TheScotsman

Another good reason for getting rid of Tactical rides then!!

Helmet colours are in such varying shades nowadays that even they are not a reliable guide for colour blind folk like me. At least the old yellow/black was a good identifier in the past. But now just plain yellow could be anything heading towards orange. As could the red. So I give my big shout for individual rider colours, not the all clones together team race suits Especially under the grim lighting at Ippo!!

Oh damn. Plough fest it might be then. I suppose Cookie's moto x background might be a help then!!

I think Crazyb meant 1500 in the stadium rather than just the stand. I reckon the stand was about half full so 1500 overall sounds fair.

One of the advantages of televised speedway is that it allows the promoter to actively market the event in the way that Peterborough did yesterday. A coupon in the local paper allowed entry for a fiver as did buying tickets through Sky Tickets. That would have enticed a fair few newcomers to come along, as was commented on the night by Mick Horton (?). I don't know how much the promoter gets from Sky for hosting the event but I'm sure it goes a long way to balancing the reduced admission charge. And if you put on a show like they did last night, that's the way you are going to get newcomers coming back which is what it's all about. It was a reasonably smooth run last night, with only the Rosen crash understandably causing much of a delay. Even in the couple of unsatisfactory start races, all 4 were straight back to the tapes without revisits to the pits to check their make up! The interval after heat 10 was restricted to 5 minutes as planned too. Just need to cut out the gardening time now!!

But it's the same if you watch football live at lesser grounds. We have got so spoiled by tv that as soon as there is an incident we want to see the action replay. Go to the match live and your first thought is - I need to see that incident again, but you can't because there's no facility there. What's the incentive to go to a televised speedway match. No action replays, slo-mos, any of that. Chilly nights, less than ideal surroundings. Watch it on the tv and you can see an incident from half a dozen camera angles in slo-mo again and again. You would never have caught that if you were there live because of the speed involved. I thought the Fish may not have given Lindgren enough room in heat 13 last night when Ludde clattered the fence on the home straight. The tv replays on my phone showed that Fish was nowhere near him and Ludde hat clattered it all on his own. (He did incredibly well to stay on and just about nick it on the line.) Tv has probably contributed to the demise of speedway, but more because of its very existence than because some matches are on the box each week.

Most matches on tv show the crowds to be pretty meagre. The problem Peterborough has is that most of the punters are housed in the huge stand which I think someone said holds about 2000. They prefer to sit in the half just after the start so any focus on the other half or on the rest of the ground will make it look very sparsely attended. I would estimate that there were a good 1000 in the stand and a few hundred around the ground which I would think is a decent attendance for a match that is on tv/streams though entry for a fiver was a phenomenal deal.

Fantastic night's speedway. Not as Baltic as in previous weeks - biggest disappointment was the length of the queue at the fish & chip van - only 1 lady serving instead of the usual 2, BUT the big plus was that it meant I was still in the queue when Queenie's song came on so I didn't have to stand up again or get glared at by the locals. No-one in the queue seemed to take any notice of it, so I felt I was amongst friends! Track was the best I have ever seen it racing lines everywhere after the first few races. Strange therefore that gate 1 was so dominant - 9 winners (gate 2 = 3; 3 = 1; 4 = 2). Lindgren rode reasonably well - 6+1 away from home pretty much matches his average. Great to see ex-Monarch Christian Henry ride so well - equaled track record in heat 1 (did he say he had a puncture or something? I couldn't quite catch the announcer.).Should never have let him go! Robson was very entertaining but not that dominant, though he was having a mighty battle with the Fish in heat 10 till Fish came off. Kerr was a disaster. As others have said, did he only have 1 bike to try? Ridiculous to have the same problem in 4 races, all when in a good position. Pretty damn dangerous too given how close the others were to him each he packed up. Rosen didn't really get a chance to show how good he is. Very very nasty crash. Amazed he was back up and planning to fly from Stansted that evening! Schramm was the bam as always. Pulled off an amazing recovery in heat 2 when he reared up coming out of bend 4 and then in heat 9 he reared in bend 2 and collected Rosen. Otherwise he rode ok. Rose - not sure what to make of him. Being a Kings Lynn rider, I expected his to be completely at home at the Showground. 4 points from 6 rides would suggest he wasn't and certainly in his first 3, he wasn't on it all. But in the rerun of heat 9, standing in for Rosen he rode really well to keep Dryml behind him. Jury's out!! The Fish was very entertaining. You certainly don't see him running a last in heat 1 very often. 3 wins plus the big battle with Robson (on a t/r) in heat 10 when he lifted and baled out on bend 4 but had the presence of mind to keep both hands on the bars and get up and continue for the single point after yet another Kerr ef. Blackbird rode well for his 8, especially when he kept Robson behind him in that heat 10. Dryml rode well - a couple of lightning gates and a decent score of 9 and the only real blip was finishing behind Rose in heat 9. Ostergaard was ok - he had a couple of good wins in his 3rd & 4th outings (the last one after a last minute change of bikes) which probably gave him the heat 15 gig, Dunno which bike he was on in heat 15, but it promptly died just after the start!! Jacobs was better than usual.and couldn't have been expected to get any more than his 6+1. Greenwood continues to impress and looked very determined in his first 2. Unfortunately his bike gave out a big cloud of smoke in his 3rd ride and he then finished his 4th behind Robson and Schramm the bam. So next week should be the big test against the mighty Monarchs. I hate to be disloyal but I can see Peterborough winning that one!! I think the big track advantage will be too much.

OK - we can exchange details nearer the time, It was indeed fantastic racing last night - by far the best of the season. Hope they can keep the track the same.

Yes I'll be there on my own so No problem. Where are you staying at stansted?

But my offer still stands too.

They just kept it quiet, raced behind closed doors and haven't published the results. I hear it was a good meeting. I will be going past Stansted on my way back from the meeting, but only if it's on 6th May!! I could give you a lift back if you are interested.

Good business move by Sheffield. It's a results business.

Devils = a pretty impressive 3 man team!! 1. Ben Barker - 2, 3, 6!, 3, 0 = 14 2. R/R for Kyle Newman - (BR - 0, KK - 0, RJ - 2, RB - 0) = 2 3. Roland Benko - 0, 0, 0, 0, 0 = 0 4. Rasmus Jensen - 2, 4!, 2, 1, 2', 2 = 13+1 5. Sam Simota - 1, 0, 2', 0 = 3+1 6. Kalle Katajisto - 3, 0, 1, 1', 3, 2, 3 = 13+1 7. Ben Reade - 0, 0, 0 = 0 Read more: http://speedwayupdates.proboards.com/thread/13247/scunthorpe-plymouth-pl-27-3pm#ixzz306fgjWXA

If everyone put the clown on ignore like I have, I wouldn't have to see his inane posts when you reply to him!! Of just don't reply to him. One day he'll grow up and move on.

Hmmm - Kalle let me down badly. Only 14 tonight but with 2 big fat zeroes as well.

You haven't seen this then......... http://www.edinburghmonarchs.co/emtv/player2.asp?cat=Racing_2013&id=100086 EDINBURGH 'Scotwaste' MONARCHS...49 1. Craig Cook 2,3,1¹,1,3 = 10+1 2. Max Fricke F,1,1,2 = 4 3. Theo Pijper 3,2,1¹,2,0 = 8+1 4. Jozsef Tabaka 2¹,1¹,2,2¹ = 7+3 5. Claus Vissing 2,3,0,0 = 5 6. Josh Bates (G) 0,1,3,3 = 7 7. Derek Sneddon © 3,1¹,3,1¹ = 8+2 SOMERSET 'Cases' REBELS...41 1. Jason Doyle © 3,3,2,3,2 = 13 2. Kyle Newman 1,FX,2,1¹ = 4+1 3. Josh Grajczonek 1,2,3,3 = 9 4. Alex Davies 0,0,F,1 = 1 5. Nick Morris 3,2,3,2¹,1¹ = 11+2 6. Stefan Nielsen 2,0,0,0 = 2 7. Simon Lambert 1¹,0,0,0 = 1+1 Heat 11 Vissing, Bates, Doyle, Newman Result: Bates, Doyle, Newman, Vissing (58.1) 3-3 (37-29) Bates bursts to the front and holds on manfully !! Meanwhile Vissing goes missing and goes 2nd to 4th (perfect tactics) Massive pressure from Doyle late on. What a race from the wee man. Heat 14 Tabaka, Bates, Davies, Lambert Result: Bates, Tabaka, Davies, Lambert (58) 5-1 (46-38) Great 1st turn from the Monarchs and another win for "The Master" take a bow son. Info courtesy of Edinburgh Monarchs and Monarchs Chatzone.

Just found out how to Ignore him!! Bliss!!!

Easy for Plymouth. 15 point max for Kalle!!

Is Lanham an Ippo asset? Only asking!! (He certainly was last night!!)

Mental note - don't ever expect much from Lanham again.

A fiver? Fantastic!! I was going to watch on telly but for a fiver and the best chips in the league I have now booked my ticket. Hope the Fish will have recovered.

Always felt the tractors were dangerous being so close to the back straight. Should they not be more in the middle of the centre green and farther apart?

Life's a bitch.

Well that was mostly pretty dire fare. Chips were better than against Somerset and risked a sausage - excellent!! I have to say the fish also looked superb so maybe I'll venture there in future. (Rye take note - I wouldn't feed your fish to our cat and she has been dead 3 years!!) Just sat down to eat them and that goddam anthem again - all be upstanding the man said. Sod that I've just sat down. Plenty of glares all round me. Track looked to have maybe a touch more dirt on it this week, not that it was needed much. My biggest moan - why does the commentator have to leave it till the riders are at the tapes to announce a change of riders? He did it every time. And there were 6 such changes. We can't all recognise riders from the front, especially the away ones. Far too easy for Panthers. - the Fish was entertaining as always whether it was banging off the fence on the 4th bend or having a tough dust up with Bjerre for a 2nd place or having a harum scarum battle with Barker in the last race - Blackbird looked excellent in his first 2 rides and then slid off when at the back in heat 8 and was nowhere in his last ride - strange - Dryml won 2 races and looked better than when I have seen him previously - not a strong 2nd heat leader though - Ostergaard surprised me when I totted up his score - paid 11 from 4 and I had hardly noticed him - Bjerre also looked much improved - 3 convincing wins followed by the dust up with the Fish (Barker was well away) and then stayed a bit behind the Fish in heat 15 in case Fish and Barker came to grief - Halsey did ok given that I think of him as a small track rider - Greenwood was the star of the team - such an improvement from when I saw him against Rye and particularly against Somerset. Fast, determined, hard, safe - and he talks the talk well on the mike once you have tuned into his accent!! Plymouth were a huge disappointment. And why oh why did the team manager not play the jokers sooner? To wait till you are 18 points down and use them in heats 11 & 12 seems crazy. Even though Barker had had a poor opening ride, it looked a decent shout to put him in heat 5 against Dryml & Ostergaard when 12 behind - but no. Barker duly won heat 5. It also looked a decent shout to have put Newman in heat 7 against Bjerre & Halsey when 16 behind since Newman had looked decent in his first race - but no. Newman duly finished second. - Barker got filled in badly in his first ride from gate 4 but thereafter looked much like his old self. His battles with the Fish were "interesting"!! - Benko was so bad - I have big doubts about whether Aaron Fox will get close to a 5 point average with Monarchs but I have no doubts that Benko will not get anywhere close. - Newman surprised me. The best I have seen him ride and straight after his outstanding performance for Poole on the telly the night before. 7 from his first 3 including a good win over the Fish. And then looking to get past Dryml at the end of the back straight when both him and his bike catapulted into the air. Maybe he clipped Dryml's back wheel? I don't know. Was down on the track for a long time and then in the ambulance off the track for a very long time, so a delay of at least half an hour. They waited for the county ambulance to arrive but in the end decided to go ahead with the last 4 races while they waited. Jeez it got cold. - Jensen was a big disappointment compared to the guy who shone at Ippo last week.There he scored a good 11 points and was doing wheelies on his way to the tapes. Here he seemed slow and no sign of a wheelie - mind you 4 from 5 would be the reason. - Simota - well he wasn't good a Ippo (4 from 4) but he did have a heat win. Here he managed 2 from 4 and only beat his own Ben Reade. 7.5 average? You're having a laugh!! - Super Kalle - was a mega disappointment. After blasting to 14 at Ippo, here he was down amongst the dead men all night. 6 from 6 - not even his bargain average. He looked very down on speed - made some gates but was left standing coming out of bend 2 and was having to over-ride to catch up. Nearly came a huge purler on bends 3/4 in heat 11 when Barker was on his joker. - Reade - didn't look like he should be riding at this level. Felt really sorry for Newman having to wait in the ambulance for half an hour being checked by the medics. But felt sorry too for us punters gradually freezing to death. Is it always the case that they have to wait for a county ambulance to be called before anything can continue? Is it too costly to have 2 ambulances on site? (I did see a second ambulance there the whole time but assumed it was not fully equipped.)