Sajenkin

Positive for me were the venue and organisation. Sadly the pre-match entertainment was decidedly average. Previous years' offerings have at least been real performers not saddo tributes. Programme fee - 8 quid???? Racing - I have seen comments that the racing was good, but you can count on one hand the number of passing races. Why wasnt the track watered more regularly? Ok the track held up well but there just wasnt enough grip. I spend a lot of time defending speedway against the "first bend and its over" brigade and this meeting wont help me one jot! Refereeing - I really am at a loss to understand why Bomber and Pedersen were excluded - there was nothing there that I havent seen countless times and it been considered an all four back situation. Pedersen was bang on with his after race comments because it looked very much like he was being victimised. Nikki hardly endears himself to the crowd but every rider deserves to be dealt with fairly and in this instance it seems like the ref saw two identical incidents in completely opposite ways.

I agree - there wasnt one thing wrong with Scott's race - he did his best to defend his position, and any other rider would have done the same. It was clear that Emil was hacked off and if I had been Scott I would also have fended the lad off - he was acting aggresively and his "in your face" actions needed a response. The way I see it Emil (who incidentally I am hoping will keep entertaining us with his on track skills) lost it and made all the running in that spat. Notice also that it was Emil who threw the first real punch - watch Scott's head snap back as he gets up from the fallen machine. Both will no doubt be reprimanded - but I hope just a warning about future conduct because this sport needs passion even if sometimes it spills over. I am no particular fan of Scott but at last he is showing some intestinal fortitude and giving the opposition something to think about when he is on track. All the brits showed up reasonably well - here's hoping Bomber and Scott have turned the corner.

In the first exc Leigh knew that he had to get across in front of NP. He swept across the field in a desperate attempt to block Nicki but didnt get there. I was sat bang in front of the riders when Leigh took Nickis front wheel away. IMHO Leigh had to go - he was off line and made a move that he wasnt entitled to do if he couldnt get clear of the field. The same thing happened later in the meeting and the ref excluded the lead rider - dont we expect consistency from our refs? Nicki had a tough night and was dumped on the shale in a variety of incidents that were NOT of his making - and fair play to him for dragging his bike off the track to allow a race that he had no interest in from being stopped (incidentally where were the marshalls?). Nicki has faults but on this occasion the boos and jeers were totally unjustified - and if he was a Brit there would have been a completely different reaction. I am no fan of NP, although I do enjoy riders who will mix it - unlike Crump who tries to mix it but when it goes wrong is a bigger whinger than any of them - its NEVER his fault! If we are looking for riders that can take speedway to the public then look no further than Nicki, Tomas and Bomber. They are riders of grit - hard men who expect nothing from their opponents, and that is what speedway is about. The track was poor but it was the same for everyone and there were riders who were able to pass. It seems so obvious to me though - more dirt makes for better racing. Ok - it can make it hard work for the riders, but its not meant to be a walk in the park is it? Surely we WANT races where the poor gater has a chance, and that will never happen when the track is slick and smooth. The system means that riders are more likely to sit back and settle for a point until later inthe programme when they know what they have to do - think back to the life and death battles of the old "eliminator" system. Now THERE was a format that focussed the riders - its a damn shame it was changed because of a few prima donna's who realised that they could be out after 3 rides and they felt too important to be dumped out. Olsen did the sport a great service by introducing the GP, but sadly he has reverted to type ever since - preferring to side with a cluster of priveleged riders rather than recognising the importance of serving up a spectacle.

Ok guys I was at a recent meeting of folk who are desperate to see the return of speedway to Halifax or Bradford, and was reminiscing about the old days at the Shay. I recalled a rider that failed to turn up for a second season after a promising debut, the reason being that he had broken his arm in a hang gliding incident. Any ideas who it was? At first I thought it was a favourite of mine, Tormod Langli, but was quickly disabused of that particular misconception! I know he was my kind of rider - the no-nonsense type, no respecter of reputations.