The Dog

Richard Lawson in for the injured Erik Riss and Kyle Newman in for the injured Valentin Grobauer. Decent guests for the Brummies so should be a really good meeting. Looking forward to being back at the Barr !!

What the press release does say is that 'the visitors weren't too happy with the track and that the start was delayed for around an hour while work was carried out'. That says to me that the club tried all they could to make sure both sets of riders were happy enough to get the meeting on rather than laying the blame at Redcar riders and promotion for the delays.... which they obviously did because the meeting went ahead. Understand your frustrations but you cannot blame Birmingham for not running against a Euro semi-final involving England. Apart from it being financially and commercially ridiculous, I would bet most of the fans, riders, promotion team, staff etc on both sides would like to see England hopefully reach the final. I would think the decision to cancel the meeting was pretty much instant but with England playing on the Saturday night, the BSPA would not have been able to make the decision until the office opened on Monday and then get the press release out. Not actually Birmingham waiting 48hrs... Given that Birmingham could cover Riss with nearly anybody in the league due to his high average, I don't think the fact he is injured was even thought about in a sinister way either. Having read all of the press releases on the Brummies website, I've not seen one sentence where they are blaming Redcar for anything either. Please enlighten us all if its been missed somewhere tho

Understand your frustrations but you cannot blame Birmingham for not running against a Euro semi-final involving England. Apart from it being financially and commercially ridiculous, I would bet most of the fans, riders, promotion team, staff etc on both sides would like to see England hopefully reach the final. I would think the decision to cancel the meeting was pretty much instant but with England playing on the Saturday night, the BSPA would not have been able to make the decision until the office opened on Monday and then get the press release out. Not actually Birmingham waiting 48hrs... Given that Birmingham could cover Riss with nearly anybody in the league due to his high average, I don't think the fact he is injured was even thought about in a sinister way either. Having read all of the press releases on the Brummies website, I've not seen one sentence where they are blaming Redcar for anything either. Please enlighten us all if its been missed somewhere tho

I can't ever remember Harris being at reserve at Coventry, only when he first joined, unless I've misunderstood what you've meant Wealdstone. Tbh, I don't think its a slight on Harris dropping to reserve, more the fact that the rest of the team have probably produced over and above what most people thought. And good team building too... ! I reckon most folk thought that Ostergaard would remain at reserve alongside Palin for the season

A lots been said on this subject, most out of frustration at the way the evening played out, and rightly so, but I think every track in the world has probably experienced the sort of problems that Birmingham suffered on Wednesday. I arrived just after 5pm and the track was being watered tho I gathered there was some last minute issues with the segregation of fans that had been previously Ok'd. The fans started to arrive and were queuing outside patiently and at a safe distant. All appeared to be well organised. Around 5.45 - 6pm the tractor dropped a lot of water on bends 1 and 2 which subsequently ran to the kerb on a hard track. The shale it picked up on the way turned a bit sloppy and probably looked worse than it actually was. Why the trackman did this instead of sprinkling as usual, I don't know. Maybe a more experienced trackman wouldn't have done this. Water gathered in the one or two low places that most tracks have and made it soft, hence the patchiness that every rider hates. On track walk, both sets of riders agreed it needed blading and this isn't a quick fix especially when your short of equipment due to the well publicised vandalism recently. I'm sure a lot of the riders have ridden in a lot worse conditions but given that they've not been on a bike for a long time, understandably don't want any accidents early in the season. The top surface was taken off which left a slick and dusty track which if watered would have turned into an ice-rink. To the credit of all the fans they waited patiently with little information tho it was obvious what was going on tbh. The riders gave it their best in the circumstances and I don't think the accident had anything to do with the track, more of just a first bend coming together. I didn't see any riders having any difficulty in turning after the first set of heats and I'm sure the meeting would have been called off if they were struggling to turn by race 9 or 10. The Masons have gained a lot of plaudits since taking over and have worked hard on the entertainment for fans, especially families, and having a team that wants to race and entertain.It would be a shame if all this was overlooked just because they had one bad night. Lessons will have been learnt and the sport and Birmingham in particular would be a poorer place without people like the Masons and Laurence Rogers and I hope they continue the good work they do. For the record, I do think that Redcar should be awarded the tie but that's down to the authorities.

You'll probably find that its a media journalist with a phone that has taken the photo and posted it before the official photographer has had the chance. Unfair on the Kent photographer but it seems to happen regularly nowadays.

Having known Garrity since his Coventry days, I always found him to be obliging and friendly whenever I saw him. Always shook my hand or hugged me, asked how I was and how the family was. He always tried hard with his social skills and tried to do his bit for the fans. Obviously nobody can condone what he has done and the punishment in prison is absolutely the correct decision. I really hope the people he terrorised can get on with their life in some sort of normal capacity tho God knows how difficult that might be. I'm certainly not going to defend anything he has done because you can't, but I do think he was someone who was easily led into trouble and once you get involved in drugs its a really tough road back.

At least we now know why young fans aren't attracted to speedway. Because they can't pay by Google Pay. Problem solved right there.

There's a lot to like about this team, every rider has some sort of individual championship to his name either in speedway or grass track (bar Jack I think) Ash was U15 Champion, so a lot of quality and experience. If the Brummies have that bit of luck thats been missing the last few years, it can certainly go all the way. Superb work by the Masons and Laurence and they should be applauded, really hope they get the support now and kick on with a great season. Can't wait!

Good to have Jack at the Barr, has always ridden it well in the past and could be a shrewd signing at reserve. Has enough quality and will have a point to prove too. Promotion doing a superb job with the team and I reckon our last rider could well be another great signing. Fingers crossed!

I'd have Stoneman in the team because he easily has the potential to double his average

I've never had a problem with doubling up because, and I'll use Chris Harris as an example, Ipswich don't race against Birmingham because their in different leagues. You should be backing the rider that rides for your club and not because he rides for a different club in a different league. I also think that given the lower crowds nowadays, riders generally need both leagues in Britain to earn a living. Although riders say cost is going up every year, it would be interesting to know how many of them get jobs during the off-season....

Anybody know what the bond/league entry fee to the BSPA covers every year and where it all goes?

I tell you what has improved in recent years in SS, the standard of photography. Must have some of the best snappers in the sports business given that the lighting at most tracks isn't conducive to taking decent photo's let alone anything moving at high speed.

Quite surprised that despite finishing bottom, most fans would have the majority of the riders back. Was expecting calls for Ellis and maybe Shanes to be kept but not sure about the others. Don't get me wrong, I've still loved every minute of the season but from the comments on here, maybe entertainment is more important than winning, of which I'd be more than happy

Regarding rumours of Poole dropping down a league, as great as it would be for the Championship, Poole are a club geared up for the top league and need to be in it in my opinion, but if they do drop then that might just be the massive wake-up call the authorities need to see which way our great sport is heading. Lets hope it doesn't come to this tho

Agree with most of this, was really surprised with the way the Ref held the tapes in the few races given that he normally cracks on with meetings, almost like he was trying to catch riders out. Strange. Saw Paco in the pits working hard to get his bike hooking up better, really don't think its an average thing, he's worked so hard this year to prove people wrong and I think he has been a success this year. Agertoft just struggled but Tobias seemed a different rider from earlier in the season, a point to prove and less pressure now may be the reason, but has given the promotion something to think about next year. The track coped well with the rainbursts but would benefit from a blading for next season. Good meeting and a fair result.

I'm pretty sure Danny's first ever ride on a speedway bike was at the excellent Speedway Ride n Slide Dayz experience day ran by Russell Paine and his team. Obviously taught him well I reckon....

Birmingham do seem to crack on with it briskly, even allowing for a 10-15 minute interval to have kids fun and games on the centre green. Also nice to stay and watch the MDL afterwards and still leave by 9.40ish. Like you say, the only downside can be the Highways Agency limiting the lanes for no apparent reason.... really glad you enjoyed your night because its been like this all year, credit to the promotion and all the staff that run it all efficiently

Really hope so, I'm near Leicester and its been non-stop for 2 days!

With the weather being so wet over the weekend, it might make the track heavier than normal and that might favour someone like King again. Schlein has a chance being a fast-gater, but you'd have to go with a top 3 of Cook, Lambert, Bewley and then its wide open for 4th. Could be a brilliant meeting with a few surprises!

I think Davey is really settled working with Craig Cook atm , Drury I'm not sure is looking to get involved again. Pottinger is an interesting one tho, always seems successful albeit at NL level. Not a lot out there as there never seems to anyone wanting to get involved in management. Takes an awful lot of time out of your working week too. I think LR is more than happy to work within a budget tho, and gets satisfaction in finding new riders and getting them into teams, so is quite easy to work with for a promotor.

Who would you like to see replace LR ?

I was told that Aarnio had ordered a special cast for last Wednesday to help his wrist but it hadn't arrived, so he went with heavy strapping. He did have a fall at Birmingham and again a few nights later, maybe its a new injury or an aggravation of his wrist problem? Talking of Wednesday, I thought Garrity was outstanding for someone who'd just come back from injury, struggled out of the gate early on but soon found the dirt and produced the fastest time at PB this season, twice I believe. I do think Agertoft is getting there slowly, gave Harris a good run for his money and deserved a few more points. Remember he is 17 and on his first venture to England. Good to see so many families with kids around, especially on the centre green, and credit to the promotion for trying to reach out to more people. Track was good and I'm told there is more shale on the way.

I'm not sure I agree entirely with the club being 'tarred' because I don't think anyone outside of Birmingham speedway probably looks to deeply into our affairs, but regarding Rogers, he's probably been the best person to have for the Masons because of his knowledge of riders and the fact that riders seem to respect him a lot and are quite willing to ride for him. Have always found him to be very loyal to riders and is maybe not as ruthless as some managers might be. He's been happy to work within a budget whilst the Masons find their feet in the promotors role. Not even sure who's out there that could replace Rogers, maybe Jason Atwood off the top of my head, but I do think its a set-up that works in harmony atm, and that can only be good for the Brummies future.