*JJ

He was actually six foot four, a powerful broad-shouldered athlete. He must have been quite heavy. He is exactly the same age as me, nearly 69 now

Wolverhampton and Birmingham, of course!

At what time?

You still can - certainly, I saw some at Perry Barr the other day. They are also available via Ebay.

Agreed - I really enjoyed the meeting. With young riders like Tom Brennan around (he made the most fantastic overtake I have seen these 60 years!) the future of British speedway should be good, if only they were helped and encouraged.

Indeed. Two points, though; first, the queue kept retreating back until it was in the pits. Couldn't someone get the riders to move up? Second, couldn't you have told us that there was going to be a lunch break? Otherwise, my protege had a mixed day; two very good rides in which he slid the bike well, one where his steel shoe came off (we laughed as he kicked it across the centre gravel), a visit to the air fence and the chain coming off! Thanks for the session.

Isn't that a motorway alongside it?

David Hemsley told me that he wanted fast speedway; that is why the Leicester track had long straights. Of course, he should have copied some of the best tracks, like Somerset or Scunthorpe, and made them 10% larger! The track has now been modified and is excellent. If the new BV is as good as the Leicesterstadium, it will be good.

Well, he won two races against the Bugs recently. Mind you, that wasn't too difficult

I have seen three girls taking part in practice sessions at Leicester recently, but they can't slide the bike.

The track was a bit wet but with some work it became quite rideable.

It's expensive enough. I am helping a young man who wants to be a speedway rider. He spent a couple of years saving up for a bike with a 140cc engine (£400) then for a trailer, which is all he can manage. At this point I said that my car has a towing hitch, so I have been taking him up to Scunthorpe to practice (when the weather is OK!). I am a pensioner; not everybody has a rich father.

What, both at once?

Thanks, Glyn; it's not me, of course, but a friend of mine who has a 250cc bike. Are these OK?

As it was in Scunthorpe ... can I ask again, are there going to be regular practice days at Leicester?

Are there going to be regular training sessions at Leicester in the future?

Ben rejoined Plymouth because he wanted more rides than he would get just in the EL. He is so highly regarded in Birmingham that they adjusted the fixture lists to accommodate this! As I said, he won the Bonanza fair and square, beating Harris and Niki P and all the rest to do it. I hope he does avaerage 12 at Plymouth

He won it on merit, beating three Grand Prix riders in the process. He really is that good ... he (and Fisher, who also rode well) is far too good for the Premier League.

That's what I like to see, an optimist ... Vissing, Wright and Barker all rode for Birmingham last year, and Barker was by far the best of them. So was Fisher; that includes better than Masters and Doyle as well.

Understandable that he wanted to leave Leicester. He was fantastic at Birmingham the previous year - what did Leicester do to him?

Duh ... that's what I said, Spin

Barker has said that his EL average is too high for the PL next year, and he will have to concentrate on the EL and continental meetings in 2012.

Phil knows how to pick them! Rob Smith and Tom Young looked pretty useful as well, although I had never heard of them either. Perry and Taylor were surprisingly limp.

He said GB: these are Australians!

No - planning permission is for one day a week only. And there is a 10 pm curfew.