Hi TWK. There is a lot of nostalgia speedway stuff on Facebook. There are many forums you can join. From a personal point of view, I find them a bit depressing, as it lets you know what we have lost over the years. 😔
I remember when Newport reopened after being closed for several years, the initial attendance was very good, but it did tail off, I believe, for which Tim was blamed. It was said he managed to pee off the fans somehow and he was running out of funds. Let's hope the promoter(s) do a great local/national marketing job and keep it up! 🤞
Just a thought, I wonder if he thinks Studley has more of a chance, than keeping the Abbey stadium, so, he maybe hoping if he sides with Studley, Swindon speedway has a better chance of returning? (devil's advocate).
In terms of catchment for Northampton, here are some possibles:
Coventry 49 mins
Birmingham 1 hr 7 mins
Wembley 1 hr 15 mins (a friend of mine lives there and said he would travel to the stadium)
Milton Keynes 28 mins (almost a revival of Milton Keynes speedway)
Peterborough 59 mins
Leicester 54 mins
Based on the above and bearing in mind it is a nice stadium, which could mean it could be used for some Blue Ribbon events, sounds a good possible to me!
Mind you, lets face it, once you announce there will be no more speedway, attendance will understandably tail off. I remember the last season at Rayleigh, the gate was awful!
Do you mean reduce the cost riders have to pay to ride or the cost promoters have to pay for riders? Reducing the cost riders have to pay for their 'kit', which must be restrictions on the number of bikes they have (difficult to police) or ensuring engines are basic trim and not heavily tuned. ??