mikebv

With the nearest club being chosen if two want to borrow you...

That's fifteen quid of diesel saved both ways....

Let's be fair... There isn't any real rewards for winning any UK Competition, therefore promoters see their role as just putting out a Speedway meeting.... There are only three boxes that UK Speedway feel need ticking... Riders getting the chance to earn money... Fans getting to see Speedway racing... Promoters, Referees, and the Track Volunteers, all getting to enjoy their main hobby... To measure UK Speedway against other "professional" team sports is pretty much like measuring chalk to cheese.. The irony, of course, is that the money needed to be brought in to the sport to make it "relevant" and to give it some "prestige" will never happen, as no major brands would ever associate themselves with UK Speedway given the "erratic" way it is ran, hence Competition Sponsors are usually always "in-house" and connected to the sport in some way.. What we have, is pretty much all there is, which, let's be brutally honest, isn't going to last too much longer when all the "veteran" Double Uppers start to wain or retire... (And should Poland make riders pick only one league extra to ride in, it could bring the end quicker)... Ironically, when these things happen, it actually may mean those who run the UK version of the sport do eventually, through necessity, realise that "something new" just could be required.. Edit. I will add a fourth box to be ticked.. Winning at home, with winning away not a priority box to be ticked, as it can cost too much...

There must be more individual regs attached to "Guesting" then any other individual facet of the Sport... - An Away meeting average Reg... - A Home meeting average Reg... - An 8 Day Rule Reg... - An 8 Day Rule, for a No1, Reg - An assessed average Reg.. (Or has now that gone?) - A Play Off Suitability Reg... - A reason from missing/75% Reg... ; A left handed or right handed rider Reg (alright I made that one up)..... Have I missed any? Incredible they have to spend so much time making up Regulations for something no Pro Team Sport should ever countenance using in the first place...

Brilliant Woryna.... Kelvin's knowledge of world speedway is so poor... It is almost like Woryna is unheard of... He has been one of the few who more than has held his own v Zmarzlik in Poland, for several years... Similar to Kurtz, he has been someone easily at GP level for a few years, but just couldn't qualify...

Great ride from Lambert... Too nice on turn 2 but made up for it...

Phil certainly knows how to prepare a track doesn't he? ... Usually some decent racing from Landshut in the Polish league... They mustn't have "sunshine" those weekends....

They just need to drop the number of riders per team... Use the Danish model and have plenty of riders on standby to fill holes as the season progresses... Crackers to keep saying "their isn't enough riders", and still keep using a model that was fine when there was...

It's a hobby, so meetings get made up to suit, as required...

With Poland having the final... Maybe Bewley and Lambert were a pair that they were "very pleased" to see qualify?... With potentially still adding Woffy being the icing on the cake..?

100% success rate....

Always amusing to watch... Can't remember which Leicester rider it was in the PO Final who got told by Abi that there was six points in it. (One of the Aussies I think).. "To us?" He asked. "To them" she replied... "Crikey! We need to get our fingers out then don't we?" he said laughing...

Robert not aware of the score.... He knows what he has got though... The Team Manager obviously isn't too bothered about letting them know how the match s going...

Sounds like a big success all round... One promoter once told me that crowds usually settle to around a quarter and a third of opening night, however that was for tracks that had "come back" so already had a following until they closed.. Not many will remember Brafield I would think, so it is more like starting from scratch in this venture so it will be interesting to see how crowd levels move... Last nights crowd would have seen plenty of "generic" fans so, hopefully, those attending from the local area will spread the word, and the consortium also have a strong promotion package in place to build on last nights positive occasion... Were any discount vouchers given out last night?.. The next five meetings for, say, twenty pound a throw could help get people used to attending and build some emotional attachment to "their team".. In such a short time, the consortium have certainly done a fantastic job in getting the place open... Let's hope healthy crowds are the norm, and the "novelty factor" remains through the season as more and more people from Northampton, and sponsors, gradually latch on to their new sport, and team...

TNT 9 for tonight, and TNT 2 for tomorrow... That's according to "Wheres the match on TV" Website

Brennan five off four rides... His opposite nunber, Lidsey, thirteen off six.... At Foxhall..

To be fair, one is an individual event, so he only impacts himself, and the other is representing your country.... He is hugely better than young Cairns at this moment in time... If GB have an injury tomorrow, early (ish), in the meeting, they may not qualify...

"Vintage Kyle Howarth"....

Great news Dave . Some brilliiant racing last year.... Even better, week on week, consistently overall, than Poland in my opinion.. Let's hope for the same this year...

Richard Lawson in the Speedway Star wasnt impressed not to get asked.. Him at five would have been very useful...

Seems to be making some decent progression this lad....

FFS!!!! It's their FIRST meeting!!!.... With (hopefully), lots of people there who have either some vague idea of what Speedway is, or havent a clue at all what it is all about... What a load of bollox involved when all that needs to be done is a close meeting, with Northampton winning...

Should have given him a "Special Burger"....

I think most attending will have an expectation of "first night teething problems".... And it would be truly amazing if all went perfectly to plan... Let's hope 3000+ attend as that generally would mean the crowd levels, after the novelty has worn off and generic fans from other tracks have all attended, will settle down to a decent level.... Running out of programmes, (and even chips!), would be a good sign.... Best of luck to Mark Lemon, and the rest, the weather looks decent so hopefully a good turn out...

Was the driveway really, really soaking wet?.. Even though there hadn't been any rain for a week?..