2026 Premiership is Go! - At least 5 teams

[Kieran22222]

3 hours ago, ouch said:

A the NSS we get a race followed by the cool down lap with wheelies, celebration etc. Then the race finishing order is announced both on the tannoy and big screen. Replays come up on the big screen then the two minutes are announced and the riders come out. During the four grading breaks we then have more on the big screen plus interviews and Chase doing his thing. The only addition to all this is the kids game and 50/50 draw at the interval. It would need a big smash or the weather to turn bad for this schedule to elongate. I’m happy with this to be honest and the only addition I’d make would be the introduction of an app giving more meat on the bones about the meeting and to provide more interaction, oh and a meat raffle. 

What would you be looking for in an app out of curiosity?

[Kieran22222]

2 hours ago, SPEEDY69 said:

That would be a great addition.  Transponder feedback by lap per rider etc. could also be added - access to other meetings' data going on on the same night would also be useful.  Predictions for races/times etc. and prizes/shoutouts for winners, online interview quotes from riders/others involved in the meeting.  Technology is what youngsters thrive on. 

 

2 hours ago, foreverblue said:

Yea I agree an app would be a good addition and tickets could be sold and accessed for stadium entry by the app. There is a lot the app could be used for and it would be good for getting younger people involved and telling fans what exactly is happening at the meeting, sometimes we seem to be kept in the dark. 

 

Again like I said above, what were you thinking could be included out of curiosity?

[DaveWayne]

2 hours ago, Bagpuss said:

Never mind the riders, its not nice for punters to park and walk on!

Unfortunately its the one part of the stadium not owned by Buster but instead the council, and neither party is willing to resurface it.

You should try working on a car in there on a cold wet night !!

[SPEEDY69]

51 minutes ago, Kieran22222 said:

 

Again like I said above, what were you thinking could be included out of curiosity?

Erm, I mentioned lots of things which I don't need to repeat.

[Kieran22222]

21 minutes ago, SPEEDY69 said:

Erm, I mentioned lots of things which I don't need to repeat.

Sorry accidentally quoted both comments before I read yours

[Fromafar]

1 hour ago, YeOldPitGate said:

Has anyone seen Harry around London kicking the doors in of big business searching for sponsors ?

You will find him at most racecourses these days backing his horses. to get funds for British Speedway no doubt.🤔👍

we must keep or fingers crossed that The Jukebox Man wins the Cheltenham Gold Cup for Harry’s donation to Speedway.👍😂

 

[Hamish McRaker]

7 hours ago, Ben91 said:

Fans have always had an issue with their riders representing other clubs. The main issue of course is perhaps due to them potentially getting injured, doesn't diminish the fact though. The disconnect I'm talking about isn't the "Oh so and so used to come into the bar after meetings." It is simply being able to get behind a rider who represents your team and your team alone. It creates an identity. 

Riders should be allowed to carry on. But they should do so at one level. The level they are capable of performing at. The doubling up free for all (helped by the relaxing of the average conversion rate) dragged the standard of the top two leagues closer together because so many of the riders are shared. Those riders taking second tier spots has absolutely stood in the way of youngsters coming through. Maybe not directly but that is a consequence of the rule change. It has been squeezing the air out of development for almost two decades now and we're at a breaking point.

The sad thing is that those riders now having an easy life also had a more defined path to the top as the gulf from Conference to Premier to Elite was a less abrupt one than the pathetic excuse we have for a third tier into the Championship as it is now.

We now have a weaker top tier than we did 20 years ago but a much stronger second tier. That is a fact shown by there being Championship heatleaders who are also heatleaders in the Premiership. To use one of your old riders as an example, Tomas Topinka was an incredible second tier number one in the mid 2000s. He wouldn't have been anywhere near a heatleader berth in the Elite League at that time though. And if you wanted to watch Topinka you had to be at a Kings Lynn meeting.

Even now Scott Nicholls is a shining example of the way it should be. He has one team at the level his ability allows him to race at and still be competitive. 

The raw product draws fans in. Once you fall in love with that it is the bureaucracy and stupid convoluted rules that is a turn off, not the state of a stadium or what music is being played between the heats. I'm not saying these aren't issues, they are but the real issues come from the way the sport is run. There are some stadiums in Poland that are falling apart, they play the YMCA three times a meeting but the places are still banged out to the rafters. Yes, the standard of riders may be better but the real difference is that they don't deal in half the BS we do here. 

Wasn't it Nicholls, who was a key figure in loosening restrictions on doubling-down?

I could be wrong and memory isnt clear, but seem to recall he either started legal action or maybe threatened to persue it? 

[ouch]

2 hours ago, Kieran22222 said:

What would you be looking for in an app out of curiosity?

Must admit it’s not really aimed at me as I’m happy with my programme and chatting to people nearby. 

Top of my head would be…..

Stats. Home, away, overall, performance at a particular track.

News, both local and international for our team of riders. 

Fixtures and tickets. 

League table. 

Race info. Transponder info, passing inc passing after B3 L1, match ups - past and present. 

Predict the result. Meeting, race, individual scores. 

Gate performance info. 

Replays on demand. 

Votes for ref decisions, best rider and other fun categories. 

50/50 raffle available via the app.

Car share/coach information for away trips.

Ultra local weather forecasts with track webcam footage leading up to tapes up. 

Pre meeting interviews. 

Rider colouring pages for young and old. 
 

Some kind of speedway themed game, addictive if possible.

Meat raffle. 

[Ben91]

1 minute ago, Hamish McRaker said:

Wasn't it Nicholls, who was a key figure in loosening restrictions on doubling-down?

I could be wrong and memory isnt clear, but seem to recall he either started legal action or maybe threatened to persue it? 

I do recall hearing similar. However he is currently only signed up for one club. With seemingly no TV deal on the horizon that could all change and throw my example under the bus but for now his situation is an example of how things should be in my eyes. 

[Hamish McRaker]

57 minutes ago, Ben91 said:

I do recall hearing similar. However he is currently only signed up for one club. With seemingly no TV deal on the horizon that could all change and throw my example under the bus but for now his situation is an example of how things should be in my eyes. 

Could be, but maybe he's now riding mainly for the love of it, doesnt need the additional work except occasional guest bookings, and he is getting on a bit in years now! Someone like Chris Harris is still squeezing the lemon till the pips squeak, and maybe Nicholls would do likewise if he needed to!

[1 valve]

7 hours ago, Fortythirtyeight said:

No, problem….this is personal knowledge….and the best example of quite a few.

Redcar v Glasgow 2018 , not completed by heat 10 due to a major crash meaning meeting could no longer continue. Decision by Vatcher that evening having consulted with the ref ( McGregor ) and both sets of promoters that the RULE says to be RERUN .

Two days later in a press release…..match awarded ( to Glasgow who were leading at the time ).

The reason why THE RULE wasn’t followed ?…..

We all know why !

and our promoter at the time, Kev Kay , told the fans that as he threatened the BSPA with legal action of not following their own rule book.

One reason why new promoters get frustrated and leave the sport as you can’t beat the ‘establishment’ and their ways.

The Top Table have always looked after themselves first.

"The top table" (the Directors) decisions are an irrelevance if the majority of shareholders disagree with what has been decided by the board albeit, shareholders who consistently challenge the board tend to make the position of the Directors somewhat untenable which could leave the company within breach of their constitution.
Worth noting that since 2018 there have been a number of changes to the board members which sort of challenges the concept that the "top table" is the same group of folk "looking after themselves first".

Incidentally, personally I do not have a lot of time for the collective assembly of promoters called the BSPL. This is mainly because of how the majority of them care only for their own enterprise and have little or insufficient vision and or means of meeting costs associated with a national sport. Think small, remain small appears to be their mantra.  
Looking ahead, speedway in the UK will during the course of the next 3-5 years go one of two ways.
1. A continued bumbling decline to a point where it will crumble into oblivion - along with the tardy stadiums.
or
2. The money men will see the opportunity and having bought the sport will form a professional elite competition with no more than eight full time clubs involved.
Whatever the outcome, the majority of todays promoters will be out of the professional game. 
  
 

[1 valve]

8 hours ago, mikebv said:

Spot on...

They have basically tied themselves up in knots by using short term fix after short term fix, rather than having any vision, strategy and ambition for the sport..

That lack of an independent, no vested interest, voice clearly being missed...

They needed (still need), saving from themselves, as they lurch from sticking plaster to sticking plaster to cover major (self inflicted), wounds..

So many well meaning, passionate about the sport hobbyists, being in charge of, and self policing, a national professional sport, with so many widely different needs and wants from the team owners, can never work successfully...

Hence it hasn't, and we are where we are..

Is it too late now?

It is if nothing radical changes, and quickly...

By "They" I presume you mean the promoters rather than the riders. 
If so, in addition to a lack of vision, strategy and ambition there needs to be added, MONEY or more precisely lack of money. 
Whilst recognising that apparently some promoters operate at a loss, the amounts involved are actually tiny in comparison to what levels of investment UK speedway really  needs. 
Of course there are some individual owners who most probably do have the right levels of money required, but given the position/ability of the majority of their fellow promoters wisely decide to keep their hands in their pockets rather than deal with futile hopes.   

Edited Wednesday at 06:05 PM by 1 valve

[mikebv]

51 minutes ago, 1 valve said:

By "They" I presume you mean the promoters rather than the riders. 
If so, in addition to a lack of vision, strategy and ambition there needs to be added, MONEY or more precisely lack of money. 
Whilst recognising that apparently some promoters operate at a loss, the amounts involved are actually tiny in comparison to what levels of investment UK speedway really  needs. 
Of course there are some individual owners who most probably do have the right levels of money required, but given the position/ability of the majority of their fellow promoters wisely decide to keep their hands in their pockets rather than deal with futile hopes.   

But there has though been a huge amount of money spent over the past two decades of decline..

The largest issue has been how it has been spent..

In fact, every season, around a couple of million will be spent on all the riders who, with all due respect, wouldn't be recognised even if they rode their bikes stark naked through their local town centres.. 

There should have been, and still needs to be, a significant marketing and advertising budget to bring the sport into the vision and awareness of a populace with almost zero knowledge of the sport..

If that means "lesser riders" used to free up this money for a couple or three years, then so be it, as these riders will resonate initially as equally as the "top stars" to anyone that a national strong marketing campaign attracts...

With competitive meetings that have relevance and resonance being the objective above who actually is riding in them..

It certainly isn't a lack of money spent that has held the sport back over the past good many years...

 

[Fortythirtyeight]

2 hours ago, 1 valve said:

"The top table" (the Directors) decisions are an irrelevance if the majority of shareholders disagree with what has been decided by the board albeit, shareholders who consistently challenge the board tend to make the position of the Directors somewhat untenable which could leave the company within breach of their constitution.
Worth noting that since 2018 there have been a number of changes to the board members which sort of challenges the concept that the "top table" is the same group of folk "looking after themselves first".

Incidentally, personally I do not have a lot of time for the collective assembly of promoters called the BSPL. This is mainly because of how the majority of them care only for their own enterprise and have little or insufficient vision and or means of meeting costs associated with a national sport. Think small, remain small appears to be their mantra.  
Looking ahead, speedway in the UK will during the course of the next 3-5 years go one of two ways.
1. A continued bumbling decline to a point where it will crumble into oblivion - along with the tardy stadiums.
or
2. The money men will see the opportunity and having bought the sport will form a professional elite competition with no more than eight full time clubs involved.
Whatever the outcome, the majority of todays promoters will be out of the professional game. 
  
 

Two of those who were involved in ‘bending ,manipulating and actually breaking the rules are still on the top table and, at that time, for their own benefit.

They still wield the power.

[Hamish McRaker]

2 hours ago, mikebv said:

But there has though been a huge amount of money spent over the past two decades of decline..

The largest issue has been how it has been spent..

In fact, every season, around a couple of million will be spent on all the riders who, with all due respect, wouldn't be recognised even if they rode their bikes stark naked through their local town centres.. 

There should have been, and still needs to be, a significant marketing and advertising budget to bring the sport into the vision and awareness of a populace with almost zero knowledge of the sport..

If that means "lesser riders" used to free up this money for a couple or three years, then so be it, as these riders will resonate initially as equally as the "top stars" to anyone that a national strong marketing campaign attracts...

With competitive meetings that have relevance and resonance being the objective above who actually is riding in them..

It certainly isn't a lack of money spent that has held the sport back over the past good many years...

 

Yes, a topless calender, that's what is needed! 12 promoters as youve never seen them before (when sober). Fire-up the Grok!

[mikebv]

14 minutes ago, Hamish McRaker said:

Yes, a topless calender, that's what is needed! 12 promoters as youve never seen them before (when sober). Fire-up the Grok!

Even Musk would ban it!!!

[IainB]

5 minutes ago, mikebv said:

Even Musk would ban it!!!

I can imagine dreamboat Phil would be well up for it 😂

[mikebv]

1 hour ago, IainB said:

I can imagine dreamboat Phil would be well up for it 😂

Mr January to December....

[Daniel Smith]

6 hours ago, ouch said:

Must admit it’s not really aimed at me as I’m happy with my programme and chatting to people nearby. 

Top of my head would be…..

Stats. Home, away, overall, performance at a particular track.

News, both local and international for our team of riders. 

Fixtures and tickets. 

League table. 

Race info. Transponder info, passing inc passing after B3 L1, match ups - past and present. 

Predict the result. Meeting, race, individual scores. 

Gate performance info. 

Replays on demand. 

Votes for ref decisions, best rider and other fun categories. 

50/50 raffle available via the app.

Car share/coach information for away trips.

Ultra local weather forecasts with track webcam footage leading up to tapes up. 

Pre meeting interviews. 

Rider colouring pages for young and old. 
 

Some kind of speedway themed game, addictive if possible.

Meat raffle. 

I'm heading towards my 50s and I'd love all that. Youth today are addicted to every day statistics. Gaming, sport, fashion, music etc are all statistic driven. Many under 30s are guided by statistics over 'the eye test'. Even falsified stats today are believed by a lot, governments knowingly issue false statistics on a regular basis. TV ads knowingly display false statistics. How many products do you see with "Voted No1 by the general public."

It's another thing the Promoters Association are terrible at, hoodwinking the public. That old saying "Speculate to Accumulate" still rings true today, but in a different way. Just use Statistics. 

"British Speedway, Watch by 30 Million People Around the World."

The public don't need to know that that's since 1932 🤫

 

[mikebv]

9 hours ago, Daniel Smith said:

I'm heading towards my 50s and I'd love all that. Youth today are addicted to every day statistics. Gaming, sport, fashion, music etc are all statistic driven. Many under 30s are guided by statistics over 'the eye test'. Even falsified stats today are believed by a lot, governments knowingly issue false statistics on a regular basis. TV ads knowingly display false statistics. How many products do you see with "Voted No1 by the general public."

It's another thing the Promoters Association are terrible at, hoodwinking the public. That old saying "Speculate to Accumulate" still rings true today, but in a different way. Just use Statistics. 

"British Speedway, Watch by 30 Million People Around the World."

The public don't need to know that that's since 1932 🤫

 

It isn't difficult to "talk yourself up" is it....

"Speedway riders in the UK can earn millions each season"..

(You don't have to say its as a collective)..

"British Speedway is Booming! With hundreds of thousands of fans attending Speedway meetings last year"..

(Again, collective numbers)..

"Record numbers attend the National Speedway Stadium to see the Worlds Best!"

(Collectively over two nights, but it doesn't matter)..

"British Speedway amazingly only used 198 Guests in 2025"..

(Alright, maybe we'll give that one a miss)..