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AFCB Wildcat

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Everything posted by AFCB Wildcat

  1. I have a redundant Jawa 898 engine which has been converted to a laydown. I would now like to mount it back in an upright chassis but apart from the obvious positioning of the drain plug and oil level tube I am unsure what else would have been involved in the original conversion and now need reversing in order to use it as an upright again. Any thoughts or advice would be greatly appreciated.
  2. Dean, I always enjoy your posts as it’s good to hear things from a rider’s perspective and I’m sure you know the rules better than me but can I ask the following question? You say that Nikki had every right to clamp Holder but his lead was very slender as they entered turn 1, perhaps half a wheel? If you were half a wheel behind from the inside gate would you or could you back off? If a rider off gate 3 left the rider off gate 4 as little track on the outside to race on as Nikki left Chris on the inside the rider off 4 would have been forced into the fence and gone down with the referee probably Calling all 4 back at best or excluding the rider off 3? Just because there is no physical barrier on the inside of the track is the circumstance not the same? I fully accept that it is legal for the front wheel to be on the grass and that in the right conditions Chris may have gained an advantage from it but the fact remains he was forced off the track which may not have been his preference given the track conditions. No doubt that Chris lifting and hitting Nikki was the cause of the stoppage but surely the referee has to consider the circumstances leading up to that. If a referee has the option for all four back isn’t that better than the ridiculous first corner exclusions of Leigh Adams and Bjarne Pedersen at Cardiff a few years back? I’m sure Chris’s comments about being lucky to be in the re run were in view of previous refereeing decisions rather than an admission of causing the incident.
  3. But in my opinion Chris had little option other than to put his wheel on the grass as Nicki came across him and left him nowhere to go. There was only half a wheel in it as the entered the corner so i don't think he had time to back off. Yes I accept he picked up drive which caused the crash but feel that he was forced off the track which was the cause of the incident.
  4. I must admit my first reaction was Holder should have been excluded but having watched all the replays from all the different angles my opinion has changed. It amazes me how the same incident looks so different from a different camera angle. It is clear from most shots that they are side by as they enter the corner with Nicki slightly in front but there is a replay shot from the rear that shows that Holder was forced onto the grass and his front wheel is a good 2 feet onto the green with his back wheel in the line at which point he had no option but to rejoin the track and with Nicki tight to the line the collision was inevitable. If the incident had been on the second lap I would not have liked to of called it. Sure Holder hit Nicki but aren't you supposed to give your opponent room to race especially if they are along side? Given that the referee has the facility to re run with all 4 for first bend incidents I think it was the only sensible call.
  5. I guess Blade's post backs up my first point in that it depends on how quickly he is likely to progress which is an unknown quantity and I suppose you can only base this on his previous experience on bikes. My lad didn't start until 14 and had not even ridden a motorcycle of any type before riding a 125 on a training track. We went down the Honda CG125 route and it served him well for learning because with his lack of previous experience he was unlikely to be riding it flat out after a couple of outings. Rider ability is a bigger factor than the type of bike so I'm not saying you can't compete on the Hondas but the pit bike engines can be very quick in the right hands! At competitive youth level you will find that a lot of 14 year olds have been riding bikes for many years and are only on a smaller engine because as Blade says they cant ride a 500 until they are 15 rather than they aren't ready for one so its hard to be competitive as a beginner when the catagories are age based. At 15 it is often easier to be competitive as a beginner because the adult catagories are ability based rather than age based and a little success spurs you on! Good luck with what ever you decide. I don't know where you are based but it's good to join an amateur club and you will find plenty of choice in the 'training track/amateur' section of the forum.
  6. Thanks Guys, I raised it up and screwed a block in as suggested.
  7. I have been trying to get our rear guard and pushbar to comply with the new rules. I have shortened the push bar but due to the shape of the guard which rises at the rear, when I achieve the 35mm required I have a minimal clearance between the top of the tyre at top centre and the underside of the guard, probably about 5mm. I know that the wheel can't move but I'm unsure as to how the shape of the tyre may alter under riding conditions and if this is to close. Any ideas on what the minimum clearance I can get away with would be appreciated.
  8. This is a tricky one and I would say it depends on how old your boy is and how quickly he is likely to progress. Most training tracks welcome solo grasstrack bikes so if he has a 125 then I see no problem with him trying it out on the shale to see how he goes. We were advised not to move up to a 500cc machine until you can ride a 125 flat out and I think that’s good advice so the options for speedway bikes are older upright frames fitted with Honda CG or CB 125 engines which can be bought for around £400 or a modern laydown frame fitted with a 125cc pitbike engine which would probably cost around £600 - £700. The former is fine for practice but if he wants to compete at this level the latter would be better. Chinese pitbike engines are very cheap with 140 & 160cc versions available and I have seen lads on these machines post times as quick as 500cc bikes on smaller tracks. 250cc speedway engines are quite rare and very expensive so the pitbike engine could be your best bet. While the laydown chassis can be easily upgraded to 500cc as he progresses, you will find buying the engine and clutch parts individually quite expensive. Even amateur standard second hand Jawa laydowns seem to cost in excess of £500 and with the cost of all the clutch parts required it is often as cheap to buy a complete machine. I would consider buying a complete amateur / National league standard 500cc bike which can be had for sub £1000 and converting it to a smaller pitbike engine which can be bought for under £200 new on eBay. That way you have all the parts required for when he’s ready to move up and you can learn about the bike at the same time. As Wingnut says you can learn a lot from the other dad’s experiences at the training tracks but be prepared to be offered a lot of conflicting advice!
  9. I believe this was scheduled as a corporate event but then cancelled. Next open practice I'm sure is 25th but if you check on track phone there is normally a message confirming next fixture.
  10. Gutted to see the track dug up. I have so many happy childhood memories of visiting Radipole Lane after a summers day on the beach. In recent years my kids loved supporting the Wildcats and seeing Lewis riding as a 15 year old inspired my lad to give it a go. Good luck to everyone in the new venture. Let's hope speedway returns to the town in time for me to take my grandson when he's old enough!
  11. Completely agree, I understand that the joker can keep the contest close and keep it interesting till the end but I cannot justify it as fair. Its not just the points gained in that one ride but the psychological effect on the team that has seen its hard earned lead eroded in one heat as Mark says. The concept of the Joker as originally used in Its a knockout was that each team got to play it at their chosen event so if we must have it then that should be the case as has previously been suggested in this thread. In its present form it makes the SWC as farcical as Its a knockout How can it right when the chasing teams rider is deliberately running last in order to be able to use the joker while the leading teams rider has no intention of passing the rider in front of him to prevent the joker being used? Thats not racing is it? If its such a good idea why not use it in the Grand Prix? Any rider that is 6 points behind the leader gets a double point ride? How daft would that be? About the same as in SWC?
  12. Hi Zoe, If you click the link to buy tickets on line and select tickets in the different categories it will then show you the block locations they are available in which are on the stadium plan. If you go further down the booking process it will offer you seat numbers but I have yet to find a detailed plan that shows where seats are within the block. Hope this helps.
  13. I'm not knocking the current system but changing it from the old eliminator and winner takes all format to me was a bit of a cop out. I can see the reasons behind it but isn't it a bit like saying actually the elite league title shouldn't be decided by basically a knockout and changing it to the top four teams contesting semi finals with the winners earning extra points as per an ordinary league match and double points for winning the final being added to the teams season totals thus the winning team of the elite league playoff final aren't necessarily the champions? I think scrapping the semis and finals in the grand prix would seriously devalue it as a spectacle and I would rather have the current system than just adding points from 5 rides but my preference would be a format where the winner of each grand prix should come away with the most points.
  14. Can I ask what was wrong with the old format with the eliminators and with the ‘A’ & ‘B’ scoring points in order of finish? To me it was much more exciting and it was more in the spirit of a ‘grand prix’ event. Sure there are pros and cons to any system but the fact that the rider on the top of the rostrum can have come away with significantly less points than the riders below him is surely a major flaw to the current system. Who has actually won? I still think the grand prix series is much better than the old one of final though what ever format has been used.
  15. Well that was a first for me, a meeting abandoned for fog! Shame cos it was a good meeting and I was impressed with the new look Wildcats who had strength in depth. Dan Halsey was particularly impressive until his spill which looked nasty. Hope he's ok
  16. I object to people standing up in front of me at Cardiff because it is an all seater stadium and that is the rules not a choice! If someone decides to stand up then the people behind can’t see and they also have to stand up in order to see what they have paid to see and if they are a child, disabled in some way or shorter than the people standing in front they won’t see anyway. Quite simply it’s bloody selfish, why should everyone stand because some people want to break the rules? I can’t believe that people come on here and defend these idiots and suggest that the people who have had their Cardiff ruined are just petty moaners or killjoys. I’m not talking about people who jump up in the heat of the moment but people who stand up for the entire duration of the races that their riders are in but are ok to sit down for the rest and in my experience it was done just to provoke a reaction.. I hate all seater stadiums for the reasons previously stated i.e. having to keep getting up and down to let people out and having to disrupt others so that I can get out ( yes I like a pint too!)And on a terrace I could move away from people that were annoying me! I would love to see a return to terracing in areas of stadiums so that there is a choice but at Cardiff there isn’t so quite simply you have to abide by the stadium regulations and sit down. I have followed my football team on the road for over 30 years and during this time seen terracing removed because a minority can’t behave, alcohol banned for the same reason and in football apposing supporters are separated because a minority want to antagonise each other and fight. Also on many occasions at football I have been forced to stand up in seated areas in order to see and have been told to sit down or be ejected from the stadium by stewards who are to stupid to realise that if they get the ones at the front to sit down first I wouldn’t be stood up in the first place! So do I want to see the segregation and alcohol bans taken for football taken at speedway? No. Do I think they should be? Well based on some of my Cardiff experiences, YES. The originator of this thread had one of his Cardiff experiences trashed and then realised that most of the Poles are good guys. I have read posts in threads on this forum from previous grand prixs where it is claimed British fans have antagonised the Poles into aggression so it seems as usual a minority are spoiling it for the rest and defending these idiots doesn’t help.
  17. Ok point taken, and it would seem from Mateusz post that Polish speedway is blighted with the same minority of idiots that English football is. I have been ashamed to be British seeing how we behave abroad both in sport and while on holiday where you get the idiots who drape their flags over their balcony’s (like anyone gives a stuff where they’re from) and proceed to behave like tw*ts for a fortnight because they’re on holiday and stuff everyone else around them so I don’t want to be the pot calling the kettle black. Never the less I don’t really want my Cardiff trashed and my family surrounded by violent drunks so it would seem my only option is to move out of their way but it’s a lottery as to who you have sat around you. Family tickets are only available in certain blocks and we were on the 1st bend where the stand does not extend back so far in the upper tier and there were no empty seats behind like the other sections. Does anyone know how far you can walk around the stadium through the corridors to get to other sections with empty seats? The stewards don’t seem to check tickets so I’m thinking that wouldn’t be a problem. I notice on the tickets site there are air horn free zones, might arsehole free zones be another option?
  18. I echo your thoughts, I just read the 'apologies' thread and I can only assume that some people on here are either wind up merchants or complete idiots! what other sport do you get away with standing in the seated areas? I followed my football team 'passionately' home and away for many years and must admit I don't like all seater stadiums but the rules in all seat stadiums including the Millenium is that you must remain seated and at football you will be ejected from the ground if you refuse to sit down or block the aisles. I have even seen people refused entry to football because stewards beleived they had drunk to much even if they weren't causing a problem. Why people think its ok to get blind drunk, agressive and ignore the stadium rules because they are passionate is beyond me. The majority of the Polish fans are great but something needs to be done about the idiots if more confrontation is to be avoided.
  19. Sorry but I disagree! I do not complain about people waving flags or drinking beer and enjoying themselves. They don’t come any more laid back than me! I am talking about aggressive intimidating behaviour by thugs.I made it quite clear that I enjoyed the party atmosphere the Poles bring and don’t even mind beer being spilled on me or flag waving. In 2007 we had flags deliberately draped over our faces during the racing. Big ones, not the ones on sticks! They were congregating in the aisles obscuring our view completely and when I asked them to move I received threats and abuse for the rest of the night. That would be ok with you would it? A post on another thread by someone who’s brother was allegedly punched in the face by a Polish fan says the fight started after the Polish fans refused to return to their seats from the aisles and while I don’t know that to be true it’s certainly consistent with my experience. This year the couple next to me had there view blocked by people who wouldn’t sit down and were just shown contempt when they politely asked for them to sit down which they refused to do and I was just shoved out of the way with complete contempt by someone returning to their seat after I had stood up to let them through, not just a bit of general pushing and I witnessed lots more anti social behaviour in our section alone. I was disgusted to see fighting in the stands at a Speedway meeting it was something I hoped I would never see and if it’s not nipped in the bud it will end up like football with police presence and alcohol bans. Is that what you want? As you obviously think a bit of a punch up on a Saturday night is acceptable at a family event.
  20. Unfortunately there isn't always somewhere else to move. I'm not anti Polish, indeed I think their enthusiasm enhances the event and I accept the fact that they like a party. Again this year I was surrounded by groups that were back and to with beer, spilling it everywhere and I can live with that. Most were polite and courteouse when returning to their seats but some were pure arrogance who stood up for the entire race and waved flags obscuring others views while the polish riders were riding and just pushed people out of the way to get pack to their seats after getting their beer. I took exception to this a few years ago and ended up in a confrontational situation that upset my wife and children so this year I just bit my lip but it annoys me that stewards just stand by and let it happen. Please don't accuse me of spouting 'anti polish crap' because i'm not anti Polish but the fact is my Cardiff grand prix experiences have been marred by drunken yobs which is totally unacceptable especially in the 'family ticket' areas. Am I the only one to experience this?
  21. Really! You've obviously never been to the Wessex or you would know they don't do curry. Come to think about it, it was probably that burger but as I said the portaloo was fine and I was out by heat 15 so no problems
  22. Ok so facilities are basic but at this level what do you expect when the promotion don't own the site and would not see any return on investment in improved facilities and with their licence to operate constantly in jeopardy. I've never had a problem with the portaloos after all it's only for a couple of hours. At grasstrack meetings we put up with them all day and as pointed out the football ground loos are available too although I accept they aint great. I've always enjoyed the elevated viewing position and never had a complaint about my cup of tea or burger. After all it's all about the racing isn't it?
  23. has not set their status

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