Arch Stanton

You can’t dispense with the parade and start dead on 2.15 with the first race instead because of the forecast! Every Ipswich supporter knew it was 2.15 parade and 2.30 first race. If some people got there at 2.28pm expecting to be in the stadium just in time for the first heat, only to find out they’d missed a couple of heats because they’d decided to bring the first race forward, they’d quite rightly be fuming! Two other things at play here. The bus parade for the football team in the town centre wasn’t scheduled to end until 1.30pm and these things normally overrun. The traffic around the town was mayhem yesterday, so you have to allow them the time to get from the town Centre to Foxhall for the scheduled start time. Another reason bringing the start time forward wouldn’t be an option. Secondly, all the different weather forecasts seemed to be saying different things so nobody actually knew if and when the rain was coming! The Met Office and the BBC had rain forecast from midday which didn’t happen and AccuWeather forecast a completely dry afternoon for Ipswich so again, why would you bring the start time forward to rush the meeting through? They did everything correctly yesterday regards to the start time of the meeting. As I said last night though, the only possible criticism that could be aimed at them was running a couple of heats before the rain break to get to the 10 heats in case they needed to call the meeting and get a result. A couple of those last heats were farcical. They also really have to come up with a better system for meetings called off early. Taking full payment from supporters who only get to see two thirds of a meeting is a complete con. Why not issue tickets at the entrance gate that states in the even of an early call off even if a result stands, your ticket will get you a discount to a future meeting? That seriously needs looking in to.

I thought that was standard practice everywhere to be honest! Obviously not it seems! If a meeting was advertised as 7.30 and you got in dead on 7.30 and the riders were at the tapes, you’d get some moaning that they’d missed the parade!

I’ve no idea what the BSPA website says. Ipswich have advertised their meetings as a 7.30 start since I first went over 40 years ago. Same as Bank Holiday meetings, always been advertised as a 2.15 start. That is for the parade, it always has been it’s nothing new.

Nothing was “pushed back”. It started on time.

It was never “tapes up” at 2.15. It’s a start time of 2.15, just as it’s a start time of 7.30 on Thursday evenings, meaning parade 7.30 first race 7.45. It was, and has always been, 2.15 parade and 2.30 first race on Bank Holidays.

https://x.com/mattbenson93/status/1787557129345200401?s=46

I do agree with an earlier post though, they’ve just got to come up with a better policy for these sorts of situations. Punters have paid full price to watch 15 heats of action, and they’ve only got to watch 10 but get no money back. That can’t be right surely.

You’re letting your frustrations at not seeing a full meeting cloud your judgement here. There was absolutely nothing that could have been done to prolong the meeting. You can’t look at a forecast and suddenly decide to start a bit earlier to get it done it doesn’t work like that. They didn’t pi$$ about during the heats either. There were a couple of delays that couldn’t be helped, obviously. The only criticism that could possibly be made is they pushed through a couple of heats that probably shouldn’t have been run to get to the cut off of heat 10 to call a result.

Look it’s one of those where nobody really knows depending on what forecast you’re reading. BBC and Met saying rain from 1, AccuWeather still saying rain goes no further north than Essex and London and doesn’t quite reach Suffolk. Toss of a coin but it’s one of those that nobody can confidently predict either way.

Could the BBC be right for once! https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/forecast/u12b4ht3f#?date=2024-05-06 Very very iffy looking at that. The heaviest bout of rain coming in just in time for tapes up.. mind you, AccuWeather I find reliable, has a dry afternoon https://www.accuweather.com/en/gb/ipswich/ip4-2/weather-forecast/330938 They have the rain further south from us. Guess it’s just a case of wait and see!

The club got frustrated with Lynn more than once last year. They were kept waiting and waiting for information from Lynn every time they had a fixture but nobody was responding to their calls. In the end the admin gave up and put up the meeting previews and just guessed the Lynn line ups. Lynn is run terribly.

https://ipswichwitches.co/raceday-preview-kings-lynn-rowe-motor-oil-premiership-r1-h/ Nicholls in for King. Musielak listed at 1 for Lynn. That will purely be down to the information (or lack of) from Lynn’s direction.

Hope you’re right Badge. The contrast to last year has been huge. That early meeting at Foxhall where he made mistakes and fell twice, I’m not exaggerating by saying that even before that first spill, he was wobbling like an NDL rider with all due respect to them! So so unlike him. As you rightly say though, I’m sure he’ll get it together sooner rather than later possibly starting Monday. Lynn seems a good meeting for him with their lack of firepower.

https://x.com/speedwaygb/status/1786337226068038071?s=46

Which with all due respect to Lynn, ensures a comfortable home victory. King is very good around Foxhall, but Nicholls equally so so doesn’t weaken us at all. Such a shame Musielak is missing, usually very fast around Foxhall. Hopefully they get a good guest to make the meeting somewhat competitive.

It has to be said, Emil SO FAR has looked a shadow of the rider we all saw comfortably top the averages last year. His first visit to Leicester last year, he broke the track record in his very first race, and went unbeaten. Didn’t win a single race last night. Smashed the Foxhall track record too and was nigh on unbeatable everywhere. This season, it’s like an impersonator has taken his place! Off the pace, and error strewn! He’s had several falls already, can’t recall him hitting the deck once last year! It’s bizarre. Plenty of time for him to turn it around again of course. Despite his poor start, we still sit top of the table. Makes you wonder how good we’d be/will be if he regains the form of last year.

Ipswich and Oxford not riding next Thursday either.

We have an excellent record here. Well done boys.

Well done Cookie. Good lad.

Mountain you’re right though, Cook is doing well and Mountain isn’t doing a bad job either by any means, but they’re not as strong as Wright and Brennan so Belle Vue definitely weaker than last year. Others on paper look stronger than last year so they’ll be up against it to lift the pot but they’ll always have a punchers chance over two legs because of their dominance around the NSS.

Thoroughly enjoyed that! Well done Brummies fully deserved. Belle Vue so so good at the NSS, but away from home comforts they seem very vulnerable. They were poor at Foxhall too.

That’s the spirit.

Correct. Our next meeting on Thursday, only Belle Vue not racing. The one after that on Bank Holiday Monday, only Sheffield not racing. Drastically reduces guest options. R/R or a Temporary signing probably the best way to go.

That is said at most tracks not just here but everywhere to be fair. Nobody is happy unless they see passing in most heats, which just doesn’t happen.

Aye