wandersome

Sorry Jonathan, I was talking about the company Tarmac Lafarge who Darcy does his work for not the actual black stuff (as i mentioned, a bit of free stone)

good luck in the future Glyn. Looks like the people are still happy to crap on anyone in order to maintain a (minor) level of importance or power at the Lions. Looking at it from here I think you're better off out Mate, like most of us already are. I was hoping for a fresh beginning to re enthuse my interest but I for one am going to need a fair bit of convincing before going regularly again. SO far, the club appears to have a promoter who, as DH's sidekick, has been to this point either a laughing stock or a disaster, depending on the view you take, a small time haulier who became a promoter on the promise of getting a bit of free stone and stuff from Tarmac under dubious circumstances that didn't seem to quite pan out, as was the norm with these things. He now appears the main promoter and the clubs saviour, no?. Then we're told the lease has yet to be signed as tying up who is going to pay or make the track improvements hasn't been agreed yet, the issue being that new leaseholders want a man who didn't appear to have pot to piss in last year but still owns the stadium to sort the improvements, at least according the flagrag. Not quite brave new world I was hoping for. As mentioned, I'm going to take some convincing for sure! Mick.

Can't think of anything worse than putting your life into your dream for 20 years only to see what should have been your crowning moment cruelly ruined by some ego loon with a messiah complex. Hopefully Ken can finally get his wish and get to see the Lions and feel proud of what he achieved for us Leicester Lions supporters. Maybe something could finally be done, whether in the name of a meeting or a naming of part of the stadium that would redress the situation. You never know according to Buster on radio, he might be able to look out from the stadium to see Dave Hemsley getting to work on the rest of the stadium complex he's been promising to get on with the last 6 years now he's got a bit more time on his hands (yeah, I know, I know!)

to quote foamfence - It seems that people here are blaming Leicester for the situation, Well, The situation, as it appears to me, is that the club is in trouble because of a series of clueless decisions made by clueless people and backed by an equally clueless bunch of hangers on who have backed the club owners to what would likely seem to be the end. Of course the owners of Leicester are to blame. DH has made clueless decision after clueless decision, pretty much since the day Beaumont Park got it's planning permission. The error with the track being the most obvious and damaging. I was at the track the day they were concreting in the posts and everyone there that day could see the stupidness of that mistake, it was obvious to every single person working at the track.. I'm not saying all DH's decisions are clueless, just an awful lot of them. DH appears to have spent the last few years surrounding himself more and more with a whole bunch of Yes men and Yes women, many who appear to reside on here and other social media, backroom staff who have allowed him to make crass judgment call after crass judgment call without daring to lift their collective head above the parapet and call those decisions out. Unfortunately most people who have highlighted the cluelessness of DH's decisions, track being the main, have been hounded out of the club either by DH himself, or by the equally clueless bunch of cliquey hangers on. Unfortunately, it really does seem that most of Leicester core supporters have now given up on their 20 odd year dream due to the lack of entertainment the track produces coupled with the increasingly poor teams the decision to ride on Saturday has produced. Shame on the management for not making the right decisions for the future of our sport in our city over the last five years. Whether that is just correcting their mistakes or allowing others to do it in their place, I wouldn't care a less. And Shame on all those hangers on for defending those stupid decisions in such a righteous way on the likes of BSF and other social media during that time. Still at it now.

lets hope so Glyn, really hoping for the fans that the track action is transformed and I'm hoping it will be much improved even with only the one bend altered.

I can see where Janet comes from though Tina. You can usually tell the people involved in Leicester or part of their clique, both on here and other social media, by there unfailing pantronising tone and general rudeness to the common Leicester fans. Reading some of mcrts posts its probably easy to mistake him as someone who's might be part of the general unpleasantness and bullying that prevades social media from those that have or feel an association with the management. interestingly, you dont need to be columbo to understand what i'm hinting at

to be fair, last time i bought a season ticket for Leicester i worked out it cost £35 more than the actual value of the meetings they put on. Anyone having been through that and still buying season tickets for BP probably does need their own 'special' secret facebook page! link? I don't believe that's true at all. To make that assumption makes light of the real reason everyone has had to put up paying for the tripe that's actually been on offer for the last five years! Mick.

Not sure how you can really say DH has listened to his fans when it comes to the track becketlion, in fact quite the opposite. I'm guessing if he's finally listened to anything other than himself it's probably his pocket. But to give him his due, and I think you probably have to whatever your issues with him, it takes a lot of balls to go back on the one thing that in many ways has defined his power and control of the sport in Leicester. It's always appeared to me to be the stick by which he flayed his rivals and detractors, the proof irrefutable that he's in charge, it's his track even if he's the only one who thinks it's any good. Of that there has been no doubt. So well done David Hemsley on finally giving his fans what they want, Not sure if i'd be allowed in to watch the new track or not to be honest but it's great that most Leicester fans will finally get their wish. Just because I can't stop moaning, It's a bit sad reading the comments on the Leicester facebook though, the usual backroom staff who have defended the indefensible over the last 5 years, seemingly to me in order maintain their position within the club, appear to be having a few problems with the alterations taking place. At least that's how it currently reads to me. Time for a few mirrors to be looked into after 5 years of wholly patronising puff from them including the usual 'just as much passing at Leicester as anywhere else', 'Blackbird Road was just as crap', 'All speedway is now just as crap', 'I counted 20 passes in the first two heats you blind idiots', 'it's costs too much to alter' blah blah blah. Hey, maybe it's time for a track chat amnesty! Finally, Wouldn't it be great to get Joe Screen down to the track when it's finished as it looks to me like he may actually be able to use all those new bits this time, eh Tsunami. all the best, Mick.

Not harsh at all. Not as harsh as taunting everyone who had a dream with the actual nightmare of the reality week on week for the last 5 years. anyways, with a new year there is always fresh hope i guess. Hopefully this will be the year reality dawns! Mick.

ever since the thought entered my mind a few years ago (i believe it was the introduction of Dave Darcy as co-promoter and the associated decision to fudge track improvements instead of listening to the one person involved in the club who actually had an idea what he was doing.. followed by the lack of anyone within the the management or staff of the club questioning that decision) i can't look at any picture involving a quote or press release involving Leicester management or staff without imagining them and everyone around them all wearing one of those 'i'm with stupid' t-shirts. It brings everything to do with the running of the club into prospective i assure you though you may not thank me for putting this thought into your head. From top management down to foot soldier, such as dave burton, It's been pretty much picture/quote proof ever since i assure you... Mick.

by producing the crap they do week in week out do you not mean the promotion team is no good for us Lions fans

interestingly just having a group pm with 5 huge speedway fans from Leicester on BSF. I think out of those 5, 4 appear to have gone to a total of 1 meeting at BP last year between them, the other just hasn't said whether he went at all! Says it all. We all love speedway enough to be on here but none of us have any interest on the product that's on our doorstep. IMO Its not just the track that needs altering though, the way the club is ran, top down, desperately needs changing.

Not been here for a while but just reading post 1 of this thread i wondered how DH is getting on aligning the sport with the professional organisations he deals with in his day job as an architect. Hopefully his wealth of knowledge in dealing with less amateurish sportsfolk has not only helped the sport move forward but has helped him put Lions on a equal footing with the other elite league clubs this year. So for a quick overview and to get me up to date, hows it's going... all good?

Hopefully it's not the internationally unrenowned karaoke star and friend of the management, Mrs Sully, being introduced by the Popplemeister. I fear Lionking might be on a double murder charge if it is!

I made the tongue in cheek remark a couple of weeks ago, joking about leicester returning to winning ways by bringing Hemsley back into the pits so he could impart his knowledge on how to ride his track, as he had threatened in his weekly local rag piece. Only to be then told he and Norrie may well actually be doing this already!. Any wonder why leicester don't keep their riders for long.. classic

Without wanting to put words into BIg Al's or the roving mic's mouth i think he was hinting something along the lines of 'Our tractor driver and would be alchemist Mr Taylor is currently making a vain attempt to polish a turd / turn water into wine etc etc etc in an effort to make your hard earned entrance fee seem a little more value for money. Unfortunately as this has a downside in time between races feel free to go and have a craic with someone of your fellow fans, or maybe head along to the pit area to hear our beloved leader instill the dunkirk spirit into his riders. Please be aware though, should you spend this time laughing at the beloved leader for designing the speedway track as he has, you're only laughing at yourself as it's his track and it's your money you've given him to be be there watching this weekly spectactle unfold. But as we tell you each week, be aware that if you don't continue to turn up we might lose it altogther, the crappest speedway being better than no speedway at all, don't you agree' or something like that.

It they weren't scoring and the were uncommitted couldn't promoters just do this anyway?

so have Leicester moved up to a cheaper league? what was it.. heats of Ade Hoole and Mike Hampson v. Justin Elkins and some other no hoper.. and that was the old National League. Jeez.

I don't really disagree with any of what you've written other than to say my critisism of the lack of passing / excitement has nothing to do with the issues in getting the track prepared. That was clearly a job of herculian porportions of which i don't doubt. My point is that those herculian efforts left us with a perfectly good track that was pretty much the same as what we get week in, week out and rode pretty much as it does week in, week out. For that reason you cannot blame any lack of action on the preparation.

I'm still genuinely interested in what was wrong with the track last sunday that appear to scupper the racing somewhat, why it was so challenging to ride and what kind of racing wasn't possible with the track prepared as it was? Hurricanes? 1 Valve? someone must know what was actually wrong it. A bit of substance wouldn't go amiss sometimes. Mick.

I'm clearly the view white knight doesn't want to read but anyways... Why were the track conditions challenging on sunday. They didn't look bad at all to me. Whilst he worked hard to get it that way Glyn has also alluded to the fact the track was perfectly fine on a different thread. I'm beginning to think i was at a different meeting altogether.

cant deny it!

Interestingly, most people's issue with the track, mine included along with some people that would probably surprise you, would seem to be that it actually takes far too little skill to stay in front at BP. That's the tracks main issue. An example of this is the way Ryan Fisher stayed in front of Hans Andersen on Sunday despite Fisher being absolutely all over the place and Hans Andersen trying every line possible. That's not how it should be. It's armchair speedway. Still not certain you're not just messing with everyone.. Mick.

I'm not rubbishing your facts, just questioning why you are selective in how they are used and why you are using them in the way you are? That's the whole point of forums and debate. I accept that you have not seen any decent speedway this year, but i on the other hand have seen three meetings at Somerset this year that have included more overtaking than i have seen in 3 seasons at BP (unfortunately quite a few of those passes were on Leicester riders).

You're right about most fans not posting on here but that has very little if anything to do with the arguments i make. Unfortunately your second sentence is just assumption on your part pure and simple. Unless, of course, you both know all the critics and are David Hemsley or some relation. Fess up!. Most if not all the people i've spoken to say the track may not be quite as dire as it's been for two years but on the whole it's still absolutely rubbish week in week out. Most don't go anymore for just this reason. What is a fact is that there are enough critics of the track week in week out on forums and social networks for there to be genuine substance to their complaints. With regards to complaining behind a keyboard, I've been critical in person. DH knows exactly who i am, and we have exchanged quite a few emails about it in the past. Our crowds having been very up and down this year. Your reasoning behind expounding your view on the level of our fanbase with facts about the last 2 league meetings means nothing and is actually rather spurious. Are you actually saying our crowds are as good as last year?. Those last two meetings amounted to crowds of maybe 1100-1200. That is massively down on the previous season and massively down on the season before that. You are also failing to mention that for the first time this season we have seen large fluctuations in crowds on a week on week basis that we haven't seen in previous years. If you are going to make a pertinant point you need to give the whole facts. Most of this season i would say we've struggled to get 1000 people in and with a number of meeting beeing around the 700-800 mark. Some meaningless meetings have struggled to get past 500. cheers, Mick.