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THEY don't want TV ... believe it affects their attendances. Utter nonsense. Neither BT nor SKY are desperate to cover domestic speedway and if the door were to close it is hard to see it opening again.

Minutes silence for the Chatzone / Chatroom. Wonderful service run by ML and Dekker and a sad loss. Definitely enjoyed the banter there during a magnificent run, and all the texting from Monarchs fans up and down the country. Have a graceful retirement Caroline, and a few beaujolais

CAN think of countless reasons why crowds have gone down, notably lack of regular fixtures, never quite sure who will be riding for your team on any given day, lack of promotion, but don't see TV as one of them.

A team competition implies a certain strength-of-depth, otherwise why not just have 1-rider teams to allow more countries to be competitive? There's really only 9 test playing countries, but no-one suggests turning that sport's premier competition into single wicket cricket to make things more competitive. This best pairs competition just shows a complete lack of imagination and devalues one of the better events in the calendar. There's nothing new or unique about it whatsoever, and whilst it might be tolerable if it alternated with the SWC (as originally indicated), now it seems that it's actually intended to replace the SWC.

It won’t happen but this would be good to watch Bartorsz Zmarzlik Emil Sayfutdinov Tai Woffinden Shamek Pawlicki Piotr Pawlicki Andzej Lebedevs Vaclav Milik

Think that we need to research that a bit. How about you avoiding the thread for 10 months and we'll see if it survives

I think you are absolutely right. But if I were in some promoters shoes, with my own money on the line i would FEEL quite a bit different and I would be 'bitching' like mad i would imagine. The prospect of running many meetings on (say) graveyard-Monday against TV Speedway elsewhere or (worse still) at my track with no adequate guaranteed compensation if it is unprofitable would give me the real colly wobbles. And all the (correct) talk of the greater good, sponsorship opportunities etc etc would do very little to ease my night's sleep. But then I am not a Promoter. And nor are most of those here who are deriding those poor buggers (whose gonads are on the line) who have misgivings.

Now it’s all about balance on here now let’s be honest here do we want a rose tinted glasses views were everything KL speedway is all glossy and everyone is happy obviously we want everyone happy in th ideal world but this is speedway - or do we want an alternative view were truth sometimes hurts ? some like the rose tinted glasses version were all dirt is swept under a very large carpet - or we all say it as we see it -it may not be what some on here want to hear but it’s an alternative view not necessarily a moan . Let’s be clear we all have speedway at Kings Lynn in our hearts but I for one won’t be taken for a mug no matter how much I love the club .

you should be

Part of the trouble with football is that the small countries have far too much power within FIFA.That is why we are where we are and have so much trouble and corruption in that sport at world level. Now we have it from Phil that a similar situation is occurring in speedway.Well it is no surprise.We have a similar situation.We have someone from a small speedway country running the sport and seemingly bowing to similar countries.Italy have no chance of getting far in the SWC and lets be fair this competition hasn't changed their prospects much if at all.Look at the other countries of a similar level and it is the same.But what they have done is out of some selfishness and delusion,spoilt one of the best competitions the sport still had.

They need to move it back a lap to give Poole riders a chance of winning a race!

Are you and jenga in competition with each other?

Or in other words....it’s all a load of bollocks.

1972 was my 1st season Mauger was a God.The Belle vue team of that year was I m o the best I have seen to date only lost 2 and drew 1 away all season.What an introduction to the sport I was hooked then and still am today.45 season later and in my mind 1972 has never been bettered the memories of that season will be with me for the rest of my life.

Ok, so what about printing attendance figures for each match and then comparing them with when tv is in attendance. That would prove or disprove that theory straight away.

To me it's pretty simple, balance means that when good things happen people praise the club and when bad things occur they get criticised. Trouble is the same criticisms have been raked up on dozens of occasions over the winter whereas the last two Friday announcements have hardly been mentioned, that is an imbalance. The comments about poor racing, late starting and finishing, too much grading etc are all perfectly valid but if anybody from the club was going to read them they would have done by now. With a new promoter on board the next step is to see what the first two or three meetings bring in terms of VFM (and there is extra pressure on the club with a £1 increase) and if it's not good then fair enough, get stuck in as it will be deserved criticism. February and March is the time when excitement is meant to rise and people are looking forward to the first meeting and seeing new (and old) faces representing the club, would be nice to see a bit of this while being mindful that there is plenty of work to do for the club to get people back on board and feeling satisfied again. That is balance.

Looking at the drawings for the revised scheme for the redevelopment of the Abbey Stadium on the council web site I would comment as follows It does not help that some of the descriptions of the drawings/documents do not match the actual drawings/documents which suggests a less than professional approach or a rushed and unchecked submission. This is further reinforced by the fact that there are two different car park layouts/size and shape of grandstand shown on different drawings- the one on the master plan dated May 2017 is different from that on the site plan dated December 2017. I would have expected that the relevant consultant would revised the drawings so that everyone is singing off the same hymn sheet and the planners know what they are approving, the builder knows what he is building and the developer knows what he is paying for. Whilst the first floor hospitality area is large (approx. 37.5m x 19.5m) I would question how useful it will be for speedway or greyhound fans who want to watch the racing. The floor is flat and the two projecting wings at either end of the viewing balcony limit the amount of the speedway/greyhound track that can be seen and anybody viewing the racing from the balcony will further restrict the view of fans in the hospitality area. I assume that its main function will be to generate monies from conferences/functions etc There are two stands shown at either end of the main “grandstand” building 11m x 10m and 25m x 10m but the submitted drawings gave no further details. Judging by the perspectives of the grandstand posted on this forum these stand appear to be temporary stands similar to those at Leicester but with no cover! Other than these stands and the first floor viewing balcony fans will have to stand on the hardstand which runs round the outside of the greyhound track but as there no site sections are included in the submitted documents it is impossible to say if the hardstand is flat, sloping or terraced so viewing could be a problem -remember the complains about the viewing at the Belle Vue Greyhound Stadium There are two rooms at either end of the viewing balcony which are I assume control rooms for the speedway and greyhounds. The one at the east end is approx 4m back from the first bend and the one at the west end is in line with the end of the fourth bend. The drawings state that the length of the new track is 420m and the home straight measures some 38m and if we assume that the start/finish is half way along the straight then the east box is some 12m in start of the start/finish line whilst the west one is some 26m behind the start/finish line. This could be a problem as some refs have trouble making the correct decision when they are in the traditional location in line with the start/finish line. Also the ref’s boxes are accessed from the main public stairs so I trust the doors are strong and have good locks. The site plan show a total of 469 car parking spaces plus space for 24 motor cycles, 5 spaces for mini buses, 3 spaces for coaches plus a bus stop/lay-by. I understand from the last season eve of season Speedway Star special that the Abbey Stadium is not served by public transport. It is some years since I saw 8 buses or coaches at a speedway meeting so the number of spaces for buses/coaches does appear to be excessive or maybe they are required to encourage people to get to the stadium by other means than car as required by the transport plan for the previous scheme. The buses/coaches appear to have a separate one way exit route from that used by cars but all exit routes join together and exit onto Lady Lane. This may be a problem when a large crowd tried to exit at the same time. There appears to be no access from the ground floor reception area to the main spectator area without using the stairs/platform lift so I assume that the public access to the spectator area is via turnstiles either side of the “grandstand” but the submitted drawings do not give any information. Also the riders have to cross the hard standing to access the track so measures will have to be taken to prevent riders riding into spectators. Considering that the reason for the decision to redevelop the current site of the stadium rather than move the stadium is due to problems with drainage it does seem strange that it appears that the relevant consultants have not discussed or reached agreement with the relevant statuary authorities which has resulted in the Lead Local Flood Authority recommending that the scheme not approved as it does not comply with current guidance or there is outstanding information. Although it is not part of the planning application the question that does need asking is when the developer /contractor hopes to build the development. The scheme involves changing the size and shape of the speedway and greyhound tracks, building two car parking areas and associated access road and junctions, demolishing the existing grandstand and erecting new grandstand and if the speedway/greyhound racing continues during the construction period ensuring the safety of the public who will be attending the speedway and greyhound.

Presumably the refs box will have to be moved as well then? Unless we go down the route of Wimbledon and Leicester (Blackbird Road) where the refs box wasnt in line with the tapes?

fully agree - usual story though why complain if anyone doesn't like it then simply don't go .

For me, that's one of the massive negatives of the pairs format compared to the SWC fours format. When I'm watching team speedway, I'm supporting a team. In the SWC I watch my team race in every heat. In the pairs they will appear 6 times in the 21 races. So I have 15 races where there isn't direct interest or someone for me to support.

a happy motivated matt williamsan will be a decent reserve and if he gets to grips with the track he will gain confidence and improve his average

Thanks but we should be fine this year, it just needs to be kept topped up, and Red shale is not cheap.

The ones top left are almost in the pits, they could sell teas in the interval from their kitchen.

So close to walking away from Speedway its just a joke they wouldn't know a good thing if it hit them in the face.

I'm sure if something positive happens that adds to my experience of being a Stars fan I more than some do shout loudly. This winter from the club they've added nothing that I should get excited about. I feel the team is poor, training announcements irrelevant, link up with UEA that'll have no bearing on the sport as a whole and my experience. For all that an extra £1 for the pleasure. So far the winter break has been as poor as the 2017 season itself

Speedway is its own worst enemy. Season upon season we have promoters annual "We may not run next year," followed by "We're ok to run," once March arrives. It is so unprofessional. When tracks like Coventry and Cradley, and Oxford, can fall by the wayside... all major clubs 30 years ago, there does become a time when even the most ardent of fan walks from their last meeting thinking whether it's the last they'll see, through choice or the impending bulldozers rolling in. Peter Oakes was correct recently, pointing out that only one club had gone out of business through financial hardship - Hull. So, reading that fact, it does make you feel that speedway's future may not be in the hands of the new brigade of fans, but on how much the land is worth that the track sits on.

You may not like this season's normal quite as much!

Ah so that's how Swindon won!

They have no intention of building a new stadium in Swindon, it was merely a ploy to get planning permission for houses.

How the mighty fall. Speedway fans not long ago bitching about SKY walking away, saying "BT offered better pictures anyway," and "SKY wasn't such a big loss." Now BT seem a little shy on speedway, so let's go to Quest! Desperado situation. At this rate, we'll actually see more people trackside than actually watching live at home on... err.. Quest. What next... Gospel TV?

I suspect that might be a posibillity, as you say might make tape infringments hard to see. Im not so bothered about tight finishes, as you dont see many of them nowadays..

Best thing to do is ask Glyn what's being done to the track? If he is down there, because I know he does post on the forum and he's a honest guy who will tell you the truth.

Been told at home Steve endless times that i am a Dinosaur and that Barry Briggs and Stanley Matthews have both now retired.!!!!

That will make tape infringments and a very tight finish interesting unless they install a camera on the line, some refs have enough trouble when they are in line with the tapes.

NEW Ivan Mauger section in the speedway museum

I can remember Blackbird beating him Knudsen and Erik both had good head to head records against Hans also Doncaster, Nilsen ,S.Moran P.Thorp, beat him.But as you said for a couple of seasons in the league he hardly dropped a point unbelievable and in my view actually helped the ex robin Per Sorensen and Martin Dugard become better riders NEILSEN 1986 figure 11.57.??

Hans must be top, in 85 or 86, when he scored that remarkable 12.00 average away from home. When you rode against Oxford in those days, it was as much about whether or not anyone could beat Hans as it was against actually winning. I think Jimmy Nilsen beat him a few times if memory serves me correct. Plus, of course, Carl Blackbird!

And the whole of Coventry, speedway fans or not, had heard of Nigel Boocock. 18 years in the same team will do that for you.

Is this a symptom of fixed race nights causing more clashes with televised meetins?

I agree, it's nonsense, although I think all they are seeing is low attendance on covered meetings sometimes. However, it has been shown several times, that if a meeting is promoted properly then you will get a good crowd at a televised meeting.

Peter Collins' win in 1976 made front page news in the Daily Mirror.

And Olsen I reckon Steve and a fair few of a certain age even outside the sport would have heard of PC maybe?

Something so remarkable, almost unbelievable that we're still talking about it nearly 50 years on. He was good wasn't he?

The home straight won't be shorter.Just the run from the tapes longer at the start and the run to the line shorter. The thought in this might be that the start line at all tracks ruts up bad.At most tracks the bike isn't in a straight line for long,especially on the home straight.So by pulling the start back 10m the bikes might not be starting to turn on the ruts,creating a better entry into turn one.

You seem to be in the know, why not tell us 's happened ?

you should post what you want its what the forum is all about.

I'm sure the helpless one day old baby of some species is happy with the sun on its back before being eaten alive by a Lion, Tiger, Leopard etc. etc. in the wild.

Unfortunately until the human race discontinues to decimate the natural world and ivory, for example (whatever the date it was exploited) is totally banned and deemed worthless, there will be a continual need for animals to be held within some sort of controlled environment...whether it zoos, wildlife parks and reservations otherwise we will continue to see the gradual (albeit increasing) extinction of many species. I grew up when zoos were less than satisfactory (concrete pens with bars) but things have moved on dramatically and there are some superb collections where conservation programmes are the norm.

that scoring system favours sitting in 2nd/3rd and blocking the 4th rider. BORING

I love coming on here to cheer myself up....it makes me realise that speedway fans must have some of the cleanest windows of any sports fans.