was not intended as a specific dig at Glasgow. After all come the end of the 2012 season, perhaps Glasgow will acquire Cameron Heeps from Ipswich for zilch

Great racing and hard luck to the Indians when they lost Sullivan yesterday, the innocent victim. For me the the defining moment tonight was when Pedersen was suckered into the tapes by Daniel Davidsson in the second reserves race. What on the night was looking like a 5 - 1 to the home team, ended up a 5 - 1 to the Pirates. Wonder if the British Pirates will match their Swedish counterparts on Monday

Seconded, and would add that Brandon Bee is a helpful chappie also.

Think you are being a bit harsh on the U.K. Promoters Alan. You have to remember that the majority of stadia where Speedway is staged, the clubs are tenants at the mercy of their landlords. Where Speedway shares the facilities with others (Greyhounds, Football, Stockcars, etc.), if you were to restrict all EL racing to one specific day of the week, it is likely that some clubs would not be able to run outwith their current raceday. The difficulties are compounded by the highly restrictive planning laws in the UK which often limit location, running times, and actual days. These restrictions also hinder youth development. Unlike other countries where Speedway is encouraged by their authorities (including financial assistance, UK Officialdom sometimes appears to be on a witch hunt to exterminate the sport here. Operating in such a hostile climate, it is no secret that most Promoters are in it for the love of the sport and subsidise its running. Rather than consolidate on a single race day, I wonder if the EL clubs will instead forego the top level foreigners and cut their cloth accordingly.

Re Darvel, as far as I'm aware not sure if there were any practice facilities in that area. I believe they practised on the beach. Felton held organised closed to the public meetings, and programmes were printed.

Thank you

Does anyone know the actual dates of the two finals ? I believe the Home Riders Final was held @ Wimbledon on 21/10/1929 , but not 100% certain. The Overseas Final was held @ Harringay between Frank Arthur & Vic Huxley, probably prior to 3rd October, but I cannot find the actual meeting dates.

Kalle Katajisto is scheduled to ride for Edinburgh next Wednesday & Friday also.

West Ham also ran a few meetings in 1940

It worked for me listed as under public sport 1 on screen

Thanks for finding this one, much appreciated

Cynical me believes that at the end of the day, Sky will decide whether or not the UK viewing figures would be adversely affected by the absence of a British presence in all the rounds. If they conclude that their potential subscription revenues would suffer should there be no British representative, I would expect BSI would therefore ensure that Harris/Nicholls/Woffinden/??? would be included in the permanent field for 2012.

Appears to have been a temporary blip, got back on before ht 6 started. Good quality feed. Go go "Tin Pan Alley"

To allow visitors the opportunity to avoid having to base themselves in Cardiff after the meeting, and be exploited by the local hotels, pubs, & food outlets that jack up their normal prices when the SGP is in town.

Shane Parker was not serving a ban at the time. Parker & Mike Faria's engines were selected for measuring at the end of the meeting, and it was subsequently found that Parker's engine was oversized. As result of this, his points were deducted and the result was amended accordingly.

It was midget cars and few other tracks which no longer ran bikes regularly participated at that time, including Stoke, Coventry,and I believe White CIty Glasgow & Stamford Bridge. Midgets also ran at Belle Vue & there was a one-off meeting at Marine Gardens in 1938. Post war there were midgets at various venues, including Perry Barr and Old Meadowbank (1954). Derek Bridgett who is related to Alan & the late Bill is the guru on this and has published a book on the sport.

Excellent - Thank you very much