Hawk127

A genuine question, the track does not look as though it has much material on it based on the guys walking round, how difficult is it to ride a wet track with what looks like little material as opposed to a track that needs to have the top layer taken off.

I can remember on one occasion two bus loads making it down to Rayleigh for a fixture. Always good value having the witches fans at the Weir. As you say a shame that so few travel but I guess it is cost and weekday meetings as opposed to weekend fixtures.

I’m in Westerfield but a few miles from Foxhole and it is tipping it down. Might clear up later though.

Not sure I follow what is going on but how can GP rider sit at reserve in the UK. Either he is poor in which case he should not be in a GP and more deserving riders should be or the UK speedway authorities have lost the plot and not prevented such an event occurring. No wonder no one takes it seriously. It a circus with clowns running the show.

No problem, I did not think you were. It probably needs to change but those on here can only voice an opinion, the people in charge are not interested in genuine and constructive comments on this forum. Onward and upward😀

I do not disagree. I was talking about the rider not the farcical format. A long way to go to decide the championship but I accept your view re the scoring system hence you could question whether the format is fit for purpose. I do not think it is.

Based on what? He has little opposition and he can only compete with what is on the stage. I accept your opinion and only time will tell but as it stands who would you say is on the same level based on the way the competition is run. You do not have the best riders in the world competing but an amalgamation of nation riders because that is what those who pay to broadcast want to see. It is far from ideal and perhaps selling out the sport to t v has brought about where it is now. I do not know but for now it is the best option speedway has to promote itself even if it is not ideal. On to the next GP.

Smarzlik is a methodical professional rider who will turn out to be the greatest world champion the sport has ever had. It will take something very special to lower his colours. While others try he simply goes about the business of grinding out race wins when it matters and is at the top of his game with little competition. Maybe the format is wrong as you do not see the best riders in the world and until you go back to a series of qualifying rounds with an ultimate final based on the top scorers, it is what it is. Well done to Smarzlik and big thank you to the SGP 3 riders who served up something a bit different and some decent racing. The sport has a future but needs direction.

OK Thanks. Good rider whoever he is related to 😄

Cooper top of the leader board after three races so not bad.

Niki, nephew went like a rocket in that race.

Good ride for Cooper, made the rerun pay. The racing is not bad and these lads are giving everything.

One final point, what the hell has an Ipswich thread got to do with some bit part supporter from Cirencester got to validly add to any debate.

Why. You suddenly become the fat controller. Everyone is entitled to an opinion but clearly you think your view is the only one that counts. If you don’t like it tough, do not read it. As I have said trolls like you are not speedway supporters. I could give you some advice but the powers that be would probably ban me. For now FO.

Promoting stopped back in the late 70’s. I can remember seeing posters etc around Rayleigh and on the A127 etc on most race nights and plenty of articles in the local press. Saturday night and bank holidays at the Weir were packed with families in the stadium and a good smattering of away fans on the back straight. Best were Eastbourne, Ipswich, Canterbury and Crayford but you also had Bradford, Sunderland, Crewe, Ellesmere Port and others who made the journey. Alas this has all gone now and we are left with a shadow of what it used to to be.

Ipswich have been fortunate to have many a loyal supporter through thick and thin as have one or two other clubs. Unfortunately missed opportunities to reinvent speedway itself such as after the pandemic were not taken up and instead the status quo has been maintained which has not helped Speedway UK. It does not have the crowd following, infrastructure, stadia or t v exposure that Poland has and the reality is it never will. Cut your cloth accordingly and look first at the domestic structure and then the global scene going back to the old days of international series and the cream of domestic stars rising to the top to compete on the world stage. As it stands the UK riders in general have ideas above their capabilities and need to get real. A few can make it but 95% are never going to match the Poles let alone some of the other nations. Look at the USA, who had the world at their feet and then it all fell apart. Speedway UK is at the crossroads, act now or it will disappear into oblivion.

Just watching the introductions to the Polish meeting on tonight. Where did it all go so wrong? This use to be Ipswich on a Thursday with weekly meetings but now hit and miss, poor fixture scheduling and a sport that in the UK is on its last legs. Those that run the sport have capitulated and we are left with the dregs. A very sad situation but thankfully many on here will have seen the best of days when weekly racing was the norm and supporters turned out for individual meetings as well as the 4TT and local derbies. Best get to live meetings when you can because it cannot last as is.

Same riders as in Poland but not the same enthusiastic crowds or professional presentation. It is good to see these matches and you can see some good races. but alas it is a bit flat in terms of presentation and along with the UK TNT presentation is a long way behind the Poles in terms of being a spectacular event that makes you want to go along to the track week in week out. It use to be good in the UK with weekly meetings at your local track but no longer. Perhaps the sport needs a European super league to reinvent itself and make it more appealing to the public at large and then leave it to the lesser nations to run a domestic league on days that suit the local track rather than being forced to run league meetings dictated by external factors. It is good to see these matches and live TV but it can do little to encourage punters through the gates when the stadia are relatively empty.

You are wasting your time on this forum. Simply watch, observe and digest if you can and do not bother to respond, this place is no longer for genuine speedway followers but for the trolls who believe that no one else is entitled to a alternative view or valid comment. This use to be a genuine exchange of views from genuine speedway supporters but now, with a few exceptions it is just a cesspool of vitriolic views by few and fewer real supporters of the sport. Watch the response to this to see what it is like.

Vintage Nicki Pedersen. Great race

Not defending the promoters entirely (yes they do have a few faults) but with the apathy amongst the speedway supporters for wanting nothing other than a league meeting and shunning individual events as well as the NDL, what else can a promoter realistically put on as a meeting that will grab the imagination of new punters. Years back you had the second half where newbies got a chance to pit their skills against established riders and in a good few cases you could follow the progress of a rider as they developed from a second half rider to reserve to main team and then into the top league starting at reserve and hopefully moving on in the sport. All riders need track time to hone their skills but that comes at a cost to the promoters most of whom rent the stadia. Just take a look at Poland and see the various opportunities for all classes of rider. Yes Poland has far more practice tracks than we have in the UK but the Polish supporters don’t just turn up for a league meeting. Years back I can remember meetings being packed with families out on Saturday night to watch the likes of Rayleigh, Canterbury, Coventry etc and what you now see in terms of Polish supporter and mixed age groups, you did once have that over here. The business model in the UK no longer lends itself to full time top tier racing particularly given the restrictions of movement on riders and equipment since Britain left the EU and with the ease that riders can cross borders in Europe to race, why would they bother with the UK unless they are getting a good wedge for the effort and that pushes prices up for everyone. The sport needs to look at its lot and decide what works financially and stop pretending it is something that it isn’t . With the increasing decline in tracks and the lack of talent coming through the ranks it is only a matter of time before you are down to a handful of tracks left operating and a few more amateur clubs operating on an open licence with individual race meeting events possibly share these events with th3 likes of short track racing and side cars.

Ipswich not having a good time of it. What happened to Dan?

Fingers crossed for Jason that was awful crash. The fact that everyone looks so worried makes it worse. Here is hoping.

I agree but those in charge should have done the equivalent of a risk assessment to conclude the what if. That may be giving too much credence to those in charge who can understand a risk assessment and have a brain. The outcome seemingly reduces the T V audience by default and speedway in the UK disappears into the ether. Well speedway GB.

Other than speedway anoraks who would know this meeting took place and for the t v viewing public, who would pay TNT, therefore what does the avid follower of good racing expect. A shame that a wider audience such as was the case with Eurosport is deprived because on the insular self interested decision makers who negotiated away the t v rights to the sport on a platform that few are willing to pay a premium to watch. What are these fools on, the sport needs to reach a wider audience not some niche broadcaster (in speedway terms which is not what the sport needs).