Halifaxtiger

Personally, I'd say a proper businessman is someone who cares so much about his paying customers that on a freezing cold night he goes round handing out blankets and hot wheat pack hand warmers, not someone who charges almost double what his competitors do and 25% more than some two leagues higher. This is especially at a time when speedway desperately needs to show that it represents good value for money and that fans are valued and not simply to be fleeced for as much as possible. One of the main reasons why speedway is in the desperate situation that it is is that fans have been taken for granted for years and that sort of entry fee for that standard of speedway is a classic example. The much maligned Buster Chapman deserves a huge amount of credit for the entry charges at King's Lynn, Ipswich & Peterborough and letting under 16's in free. I suspect, however, that he got the idea about free entry for U16's from another club. No prizes for guessing which one, but its the same one that gave out the blankets.

Unlike many places, paying to park at Glasgow & Edinburgh is pretty much a necessity.

I think the frightening one is that Leicester is £8 cheaper than Kent.

Good summary I thought the gate was frighteningly low, although the Wednesday meeting, freezing cold weather and the football will have had an impact. Brilliant to see Bewley back and winning races, Fricke and Bjerre imperious and there was a most encouraging performance from Lidsey. Peterborough were never far away but, you're right, the Aces didn't look like losing. I was going to complain about the interval after heat 13 given how cold it was but as Bewley had two on the trot, the track needed work and the meeting was sorted by 9.05 anyway it would seem rather worthless.

And yet at the fans forum Adrian Smith said that in the school holidays gates on Mondays were bigger than those on Fridays (I was surprised, too). I certainly prefer Thursday-Sunday with Mondays being a virtual non starter, and that's just due to work commitments. A late night at the start of the week has prevented me from becoming a Belle Vue season ticket holder (and I suspect I am not alone). It will be very interesting to see what Thursday night attendances are like at the NSS. Workington were hit hard by the stupid and selfish decision to change their race night but their gates had been poor and they had been losing shed loads for years. Even if they had been allowed to run on Fridays it would have made little difference to their financial situation at the end of the season. Buxton, too, couldn't make weekends pay, so its not necessarily a cure. Having said that, moving from weekend racing destroyed Rye House.

Isn't the case that there will be hospitality boxes and a suite there ? Where are all the people that usually stand on the terracing going to go, as its usually pretty full on Championship riders night ?

Not the best meeting I have seen at Sheffield. Easy Tigers win against a disjointed Redcar side. Impressed with Kennedy and big performance from Greaves. Two questions: any idea why Graham Trollope is not doing the track now, and how are the fans going to be accommodated on Championship Riders night now that the first bend can't be used ?

I completely agree about the loss of Derwent Park but, these days, new speedway tracks have to be out of town in order to get planning permission (Scunthorpe, Leicester, Plymouth). Even then its not guaranteed - Kent is a fair distance from major housing and in the middle of an industrial estate but they have been refused a licence to run on Saturdays. That may or may not affect attendances but its something that can't be avoided.

If we had the ready capital, I suspect you and I would even if it was only to shore up an existing promotion (if truth were told, I have already done that as a one time Mildenhall shareholder). I can say for absolutely certain that if one or two in Workington (and possibly one or two outside the town) had the money the Comets would be operating this season. Speedway is anything but alone in being little more than a personal hobby for the owner. According to an article in the Guardian last year, those in charge at Rugby Union Premiership clubs have poured in about £250m. Roman Abramovich has put £1bn in Chelsea. Investing £50 or even £250k in an existing speedway club suddenly looks like peanuts. I really hope - even if it is most unlikely - that the Comets can find some way of making it back. I will miss my journeys to the Wild West hugely in 2019.

You're right, but who would have believed that Leicester, Plymouth & Scunthorpe would have returned ?

Pretty useless if its raining at start time...………...which the forecast said it would be.

I agree. Its what happens on the track, not who is out there that counts. One of the best meetings I have ever seen was the NL Grand Final between Mildenhall & Scunthorpe a few years ago.

Highly entertaining meeting in front of what looked like to me to be a pretty decent attendance. For Redcar, Stewart was highly impressive while Palm Toft's last to first in heat 10 was the highlight of the night. A word, too, for Jack Smith - a battling performance. Newcastle might yet be a much better prospect than some have suggested particularly if Clegg gets going.

I can see both sides here. Both are in the right and, up to a point, in the wrong. Having said that, its difficult to see how Cook's decision is in his own best interests. Obtaining a new PL place won't be easy, I think the point about him being willing to dump sponsors for more money is not unreasonable, no-one else has apparently objected, he won't get the sponsors dependent upon BT sport exposure now any way and at a stroke he's halved his speedway income.

I don't really have an issue with TS or IRR. I have no doubt, though, that the NDL was fine without them.

I tend to agree. There's only one reason to go to speedway, and its not eating. I very rarely eat speedway food because in my (limited) experience it is bloody awful (Tsunami's truly revolting burger at Sheffield probably being the nadir). Isle Of Wight are very much the exception. Then again, if the food is good and reasonably priced why not ? Whatever the case, its hard to argue with Shadders. In almost every case, there is a queue at food outlets before a meeting starts (and usually during as well).

I have had a few bad experiences with speedway food - the rubbish they sell at Belle Vue has to be seen to be believed - so I usually just rely on recommendations. Plan is to do Berwick in May, so I'll take you up on that one .

At the risk repeating myself...……….best food are the Isle of Wight specials. The chicken curry (personally made by Barry Bishop) is the best home made I have ever tasted and the sausage casserole is almost as good. At £3.50 for a plate full with a lump of bread, I usually have two helpings and skip a meal to have it. The only one that came close was when John Anderson was running Berwick. Those burgers were fantastic.

That's the principal reason why they wouldn't take it on. Jonathan Chapman isn't everyone's cup of tea, but I thought he did an excellent job when he took over the Super 7 series. Word is he got booted out partly because of the jealousy his success in organising the sport's top domestic events created.

A very good example of how Isle of Wight work and just how good their customer service is. Its anything but the first time I have heard something of this nature. 'Absolutely flabberghasted' is just about how every speedway fan would feel, but that's a massive indictment of the way the sport is run and its attitude towards those who pay at the turnstiles every week. Simple truth is there is absolutely no reason why that standard of care could not be replicated across the sport. The only thing I would say is that from experience things are getting better. Knowing Barry a bit, I think he could do it. I also think he'd sooner put his head in a pan of boiling chip fat. That's not because of the scale of the problem but because, sooner or later, of the utter lack of support he would get.

I think you're dead right. Question remains, though, would Cook have been treated the same had he behaved the same way ? We are being told that club policy would be identical regardless of who it was. That means booting out your top rider - and the top rider in the league - a few weeks before the start of the season would have led to no more hesitation or consideration than sacking a junior rider in the full knowledge that a better replacement had been banging on your door for weeks before hand. If there are those of us within the speedway world that find that hard to accept its scarcely surprising. I should say that I think Lawlor got the punishment he deserved - based upon the club's statement - and that any other clubs supporters gloating here have no place to. In the same circumstances, they'd be no different.

Is there just a little bit of jealousy in there ? I wonder how many people would sooner have Barry Bishop and Martin Widman in charge of British Speedway than Buster Chapman and Rob Godfrey ? You have it the wrong way round. Cleaning the fence - after I had paid to go in - on a wet day and getting soaked and covered in mud was due to the good will already built up in previous visits (plus the fact that I was helping someone I count as a friend). Feeling valued at Isle of Wight is due to the way that the club treats its fans - or, more accurately, its paying customers. No-one else comes close, and everyone else can learn from them. I should point out that I have been to every track in the country in the last few seasons.

This is fair point but should be put in context with other sports. Most Rugby Union clubs, for example, have been loaned £millions by wealthy owners. According to the Guardian, Roman Abramovich has put over £1bn into Chelsea. Even allowing for the difference in revenues, attendances and almost every other factor, in comparison the investment in speedway by certain individuals is chicken feed.

Absolutely bang on . To me, that's just a matter of good business practice. It says a lot about the way speedway fans are viewed that their opinions are largely ignored by those who should be most interested in them. If I remember rightly, at my last visit you had me cleaning it I think that's the thing with Isle of Wight - the supporter actually feels valued simply because he's treated as though he is valued. There's nowhere else that hits the same standard.

No, you wouldn't