ArthurRudge Posted Monday at 11:12 AM Report Share Posted Monday at 11:12 AM 17 minutes ago, Bojangles said: And there definitely won't be a future if everybody stops going. But they are doing sweet FA to improve it especially with a 5 team league people will just get bored and won't attend maybe the diehards will but it won't attract new supporters and essentially could prove financial suicide 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ouch Posted Monday at 11:32 AM Report Share Posted Monday at 11:32 AM 19 minutes ago, ArthurRudge said: But they are doing sweet FA to improve it especially with a 5 team league people will just get bored and won't attend maybe the diehards will but it won't attract new supporters and essentially could prove financial suicide So because Oxford & Birmingham aren’t visiting fans won’t attend the meetings when say, Leicester or Sheffield do? I find that odd. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WookieboyDon Posted Monday at 12:03 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 12:03 PM 2 hours ago, ArthurRudge said: How can anyone be getting excited for a 5 team league is beyond me That's the spirit... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilTheAce Posted Monday at 12:29 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 12:29 PM 2 hours ago, ArthurRudge said: How can anyone be getting excited for a 5 team league is beyond me no ones excited, we are just thankful that we have some speedway for this year only, ignore this one league business because it was never going to happen, we was never going to be accepted so late. also you and i both know that one year away till they sort out 2027 never happens, one year away almost certainly means more years away and sometimes never return, keeping speedway going at any form was necessary for the top clubs 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glen Posted Monday at 12:44 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 12:44 PM 12 minutes ago, PhilTheAce said: no ones excited, we are just thankful that we have some speedway for this year only, ignore this one league business because it was never going to happen, we was never going to be accepted so late. also you and i both know that one year away till they sort out 2027 never happens, one year away almost certainly means more years away and sometimes never return, keeping speedway going at any form was necessary for the top clubs Does the 2 league rule apply in 2027 if you ride in Poland? If so how will UK compete if Sweden and Denmark attract the best riders, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilTheAce Posted Monday at 12:45 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 12:45 PM Just now, Glen said: Does the 2 league rule apply in 2027 if you ride in Poland? If so how will UK compete if Sweden and Denmark attract the best riders, thats the million dollar question. they have plenty of time to sort a solution Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikebv Posted Monday at 12:47 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 12:47 PM 2 hours ago, Baldyman said: I don't think there is that many excited, but just glad they still have speedway to watch. 2027 is where I'm sure it will all dramatically have to change due to Polands alleged one team rule change If the one extra league, ex Poland, comes in then it could mean a seismic change for UK Speedway.. The Danes, Swedes, Germans, French, et al, would, presumably, ride in their own leagues plus Poland, (and maybe get forced to as part of their licence?), with only those without a Polish contract opting to ride where the most money will be gained from the other leagues.. With the obvious added concern being they drop whatever nation like a stone if Poland come knocking during the season... Sweden and Denmark, plus the UK, will all be vying for those "mid level" riders, who make uo the majority of riders, therefore, doubling up, like so many of these riders do, could actually put the UK ahead of the other two "main leagues"?... They would certainly get more meetings... The worst case scenario of course is that all the European and Aussie riders riding in Poland give the UK a miss as either Sweden or Denmark have offered them more, and provide better logistics... Not a bad place for these riders to be in from a bargaining position next year I would suggest. Those running the sport in the UK really need to come to the party when it comes to their vision, strategy and ambition for the sport... Finally.... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tinker Posted Monday at 01:00 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 01:00 PM 2 hours ago, Bojangles said: And there definitely won't be a future if everybody stops going. They need to keep on going and stop all the incessant moaning. 😉 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hawk127 Posted Monday at 01:26 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 01:26 PM Almost every contributor on here can see the problems looming for the sport but those in charge of its destiny are not doing too much to keep the fan base onside and give some ideas as to how things might change. An announcement following the AGM then radio silence. No provisional fixture list, no details of the new competition, no more news about the mystery 6th club and none of this can help riders, sponsors etc. plan for the coming season and it must have a negative impact on season ticket sales. With the lack of clarity is any wonder some supporters are disillusioned with the sport and riders have opted to ply their trade elsewhere. You would have thought that some press releases would have been forthcoming even it was only to update of progress or otherwise of changes which may at least placate some of the doubters. The BSPL really have not got a clue when it comes to taking care of the fan base. If they are unsure as to what to do might I suggest they take a look at Poland, Sweden and Denmark all of whom are way ahead of the UK. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YeOldPitGate Posted Monday at 01:52 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 01:52 PM 1 hour ago, PhilTheAce said: thats the million dollar question. they have plenty of time to sort a solution But as we know Phil the issue is the powers that be need to be getting on a plan to cope with it ideally now. In the perfect world two leagues of 8 with the top league being championship light standard I think doubling up would have to stay in some form say for the bottom 3-4 riders to make it pay for the UK based riders. What mustn't happen but probably will is keeping the old fingers crossed the Poles don't go through with the one other league ruling and planning that all will be okay and its same as usual then finding out in mid Jan they aren't rolling it back and its the usual panic stations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YeOldPitGate Posted Monday at 01:55 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 01:55 PM 1 hour ago, mikebv said: If the one extra league, ex Poland, comes in then it could mean a seismic change for UK Speedway.. The Danes, Swedes, Germans, French, et al, would, presumably, ride in their own leagues plus Poland, (and maybe get forced to as part of their licence?), with only those without a Polish contract opting to ride where the most money will be gained from the other leagues.. With the obvious added concern being they drop whatever nation like a stone if Poland come knocking during the season... Sweden and Denmark, plus the UK, will all be vying for those "mid level" riders, who make uo the majority of riders, therefore, doubling up, like so many of these riders do, could actually put the UK ahead of the other two "main leagues"?... They would certainly get more meetings... The worst case scenario of course is that all the European and Aussie riders riding in Poland give the UK a miss as either Sweden or Denmark have offered them more, and provide better logistics... Not a bad place for these riders to be in from a bargaining position next year I would suggest. Those running the sport in the UK really need to come to the party when it comes to their vision, strategy and ambition for the sport... Finally.... I think they need to plan on 90% minimum of danes, poles and Swedes exiting UK completely in 2027 Phil we need to try and somehow get more UK riders interested/back and hopefully we can find a way to get most of the Aussie youngsters over and the odd one or two young yanks also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1 valve Posted Monday at 02:14 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 02:14 PM 2 hours ago, ArthurRudge said: But they are doing sweet FA to improve it especially with a 5 team league people will just get bored and won't attend maybe the diehards will but it won't attract new supporters and essentially could prove financial suicide Who do you actually mean by "they"? It surely cant' be the promoters of the five clubs who have committed to a top flight division. So are you referring to the "I'm all right jack" group of promoters in charge of championship clubs? If its the directors of BSPL then they are representatives from the two leagues where the majority appear not wanting to take part, or not wishing to develop a league of elite riders. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikebv Posted Monday at 03:11 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 03:11 PM 1 hour ago, Hawk127 said: Almost every contributor on here can see the problems looming for the sport but those in charge of its destiny are not doing too much to keep the fan base onside and give some ideas as to how things might change. An announcement following the AGM then radio silence. No provisional fixture list, no details of the new competition, no more news about the mystery 6th club and none of this can help riders, sponsors etc. plan for the coming season and it must have a negative impact on season ticket sales. With the lack of clarity is any wonder some supporters are disillusioned with the sport and riders have opted to ply their trade elsewhere. You would have thought that some press releases would have been forthcoming even it was only to update of progress or otherwise of changes which may at least placate some of the doubters. The BSPL really have not got a clue when it comes to taking care of the fan base. If they are unsure as to what to do might I suggest they take a look at Poland, Sweden and Denmark all of whom are way ahead of the UK. In the current Speedway Star, Bomber is quite critical of the way the sport has been allowed to drift into the situation it now finds itself in... He said the demise of Birmingham and the non running of Oxford was known "halfway through last season" and they should have sorted the current issues out well before now, instead of "leaving it to the last minute, again"... "It's frustrating, I have said to a lot of people how grown men can't just sit in a room and sort it out once and for all. It's beyond me why it's taken this long. The powers that be knew we were in trouble"...... Still no fixture lists exist? Still no conformation of what competitions will take place? How do fans plan time off work to follow their team? How do riders inform sponsors of what coverage they will get? Incredible really isn't it? 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YeOldPitGate Posted Monday at 03:29 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 03:29 PM 15 minutes ago, mikebv said: In the current Speedway Star, Bomber is quite critical of the way the sport has been allowed to drift into the situation it now finds itself in... He said the demise of Birmingham and the non running of Oxford was known "halfway through last season" and they should have sorted the current issues out well before now, instead of "leaving it to the last minute, again"... "It's frustrating, I have said to a lot of people how grown men can't just sit in a room and sort it out once and for all. It's beyond me why it's taken this long. The powers that be knew we were in trouble"...... Still no fixture lists exist? Still no conformation of what competitions will take place? How do fans plan time off work to follow their team? How do riders inform sponsors of what coverage they will get? Incredible really isn't it? It is bonkers on the one hand you have to give credit that they are prepared to stump up and loose money to keep the tracks going in some cases serious sum's are burned through but equally you think as you highlight you could not decide to deal yourself a worse set of cards if you tried to make your product as unattractive to fans and sponsors alike as has been the case this year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TB1 Posted Monday at 04:09 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 04:09 PM 3 hours ago, PhilTheAce said: no ones excited, we are just thankful that we have some speedway for this year only, ignore this one league business because it was never going to happen, we was never going to be accepted so late. also you and i both know that one year away till they sort out 2027 never happens, one year away almost certainly means more years away and sometimes never return, keeping speedway going at any form was necessary for the top clubs Unfortunately when the patient is given extra morphine dose after dose we all know what the outcome will be! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TB1 Posted Monday at 04:12 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 04:12 PM 59 minutes ago, mikebv said: In the current Speedway Star, Bomber is quite critical of the way the sport has been allowed to drift into the situation it now finds itself in... He said the demise of Birmingham and the non running of Oxford was known "halfway through last season" and they should have sorted the current issues out well before now, instead of "leaving it to the last minute, again"... "It's frustrating, I have said to a lot of people how grown men can't just sit in a room and sort it out once and for all. It's beyond me why it's taken this long. The powers that be knew we were in trouble"...... Still no fixture lists exist? Still no conformation of what competitions will take place? How do fans plan time off work to follow their team? How do riders inform sponsors of what coverage they will get? Incredible really isn't it? Unfortunately the malaise the sport finds itself is because riders like bomber have kept their cash register ringing twice over rather than once! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikebv Posted Monday at 04:29 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 04:29 PM 6 minutes ago, TB1 said: Unfortunately the malaise the sport finds itself is because riders like bomber have kept their cash register ringing twice over rather than once! Maybe... However... The Promoters didn't develop enough riders over the past two decades to fill their teams without the DU riders becoming essential... What first started as "young lads" getting a chance to move up a league to develop their skills against a higher level of riders, whilst still having their "other job" to fall bsck on, instead, became the "main stay" of the UK version of the sport, and a "free for all"... Take the DU's away and both leagues wouldn't fill the 14 teams left without using many NDL level riders... The Championship in particular would struggle given these riders make up the majority of their HL's, and, the top tier effectively subsidise the riders salaries so the riders are "affordable"... A typical short sighted unfit for purpose "fix" which each year got bigger and more essential, rather than it ever being reset, and used for what it was initially set up for... 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TB1 Posted Monday at 04:56 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 04:56 PM 24 minutes ago, mikebv said: Maybe... However... The Promoters didn't develop enough riders over the past two decades to fill their teams without the DU riders becoming essential... What first started as "young lads" getting a chance to move up a league to develop their skills against a higher level of riders, whilst still having their "other job" to fall bsck on, instead, became the "main stay" of the UK version of the sport, and a "free for all"... Take the DU's away and both leagues wouldn't fill the 14 teams left without using many NDL level riders... The Championship in particular would struggle given these riders make up the majority of their HL's, and, the top tier effectively subsidise the riders salaries so the riders are "affordable"... A typical short sighted unfit for purpose "fix" which each year got bigger and more essential, rather than it ever being reset, and used for what it was initially set up for... With costs being a major factor in so many young riders quitting whatever happened ( if anyone can remember) to the Suzuki engine experiment that happened at Sheffield? I seem to remember that most of the engines packed up before the end of the meeting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dontforgetthefueltapsbruv Posted Monday at 06:02 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 06:02 PM 2 hours ago, mikebv said: In the current Speedway Star, Bomber is quite critical of the way the sport has been allowed to drift into the situation it now finds itself in... He said the demise of Birmingham and the non running of Oxford was known "halfway through last season" and they should have sorted the current issues out well before now, instead of "leaving it to the last minute, again"... "It's frustrating, I have said to a lot of people how grown men can't just sit in a room and sort it out once and for all. It's beyond me why it's taken this long. The powers that be knew we were in trouble"...... Still no fixture lists exist? Still no conformation of what competitions will take place? How do fans plan time off work to follow their team? How do riders inform sponsors of what coverage they will get? Incredible really isn't it? Quite ironic given that he has probably been one of the biggest beneficiaries of 'how the sport has been allowed to drift' 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikebv Posted Monday at 06:03 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 06:03 PM 56 minutes ago, TB1 said: With costs being a major factor in so many young riders quitting whatever happened ( if anyone can remember) to the Suzuki engine experiment that happened at Sheffield? I seem to remember that most of the engines packed up before the end of the meeting. They were, I think, Honda engines... Mick Grant and Eric Boocock were behind it... I remember seeing an interview a few years later where the engines themselves, according to those who were involved, were said to have had "potential" but needed more testing... But the experiment was dropped... Ebikes cannot be too far away from being "compulsory" you can imagine.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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