Aces51

Choosing the reserves will obvious depend on the league set up. If it's a PL level I agree that it would be a step too far, at the moment, for Kyle Bickley, unless there is some sort of stipulation that you have to have a British NL rider. You need one strong reserve and another who can at least pick up about 4 at home and the odd point away. If it's CL level Kyle could be considered, he was showing progress at Workington but the stronger reserve would be the priority and then assess the position.

Unfortunately, your argument doesn't hold up. Belle Vue ran on a Monday for a number of years because they had no other option and lost a fortune. That's why it was always the plan to change to Friday when the NSS was built. It's easy to say to those teams who had to change their race night, carry on, we were ok having kept our traditional race day and it worked for us. Is it a price worth paying if it means teams end up closing down, like Rye House? If you want to continue the experiment then how about next season we do a switch and you change your race night to Monday. I suspect that the reality is that if Belle Vue are again forced to race on a Monday they will go for the one league option and return to Fridays.

I agree. I think one of those would be ok, two maybe but not three. Bjerre was excellent in 2017 but was poor with Leicester this year and not as impressive when he raced at the NSS. Zagar is inconsistent. I would much rather keep Cook, he was back to his best just before his injury, Fricke and Bewley and then see what the combined average total is and the league format before thinking about the rest.

Saturday was Swindon's traditional night for speedway with many other teams racing on that night, Swindon, Belle Vue, Coventry, Cradley etc., but I think 15 years racing on Thursdays is probably enough to now make that your traditional night. We raced on a Friday at the dog track but then the landlord decided they wanted that for the dogs and we were left with Monday and crowds that were not sustainable. The problem with Saturdays is not only all of the various FIM events but the Polish meetings on Sunday. That would not only affect the Aces but also the visiting teams. I would be in favour of Saturdays if it was practical, much less traffic and probably more away fans.

Most teams will get their best crowd on their traditional race night. It's when fans are used to attending and the night they will have avoided for going to whatever other social interests they may have. Tracks that have a choice of race night will also have chosen their traditional night as the night they consider will give them the best chance of attracting a good crowd. A change to another night will always be a risk.

I've no idea whether what you say is correct but it's interesting that the four who are apparently happy to carry on in the top league are the four who "somehow" managed to keep their traditional race nights, despite the BSPA accepting Monday and Thursday as the fixed nights. Crowds were clearly down at BelleVue on Monday's, it's a night that historically has never worked for the club. It's not a question of prefering a return to Friday, it's a question of survival. I can understand Leicester being in a similar position but I thought that the change of race night had worked for Somerset, allowing them to get away from the Friday night traffic problems of the M5. I would prefer either, a bigger top league, preferably about 10 teams, 7 is too few, or, one big league and a separate NL. Teams must be able to race on whichever night enables them to attract the best crowds.

Belle Vue only made 2 changes, both at reserve. The other two riders you have included were signed on 28 day contracts to replace Steve Worrall during his long absence through injury. In fact, if you look at the Aces, Cook had been with them for about 8 years, Fricke and Worrall 4 years, Bewley since he started racing and Tungate is in his second season. That's about as much continuity as you'll ever get whilst team building is governed by a points limit and arguably as much as you would want or get whatever the system.

I'm obviously not a Workington supporter, I have only ever been there twice and that was during a couple of years when I visited every then second division track at least once and yet today I woke up with a smile on my face. Why? Because it's great to see one of the unfashionable clubs, not fancied at the beginning of the season and who have overcome obstacles put in their way, not only win the league and the cup but who have done it with ease and style. Enjoy your success. I hope that you go on to do the treble but most of all I hope that a way is found to secure the future of the club. We can't afford to lose any teams but it would seem particularly unfortunate for your fans and promoters after achieving so much this year.

As a matter of principle it can never be the right for the authorities to sanction the breaking of rules. They should change the rule if it is shown to be stupid or unworkable. However, in this case the rule was sensible and yet all concerned agreed to ignore the rules and agreed to the use of an illegal guest. Can you imagine the headlines if this happened in a major sport and isn't that we we aspire to be. They changed the rule relating to different teams using the same guest and that was sensible, albeit embarrassing. They didn't change the guest rider rule because they knew that it is sensible to allow the additional 5% for a guest at home but not away. The logical rationale behind the rule is that the vast majority of riders have a higher home average than their GSA but the opposite applies away, where most riders have a lower average than their GSA.

What I think understandably depresses a lot of fans are the many lost years when the right action could have at best turned the future of the sport around or, at the very least, stopped the continual decline. Those most recently in charge have shown that they don't have the answers and it is alarming that the current chairman believes that there is little wrong with how the sport is currently run. There are people who are positive but that of itself doesn't help. We need people in charge who understand what is wrong and who have the vision and ability to put it right. I agree with what you say about the Isle of Wight, I see good things happening at Glasgow and the promoters at my own club are working to increase the profile of the club and to get the fans and riders more involved with each other. I am sure they and other promoters could all contribute to improving the sport if others will listen and work together. However, that is fiddling round the edges of the major problems. There's a need for a proper root and branch look at the sport. They need to identify what needs to be done to make the sport attractive to many more people than currently attend. To be accepted as a serious, professional sport it has to be credible and run with integrity. To take the most recent example, ignoring a rule for one night only in the final of the premier competition would never stand up to the scrutiny of the mainstream media and should never happen. We need 21st century presentations, slick and entertaining, tracks prepared to provide the best possible racing and to make fans feel valued. When the overall product has been improved we need then to make sure that those currently unaware of their local track become aware. We know that the money isn't there for individual tracks to invest in huge scale advertising so thought needs to be given to a common fund for effective national advertising and ways found to supplement that by affordable local initiatives.

The good news is that something is happening. The main battle is to get Swindon to the tapes with a secure future. If that happens I'm sure the fans will be happy. Other issues are icing on the cake.

As you say nowhere for the tractor(s), track grading equipment, water bowser etc., or shale store and only 16 pit spaces. Presumably, not expecting any FIM events or junior second half racing.

A remarkable performance by Workington to overcome the 18 point deficit and then to go on to win on aggregate by 16. Congratulations and hopefully you will end the season with three trophies. It's good to see one of the clubs that work so hard to survive season to season enjoy some deserved success.

I eventually managed to get a pair of those special glasses, the ones with the tinted lenses, found them on line from an opticians in Dorset. Suit me a treat, looked at the incident again and you know what, you're right.

Exactly. It's ridiculous that the SCB and BSPA agreed to break their own rules. They should have told the clubs that they had to comply with the rules. It was so easy, either they use r/r or KL use Morris and Poole use Ellis, or, another guest who had an eligible average.

It would be interesting to hear his reason but the vast majority of those who have expressed an opinion think it clear cut that Jacobsen was at fault. We are told that these things even out over a season, maybe they do but it is always unfortunate when they happen in such important meetings. Particularly so when TV evidence clearly shows what happened.

You can't run a professional sport and allow those involved to pick and choose which rules they follow. If the rules aren't sensible and practical the answer is to change the rules.

The position, so far as I know is that the SCB/BSPA have not so far stepped in to prevent him racing, so at the moment he is allowed to ride. If the authorities do something to stop him or Lakeside object the situation will/may change. Apologies. I've now seen Neil Watson's post so the position has now changed.

We just need to adopt the Polish system with the two minute clock. The 2 minutes is activated and the riders have to be ready to start the race before it gets to zero.

The guest rider rule wasn't amended, they just ignored it for one meeting only. The front angle didn't look like there was contact, it showed that there clearly was contact.

I think that team suits look much more professional but there is the problem of guests and when riders are replaced and not provided with a team suit. I agree it looks a mess when guests wear bibs but not really that much more so than 7 riders in their own kevlars and bibs. Belle Vue and other teams provide guests with a team shirt rather than a bib and that is less obvious and makes the whole team look more uniform

After the farce of allowing Morris to guest in the PL play offs in breach of the rules I was pleased to see that the BSPA abided by them in ordering the restaging of this meeting. Unfortunately, just to show how consistently inconsistent they are, they now allow Ostergaard to ride. If the sport is to be taken seriously it has to apply the rules consistently and fairly. If a rule is shown to be stupid or unworkable you change the rule, you don't make a decision which breaks that rule. In these particular cases the rules are sensible and should have been followed in all three cases.

You've obviously considered it to write the comment and to decide you could be tempted, so not quite zero interest. That's who the promoters need to target, those who could be tempted. You could quickly glean who they are by talking to people at shows and in shopping malls etc.

I remember Peter well and it was sad to hear of his death. He and his brother Alan did a lot to help Belle Vue over many, many years. It was good to hear that Peter was able to make a couple of trips to the NSS and that he enjoyed himself.

I honestly can't remember if we ever knew the reason. I doubt we were ever told. I think that John Berry was the team manager and if so that could explain why John Louis was preferred. Berry and Collins never got on but I can't recall when that started.