topsoil

With the hints that have been dropped so far, a Saturday night track, equal travelling for all the teams, it all points to Scunthorpe.

No, I don't like the fact he is trying to get a rider thrown out of a meeting. Everybody is entitled to an opinion, just don't like that sort of tactic. Anyway, he first said it while looking at the TV monitor in the pits, as soon as he saw there was a camera pointing at him, he did a throat-slitting gesture and said "throw him out the meeting". He then said it to Chris Louis in the interview.

He does a really good job with the mascots at the introductions. You would like to think so. Obviously every decision they make won't be the approval of all the fans, but at least you would like to think that they were having long, hard discussions about how to improve the product.

Doesn't matter when or where he said it, I hate to see it.

Certainly not enough to keep the sport viable. There has to be a lot of work goes in to attract missing fans back and also to get new fans in.

Apologies for joining the party late here but I've only got round to watching this meeting. I'm not a big fan of Gary Havelock to start with, but to hear him call for Kildemand to be thrown out the meeting is to me the equivalent of the football players who wave imaginary cards and surround referees to try and get opponents sent off. Really get annoyed when I see that. Kildemand was in the wrong and should have fined for his behaviour. It was obviously deliberate. Please don't go down the same road as football.

A few years ago when Harris was getting wild cards it was understandable that the decision was getting criticism, because it was obvious that he was only getting the verdict because of the lack of British riders. But the past two years he has qualified by merit and nobody can deny him that. Perhaps the fact that he struggles in the Grand Prix shows just how hard it is to compete at the VERY top level of the sport. But well done Bomber on an excellent performance and showing the type of grit and determination needed to qualify through the arduous system.

It was what it was, a very easy win over a severely depleted team. Biggest pay day of the season for Berwick, good to see especially Garcia and Hall in the points. Kennett was in a class of his own, after retiring in heat 1 and Jakobsen was involved in a couple of good races. By and large most races were over after (for once) Berwick riders making the gates. If it is the final home meeting for Berwick then what a way to go out. Painfully small crowd tonight, probably not helped by the make up of the opposition and the way the season has gone in general. One pleasing point was, again, the number of fans who stayed behind to watch the juniors. Always an encouraging sign. There is a lot of good work going on with the young riders and Berwick and it would be great, if the club has a future, if the work continues, because the more young local riders that come through the better.

Sad way to finish the season for TJ, who, along with the Captain, has been a rare beacon of light in an injury-ravaged season. Been a great signing for Berwick this season and having spoken to him a couple of times, seemed to like it here as well. Hopefully the Fish will continue his form from last week. Should be a couple of good races against Kennett.

Breaking news

It's easier to understand algebra

Yip, I too have had replies to every suggestion which I have sent in and explanations why they can / cannot follow them through.

I can remember reading in the Speedway Star back in the late 1980's the MC at Oxford saying that the first thing he did every week was put together a tape of music from the top 40 that week to play at the speedway. It's not difficult. Okay some songs are not appropriate, but it's not difficult to put together a collection of upbeat songs. If you watch rugby league or union matches, or T20 cricket, there are short burst of music after a try or boundary. How about one after a 5-1? I know at Berwick they have certain songs if a rider wins a race, good idea. Personally I don't care what era the song comes from, as long as it is upbeat and adds to the atmosphere. And yes, I have sent a lot of thoughts and ideas to the e-mail address for the club. Up to them if they decide if they are good ideas and want to put them into practice.

He has a wealth of knowledge on the sport, has fulfilled almost every role in it and I reckon he has a few stories to tell.

I wasn't there so I'm only relying on the comments of two posters on here, but it sounds like no music between races. If it's true then that just plays right into the hands of my belief that you have to entertain the crowd for the full night. Just 15 races alone (or more if there are juniors) won't keep fans happy. You need to keep them occupied during breaks. The worst example I've seen at Berwick of that this year was the Rye House cup match, without music the place was like a morgue. And they wonder why crowds are falling. We live in an age where attention spans are getting shorter, people need constant distractions, music, chat, action, whatever it is.

Just like the previous two weeks the times last night were much quicker than previously this season. The track slickened off, which meant that there really only was one racing line, but there was still some decent racing, even though there wasn't much passing. A summary of the season to be honest. There often isn't much passing, but it doesn't mean to say there isn't fast, close racing.

One problem yesterday, the same the previous week, is that it was forecast to rain in the afternoon, which never materialised. Might be a reason why the track was a bit slicker than usual. That, plus the fact that they are not allowed access to the track in the afternoon if BRFC are at home doesn't help.

So this is what it feels like to win? What a difference it makes having a full quota of heat leaders. Ryan Fisher was outstanding, Ben Barker seemed a lot quicker than first time around and you know what you are getting from the Captain (tough luck in heat 15, looked expensive). A promising debut from Anders Mellgren, two heat wins and handy to have a good gater. Didn't get a great view of the Barker / Williamson crash, standing on the back straight it looked like a tangle of handlebars, but it looked a terrible crash and so glad to see Williamson up and walking away. Brilliant to see Matty Wethers back again and in great form. He did it so many times for us last season and it's just what we could have done with this season, a big scoring reserve. Finally a word for Coty Garcia. The lad is a hell of a trier. Would love to see him get a bit of backing. And finally, good to see so many fans staying behind on a cold night to see the junior racing.

Ivan Mauger, Hans Neilsen, Per Jonsson, Gary Havelock, Mark Loram, Nicki Pedersen, Tai Woffinden, Greg Hancock, Billy Hamill, Tony Richardsson?

Don't know if Alex was ever the same after his first crash at Berwick, it was absolutely horrific. Stuff like that has to play on your mind, let alone the physical side of things. I've said before on here I'm not going to criticise him, he's braver than I'll ever be, to get on a bike and race, but this season hasn't done him or the promotion any good. There were times when he clearly wasn't enjoying himself. Time to move on now, welcome Anders Mellgren.

Good to see Matty Wethers back after that horrific crash last year. Fair play to Berwick promotion this should be a stronger Berwick line up on Saturday with Mellgren replacing Edberg. Maybe give Coty a bit of confidence riding down at reserve? Would be nice to finish the season off with two home wins, but Workington always good opposition.

Google translate just imploded when I typed this in Interest post. You are right that Berwick is struggling at the moment, over a number of years the fan base has dwindled. Berwick and the sport in general has failed to move with the times. Not a lot will have changed format wise since the 70s or 80s. Still the same parade tune, still racing with big gaps in between, still playing the same music in many cases. Whilst almost every other sport has re-branded itself or provides additional entertainment during intervals and pre-match, speedway trundles on. And another downfall has been the lack of promotion of the sport. This again applies to the sport in general and not just Berwick. I can't speak for other tracks but if I was a visitor to Berwick on a Saturday I would have no idea there was a meeting on a Saturday night. So there are two big reasons why crowds are down. As for the track, there isn't much the club can do about this it's round the football pitch. My own personal opinion is that the bikes have become too fast for the track. Go back to the 70s or 80s when the bikes were much slower and you would get a lot more racing because the speed would be more suited to the track. Funny you should mention standing on the 3rd and 4th bend, I used to sit there are a child in the late 70s when I would go with my parents. But health and safety has done for that. It's a pity because you get some great views from round there. If you ever visit the tea hut on the 4th bend you get a real idea of the speed of these bikes entering the 3rd bend and you can't help but be impressed with the noise and speed. Then you are showered in shale for the full experience :-)

Personally I think speedway could benefit from listening to the views of more people from outside the sport. After all, the sport is trying to attract new fans. Maybe some of the ideas may be above speedway at the moment, but these are people who know what they are talking about. Nothing wrong with the idea of a big screen, look at the number of times in meetings where you get a collision and you want to get a second look at who was to blame, or want to see a replay of a great race. Yes it is expensive, but for big meetings it could attract more fans. And maybe Peter Karlsson was a bad example given his allegiance to Wolverhampton, but there are certainly enough foreign riders who teams in this country have wasted money on in the past who picked up the money and didn't care. Speedway should listen to as many views as possible to try and get out of the present situation. But I have a horrible feeling it will stick it's head in the sand again.

The subject of social media was brought up in Speedway Star last week. Teams in general and Berwick are amongst these teams who sadly fall behind in using different types of social media. Not just a case of posting results and updates on meetings, but keeping fans updated on line ups, any developments within the club etc. But also clubs can use social media to advertise sponsors, this is something we do for our amateur football team. I follow a couple of professional rugby teams on twitter and they constantly interact with fans, asking them to post their favourite game, favourite memory, first game, favourite player, even favourite strip. Anything to interact with fans and keep the club in the spotlight.

I have sympathy for the promotion, both very busy businessmen, but if that is the case, why not hire somebody in to run this side of the business. An investment here could produce big rewards, but to do nothing, then you simply get nothing in return. There are a lot of ways the club can promote the sport around the town. I've sent a lot of ideas by way of the club e-mail address and I would suggest everybody else with ideas do the same, just to let them know they are supported. Then lets see if they put any of them into practice.