Splatty

blimey calm down guys - why the SCB witch hunt??? You know what?.. he can't MAKE us do anything and the post providing the (public information) addresses, for me, just represented the frustration that many of us were feeling I still feel that our favourite rider has got away scott free and until the sport gets some balls in dealing with incidents - who is going to get the message across better than the fans?

yeah I saw this mad brit girl in a raincoat very much the worse for wear and draped over some german/dane geezer - anyone know who she was? sounds good to me - Brda is the place to mosy on down to then!

good then he is aware of the size of the reaction one thing that I find interesting is that the ref let it go - the FIM let it go - The riders and management let it go by not protesting (even if they are still miffed) - but not the fans - we aren't stupid and we never were what did he admit to?

really????! I can think of at least 10 above him - how about Tony Rickardssen Jason Crump Leigh Adams Greg Hancock Tomasz Gollob Mark Loram Scott Nicholls Ryan Sullivan Nicki Pedersen Bo Brhel It takes a little more than a fast bike and some dangerous chops to make the world's cream all that said he has made strides this season and is looking odds on to be one of those at the forefront in years to come - lets hope he's learnt the odd lesson this season.

Prague was great and I only got 'beerish' because of the delay (like everyone else!) - The place was great to visit and the people friendly (in that eastern european way!) Will be making the trip to Bydgoszsz with my bro and can't wait for our maiden voyage - looks like an awesome track on the TV and the pilgrimage had to be arranged! Will be staying in Bydgoszsz itself on Friday and Saturday nights and looking for a decent bar to while away some time.

reckon you probably mean Stuart Robson although I reckon Scott would have run em close injury or no injury!

yeah I can go with most of that and especially the independent body part maybe it is flogging a dead horse - and maybe it wouldn't be if it was noticed but it is exactly my point - all of a sudden because an idiot or two have threatened the guy and he no longer wants to play ball everyone starts to forget the real issues here You might be resigned to the pantomine - I guess it might take me a while longer - I never was a fan of WWF

yes but it isn't cheap - large screens showing footage - unfotunately screens keep people occupied - but it is also a subtle way of reminding fans/new faces of the need to keep coming back - close races, cock ups and yes I suppose the odd crash PA systems on the whole though are pretty crummy general presentation leaves a lot to be desired from the car park to the bar to the stands/standing area etc etc - we have all become accustomed to it and probably don't feel the need for such frills but on a sociological level (hmmm getting deep now!) the majority of the UK has become middle class with all the airs and graces that come along with it - it could in fact be put down as something that coincided with speedway's attendance decline. I should imagine half the battle is first impressions - speedway has to try to become middle class sorry I can't help laughing at that last line now i've typed it but I wonder how near the truth it could be

I am a little bemused by the 'whole thing should be forgotten' brigade on here you cant undo what has been done and judging by the attitude of all the riders who commented on the situation on sky tonight they obviously feel the same way. I didn't hear any of them calling for it to be forgotten for the sake of the 'magician.' while there is no room for threats of violence and I have some sympathy for the guy on this point it does not alter what happened and I find it typical of Speedway that there is no reprimand for behaviour which compromises not only betting in the sport but also the spirit of competition and some 2 days later people are only too eager to sweep it under the carpet. I can't think of many things which could kill the sport quicker than the tolerance of such incidents.

I can't see the connection between that and my post Midnight Lady

I hadn't really thought about it - these things usually come down to the way the federation is set up within the sport In any case aren't Sky basically Australian?

sorry I don't understand Dekker

oh hello Dekker he rode in a way where 'such conduct produces an advantage to the rider (or team) involved or affects the chances of one or more riders' (taken from FIM General Rules for Track Racing 070.10.13)

lol yeah how annoying was that?!

Garf I wasn't going to bother but I can't resist it The British riders behaved with nothing but sportsmanship during the SWC - they were what I would describe as great ambassadors for their sport sorry mate but we have not had Olsen, Nielsen, Pedersen and Andersen down the years - nuff said please quote the hooligan element because I think you will find there will only be a few posts and they are not sufficient to paint everyone else with the same colour - it is a convenient and weak argument to counter what I would consider to be real issues which drag speedway in the sporting gutter. perhaps it is coming across as a 'witch hunt' to you or 'hooliganism' but what about speedway's best interests? I'm sorry you like the guy - I'm sorry he is Danish .....but it did happen are you saying it didn't happen? and if you think it did should it be left there? and finally.... isn't that just a little dramatic?

OK first off - this has nothing to do with sour grapes, excuses, england football type behaviour or anything like that at all - to be honest I couldn't care if it was Hans Andersen, Mark Loram or Matej Zagar (and the latter 2 I have utmost respect for) - the point is that recent goings on have brought things under the microscope - so I decided to find out a bit about FIM rules. They are definitely worth a read and enlightens as to just how much the Ref's interpret. Interestingly the FIM general rules for track racing 070.10.13 Foul or Dangerous Racing state: - 'The Referee shall imediately disqualify any rider whom he considers indulges in foul, unfair or dangerous riding. There shall be no protest or appeal against a Referee's decision to declare a heat completed or as to his statement or foul, unfair or dangerous riding. If, in the opinion of the Referee, such conduct produces an advantage to the rider (or team) involved or affects the chances of one or more riders, the referee may stop the heat and order a re-run If a Referee declares the heat over after one or more riders have crossed the finish line it shall not be re-run. If any rider is unable to cross the finish line as a result of foul, unfair or dangerous riding on the part of another rider who, in consequence, has been disqualified, the disadvantaged rider shall be deemed to have finished the heat in the placing held immediately before the foul, unfair or dangerous riding and allowing for any advancement in placing following the disqualification of the guilty rider. A similar system shall apply for a rider who, in the opinion of the referee, has deliberately laid down his machine or has left the course in the interest of safety.' The rest of the general rules are here: - General rules for Track Racing Speedway World Cup Rules The procedure for protesting and lodging a protest is complex but basically boils down to offended parties having to do it within 30 mins of the result being published - there is too much for me to type so here is the link: - FIM Disciplinary and Arbitration Code So in fact the way the current system is set up once Mr Bates didn't make a ruling based on the above - all teams, riders, managers, officials in the WTC had a chance to protest over heat25 but chose not to - probably in the interests of the sport. Which then brings us to possible actions after an event - particularily when there is video evidence - which i'm struggling to find any procedure for - If no such procedure exists and more importantly no action can be taken after 30 minutes it leaves the sport wide open for criticism IMO There is also rule 078.12.13 Fines which amongst other entries includes the line: - '3) Ungentlemanly behaviour towards any persons, (1) with words or signs, (2) with violence - (1) CHF 750 (2) disqualification from the meeting' I wonder when this was enforced last

that is too easy to say Peter and it really has nothing to do with football at all - I'm not saying we SHOULD have won - i'm not saying that some of the things directed at him are correct but what I am saying is that quite clearly he brought the sport into disrepute lets not gloss over what happened with the comments of a few who went overboard

shoot me down in flames if you like but he shouldn't be riding anyway - this smacks of the guy knowing he is in trouble and trying to pre-empt any possible official actions against him with a hard luck story - the medical certificate should be an interesting one

there is absolutely no law against publishing address details of anyone - you could print tony blair's holiday residence address if you wanted to and FYI Flying Ryan 'email the nationals' was a post started by me - I don't see the connection between the two at all and I still stand by the idea - better than doing nothing at all and I intend to keep emailing with both positive and negative comments

and all these things have been mentioned in terms of how GB rode their luck IMHO as I have put elsewhere I don't think a rider should have to fall for a ref to make a decision - but yes the race shouldn't have been stopped for consistency. Scott Nicholls should have been excluded - but then then again so should lindback in the qualifier for doing the same thing so maybe in the interests of consistency..... the red light incident was unfortunate and as we saw in the british final qualifiers at KL it can have a big effect - I would not expect a ref to do anything about that this kind of thing could go on and on - we could mention how much the swedes gained out of NP being reckless again but then again these threads and posts aren't really about how we should have won are they Steve? I'd say more about how we will never find out what could have been and what a disgrace was brought on the whole event

lol yeah the olympics crack me up I always have a count on the amount of times the term 'little plucky brit' is used Steve obviously there are a fair amount of posts in the stylee of 'my team have just been beaten and i'm not very happy' but there are also many posts on a far more serious subject and unless, like i've asked you before, you think that Hans is innocent (free the foxhall one!) passing off all these threads as sour grapes is a little unfair

yep you do have a point there but at least they have made a stand this season on this point and reinforced that losing on purpose won't be tolerated why is it drivel Steve? Are you happy to see riders doing what Hans did? I think on the whole you could be right there - 90% of the posts wouldn't be happening, but count how many there are about Mr Bates - I think there are a large contingent in here who are fans of speedway first and foremost

that would be a decent punishment but sadly he is probably more likely to be picked if they know he stirs up such emotion

I think the odds were stacked against Scott beating PK based on the gates and the difference in engine performance but........Hans did do what he did, perhaps if he was more clever he would have worked out those odds before the race For a sport that relies on riders being honest and making an effort on the track at all times (including 1 and 2 man races) there aren't many disciplines handed out and this surely isn't because they are all angels - the evidence is clear as crystal in this case and something should be done at a high level