Phlipphlopp

Yes , but not a 'copter . John Richards (joint promoter with Wally Mawdsley) who had a car dealership in Bishops Lydeard let Ivan have use of his private plane. Not a modern day jet , but a decent turbo-prop which enabled Ivan to ride on the continent and be picked up at Exeter airport ready for Gulf BL racing on Monday nights.

He'll help keep you mid table where you belong

Others end up in Germany

Had the pleasure of watching Jimmy Mac a few times down here when i was a nipper , always good value and a gutsy bloke. Good ole fashioned rider who enjoyed his racing.

Another reason why track rakers were used pre airfences was to scape shale off the fence so riders actually knew where the fence was !

Every home team has an advantage , that hasnt changed since 1928. Familiarity always gives riders an edge , but not a given against decent opposition. For home advantage think Exeter , some riders crapped themselves at the County Ground , others attacked it and mastered it. Same as most tracks i guess , none are the same.

And without TV ? Speedway wins.

Although i'm gutted to agree , how many people apart from the Olympics can say they have watched a serious swimming event ? I'd guess speedway worldwide pulls a greater number of spectators each year , many , many times over.

Mostly of him jumping off the side like Batch did and kicking stuff in his pits. I dont call that passion , i call that losing your cool.

You do realise what happens when you shut off entering a corner presumably ? Or are you just playing devils advocate ?

Yep and Pedersen has made his name by doing exactly the same. You hear the same pitiful arguments like in this case , Batch turned left on him. What do you expect , he was approaching a corner , or would you prefer he went straight on into and probably over the airfence. Clear contact , and correct decision.

Storm in a shot glass if you ask me. Just imagine the entertainment if they all turned up half p*ssed. I mean its only bike riding. Look at darts players , for decades they've been hammered whilst throwing missiles at a piece of sisal. And no-ones been killed by a darter yet.

Superb day and evening. Anyone that fancies a moan ought to be put in a padded cell for a while. Roll on 2015.

I take it you havent been to T20 cricket then ?

Talking about gearing , Mauger famously for a while had false stickers on his gearing cogs so as to outfox the opposition who might have fancied changing theirs at the same time as he did.........

I've come to the conclusion that several riders have their worst bikes in Sweden. Several races leads me to this conclusion. Best bikes are either in England , or Poland. Seems they use either for the GP's.

Congratulations to Tai on the win , but yes after the first lap was as big as borefest as your likely to see and a poor advert for the sport. Not sure more shale on its own is the answer , sometimes need a combination of more shale plus significant banking to create a track with several different lines.

Rarely ever saw the guy , he always used to bottle out of coming down to the county ground , always some pathetic excuse or other , nothing ever genuine. But i do wish him and his family well and hope he battles this and wins through.

I first heard about Ivans health problems nearly three years ago now from a friend of his who's name i shant disclose over lunch. I did at the time tell a few mates on here what i'd heard but obviously until the results proved conclusive its best not to put such things onto a forum . Speedway legend doesnt even come close to what the great man has given our sport. Hope him and his family gets the help they need , and the support of the speedway community .

Indeed. More parsloes sensationalism rubbish. By his analogy , American football would have suffered terminal decline after the OJ Simpson fiasco's.

Really ? You think it was his choice ? Cosy in mummy's womb , everything became perfectly clear obviously.

To be fair , as much as i like Rory he's no world beater and not going to improve so not sure how it will benefit team England/GB/call it what you want. I think in all sports , cricket in particular , all this nationality mullarky should have concrete rules and standards. It farcical at the moment. Two out of 3 aint bad in my case

I didnt hear any breakdown of the prize money or even how much , all seems a bit secretive , ideas anyone ?

I'll never slag the Elite League off ever again ! (well maybe) . The owners should be banned for life for ever being involved in the sport.

Gulf British League........A damn sight better product than we have now.