Ipswich ‘Witches’ vs King’s Lynn ‘Stars’ - Monday 5th May

[Steve Irving]

6 hours ago, MP78 said:

I've always tried to be optimistic about speedway in the UK despite the many challenges the sport faces, but after watching Monday's meeting, I felt like I had shelled out almost £30 (took my son and got a programme) and got a very poor spectacle in return.  

For the casual fan who attended because it was a bank holiday meeting, I would not be surprised if the vast majority of them do not return, which is sadly an opportunity lost. 

Yes the diehards will remain and Ipswich are very lucky to have the fan base they do, but if this is the case at other tracks (which I think we know it is), then the sport will continue to rapidly decline.  

I enjoy going to speedway first and foremost for the racing and the thrill of it all... but I also go for the sounds, the smell, and the memories of going as a youngster.  The casual fan won't necessarily have any interest in the sounds, smell and memories, so you have got to hook them in with the racing and the thrill of it.... I just hope that Ipswich's attempt to dominate the sport this year doesn't inadvertently create an inferior product which not only switches off the new/casual fans, but also the existing fans too.  

Speedway supporters in a nutshell. Only in this sport will a team get criticised for building the best team that they possibly can, and a team every supporter of a club up and down the country would absolutely love their club to do likewise. Just look at the comments of supporters of Oxford and Birmingham, they’d give their right arm to have this Ipswich side to watch on a regular basis. Absolutely nuts. 
 

There has ALWAYS been dominant teams in this sport over the years. Ipswich themselves cleaned house in 98 with arguably the greatest club side ever, Cradley dominated back in the day, Swindon had a dominant side in recent years, and Poole had dominant sides for the majority of their top flight stay.
 

This isn’t anything new so why is this coming out now? It just feels like another unnecessary pop at a club this year that was started off by one poster, and has suddenly become the trendy thing to do.

Edited Wednesday at 04:42 PM by Steve Irving

[JoeW436]

6 hours ago, MP78 said:

I've always tried to be optimistic about speedway in the UK despite the many challenges the sport faces, but after watching Monday's meeting, I felt like I had shelled out almost £30 (took my son and got a programme) and got a very poor spectacle in return.  

For the casual fan who attended because it was a bank holiday meeting, I would not be surprised if the vast majority of them do not return, which is sadly an opportunity lost. 

Yes the diehards will remain and Ipswich are very lucky to have the fan base they do, but if this is the case at other tracks (which I think we know it is), then the sport will continue to rapidly decline.  

I enjoy going to speedway first and foremost for the racing and the thrill of it all... but I also go for the sounds, the smell, and the memories of going as a youngster.  The casual fan won't necessarily have any interest in the sounds, smell and memories, so you have got to hook them in with the racing and the thrill of it.... I just hope that Ipswich's attempt to dominate the sport this year doesn't inadvertently create an inferior product which not only switches off the new/casual fans, but also the existing fans too.  

The product has been ‘inferior’ for years and will continue to head that way in this country, it has nothing to do with the strength of the Ipswich side this year. 

[mikebv]

8 hours ago, MP78 said:

I've always tried to be optimistic about speedway in the UK despite the many challenges the sport faces, but after watching Monday's meeting, I felt like I had shelled out almost £30 (took my son and got a programme) and got a very poor spectacle in return.  

For the casual fan who attended because it was a bank holiday meeting, I would not be surprised if the vast majority of them do not return, which is sadly an opportunity lost. 

Yes the diehards will remain and Ipswich are very lucky to have the fan base they do, but if this is the case at other tracks (which I think we know it is), then the sport will continue to rapidly decline.  

I enjoy going to speedway first and foremost for the racing and the thrill of it all... but I also go for the sounds, the smell, and the memories of going as a youngster.  The casual fan won't necessarily have any interest in the sounds, smell and memories, so you have got to hook them in with the racing and the thrill of it.... I just hope that Ipswich's attempt to dominate the sport this year doesn't inadvertently create an inferior product which not only switches off the new/casual fans, but also the existing fans too.  

The Bank Holiday crowds are often "bumper" around the country, however, getting these infrequent visitors to attend even semi regularly for the rest of the season always seems an impossibility...

Maybe that could be due to the lack of promotion done on those days when you know you will get your largest crowds? 

Seems ridiculous that such a "captured market" isn't targeted with offers to repeat more often their "one or two visits a year"...

These people actually know about Speedway so surely far easier to get them to attend more often, using targeted marketing, than attracting "newbies"..?

As for Ipswich's "dream team", sadly it could be the wrong time, wrong place for it...

In 1998, when they had an incredible team, all other tracks also had world class riders in their teams, which meant great racing and reasonably close meetings...

Nowadays it isn't like that and those teams without genuine top talent will be found wanting, and won't be attracting too many of those extra Bank Holiday attendees when these teams turn up to ride away from home.. 

And, as has been seen in the past at some teams, being "too successful" can hurt your own crowds (and has even closed some tracks down), as fans know a play off place is a shoe in many weeks out..

One of the few meetings I will attend this year will be, at least one, of the Ipswich matches at the NSS, as they are clearly the best team in the league..

It's just a shame that the gap from them to the bottom team is so vast, and the way the sport is ran, that bottom team can do nothing more than paper over the cracks, rather than being able to fundamentally try and "start again"...

Maybe after 6 matches ridden each, the top teams average should be used for everyone else to rebuild to it should they wish?

They use a max average to work to at the start of the season, therefore, use a "rolling" one through the season..

After say 6 and then 12 matches completed each you could reset your team to the team with the highest average..

After 12, that's it, you run your last 12 matches with who you have..

For decades, the team(s) cut adrift at the bottom of the league after just a few matches, simply cannot make the required changes due having to replace pretty much like for like..

When, in reality, they really need to bring in much better riders than the ones they started the season with and who have put them so far adrift..

These clubs then see their own crowds dwindle and don't attract crowds away from home, neither being good for the sport as a whole..

Obviously to do this, the seven man teams will need to go to ensure replacements are available, (unless extra "decent talent" wants to ride over here), however, that seven man set up has been in place for decades, during which the sport has hemorrhaged fans, so maybe time for a change? 

 

 

 

Edited Wednesday at 06:19 PM by mikebv

[Hawk127]

Every team has the opportunity to build a competitive band of riders like Ipswich but it takes effort to attract the sponsors and the backing to build the best with a reputation for fairness and paying wages on time.

How many clubs have mismanaged the financial side by under estimating the income, the numbers of supporters, the attractiveness of the product and then give some thought to trying to compete at a level which in reality they can ill afford.
The UK could put together at best three or four teams that could hold their own in the top tier of Polish speedway, the rest are fodder making up the numbers to satisfy a piss poor T V contract and the egos of a few promoters who have never promoted anything in their lives.

if you want to know what promoting is all about then go back to the successful days of Wally Mawdsley, Len Silver, Dave Lanning, Johnnie Hoskins, Ian Thomas, Graham Drury and a good few more whereas today look what you have got, fools and the money which is soon parted and no cohesive response to what is wrong with the sport in this country. Most of those running clubs have heads up their own arses.

You have no real strategy for new talent which is ignored by the majority of hard core supporters who believe the only real fix is league racing whereas many individual meetings at so many levels can offer excellent competitive racing but this is discounted by many and they wonder why you have few prospects making it through the league. 

Until you have a change in the attitude of promoters, the set up and the supporters change of attitude to watching racing that involves all levels the sport in this country is only going one way. Thankfully not all of the European speedway nations are following the UK business model.

[cowboy cookie returns?]

And I see today that Ipswich have attracted another club sponsor in an international freight company. 
 

Louis is clearly doing something right.

[Steve Irving]

28 minutes ago, cowboy cookie returns? said:

And I see today that Ipswich have attracted another club sponsor in an international freight company. 
 

Louis is clearly doing something right.

Indeed. They already had several sponsors on board, but still recruiting more. You see, this is how you run a successful business. They deserve any success that comes their way. 

[MP78]

5 hours ago, Steve Irving said:

Speedway supporters in a nutshell. Only in this sport will a team get criticised for building the best team that they possibly can, and a team every supporter of a club up and down the country would absolutely love their club to do likewise. Just look at the comments of supporters of Oxford and Birmingham, they’d give their right arm to have this Ipswich side to watch on a regular basis. Absolutely nuts. 
 

There has ALWAYS been dominant teams in this sport over the years. Ipswich themselves cleaned house in 98 with arguably the greatest club side ever, Cradley dominated back in the day, Swindon had a dominant side in recent years, and Poole had dominant sides for the majority of their top flight stay.
 

This isn’t anything new so why is this coming out now? It just feels like another unnecessary pop at a club this year that was started off by one poster, and has suddenly become the trendy thing to do.

I’m an Ipswich fan Steve and am thrilled at the side they have… put it down to a bad day and frustration at the track conditions on Monday. I probably should’ve re-read my post before clicking submit. 


 

[KevtheRev]

15 hours ago, Steve Irving said:

Speedway supporters in a nutshell. Only in this sport will a team get criticised for building the best team that they possibly can, and a team every supporter of a club up and down the country would absolutely love their club to do likewise. Just look at the comments of supporters of Oxford and Birmingham, they’d give their right arm to have this Ipswich side to watch on a regular basis. Absolutely nuts. 
 

There has ALWAYS been dominant teams in this sport over the years. Ipswich themselves cleaned house in 98 with arguably the greatest club side ever, Cradley dominated back in the day, Swindon had a dominant side in recent years, and Poole had dominant sides for the majority of their top flight stay.
 

This isn’t anything new so why is this coming out now? It just feels like another unnecessary pop at a club this year that was started off by one poster, and has suddenly become the trendy thing to do.

Unfortunately, that is the way of the world these days.

If your team is not as good as another team, you have to hate them.

There is no middle ground, it's either love or hate.

In the UK we are even more special, we get a home grown talent (in any sport), put them on a pedestal and then spend the rest of their careers trying to knock 'em down.

[mikebaker]

Boughen is a modern day version of Ian Gledhill.

[tyler42]

2 hours ago, mikebaker said:

Boughen is a modern day version of Ian Gledhill.

Thats a bit strong. I don't recall Gladhill shutting the throttle off like Boughen. In actual fact, I have never seen anyone shut off going into the 1st bend like him. It's a pretty dangerous thing to do. As for Gladhill he won the National League Riders Championship, when it was worth winning. So to compare is a little bit unfair.