Aces51

Last year Batchelor was superb at the NSS but unless Drozdz is very poor I can see an Aces win by about 10. It's been a long wait for the season to start so hoping for some good close but safe racing.

I understand what you mean and I criticised our management at the time. On the other hand nobody guessed that the Poole meeting was cancelled so that it couldn't adversely affect the intended team changes. Well to be exact, apparently nobody in authority did, the rest of us had no difficulty catching them out red handed.

There's a precedent for cancelling a home meeting at the whim of the home promoter. Poole v Lakeside, was it 2015, I can't remember the year.

I was thinking of organising a Team Suits for Poole collection at the NSS tomorrow. It is upsetting to see a once proud club in such obvious financial difficulties. This year team suits, next year an elastatic band in place of the starting gate, it's so sad. Especially this year when they are celebrating they're 70th anniversary. Fortunately, a relatively minor event compared to our 90th celebrations but even so, no doubt important to them. Unfortunately, even after searching for several minutes I can't find my cap so the plans for the collection have had to be abandoned. Perhaps for the best as security had warned me that I might be in danger of physical attacks.

Perhaps not the best example. Didn't Jurica Pavlic do the same on his first visit to Lakeside. However, I do know what you mean. There are riders who just see tracks as there to be ridden, no matter the size, shape, or condition and those who take a look and are convinced they're not going to do well.

Remember that it took Lindgren a while to suss it out and that was riding there every week. MarkLemon, speaking about Drozdz, said he should be fine at the NSS but might have problems at Wolverhampton, adding that many riders who have ridden in the UK for years still have problems riding it. It was the same with the dog track many riders couldn't get to grips with it and it gave us a big home advantage.

The fact they've listened to it and still put it out speaks volumes about how out of touch these people are. If you want to build atmosphere start by improving the presentation to give fans the impression that the sport is professional, slick and modern. Try allowing riders the freedom to react within reason to referees decisions and actions by other riders. Much of it was pantomime in the 70's but it certainly gets a reaction from the crowd. Fans love to see riders showing passion for their team and it certainly builds the atmosphere. Why is Nicki Pedersen such a draw card?

Steve Worrall, Tungate and Frederik Jakobsen announced this morning.

I think most of us do especially after the dog track. You could get good racing there but it was entirely different, not fast and close with many racing lines but usually dependent on riders making mistakes or home track advantage. Nowhere near so exciting to watch and far fewer good races. A track like the NSS proves that racing can be as good today as it ever was.

The agreement is about helping to develop youngsters at both clubs not riders unlikely to ride in the UK.

At Belle Vue until the last few seasons it seemed to be mainly music I recognised, so 60's and 70's. Now it does seem more of a mixture with much I don't recognise. Whether that means they are playing current music or just music from the 90's onwards I wouldn't know. Last year they introduced a mascot, Chase The Ace and I must admit that my initial reaction was it was something I could well do without but he is brilliant. He keeps young and old amused between races with his dancing and mimes.

I agree about the presentation. Easy improvements are to speed up the meetings with no overlong delays between races, apart from the unavoidable delays after some crashes, music that appeals to a younger audience and making fans feel appreciated. We also need to look more at what appeals to youngsters. We need apps that not only provides them with a constant flow of up to date information but that are interactive. How about an app that allows users to predict results of matches and races and then marks their predictions against the actual results using emoji's and amusing comments. It could also be used as a race card with instant updates after each race.

I have no objection to clubs using free tickets to try to get people interested in the sport providing they are not finding their way to regular supporters or the same people week after week. I want speedway and individual clubs to survive and done properly it is one way of promoting the sport. In the end we all benefit if clubs can attract bigger crowds. The club becomes financially secure and bigger crowds produce a better atmosphere, which makes meetings more enjoyable.

I think it is obvious who he is getting at particularly as he has named those clubs who do not owe him. I very much doubt he would have omitted naming Lakeside when he has named Leicester. What we don't know is the reasons why he wasn't paid and the sums involved from each club. Sometimes clubs can have cash flow problems for example, if they have not had a home meeting for some weeks but that can't explain what appear to be old debts. I don't think that riders returning to a club necessarily means anything. This has happened at other clubs who have allegedly owed money and could be because those clubs offer explanations and assurances about the future.

Whilst change 2 may bring an element of fairness it certainly won't add to the overall entertainment. In 90% of such reruns it will just result in a boring race. To me it's another example of unnecessary tinkering. Fans moan when such races have to be stopped, particularly when a rider stays down to get the race stopped but I and I suspect most fans, prefer a genuine rerun rather than handicapping one rider. You may as well just award the race.

Ivan didn't want to leave Belle Vue having spent 4 seasons there. It was Belle Vue that let him go, albeit allowing it to be believed it was the rider control committee that were responsible so as not to alienate any fans. They did it because they correctly believed that they could build home grown and less expensive league winning teams without him. Ivan also spent 4 seasons at Hull and 6 at Exeter, so certainly cannot be accused of being a rider who regularly moved from one team to another after relatively short stays. I've no doubt that he would have had very attractive offers if he had let it be known at the end of a season that he was available. I think the evidence points to the fact that he was committed and passionate about his clubs by doing whatever he could to make them successful. He didn't have to do that. He could have done what the majority of top riders do and just ensured that he gave 100% to his riding and that would have been perfectly acceptable. However, he went way beyond that and so far as I know, for no additional financial benefit to himself. Tsunami's post gives further examples of his going above and beyond what he needed to do to help Newcastle and other riders.

Ivan insisted on having a say in the riders that were signed and the running of the teams he was involved with. It is no coincidence that Belle Vue, Hull and Exeter were all successful during his time with them. I'm sure he negotiated good deals for himself but his commitment to his teams was beyond doubt.

But none of them are Belle Vue fans.

Surely the first point, that riders must remain astride their machines whilst gardening, discriminates against those riders who are not tall enough to to be able to garden without getting off their bikes. Are short people an ethnic group? I'm glad now that we didn't sign Kenneth Bjerre.

Hopefully, the fixed nights this year will greatly reduce the numbers of missing riders. Belle Vue in recent seasons have retained a lot of the same riders from year to year and so have some other teams so, if fixed nights do work, it should be possible to build up that missing relationship with the fans. We shall still have doubling up and riders racing for teams abroad but I think that matters less if they are present for their meetings here.

For the same package I pay £31.49 for Infinity and get the BT Sport on Sky at half price £5. I negotiated that in January when my contract was up for renewal. From memory I think they wanted to charge me £39 for the broadband but were offering the sport for £5.

You're as entitled to your opinion as I am to mine. My reasoning is that I didn't want the benefit fund and ultimately the riders who need it's help to lose out for a problem which they played no part in creating.

I was also there that night. It looked a typical slide off on the first bend, the sort of accident seen many many times and my initial reaction was that Alan would soon be up and on his feet. Unfortunately, it soon became apparent that it was far more serious and we all know the terrible result. Alan was Belle Vue through and through. I didn't think he was ever going to be a World Champion but he was a very good rider and excellent Captain who always gave his all for the team. He may not have reached the heights of Collins and Morton and yet to many Aces fans he is held in the same high regard because of his commitment and importance to the club. Over the years Belle Vue and individuals connected with the club have continued to hold events and raise funds to help Alan. That speaks volumes to the sort of man Alan is and to the esteem in which he is held. His book, From Two Weeks To Four/ The Alan Wilkinson Story is an excellent but emotional read. I'm not sure if new copies can still be bought but used copied can usually be found on Amazon and eBay.

I'm not going now but have donated my entrance fee to the SRBF. I hope others can do the same to try to help make up any loss of income from the meeting. http://www.srbf.co.uk

Darcy was undoubtedly an outstanding talent and who knows what he may have achieved. It was a tragedy that his career was cut short when he was only 23. It's all a matter of opinion. I agree about Peter Craven, who was known as the wizard of balance. PeterCollins also had incredible skills. I remember seeing Peter win a race after his handlebars snapped in half. Fortunately the right half of the bars was still secure and he continued by holding onto the top of the forks with his left hand and controlling the bike with his right hand. I have no idea how he still managed to slide it round the bends at speed but he did. Michael Lee was another incredible rider and all three, Craven, Collins and Lee were World Champions before they were 23. Those three and others, like the Moran brothers, who had fantastic bike skills, can certainly be compared to Darcy and some of them had achieved more than Darcy at a younger age.