mikebv

Using UK and Polish Speedway expectations of the riders is not a valid comparison... Poland has high rewards, and with it, (quite rightly), comes high expectations as to the professionalism of its riders and officials.. Its "brand" has a value and needs protecting... The UK has a regulation which gets used from time to time called "in the interest of Speedway"... Which, basically means "we have had to make something up to get a meeting on".... Any sport that has such a thing within its operating model definitely cannot ever be taken seriously... Not by the promoters themselves, nor the fans, nor the wider media, and, I would suggest, nor all the riders.. The DU'ers are pretty much "bomb proof" due to a lack of riders of their level willing to ride over here, to fill the places the teams need filling... (And of course due to a lack of any meaningful structured UK rider development over the past few decades)... The (maybe), unpalatable truth is that these riders can pretty much do what they want given the demand for them well exceeds the supply available.. I'd hate the game before the player...

A league of eight works fine in Poland, Sweden and Denmark... 56 riders with several "subs on the bench" to replace any injured riders.. Bottom line is the UK cannot afford "one rider one team"... And the riders DUing couldn't afford to run with just one salary... Far too much to unpick now for the sport to become anything more than it is in the UK... Too many challenges to overcome, with too many different needs and wants from those who run it, and those who compete in it.... If you were launching Speedway in the UK next year, and all the promoters of the new clubs got together to write the operating model to follow, and someone came up with the current way of working, it would, quite rightly, be laughed out of the room.. I doubt it is by choice the sport in the UK is ran the way it is.. Necessity is more likely the reason, I would suggest .

A league of eight works fine in Poland, Sweden and Denmark... 56 riders with several "subs on the bench" to replace any injured riders.. Bottom line is the UK cannot afford "one rider one team"... And the riders DUing couldn't afford to run with just one salary... Far too much to unpick now for the sport to become anything more than it is in the UK... Too many challenges to overcome, with too many different needs and wants from those who run it, and those who compete in it.... If you were launching Speedway in the UK next year, and all the promoters of the new clubs got together to write the operating model to follow, and someone came up with the current way of working, it would, quite rightly, be laughed out of the room.. I doubt it is by choice the sport in the UK is ran the way it is.. Necessity is more likely the reason, I would suggest .

These lads are self employed, and, incredibly, can lose a contract for doing more than what was expected of them... So, for me, it's completely understandable if some do have little time for those who have contracted them.. You certainly don't have to like those you work for, or with... And many of the DU'ers are the only reason plenty of tracks exist at the level they do... Due to two tracks sharing their costs... If the DU'ers decided "it was no longer worth it", then there wouldn't be much left would there?.. "Turn up, do your job on the track, and go home".. That would be a fair expectation I would suggest .

100%, but the apathy is created by the feeling of the sport just going through the motions, with no clear objective nor major rewards... The apathy, for me, started to increase towards the end of Sky's tenure and has increased at an ever evolving pace since..

Commend your passion and enthusiasm... But completely unworkable... Teams cannot afford to pay riders for "exclusivity", hence DU'ing is the glue that is holding UK Speedway together... Maybe an "Elite League" of eight, five rider teams, could be something to sell to TV and engage the punters?.. DU'ing would still be needed though...

No skin in the game for me, however... I have seen Dan ride three times at Foxhall, and, from memory, eight points off five rides is the best I have seen him score, with a fair few thirds and lasts.. And none of his defeats included any "hunting down" of the rider in front or just "faiing to pass on the line" from what I remember...

Is he starting his main job earlier so gets away as early as he can?.. Remember. This is a sport (in the UK), where riders can lose their jobs each season, (sometimes even during the season), for doing their job "too well"... Therefore, I am not sure fans should expect, (or be surprised), if riders don't show any major emotional attachment to any of their (sometimes many), teams.. Nor fans be bothered if riders don't get too attached to team mates, who tomorrow may be a rival, and then the night after a team mate again, or again a rival, if either, (or even both), get guest bookings.. Personally I clear off as soon as the first rider completes Ht15 to try and get home as quick as I can, and many, many others do the same, (I would say the majority of fans there do it).... I wonder if the riders complain that we should all stay until they have gone around on the tractor?...

Once upon a time, a man with two jobs repeatedly turned up for his second job just in time to start it.. And he did his second job quite well most weeks, although he didn't always spend too much time getting involved with his work mates or customers.. As he had a main job he would often leave his evening job as soon as he could, so he could get back home, as he had to be up early for his main job the next morning... Some people didn't like him doing this... But he wasn't bothered... The End..

It simply doesn't matter what they come up with if hardly anyone from the 80 million people in the UK know that you exist... What does a Premiership team cost? £350k a year maybe??. Shave off £50k and pay someone that money to work full time to run your marketing and commercial operations, plus running the "fan experience" on the night itself... With their remit to bring in a tangible extra £100k a season in sponsorship, and attendance increases... Give them full remit to do "whatever they need to", to get, at least, 2500 in the stadium... Free tickets, reduced tickets, database collation, even direct cold call marketing, their role will be to get the team noticed and get "new" money into the club... The more who attend, the better the atmosphere as we know, currently any "newbie" attending would have been in louder, more atmospheric libraries.. You can pay out six figures for a top two world class riders who, due to their small public profiles, will bring in hardly anyone extra to watch, or pay someone a decent figure, (with performance bonus), to get them noticed , and then bring people in to watch them.... I visited a pub on Monday to meet up with an old workmate, a pub I had never used before... I signed up to use their WIFI... Within 24 hours I had a 15% off voucher emailed to me for this Sunday in their restaurant, and thanking me for my custom... The circa 3000 or so who still follow most Premiership teams, should all be known to "someone" at the club,(via the clubs database), and that "someone" then keeps constantly communicating and doing anything, and everything, they can to encourage repeat visits... 500 empty seats just get colour faded in the sunshine... 500 full ones, even at a tenner each, will bring in £50k over a season, and create far more of an "event feel" and atmosphere, plus increase bar, food and merchandise takings... UK Speedway brings in big money in relation to its size, and pays out even more!! It needs to redistribute the money going out to people who could help bring more people in.. And currently, that isn't the riders..

They have had literally thousands of pieces of unsolicited feedback down the years, via the written Speedway media, in person at the tracks, and obviously via Social Media.. With so much of it focused on the same repeating issues that were gradually turning even die hards away.. The only thing they chose to do with it was ignore it...

And that's the most baffling thing of all... They have been doing the same thing for a long, long while, whilst Rome has been constantly, slowly, and gradually, burning around them... Many of us on here have "forever" pointed out the only inevitable conclusion to the situation, given all the evidence in front of our eyes... You certainly didn't need a crystal ball to be now saying "we told you so", nor any hindsight... You have to hope that, finally, those who have buried their heads firmly into the sand, are now, at last, going to make those radical changes so desperately needed... The ones they should have made after COVID... A huge undertaking to be honest given there is so much self inflicted nonsense to unpick, and the fact no one has already done it given its obvious need doesn't exactly inspire confidence that the leadership skill set exists, (as surely someone would have already stepped forwards to try and sort things).. However. Good luck to whoever is leading the plan... Getting the leagues to mean something, be relevant, have tangible rewards that create interest, and a joined up national marketing plan, has to be the main objective, as everything else will fall into place when delivering that..

Indeed.... Well meaning people doing things that once may have worked... By now, every team should have the emails, mobiles, and personal details of each of their fans who attend... Eg, if they haven't seen that fan purchase a ticket for two matches, send them an email and text offering reduced entrance to the next one.. Send them Xmas cards, birthday cards etc etc, plus to their family if they have young kids.. A complete database would be not more than 3,000 (if that),... With circa 600 seats empty every week in the GS, you would have someone sending emails and texts all day Saturday to Monday from 8am, offering reduced price, free kids tickets etc.. By Monday morning you will know what the crowd will be like given those who pay on the night will be a certain parameter number... Flogging 300 seat tickets for £15 and 300 standing for a tenner each on a Monday would bring in £7.5k you were more than likely not getting.. And. If people start to take the "Erik Riss" and stop buying in advance, in the hope they got a reduced ticket, then just stop doing it for a meeting or two.. I used to restrict all my promotions if I thought a private shop was coming in and buying in bulk to resell... Richard Coleman said that just 300 extra at every track was a big deal.... The beauty of which is you don't need the same 300, just get 300.. So much "digital gold" is at at your fingertips to brng in punters these days.. Every track should employ at least one person to do it direct market style, using their fan database.. Or maybe get them to put leaflets on car windscreens in supermarket car parks.

Where do live mate?.. I'll be around about seven tomorrow...

Sounds Great... Why isn't it working?...

Will missed out on a meeting last Thursday as he had to get to Sweden... This week he can earn a few quid back....

It is, and has been for a long time, a "chicken and egg" scenario... To gain major investment from outside the Speedway Bubble, they need to ensure they deliver a credible sport, with each meeting actually meaning something, and an ultimate prize which generates interest... To deliver a credible sport, with each meeting actually meaning something, and an ultimate prize which generates interest, it needs major investment from outside the Speedway Bubble already in place to achieve it... Basically. Neither can be achieved without one or the other already being in place.... And that is a huge challenge for them...

All 100%, however, the same has been glaringly obvious for well over a decade yet "zilch" has been done about it... Literally millions and millions and millions have been spent using TV money, sponsorship, and crowd admission money over the past two decades or so... And all for what exactly??...

Ultimately though, it all goes back to the lack of any major prestige, publicity and financial rewards for winning any of the competitions... If the "size of the prize" was massive, so would the crowds be... If winning really meant something, people would attend... The crowd numbers reflect the apathy that UK Speedway engenders by being so (almost), irrelevant within a sporting context... How do they get that major financial backing?.. With such poor "optics" across a breadth of issues, when looking into the sport from the outside, I am sure it must be truly difficult, if not maybe impossible, to deliver that game changing, fundamental to success, major backing...

Tell me who has shown you the 2027 plan??? This was marked "Top Secret"...

Sounds Great!!! Ticks almost every box!!!! The last box to tick...??? They just now need to advertise it across Gtr Manchester, to the Three Million people who all live within a 45 min drive of the NSS, letting them know when the meeting is taking place, and how much to get in, (things like that).. Do that well, and the place could be rammed... Who knows? If it works, they could then do the same advertising when the Aces are racing.... (Maybe not every box will get ticked then eh?)

On a recent Dan T Vlog, both him and Kelsey were commenting on how quick Klindt is when in front... (He had just beat Dan in the previous race).. And both said that it is very difficult to get near him once he is leading...

He is actually, possibly, the perfect kind of rider the UK version of the sport needs.... A part time Speedway rider.. Six months work riding Speedway, 12 months doing some other job...

Wow!! Marketing....????? Who knew?????

Is this on Sky?..