crazysue

Unaffordable. I used to pay £3 prior to them being 16, afterwards it would have been £15 (I think, they are 23 and 20 now!), not something I could afford, nor they bearing in mind they were full time students studying for their GCSEs. And no they don't apart from basic living, both are students at university and with prices for accommodation, transport and course costs, it doesn't actually leave a lot left over for nice things and certainly not a weekly speedway fix....not that there is a track within easy distance for either of them. James managed to come to the track a couple of times this year, one was my treat the other was where he got some money left over from his part time whilst at home during the holidays job. Josh couldn't afford it at all as any money he managed to get, went straight away to paying half rent during the summer for his student house. They don't like other sports, only speedway.

For 2 of my sons all it would have taken was a more sensible pricing strategy. They didn't mind the gaps between heats, they didn't mind the older stadiums, they didn't mind the outdated music....they just couldn't afford to go once they hit 16 and had to pay adult entrance despite still being in school full time studying for GCSES (they had the bad luck of being born early in the school year) as they were too young to get a student card (have to be in 6th form) and too old for child price. At one point there was 5 of us in our group, youngest dropped out pretty quickly as although he loved speedway, he found it difficult to cope at the track, the other two dropped out as they hit 16 and finally, the family friend who used to come with us dropped out last year as it had become unaffordable.

Mojo is def back, unfortunately my body is still beggered!

I wasn't able to get to a few meetings this season due to my health and I had to make the decision on whether to risk going and not being able to do anything else for days after or stay at home, (one was admittedly because I had a car accident) but I don't think I could be classed as anything less than a real supporter bearing in mind what I do. I also stopped going when I started to have my children, the pennies were just not there to be able to afford it sadly and then working evenings to fit around the children/husband but I kept up to date as much as I could via other means (newspapers, teletext, this site) for almost 10 years before I could return. Funnily enough, one of the prime reasons Updates is around is for those supporters who are unable to get to the track, be that because they have to work, have caring responsibilities, can't afford it, have small children to ferry around or they live too far away. It doesn't make them any less of a fan, it just means they are unable to go due to circumstances.

Not a bad looking team, think Chris has done well bearing in mind the points limit. I've just got to remember to try not to panic Rory's mum (or Sandie, or ML) whilst texting, think that makes me more nervous than anything else!

No need to change on my account, sods law would say that something would come up or my health would not be great on the day and you would have gone to all the trouble for nothing. I'll just keep an eye out and if one is held that is doable for me (health and distance wise), then I'll toddle along.

Blimey, they are even further out than Ipswich! Blooming long way to go for an orange squash....

Doubt I will be there guys, don't like driving in Ipswich and especially at night in the winter plus I am still trying to get over the uni visit to Lincoln I did with youngest son last weekend, so I am completely cream crackered.

Aww shucks, thanks guys....I reached my thanking quota (who knew there was such a thing!) for the moment so will thank the posts I haven't been able to when they allow me more. March 22nd 2005 was the starting date and to be honest, my expectation was for us to be around for about 2 weeks, maybe a couple of months at most, I would never have thought we would still be here just completing our 12th season. Yes, there have been ups and downs over the years when my patience has been sorely tested but the fact we are still here is testament to the team who continue to put up with my pleading (and sometimes downright desperate) texts, my moaning at them, my weirdness plus of course, their commitment to speedway. And it's true, I have my speedway mojo back thanks to the back straight crew in what has become the cauldron of noise and fun. It got just a little too lonely on the home straight and after one particularly eek night where the only person I spoke to was on the gate, I had pretty much decided I wasn't going to go again this season. A couple of days later, I got invited to try it out on the back straight where all the noise was coming from, I gave it a go and I have been over there ever since. Bit of a trek for me and I have to rest up all day before going and all day the next day but it is very much worth the pain to get round there.

For some reason, the sound was much clearer last night...I could hear the times and the announcements. The only time I couldn't was when we were making too much noise which is as it should be.

Well done Somerset, your team deserved that win, no complaints here, I really thought our season was over in July and that we would be done and dusted well before now, so to get to the semi was an amazing achievement.

Make that 3 routes I know now to (or from) the stadium.....

Even though I only live down the road from Ipswich, I really really don't know the Ipswich roads that well. I know two different routes to the hospital (and by consequence, the stadium too) and 2 different routes to the train station and that is it. I hate driving in Ipswich so much because of all the changes to the road system over the last couple of decades that I avoid it if I can, we don't even go up there for shopping now, preferring to get on a train and go to Norwich.

My plan is either to play beat the roadworks and get through before 7, or play beat the teenage moods, give up and go via St Augustines. On the way home, it is going to be playing beat the boredom because I have to go the very long way around.

I'll still be there, banging my cowbell....well if I can find my way around the blooming roadworks without going into meltdown!

Is there anyone going to this meeting who would be able to text updates to the Updates site? If so, could you please send me a private message which includes your mobile number. Thanks

I usually do the lowering of tone with my rather rude sense of humour...well that is when people get to know me, you're all just getting the well behaved me at the moment.

Might be interested, closed season is pretty long and it's nice to have a distraction (although I tend to get booked up December/January with Aussie Champs). Probably won't if it is in central Ipswich, I hate driving in Ipswich and try to avoid it as much as I can.

I might be interested in going..... The last one I went to was the first one that they did a buffet for rather than a sit down meal, it did not go well. However, think they may have sorted that now, especially with a different venue. Used to love the old end of season dinner dance at the hotel in Copdock, loads of fun to be had so it was a shame when it changed venue and style.

I didn't go to speedway for 10 years due to the constraints of family and finances but still followed the results every week in the paper or on teletext....missed our best year though, begger!

Is there anyone going to this meeting who would be able to text updates to the Updates site? If so, could you please send me a private message which includes your mobile number. Thanks

I will take my normal eek (or some would say pessimistic view) and be a little more cautious about the result. Things can and do go wrong and this IS Edinburgh, not always a happy hunting ground for us. Just as they went 26 points down at our place, it is not outside the realms of possibility that we could do the same there. We do have a great cushion to take up there but this is speedway and anything can happen (I was at Peterborough that fateful TR night in 2006 when it looked completely impossible and they ended up winning the blooming thing!) That said, I will be over the moon if we follow what is now predicted and make it through to the next round, even more so because I will have taken the more pessimistic/cautious view I'll be staying off Updates/Monchat apart from very occasional pop ins as I tend to jinx the Witches when I watch their away meetings online....

Oh don't worry, I didn't see any disrespect, just curiosity. It's all good (as my teenage children like to say) and yes, it has certainly rekindled my interest in the sport.

Baldyman is correct, I was at the point of walking away after a particularly lonely meeting where the only words I said all night was to the woman at the entrance. I like my alone time, don't get me wrong but speedway has always been a social thing for me and I have always been part of a fairly large group but that has dwindled over the years until finally, halfway through last season, it became just me on my own. I still managed to get through as there were regulars around me but these too have disappeared from the terraces over the last 18 months until we got to that horrible night where there was absolutely no-one to talk to. As I walked out of the stadium that night, I said to myself that that was the last meeting I was going to go to, the joy had gone, the fun had gone, the social side had gone... I was done with speedway. I even thought of wrapping up Updates at the end of the season such were my feelings in regards to the sport.

Still need an updater for this meeting, is anyone able to help please?