mikebv

Well, well, well.. Will it last..?

Another excellent edition this week.. Well done to all in maintaining such a high standard..

Everyone has things in their life that as they get older they remember 'as clear as day' even as the years advance. . Wilkie's crash that night is one that I can still see unfold to this day.. One that even as a young kid I had seen happen dozens of times before... One that 999 times out a 1000 the riders get up from and walk away.. Truly tragic that Alan never did walk again following that crash.. But truly inspirational the way he reacted to it, and lived with it. I suppose you either have that strength of character, and the courage needed to go with it, or you don't... And as he proved over his racing years, and the many years since that night , he had both in abundance..

A few refs certainly had to ensure that the locks were secure in their boxes... My over riding memory of Wilkie was of him standing on the fourth bend, inside the track where the tractor parked, wearing his Red, White and Black leathers, arms folded tightly, back ram rod straight, watching the racing intently as Captain of the team. He would then march across the track back to the pits at the end of the race to either pat his team mate on the back, or, if not succesful, and he felt it not a good enough effort, issue some 'motivational feedback' to his colleague... A proper Captain in every way... For some this might be a cliché, but not for Wilkie.. They truly don't make them like him anymore. .

My first hero... A true giant as a leader of men.. He rode in the days when it truly meant something to follow a speedway team in the UK.. But whatever it meant to follow the Aces as a passionate fan, you always felt that somehow Wilkie felt that passion even more... Not been many like him, (if any at all).. The incredibly positive way he handled that tragic nights legacy through the rest of his life, and the perspective with which he viewed it, should serve as an inspiration to everyone. Gutted tonight to be honest.. RIP Wilkie, God Bless..

Alll one family... Read in the SS that its against the law to check ID's in the stadium so people are sitting next to whoever they want and saying they are related.. Hence swathes of empty seats together, and lots of full seats together.. And we have to wear masks to get a kebab..

The tracks seem to have been a little 'off' from what has been the usual standard over the past few years that I have watched it.. Maybe restrictions to access or staff numbers are impacting somewhat? Usually a bit more grip around the outside at most venues, which delivers pretty good opportunities to pass. And that's even for the away team because, as you say, most of the tracks are of a similar vein, ie ridden flat out with plenty of space on wide 'open' bends.. Its still better than the Snooker though.. Or E bloody racing..

Whose the ref? Frank Ebdonski?

Can't have been for putting his leg out surely? That's very much the riding style for many these days.. And MJJ was doing the same..

What is it with all this shouting from the fans? Young fans it looks like too.... Far too noisy for me this. . Where's me blanket. ..

Running with the concept, I would just run with 16 riders over four or five rounds depending on how many tracks can make it happen.. The top 16 riders will invariably be mainly the ones who DU and will have spent the most so it gives them a chance to earn some money... It also means most on show will be of a similar standard so should mean the racing is decent.. Wild card to the winner for next years GP.. £100 a point on average would need £12k a meeting to cover it if using a traditional 20 heat formula, so circa 1000 fans needed at say £15 in, to pay the prize money and VAT.. Circa 1300 needed to pay all the costs in total maybe? Surely a Speedway starved populus would generate at least 1300 or so? (If those numbers meet the % criteria at the time).. And there are several venues around the country with tracks fairly 'local' to them so could pull in those fans too who are desperate to see some live Speedway.. Gives the riders a few quid, gives the fans some bona fide Speedway to watch rather than some contrived septets in a challenge, and, if sold properly, could get some publicity for the sport thus keeping it view..

I think Madsen thought it maybe better to not risk injury.. He could still win this, but the GP's will be his main aim..

Location. Location. Location.. A fair old way outside of Buxton and relied in the main on Belle Vue and Sheffield followers if you looked at what many of the spectators wore.. Dont think it ever really captured the imagination of the towns inhabitants and without any other living beings, apart from cows and sheep, within several miles radius of its location it would be very hard to attract 'locals' (as there wasn't many!)... Lovely on a summers day, not so if it was a 'bit parky', and you could get all four seasons in a day.. Facilities at best 'basic' but an enjoyable day out, and great to watch the racing so close to the action..

Not a bad shout that THJ.. None of them have had a great season, but then again, none of them have had a bad one either.. Every rider has definitely managed to maintain their average......

Wow. Well done Robert Lambert.. Another very mature ride.. Didnt panic, knew he was faster, and waited for his moment.. Fair play to Lahti too, a great night for him...

Good point.. Went through WW2 so it could quite possibly be.. I think the Colts will ride though, and it wouldn't surprise me to see an individual event.. And I am sure the SON will be given every opportunity to take place..

And loads of sheep..

Lovely ride young man... Very mature... Seem to remember someone else doing that move quite a bit (and has won 3 world titles by putting it to good use).. Even just 12 months ago Lambert may have been tempted to ride the boards and end up stone last, or off the bike.. We really do have two world class riders now..

But as a business that has openly said it annually puts six figure sums into subsidising Speedway and the Stadium though its main enterprise I would think it made real sense to make a very early decision given the many variables to their core business that inevitably will exist during a pandemic as circumstances can change daily.. Banking most of that cash and keeping it in reserve to ensure their main business has funds would 100% be the right thing to do.. And as mentioned before, given the many wide and varied logistical issues they faced around putting a decent fixture list together, it made sense to (quite possibly literally), cut their losses, and hopefully come back next year..

Ouch... Nicki P sat on the back mudguard as usual.. Trying to use another opponent as a brake..

And that many of their riders are overseas riders so will have been severely impacted by the various and potentially ever changing quarantine rules, which will vary on a day to day basis from country to country depending on the latest threat level.. Not to mention being in a country with different policies and rules than the majority of your rivals in the league you race in... And a country that isn't renowned for great weather as we hit late autumn, early winter... And finally, from a business perspective, maybe it was better not to 'open' and take advantage of the various staff payment schemes that the Govt have put together to minimise losses....? Can't knock what they did at the time, and hopefully their overall business will come out of this strong enough to keep supporting Glasgow Speedway..

At quite a few venues the stox subsidise the speedway... The old track at BV used to run around ten meetings a year and get around 3000 to 4000 a meeting.. I would suggest the Aces got quite a bit less than 30000 a season in their 20 matches..

And they can swap all seven riders over for the second leg... That way everyone gets a winners medal..

I suppose it will depend on how many want to ride.. If some get 'decent' jobs then maybe they would be reluctant to be paying out tens of thousands going forward should this thing not go away, and have far more job security.. As basically they are at the whim of a Govt edict which could come at any time. Team building also must be impacted by flights being subject to getting pulled at any moment. eg. Would riders accept being stranded 1000's of miles away from home without any chance to earn money? Lots of questions need to be asked, and answered, going forward.

With a decent bit of prize money to get some interest..? £5k per Prem and Champ track would generate a £95k prize fund.. And maybe Eurosport could chip in £5k to cover it making £100k?