Big Al

I wouldn't have either of those. Let them stay put!

Looks good to me! Just a bit wary about which average is used for Klindt (see previous) - has this burning issue been decided yet?

About 11.25. Still keen?

So sounds like it's a defensive move first and foremost, but could bring benefits in terms of potential costs saving. After Scott Nicholls won his case, it may have acted as a wake-up call?

Reasons, implications, ?

Does this reduction in the total team points mean that somebody with a 2018 average of around 7.5 could be signed, and become a good No.1 in 2019? Think that's what I'd be looking for!

Can see BSPA becoming basically Chapman's own company, with a controlling interest in the Prem league. He's probably seen the chance and decided to go for it and if others want to ride along then fine. The decisions of Somerset and Damien Bates maybe show they don't want to be part of this, would prefer to hedge their bets and wait and see what happens. I think the divergence of the Prem and Champ leagues is going to be much greater than the respective strength of the teams.

Because interest/crowd levels could really fall off the cliff edge otherwise. Leicester is a city with plenty of sport to go and see, and to compete with the other offerings not just in terms of people choosing how to spend their money and time but also local media interest, the Lions need to be up near the top, because the change in league will be seen as relegation. The hard core loyalists will keep going come what may, but that won't be enough.

So maybe in that case, when the BSPA becomes a limited company some time in the next few weeks/months, the ownership of these clubs will be transferred onwards to it. If that happens, Chapman will have once again acted as an interim owner. Perhaps the aim is for the BSPA to own the entire league, in due course, and so Poole could indeed by next in line??

Absolutely crucial to have a very competitive team when you drop down a league. But the reasons seem to be the right ones. Its already been stated by the club that a big hitter No.1 is a must-have, so who will that be??

And if work to install "just" replacement track with associated infrastructure (not the spectator facilities side of it) were to begin, who is paying for it and responsible for carrying it out?

Back to the 1920/30's then?

Looks to me like the first big decision's been made. Riders will not be allowed to use their footrests when taking bends.

I note that on Saturday, Chepstow racecourse (which is where I'm guessing the AGM is taking place) is due to host some kind of mud-wrestling event. If the promoters haven't agreed things by then via talking, well they could always decide them in a different way.

So the circumstances which compel many riders, especially British ones, to ride for two clubs in the UK has come about due to a combination of their needing to try and make riding speedway "pay" or at least cover the costs. One club does not provide a sufficient number of fixtures, and income from riding for a club in Poland has either been shut down or is too unreliable. So there has been the development of a dependence on this situation with no simple way out, other than to retire or to earn income in another way. So doubling up within the UK it can't really be abolished instantly, it has got to be done in a planned way and over a period of several seasons, with the plan being stuck to by all. The costs seem to be absolutely crazy and they will be the demise of speedway as we know it. Reading Chris Harris' perspective one question which crossed my mind was "what does he do from November to March"? Indeed the same could apply for any speedway rider. In Harris's case it's hard to believe that he wouldn't be able to find paid work over that period. It might even help him to stay fit and start the season better!

The inducements to buy, whether financial or added extras, need to be very tempting of course but there's also the aspect of it doing a bit to help the club financially, too. I think that it's also not unreasonable to be prepared to write-off a small proportion of the purchase price in terms of missing matches whether that's out of personal choice and circumstances, and/or "speedway reasons". For me a lot depends on what your opinions are of the management/owners especially if you end up having to take a small financial loss on the whole thing.

I think that any speculation which involves "dropping down" or "staying put but in a bigger league" is likely to be pretty much irrelevant until after the promoters have made their announcements about the form and shape of the leagues, for example "drop down" may in fact take the form of going into what is approximately the current National League. We just don't know, unless some promoter leaks something out. What I hope that Leicester has realized, and it looks to be the case, that the club needs to build some better foundations. Among the many reasons the years in the Elite/Premier league have been such a struggle so far, is the move was made too soon and the club had just about zero in the way of its own riders, either assets or long-term associations. Kauko Nieminen and Magnus Karlsson, whilst commendable riders at second tier level whilst the Lions were there, were never going to be longer-term investments especially with the club deciding the change leagues when it did. They managed to pull off the coup of signing Doyle at the right time, and he could have been the major foundation to build upon, but that all went up s**t creek due to bad management. So whether it's better to build properly in lower or upper league (if indeed there is a choice), that's something the management has to decide. It's informative that Kings Lynn and Somerset, two clubs which spent sufficient time in the lower league building their foundations, have done OK in the higher league. Contrast that with Leicester and Rye House. Birmingham did have some of what was needed, but I think in their case it was very poor management by the owners that was their undoing.

Let's hope they all drop down. Like a clown's trousers

Weather forecast for Cumbria both Sunday and Monday is for about 5 degrees in the evenings with north easterly winds around 15mph. But the good news, is no rain.

I guess that would fit in with flagrag's "some will like it, but some won't" speculation

Exactly. It would be the ideal chance for the two most inconvenienced clubs to make their point

After all that's been done already, I suspect the short distance between the two straights, which can't be altered, will defeat further attempts to make any significant improvement. It may be better to just build a new track on the ground originally earmarked for football pitches, keep the pits where they are, turn the stands around. All that's needed is a few 100 grand and new planning permission. Easy peasy.

I've noticed that Iversen has been regularly dropping clangers lately, and seems to lose his rag a bit too easily. Maybe KL won't be all that much at a disadvantage.

If you go to a thread called The Way Ahead in the General Discussions section, there's a post titled Pathfinder Report 2018. I've absolutely no idea where this has come from, or how genuine it is. It's been there a couple of weeks now, but still hasn't been met with any response. So I'll stay skeptical about it's authenticity. It has the look of some kind of commissioned report with proposals for the future leagues and teams structure. Any clues??

Says the club and fans need stability, riders they can relate to. Does that conflict with his (self proclaimed) Tinkerman reputation?