iris123

Would be nice to see some of those stories on here.Maybe starting with the memories of this meeting?

Wondered why in the presentation photo Matej was in civvies Even though he is obviously a good bit better than the oppo,it is still an impressive record ,13 wins on the trot!!!

I agree,scb. Remember a few years ago one well informed speedway fan asking on the net about a rider.She was on the motorway and a van passed her or she passed the van and it had some giuys name and a photo of him doing speedway and stated "speedway rider".Might even have said international speedway rider or something.She had never heard of him.One official from a track posted that he remembered him as he attended a couple of training sessions a year or so before and then gave up!!!!!!! This is an extreme case,but all so often at an early stage riders seem to want to set themselves up like international level guys If costs are cut for riders,i doubt they will be asking for less money.Will it make a bit of difference to the sport?Maybe attract more youngsters.That is about it.And ok that is a positive step

Within what period of time?Or do say Aussie riders who want to do some meetings over the Aussie season have to send there bikes and themselves back to Europe and then send everything back out again?I can understand the thinking,but if one or two riders wanted to do a bit down under,maybe even NZ then i guess they have to cough up a percentage of the expense.....

You can't just make things up like that.I'd love to see evidence to back that claim up.For a start if we take a 100 meetings,how many world finals would there be in that 100?And for a few years Wembley Lions had massive crowds that were bigger than Cardiff plus back in the early days some of the biggest meetings were the Tests against Australia...... As it is i used to be more of a team meeting person,but since my team folded i now tend to watch more individual meetings.Pure speedway without any of the strange rules.......well not many

Like i said the traditional fan has grown up with crumbling stadiums.We take it as normal.New fans don't.They are not used to such things and i know from taking someone new to meetings that the state of the toilets(portaloos in one stadium)is a big turn off.Silly rules aren't as it generally takes a newbie a month or two or more before rules really play much of a part and most don't stay that long.If promoters owned their own stadiums they would be their own master and a large number of problems should be easier to solve.At the moment they get what they are given.Race days facilities and a chance to work on the track..... As for King's Lynn i can't say,never having been there.I'd guess it is just in the wrong place anyway.A pretty quiet part of the country that my Aunt + Uncle retired to from London to get away from it all.Well they have a King's Lynn postcode and live in Narborough....

Didn't see any mention of the bikes on your post and didn't look at the fb link.Never look at links in general as they tend to make my laptop go haywire.But i was thinking maybe the juniors were on 250cc.We had team events in Germany with most riders on 500 and some youngsters on 250.Not out of the question this was something similar,bu t maybe i was thinking too complicated instead of straightforward,i'll give you that.As we had Arslan Fayzullin riding here on a 250cc i thought maybe the youngsters were on them

I took it as a list of tracks visited that are no longer there.That other South London track is still there,so that is probably why it is not in the list

Very surprise pick and you are right,.....not as long.After AJ we had Davidsson who failed,Aldén then there was that kid who was one of a big family of brothers/cousins who i can't remember what they were called,then Mellgren who was being looked after by TRick and Forsberg and and and.... Shame really as the speedway world is shrinking and becoming mainly a Poland/Denmark/Australia thing with the odd rider from one or two other countries.Once the last of the mohicans(the golden generation) retires i can't see anyone coming along to take Gregs place.But more worrying for me is the absolute lack of characters and exciting riders there or thereabouts.Once Nicki goes then maybe Kildemand replaces him Ward and Emil back in,but the speedway world is much of a muchness.Smoli isn't a great rider,but at least he is a bit of a character who rubs people up the wrong way Forgot one of my own tips.....Dennis Andersson,who looked shabby in his beige overalls at the 80cc world champs,but i think i said on here at the time was unpredictable,but very fast

Don't agree.Us old 'uns were used to crappy stadia.When we started going all stadia were pretty run down.There was hardly a new stadium built within a 30 or 40 year period.Football stadiums were more or less of a standard to compare to speedway stadiums and most cinemas were flea pits!!But that has all changed now and people are used to decent facilities at other sports and newbies will be put off by shabby facilities and crap food........The trouble is who is going to cough up for new stadiums?

No news on developments?

Guess some of us have been proved right in what we have been saying for a few years.No real interest in a mickey mouse comp

Guessing that Pawel/Pavel was riding a 500cc?So at what age can youngsters compete on 500s in Russia?Interesting considering the success Russia has had recently and the discussion earlier in the year and last year about Robert Lambert competing in Germany earlier than he was allowed to compete in GB

I'd agree,but there is very little to get out of those two.Both Sweden and BSI have the problem that they don't really have any good talent.If you just go for cynical commercialism then Antonio being black is i'd guess more newsworthy/commercial

Tbh the Euro Championship will probably have the more exciting line-up.Really can't work up any enthusiasm for this lot My opinion of course,but i am not sure there has ever been a blander line-up for a world title challenge.....

Brilliant.Just relies on about 8 or 10 guys to come along and build state of the art stadiums.Preferably with sliding roofs,sort of mini-Cardiff jobbies and then have enough money left over to attract all the top riders........

Wasn't he dropped?

I didn't realise Dudek took a breath test.Sorry

Also where some of the most poisonous snakes in the world are found.......the FIM will feel at home there

"as in other sports" is the critical part of your post.In other sports are the people a few hours in a methanol atmosphere?I'd say it is without the Champers a pretty pointless exercise.You should, as happens test before a meeting.Doesn't matter if someone has a swig after the meeting and doesn't matter if Ben Barker gets pissed whilst watching the meeting at Cardiff

Think it would be a very rare case if major sponsors didn't have a lot of influence.Not only do we have the word of a meeting sponsor who posted that he could have his choice of wildcard,but we also have many many cases of influence by sponsors in football.I know for instance Millwall supporters were upset when the club was sponsored by Lewisham Copuncil and a Council member was given a place on the board.The fans said they should also have a place considering the money they spend,but no chance.Also over the past few weeks we have had problems here in Hamburg with the main football club.They have a rich supporter who gives them millions,he has no official position within the club,but has for instance coughed up for the signing of Van der Vaart.Now one or two officials have recently left on bad terms and are blaming their problems partly/largely on this outside "sponsor" who made things difficult for them within the club and often spilt stories to the press I' d say it would be quite unique and not a bit crazy if Monster didn't use their position to get what they wanted.There have been stories before that had some substance to them according to people within the sport.NKI some years back getting a WC because of his Dansk Metal sponsorship and Pepe because of his sponsorship are two that come to mind.This is a financial venture as well as a sporting one and even Phil will sometimes tell us that you cannot ignore the financial side of things.......

Don't see why the Aussies shouldn't have the final GP.My way of thinking if any country deserves it then they do after all the great riders they have provided over the decades.Remember back a few years ago the Longtrack GP final round was held in NZ and some riders were complaining about it(think Riss or Barth was the main one)going on about being robbed of the chance of being crowned WC in front of his own fans.Ivan Mauger stated that he(and you could include Mirac + Briggo as well) never ever had that luxury.

Of course riders want all their bikes to perform the same,but that is impossible.Even in this modern world it just doesn't work like that.engines produced on the same production line on the same day won't perform the same.There are differences and the more complicated and the more parts involved the more chance of differences.We have all seen or heard a rider talk about an engine performing well,getting busted and he was then "forced" to use his second bike.So of course they have "best equipment" and although it wouldn't be categorised as "bad" equipment it just isn't as good as the best........sometimes this might be partly a psychological thing,but it is ridiculous to say the situation doesn't occur

But there are so many experts on here for instance who know everything.......about absolutely everything.You just can't beat it.Print media is on its last legs,so i heard second hand from an expert,so it must be true

I used to go to the Crystal Palace meetings,so know how poorly attended they were and that was once or twice a season.Wimbledon speedway would knock spots of of those figures in a month or so