mikebv

Presume if there are any clashes as the season moves on and matches get rearranged to squeeze them in towards the end of the season, they will use a 'Guest' manager....? + or - 5% of his age, depending if home or away?...

Spot on... Using this system delivers year on year, for the past heaven knows how long, the team at the top around 50 points better off than the team at the bottom yet they both started "equal"...

More to do with basic economics I think.. Anyone would have wanted Woryna on that average but whether they could have afforded him is another matter.. I would imagine he is getting a few quid more than many other 4.65 riders!!! Matt Ford knows his business so knows a successful Poole team brings in the crowds and an 'also ran' Poole team doesn't... It is quite a unique set up in British Speedway I would suggest as they seem to be the only club who do generate regular "big" crowds for domestic league meetings when doing well and then also have a significant drop when doing not so well.. Cannot think of any other club that has such a disparate crowd level based on performance as most now just run in front of pretty much the same people every week regardless of whether successful or not.... Cannot knock him for speculating to accumulate...

Because it is British Team Speedway... Ran in an amateur, no doubt well meaning, self policing way... As you say, a simple matrix of performances around the globe would deliver a figure which could be used by all to determine the vast majority of riders position in the 'grand scheme of things'.. Amazing that a Sport which (over here) slavishly uses averages doesn't then use even more information that's available to more accurately assess each individuals overall level... No Sport ran with professional, clear, independent leadership, would allow such contrived and subjective nonsense to take place each year like Speedway in this country does..... Speedway sadly, unlike properly ran (and ergo often successful) Sports in Britain, doesnt have that leadership frame work in place...... And unfortunately it appears, never will.... It's more of the same old, same old, year on year nonsense I am afraid.. We should be used to it by now though...

After meeting with Poland, Denmark and Sweden at that 'International Speedway Council' thing and agreeing Monday and Thursday as their 'priority nights' in the International calendar, (and then subsequently changing it to Monday and Wednesday which clashes with Denmark's night).. Maybe, just maybe, the Poles are a bit peed that the BSPA went their own way and want to show them who the 'Boss' really is? Hence still enforcing the three League rule...? Everyone must have left that meeting thinking there was a clear vision for the Sport domestically around Europe's leagues. Something the Poles in particular have been wanting for the past five years or so... Then it changed. ..

Brilliant VFM at the Colts... £10 for me and the lad... Perhaps even too good when you compare it to the £25 we pay collectively for a Premiership match?.. Do they allow kids in anywhere in Speedway without adults for free? The key to it is that teenagers need to be able to attend on their own should they wish, as not many will want to attend anywhere that your Dad and Granddad attends. Very uncool! For me, all tracks should encourage as many "schoolkids" as possible by letting them all in for free at every meeting, especially those around 14/15 and 16 as these are the ones who may just carry on attending when they start work... Let's face it, hardly any of that age bracket attend now so no great loss to any club in income...

So it was 58% of your weekly spends on Speedway.. Nowadays for my 14 year old lad it would be £8 to get in, £3 for the prog and £2 for the bus... £13... To deliver the same ratio I would have to give him £22 a week spends! In his dreams... Not only that but getting 11 of his mates' parents to cough up £13 a night for Speedway might also be a 'tad' difficult.. "Dad, can I go to watch Speedway with James at Belle Vue?" "Blimey, Speedway? Is that still going? I used to go to Belle Vue myself when I was your age, Peter Collins was the best one, he was brilliant. Course you can, how much is it?" "To get in, buy a programme and bus fare its £13 so with some food I'll need about £20" "How @#£×÷¥₩ much? Just to watch Speedway? You're having a laugh lad!"...

As we know through it happening several times before at a good few tracks, dropping the price significantly will deliver a crowd usually in high double digit percentage growth from the norm, (sometimes much more than that when done for free!)... The issue lies in getting them to come back and pay full price... It shows the demand can still be there though for Speedway to attract a decent crowd, just not at full price... I always am amazed that when tracks do a "special" it almost seems to be considered guaranteed that everyone in attendance will naturally come back the week after as nothing ever appears to be done 'extra' to attract them back.. You would think some kind of further discount tickets for say the next six meetings would be sold to try and at least get people who may used to go, back into the habit of attending Speedway and for complete newbies give them time to get to understand the Sport and build recognition and to become fans of certain riders... As has been mentioned many times, when you do a 'Special' get emails, get mobile numbers, names and addresses etc etc to target them to return.... It almost seems a complete waste of time and effort reducing the price at most tracks, as it often appears that this one idea to reduce the price of admission is 100% of the marketing plan rather than being just the first initial part of a much more in depth and thought out strategy to grow the fanbase...

In the SS 30/12, there is a piece on (I think) Redcar and it explains how the asset system is being actively used to deliver the team's 'bond' to the BSPA.. Hence riders yet to ride here are having their averages lowered to make them more attractive to be signed... Teams are/were being encouraged/made to, sign more assets so presumably as assets they can be sold/loaned in the case of the club going bust through the season? Hello more East and Western European journeymen with more than the odd Scandinavian thrown in... Sign five and who knows one may be worth the gamble?

Certain Sporting entertainment.... Like everything else you can purchase, 'supply and demand' will play a huge part on the development of a 'price point'... Football (at Premier League level) appears to be 'bomb proof' due to all the TV money and coverage creating huge public interest. Which in turn garners enormous Sponsorship from global brands.. Domestic Rugby Union has dragged itself from being on TV on a Sunday with an hours highlights, (sometimes playing on pitches with one stand and a rope running around the other three sides for the supporters to stand behind) in the Seventies and early Eighties, to become the second highest attended Sport in the Country, played out in modern fit for purpose stadia. Again now attracting global brand Sponsorship.. Both Sports can now charge inflation busting admission fees because... Well, simply.. They can!!... Speedway sadly cannot as quite clearly and evidently, the demand blatantly isn't there.. If it cannot cut its costs to be able to significantly cut its current 'price point' then it has major, major problems going forward, as an ever dwindling fan base means even higher admission costs for those who still attend, all to just (at best) 'stand still'.... And for the past 30 odd years we have seen how successful that policy has turned out, hence we are pretty much now on the 'Speedway tipping point'...

And in the SS it mentions how loads of riders have had/are having their averages re-assessed to encourage teams to bring them over and make them assets.... Some teams have already started filling their spaces with 'gambles'.... More to come I would suggest...

I remember watching an old Speedway video from around the early 80's (1982?), cant remember which track but they showed the turnstiles with people queuing up and Adult entrance was £3.00... If it was 1982, that £3.00 entrance fee is now worth £7.40, (not Eighteen quid).... Add in the cost of Satellite TV, Internet, Mobile Phone contracts, increased car ownership, inflation busting higher house prices and rent, higher cost of Petrol, Gas and Electric, Higher cost of Home insurance, Life insurance, etc etc... And the bottom line is for so many people their disposable income percentage wise is so much reduced from the early eighties due to the cost of basic living... £18 today is equivalent to £7.29 in 1982... I would suggest if Speedway charged £7.29 back then crowds wouldn't have been anywhere near as good as they were.. Clearly perceived high admission costs are a huge factor in the demise of the Sport.... How it finds a way to reduce them to attract people who either used to go or simply have no knowledge of the sport is the major barrier it needs to overcome..

It is quite a breathtaking level of arrogance that has been shown by those who run the Sport in this Country that they have continually ignored the feedback of their very own patrons for so many years.. I would say that since this piece was written crowds are now approximately 20% of what they were then, meaning 80% of its customer base has been eroded either sadly through natural causes or the disillusionment of an ageing fanbase.. You cannot have any greater help in running any business than your customers telling you what they like you doing and what they dont, and Speedway through various weekly and monthly magazines during the past thirty years, and obviously the Internet in the past 10 in particular, have had literally thousands of pieces of 'feedback' which incredibly have been completely ignored... The frustration for the few fans that now remain is that the feedback the governing bodies have received has been year on year very, very, similar in content with many common themes running through the fans' discontent... When the mantra should have been "We are listening, thanks for the feedback , we will change" it instead became "We are right, and you fans have absolutely no idea what you are talking about". "British Speedway, now reaping what it has sowed over the past thirty years"... That would be a good strap line for the 2018 season....

No... We're hanging on till March as there are so many riders getting their averages re assessed and rules being reviewed and re-reviewed we might by then be able to put last years team out under 40 points..!!!

The major difference of course is that in Poland they cheer on 'their team' not a cobbled together, for one night only, randomly selected collection of riders out to earn an extra pay night through guesting.... In this day and age, it is asking for an enormous leap of faith to expect fans to buy into team Speedway over here when invariably it is a very tenuous link to actually being 'your team'... Some can be complicit in this deception, ignore or suspend reality, and convince themselves that they are watching the team they have built up and invested such emotional loyalty in.... Sadly these people are very much in the minority and general Sports followers (and indeed many Speedway fans of long standing) will struggle to take what gets served up as a 'professional sport' seriously... Here's hoping fixed race nights brings the Leagues some much needed credibility and integrity.. Bottom line is if any professional sporting competition ends up being so contrived it isn't actually worth winning, then there comes a point when fan attendance isnt actually worth doing either.. Who knows, maybe a new dawn in 2018!! Let's hope so....

Just watched it... Shame he cannot lead the Sport forwards in this country... Ticks a lot of boxes from the marketing side in trying to attract a younger audience.. Confident, positive, an engaging personality, ambitious and tattoos...!! What's not to like? Came across very well...

Correct... Belle Vue race in front of around 20000 fans in around 18 meetings. The Stox race in front of around 20000 fans in around six meetings at the Greyhound track.. If anyone attended just one meeting per year at both events then they would think that Stox were significantly more popular... Both sports have a huge % of their crowds as 'die hards' who attend regularly.

I think the Police may get involved if they were told they being filmed for something like an "Interceptors in Hull" series on Dave... There seems to be nothing more important on these programmes than chasing a kid with no helmet, no licence, on an unmarked, untaxed, and uninsured bike.. To be fair, it must be a very serious crime though as it usually ends up with about six £50,000 BMW X5's, each with two coppers in, and the use of a £2.5 million helicopter to track him for a good half hour or so before catching him.. Crime won't crack itself....

A little lad goes to visit Santa, sits on his knee and gets asked what his Christmas wish would be... "I would like a real life fire breathing Dragon that I could watch fly around my garden" was the lads answer... Santa, obviously a bit taken aback replied.... "Well, young fellow, even Santa will sometimes struggle to make everyones desires come true, have you another wish?" The young lad thought for a moment before answering,... "Yes, I would like to see Speedway in Britain ran professionally like other Sports, well marketed, and with a fit for purpose operating model and business plan that delivers no Mickey Mouse meetings, but instead a high quality night of entertainment both on, and off the track, each week".. Santa, ponders this for a quite a while before replying. . "What colour would you like that Dragon kid?" Merry Christmas Everyone....

"I dont actually ride in Britain because years of systemic balls ups have rendered the Sport over here a basket case which is on its arse, as well as that I also pride myself on a certain level of Professionalism that sadly those who run British Speedway cannot even dream of matching"... "Next question.." Joking apart, I am sure Tai will be the conssumate Pro if asked the question, a pity he cannot be in the vanguard of what the Sport is built around in this Country.....

(About right that)...

In the New Year, 'Arena Cross' hits Manchester... Indoor Motocross.. I would urge any Speedway Promoters who can do, to attend... I went three years ago with my lad and so much of the total evening 'entertainment package' on view could easily be translated over to Speedway.. From an autograph, selfie opportuniy meet and greet with the riders, completed 60 mins before racing so plenty of time to browse the merchandice stalls and get a drink and food.. . (Each rider had his own posters and photos for sale too). Riders coming out in darkness doing a lap of honour under a spot light. Could tracks do something similar to create atmosphere?. A 'centre green' announcer who was loud (he had to be over the bikes and music), brash (well, the Promoters were American!) and informative, detailing background information about each individual rider and commentating on the action as it happened. (That last bit maybe not needed in Speedway?).. Before racing and during gaps in between for track maintenance, (all tractors were working by the way), their Promotion team fired their own T Shirts into the crowd via an 'pump action air gun'... Many were, it appeared, Small and Medium meaning many adults caught them as you would expect but many of the kids ended up with the T Shirt.. (My lad got one from someone five rows back who passed it on when he saw it was an 'S').... There were no gaps where 'nothing happened' between races, so the crowd was kept interested.. The interval took place half way during the evenings racing and was 30 minutes prompt.. Before the interval they told us about the 'mini moto' they had suspended from the ceiling. Just text your name to etc etc and you could be taking this bike home. Texts cost £5... There was a 7500 full house and I would suggest well over half of 'the dads' were texting away during that interval. That bike certainly paid for itself and more! (Certainly I contributed a tenner towards it)! Now maybe Speedway couldn't do the same but they could do something around winning Season Tickets, VIP evenings etc.. The winner was announced prior to the Final and came down and received his bike... The cost for me and my lad was over £70 but I am going again next time as it was fantastic value for money... How did I know they were coming back to Manchester? I got an email from them in October telling me so with a nice book early 15% saving... Three years they have had my email address and now have used it knowing I had previously attended. My own Speedway team still doesn't have my email address... How did it advertise itself? Lots of Social Media and it played on how "awesome" (as I said they are Yanks!) it must be to watch 'dirt bike racing' in the middle of a City Centre.. And let's be honest as a concept it is 'pretty unique' isn't it? Apart from obviously it already happens many nights of the week around the Country from March to October..!! It was a 'one off' so you could argue that it is 'different' from Speedway, however maybe if Speedway promoted EVERY meeting as if it was a 'one off' they would be delivering many, many more through their turnstiles.. Watching 'dirt bike racing' in a City Centre is "awesome" don't forget, so says the guys who play to full houses and make money out of doing so... NB: No mention of it being a 'family sport' but plenty about 'speed', 'danger' and being 'gnarly'! (Whatever that means....) In fact the only downside to the night was that I, as a 47 year old at the time, felt 'very old' when I looked around the rest of the crowd.. At Speedway, at least I still feel like a 'spring chicken'!!

What it also did was raise the salaries of the riders lower down 'the food chain'... If your No1 is getting £3k a night then your 2nd and 3rd Heat Leaders will be expecting something not a million miles off as there may be only a couple or three points average between them. You then have the second strings maybe a point or two behind the third heat leader with their enhanced expectations... Add on a massively in demand '4pt Superstar' No6 on a 'gift average' who will get a lot more than the usual reserve pay and there's no wonder very few clubs make it pay... Suppose the 2pt No7 gets what's left!!? Maybe the 'Sky Money' is how so many (no disrespect intended) 'middle order journeymen' have become full professionals over the years? In a Sport that cannot afford so many full time Pros... To be fair to them though, if I was half as good as the best 'player' in my team, who had a nine point average and got £3k a night to deliver it, I'd want around £1500 a night minimum for my 4.5..!

They spent it on the top riders.... One Promoter told me that the 'Sky Money', "basically paid for his No1".... So the money went on those top riders who for the past 20 years have rode over here whilst, at the same time, clubs have lost thousands from their fan base... Many are indeed the very same top riders some want to see back riding over here regularly to bring back the thousands of fans lost during those past 20 years of them riding over here.. Errrr. Hang on... I think I spot a slight flaw in the cunning plan there...

Re businesses and customer feedback... For a good few years now, Toys R Us have been perceived as significantly more expensive than their competitors... Feedback from an ever dwindling, income stretched customer base was they needed to reduce prices... However, sometimes a business cannot reduce prices due to its bottom line margin % which needs to be maintained to pay its running costs... Less income will obviously erode the cash value of that operating margin over time, resulting in an inevitable conclusion unless it can reduce it's cost base significantly...... Therefore listening to your customers who tell you what they think of you is a priceless commodity... Choosing to ignore that feedback through willful "we are right" stubbornness, or even genuine "because there is nothing else we can do" will still end up the with the same sad ending... I would suggest British Speedway still has plenty of opportunity to turn the ship around, as there is still "lots they can do".. Whether it has the desire, vision, leadership and capability level to do it or not is the question...