BWitcher

The tac ride situation was perfectly fair. Belle Vue used one, Wolves used one. How much fairer do you want it? For the playoffs it would be better if there were no tacs, they aren't needed... but your idea here is just, well it's the kind of gibberish that make promoters ignore fans suggestions.

Right enough of this negative rubbish. Last night was my first visit to the NSS and I cannot praise it highly enough. The whole night was fantastic from start to finish, brilliant stadium, fantastic view and absolutely brilliant racing. The atmosphere was electric, totally out of this world. I'm still buzzing about it now, I've re-watched Heat 13 at least fifteen times and I still get excited by it. Nigel and Kelvin did a great job commentating on it too and conveying the excitement of the race. Yet here we are the morning after a meeting that showed that when it's done right, speedway is the greatest, most exciting, most exhilarating sport in the world and the thread is STILL full of people whinging. If you can find faults with last night, speedway isn't for you. Time to stop pretending to be a fan and go find something else to do with your time. So Belle Vue fan got on Tais back, he gave it back to them. Bloody Brilliant! A very small % were out of order, but forget that, the night overall was magnificent. Tai made some comments on social media.. again, who cares? It's only good for the sport.. as and when the next time he goes there as an away rider, it will be great, people will want to be there to see him get beat. That's what the sport needs more of! So for once can't speedway fans actually celebrate something special? There really is no hope for the sport otherwise.

As said earlier, this was all a pre-meditated plan from Belle Vue to try and unsettle Woffinden. If you had been there you would have heard the announcer RELENTLESSLY telling everyone how Wolves had acted outside the spirit of the sport how ridiculous it was that a World Champion was riding at No 4. It was constant. Then there is the issue of them listing him in the program with a higher average than any of the Wolves riders allowing some fans to believe he was riding there illegally... a viewpoint enforced by the sarcastic comments made when announcing the riders in the race in each and every one of his races, suggesting that it was wrong he was in that position. I'm not complaining about it, it actually made victory all the more sweeter. The Belle Vue fans around us on the back straight found it all somewhat cringeworthy (the announcer that is).

His fourth ride was a last too from his replacement I think? So he'd have needed 7pts for a win. The point is, it is never as simple as just saying a team finished top of the league so they were the best when it's a playoff format. There are entirely different pressures if it's a league format to decide the champions.. we've seen how Belle Vue have made a hash of the 1st leg of two play off finals in a row due to pressure... who is to say that as the end of the season approached and the big matches came round they wouldn't do the same. Nobody knows. If it's a runaway lead, then there is an argument.. but this year there was very very little to choose between the top three sides.

Exactly.. which has happened before..

The Belle Vue fans have it all wrong having a pop at Woffinden, without him they'd have missed out on a lot. Wolves don't sign Woffinden, they beat Belle Vue in their final home match. Wolves finish top of the league and choose Lakeside. That leaves Belle Vue to face Poole and very likely lose. No play off final, no big money, no consolation of saying "we finished top". Well done Tai, you saved Belle Vue's season!

He's on planet earth.. not sure about you. Riders being deliberately fenced was common practice in yesteryear. Very very rare do you see it now. Note the word 'deliberately'.

There were far worse things shouted at Woffinden from a very small minority last night that I believe he is referring too with his comments. I heard one particularly foul one referencing his late father. The majority of it was perfectly fine, no harm in some booing etc, but a few can take it too far.

Surely a farewell meeting at the start of next season is deserved for such a loyal servant of British Speedway?

No they weren't broadcast live, but the Belle Vue announcers were making a big deal of them. They told the Belle Vue fans early on that he was going to 'smoke them' and reported back everything he was saying in interviews. It played a massive part in the atmosphere. He was right to call certain fans idiots. There were some quite vitriolic things being aimed at him from a small % of the fans, aside from the standard pantomine booing etc.

No, you take note of the absolute lack of atmosphere, entertainment and fans at speedway tracks across the country. Last night was Speedway at its very, very best. How it came across on tv having re-watched it was only 10% of what it was like live in the stadium. The Woffinden/Belle Vue fans situation played a big part in that and simply added to the occasion. We want MORE of that.

I could find out the lengths easy enough from old programmes, but I won't know about the widths. I'll have a look later if nobody else has answered the question sooner. It was definitely harder to ride before the changes, the straights were longer and the bends tighter as a result. There were a number of riders who really struggled there prior who suddenly were able to get round the place ok. All that makes it trickier now is the modern bikes and the silencers used, you require throttle control when there is a bit of grip on the track. When it slickens off its very easy to blast round as Steve Worrall was showing the other night.

The track was reshaped due to changes in the greyhound track, nothing to with with lighting. The changes actually made the track easier to ride, there was far more of a home advantage prior to that.

Exactly, I've seen riders jump the fence to have a go at fans in the past... but they were characters.. But calling 'some' fans idiots... terrible... dear me. Belle Vue clearly had a pre-orchestrated plan last night to get at Woffinden. From the announcer ALL meeting making sarcastic comments about the World Champion riding at No 4 and how him riding there 'wasn't in the spirit of the rules'. He made sure everyone knew this before the meeting started and repeated it over and over throughout the night. They even went so far as to print a false average for Woffinden in the programme making it appear that he was the highest averaging rider, which of course led to some natives claiming we were cheating and he should be at No 1.

Yes and far worse! Only last night Adam Jones of Baltimore Orioles about certain Toronto fans. Speedway fans do amuse me.. We get post after post about the lack of characters in the sport, the lack of interaction with the fans, how riders in the 'good old days' would be booed out the stadium and would give as much back winding up the crowd.. Then along comes someone who does all that, resulting in an epic night's entertainment and folk are whinging about it!

Why do you keep saying this? I've heard sports people say it MANY times when they've received particularly personal abuse.

I was about to make a similar post about the legend that is Peter Karlsson. I feel privileged to have been there for his debut at the old Belle Vue back in 1990 and to be there again for his final rides this time. In between he's provided 26 years of entertainment for fans up and down the country, indeed all over the world for an even longer period. As others have said, a nicer guy you simply could not wish to meet. Over the years I've had the pleasure of watching him race, sponsoring and enjoying his friendship, especially in the 90's. I had tears in my eyes last night when word spread he had announced his retirement from British Speedway, but held them in till watching the re-run on Sky where I'm not ashamed to say I shed a few. There are far too many wonderful memories both on and off track to list here, I would be here all day if I did. I am so happy that I don't fly home till next weekend and will, weather permitting, be there for his final rides at Monmore in the Olympique on Tuesday. For me, the sport won't be the same again now as my final 'childhood' hero retires. Thanks for everything PK. You are a LEGEND.

Ah dear.. Let me explain this simply for you. It's not as simple as saying "Oh they finished top therefore they should be champions".. If there were no playoffs things can turn out very differently. As the season reaches its climax the pressure increases and some teams wouldn't do so well.. You also keep forgetting, Belle Vue finished top because they won at Wolves the night Kylmakorpi scored 0 0 0.. A normal score for him that night, Wolves win and they're top so the difference between the teams over the season is negligible. If you're suggesting that Belle Vue have choked under the pressure, as they did last year in the 1st leg, then you're defeating your own argument that they would have won the league if playoffs weren't around. Wasn't it the other way round? Pretty sure the problem in the race off was there was so much grip the riders were too quick.

Very familiar style of post this... where have I seen it before. Hi Fred Also been told the same thing from a couple of different sources. A big crowd tonight will help the situation IF there is any problem.

I don't think you can play any games at all with regards to worrying about any Tac rides. In both home legs for Wolves I've heard fans worried early in the meeting that we're getting too far ahead and Poole/Vue would be able to use a tac. My theory is, that's perfect. The earlier you get a tac out of the way the better. It only means you're in total control of the meeting.

He did, but PK didn't pass him on that bend, he lifted out of two, but got it back under control. PK pased him out of four and on the home straight, entering turn three tight (not the normal line). Unless he lifted out of four too? Would have to rewatch.

Again, Cook didn't make the start from gate three in that race, a fact that seems to pass a few people by!

No holding back on that one!

It's only fair of me to say Peter Adams got his tactics spot on last night, ensuring Clegg raced Jacobs three times. We did see him having a chuckle when Tai planted the monster energy drink in his hands for the one interview.. I think that shows how well they get on.

I think you will find E I Addio was being more than fair. He didn't quote the rest of the post because it was full of the usual bile, personal attacks and fabrications that he is famous for. He made a despicable post earlier on in the thread that has since been deleted either by him or by the mods. Unlike everyone else on the thread (bar Sniffy) he is not interested in discussing the meeting but intent on stirring up trouble. When he doesn't get replies and folk ignore his bait he begins to lose the plot, culminating in the kind of posts we have seen from him today.