*JJ

There's some cheerful sods on here ...

Don't you mean Adam Ellis? Or did you mean Eastbourne?

A rider who is, shall we say, not very good, was used several times as No. 8 at Birmingham last year. Then when Cradley turned up with rider replacement, he was No. 8 for them. This was too good an oppotunity to miss; I told the Crudleyites loudly that we had really fixed them ... when he was nominated in one race, the Heathens fans shouted "They are deliberately trying to lose!" and left!

No. 8s could only be used for Rider Replacement: they were NOT an extra reserve. However, if a team loses a reserve due to injury during a match, they can be in trouble if they don't have a No. 8. We saw that some years ago when Rye House had two riders withdrew injured; with R/R they only had 4 riders left. A No. 8 could have taken the R/R rides while the reserves covered for the others, but they didn't have one ...

Not without getting new planning permission - and you can't get that in 8 weeks! (Don't forget, we already have the knuckle-draggers).

They are the cheapest ...

Stoke - like most of the present NL - is a standalone team whose purpose is to entertain their supporters and win matches (at least at home). And if possible, make a bit of money ...

Or The Jack Attack! Zack Wajknecht was known as The Little Grasshopper.

You can get a complete second hand bike with a good GM engine for about £1,500 - £2,000. So who in the lower leagues is going to pay £5,000 for a GTR? Unless you win the lottery!

Ryan Kinsley, Liam Carr, Ben Shields. The full results usually take a few days to appear.

Not very well ... third, second and then one of the many who crashed and had to retire.

Zach Wajknecht for Lakeside.

Danyon Hume comes to mind.

That's what I meant!

Never let the facts get in the way of a good rant!

I don't know ... if they are, they are very good indeed.

The Woodhulls (twins) looked very impressive at Scunthorpe the other week.

It was Peterborough.

I remember Tai upside down fifteen feet up in the air, in his early days ... You won't see the likes of those three in the NL, but relative beginners and learners, although there are some really good riders there. I based my comments on seeing NL racing over the last two years, and also being involved in MDL and amateur racing: where there are some excellent riders also. The point being that there are few Leigh Adams etc. around; most riders use the balance style.

Not true. It may have been five or six years ago but not now.

Very witty ... not. I was thinking of a couple of others who live close to Perry Barr. The problem is that few clubs are prepared to do anything to help develop new riders.

And, of course, there are plenty of promising beginners who are over 21.

Birmingham's crowds certainly increased when they went into the NL.

No - JPB has re-signed.

Most unlikely - the averages won't allow it. One of those three, plus Perry.