Daytripper

I have just checked the website and Jon and Stuart are listed as promoters, with Kelvin as Co-Promoter. I don't think anybody is saying they are happy with the product as it stands today. We can rake over the coals of how it got into this state but it wouldn't do any good. If asked 10 different fans you would probably get 10 different opinions. We can't change the past but the important question is where does the sport go from here. That is a question the promoters will have to answer when they shape the sport after the AGM, and the fans will have to decide whether to give their support, just as in any other business.

Glasgow and Rye House been bought by men with very deep pockets, which is a good thing in one sense, but Glasgow have hardly seen a massive increase in their crowd base and Rye House have those year been running a very expensive team without success. Whether the owners of those clubs will want to carry on at the present rate when the money starts to run out remains to be seen. We had trouble in the so called "winter of discontent " 2010/11 two promoters thyought they could buy success and nearly brought the sport to its knees as a result. I still maintain that if Stuart Douglas' business plan for the sport had been adopted then, the sort would be in much better shape than it is now. But if wasn't so we are stuck with a sport that needs serious improvement if it is to survive. If fans want to vote with their feet I have no problem with that. They are the customers and as in any business are entitled to look for the best deal. What I don't get is those that don't like the club as it is but instead of finding somewhere else just hang around moaning. Moaning never solved anything. As I said before, I have to have a long think this winter about whether I go back next year, but if I don't, I'll just leave, I sure hell won't be one of the moaning Minnie's that hang around complaining that it's not like the old days

As I see it the Lakeside has three problems, two of them serious, but not all necessarily within Cooks control. There is no doubt that Jon Cook is not the worlds best communicator, and is no longer what we might call " the face of Lakeside ", the man the fans could identify with, the man to be seen introducing the riders on parade every week and other things like writing what, at one time were informative and interesting programme notes. I can't speculate on the reasons for what seems to be a loss of interest ( although there might be other factors we don't know about ) but he doesn't seem to be the man he was. It's a great pity because one of Adam Shields sponsors, who was very well connected in the sport once told me that the most knowledgeable promoters in his view were Matt Ford, Chris Van Straaten an Jon Cook. Lee Richardson told me he thought that Jon and Stuart were the best promotion had ridden for, as have several other riders. I just wish wme had Cook back and he used to be, but having said that, I am still going to need to have a long conversation with myself during the winter to see if I really want to be back next year. Superimposed on Lakeside's woes is the far bigger problem of the farce the sport has descended into. Even if we stayed in the top league, woukd it have been any better ? Hardly any teams had the same 1-7 every week, virtually Premier every club losing money, and various farces like a world class rider like Krystoff Kapsrzal being shoe horned into Rye House as reserve. Add to that the antics of the useless Chairman of the BSPA Buster Chapman, with his wheeler-dealings at Belle Vue, never speaking to his riders and a range of other things ill-befitting the chairman of the sports governing body, it's not surprising that fans across the board are turning their backs on the sport. I am not sure I want to follow a sport any longer with a complete joke like Chapman at the helm. I'll reserve judgment on that until I see what the plans are for next year, but that's not something Jon Cook has much control over. Finally , we have the small but vociferous minority who seem to have decided they don't want to support the club any longer but just want to hang around to put the boot in where they can. The post quoted above us a classic example of that, written by a very bitter individual . He doesn't have the backbone to show his face at a fans forum and to stand up in front of everybody and put his complaints to the promotion but has decided that those fans who do attend are "happy clappies" who hand on to,every word op and lie that is spun to them. The truth of the matter is that those who do attend these fans forum are solid long term fans who are concerned about the future of the club and have the intelligence to think f or themselves and don't deserve those kinds of insults and name calling because they happen love the sport.

There is a lot of truth in that.its long been known that BV is a very difficult track to find the right set up for, especially for inexperienced riders. My impression,from when BVcame to Lakeside8 and having spoken to the BV managers, us that they are a very, very, professional and well managed club, and th averag fan had no idea how important club management is to success. Lakeside are a better managed club than most and Kelvin is excellent with the young riders but BV have taken it to a new level.It is exactly what the sport needs to bring riders on and, as a Lakeside supporter I bow to no one in my admiration for BV who deserve to go all the way. They are the team to beat and it's now for others to rise to that standard. It was still a pretty decent effort from Lakeside though to cobble a team together from nowhere and get this far but there's no denying BV's acievement

Good old Buster Chapman . What happened to his promise to sort all this out ? In other news Max Clegg has tweeted thanking Lakeside for inviting him to guest on Friday and said he lives the track. The Lakeside track bets a bit of a bad press at times from some quarters, usually those that have never sat on a Speedwáy bike in their lives, but since Ken Driscoll has been doing the track a lot visitors have been tweeting how much they enjoyed it.

Thanks for the memories PK . More than just a great rider., a great sportsman as well which is far more important , especially in a sport so lacking in credibility He would be a great credit to any sport. Speedway has been lucky to have him.

Examine the facts more closely and you might find its not necessarily entirely in Cooks hands. I am not going to defend his ability (or lack of) as a communicator but the plain facts are that the AGM was moved forward last year, to a date to early to commit to anything because the stadium owners had not got their stock car fixtures sorted . What was Cook to do?Commit to the top league "blind" and then risk losing the £30,000 bond because he couldn't fulfill his commitment at a later date ? These decisions are easy for those on the outside that don't risk losing thirty grand if it all goes wrong. The picture seems to be changing now becsuse from what I hear from the people renting the shops at the stadium is that they are taking less because of smaller crowds and they in turn are complaining to the stadium owners about the rents they pay when their income is less . It seems the stadium owners are beginning to realise that they, and the shops need the income from Speedwáy more than they previously realised. As with any business, there are many factors those not involved are not necessarily aware of.

Ben is a Rye House asset so maybe or maybe not depending on his parent club. There is Kim Nilsson of course, a Lakeside asset and Lewi Kerr would be back like a shot, given half a chance. Ed Kennet is a track specialist and could be in the frame after Rye booted him out. Stuart Robson is a club asset and might just have enough left in the tank for a season at reserve, and Scott Nicholls has wanted to come for years but he is admittedly getting a bit long in the tooth for a leading role now. Richard Lawson likes the track. Plenty of possibles for most team places but a really decent No 1 will be hard to find.

Most of the points you quote have always been there,not just this year. Although primarily a Lakeside supporter I have always reckoned to go to Rye occasionally when the weather is nice. I wouldn't say the viewing is better or worse than Lakeside, just different. I like the all round view of the track at Lakeside but I enjoy getting close to the action at Rye. But I couldn't be bothered to go to Rye at all this year and have struggled to motivate myself to go to Lakeside. Nothing to do with either club particularly, more to do with the state of British speedway. In all honesty look at what's gone on at Kings Lynn under the stewardship, of that half wit Buster Chapman who also masquerades as BSPA chairman. Look closer to home at Rye. Ellis Perks did nothing wrong but they still sacked him.Ed Kennett gets sacked by Rye but turns up at Poole, who sack Kriystof Kasprzak, who, when the music stops, turns up at Rye House as a RESERVE, if you please. Surely the ultimate farce, a World class rider, World Cup squad member slotted in at reserve because of some jiggery pokerry with averages. Similar things going on all over the place, and that's before we start talking about teams packed with guests. Call, it what you will but please don't call it sport.

Connor Locke is coming on very well but the season will probably end before he really gets there. Personally I am very impressed with him. He is still very inexperienced and has a long way to go but his heart is in the right place and he is a trier, we can't ask nh more from him at the moment. Jack Parkinson-Blackburn has tweeted that he absolutely loves the track. That's after Buxtons Matt Williamson tweeting he liked the track a couple of weeks ago. The track is certainly getting praise from all quarters since Ken took over this year. That will really upset some of the bitter ones who constantly keep knocking the club and telling us how good one line Rye House is

Not thinking anything as I wasn't there, just pointing out that not everybody shares your opinion.

Really ? This is how a poster on the Rye House -v- Swindon thread saw it :- Jenson your a joke of a promoter. Your stadium's a mess, your manager's a joke & your team!!! Who ever is advising you you need to not listen! Employ someone who knows what they are doing or lose your club

Yes the stadium was pretty well life expired and needed a lot of investment. The back-straight stands burned down sometime around the late sixties when some oily rags left laying around caught fire and the whole wooden framework went up in flames, and I suppose that was the beginning of the end. The fire risk was then evident and money would need to be spent. I am not sure about falling attendances though. I have no figures but from memory the crowds always seemed pretty good until the Lokoren tragedy, but after that the patched up team was so weak its not surprising crowds fell away. All very sad.

I was talking to the tenant of one of the shops on Friday, and he was saying that the stadium owners would still like to sell up but everything is on hold at the moment until a decision is confirmed about the new Dartford crossing . I thought they were going to build it further down the river near Tilbury but he said nothing has been finalised yet and nobody is going to pay a lot of money for the stadium at the moment in case plans for the new crossing change and then they cant get planning permission to do whatever they want to do, if, for example the politicians decide to build the new crossing next to the existing one. I would imagine the same principle applies to getting land for a potential new speedway track. I am only surmising but my guess is that there wont be any movement for some time yet. Interestingly the chap I was talking to said attendances at stock car meetings is falling away as well so it could possibly be part of a modern trend away from stadium based entertainment. In the DVD/digital/internet age it seems to me that more and more people want their entertainment in front of a computer or TV screen.

West Ham was more than just a Speedwáy track, it was a culture and a way of life. I grew up in a house in Otley Road and the main gate was at the bottom of our street. There was no better place to spend a childhood. Some people in the area had been going since it opened in 1928, and a lot of the old stars were still household names : Malcolm Craven, Aub Lawson, Bluey Wilkinson, Tiger Stevenson and the great Jack Young. Everybody knew them even if they never went to Speedwáy. It was in the middle of a residential area, but nobody ever complained about the noise like they do today. People understood that the Speedwáy , greyhounds and stock cars provided jobs for people in the stadium and brought business in for the local chip shops, sweet shops and the Nottinham Arms, at the top of Bingley Road where, according to legend the great Ken McKinlay used to stop for a pint on his way into the stadium as well as on his way home (I don't know if that's true or not but it comes from my mate that used to help him unload his bike,, but anyway it's a lovely story!). There was just a fantastic community spirit around the neighbourhood that Ive never experienced anywhere else in my life. It all seemed to centre around the stadium. Barry Briggs said it was his favourite track because it was so big and wide you could pass anywhere. I still have the programme for the last of his six British Championship wins there. I can't think of many sporting events in my life where a competitor was as dominant as Briggo was that night. Ken McKinlay was something else round that track. An absolute master of track craft at a level we never see today. On the rare occasions he missed the gate he would make a false attempt to,pass round the outside then when the opponent moved out to cover the move he would quick as a flash switch to the inside for the pass, nearly always on the last bend when there was no time for the other rider to come back. I disagree with Norbolds version of the shortening of the track. Living so close to to stadium there were lots of people who got to hear what was going on, we even had some that worked there. I never ever heard it was anything to do with Jack Young, the version that got around the area was that it had to be shortened to make the bends wider so stock cars could be introduced in 1954, but in fairness the National Speedwáy Museum website simply says it was shortened dur to "complaints about the size" but no other details are given so that could mean anything. I suppose at this distance of time we' ll never be able to confirm what the facts really were so let's just sat it was a privilege to have been able to experience such a great place to watch Speedwáy The Lokoren tragedy knocked the bottom out of the club in 1970 and things were never the same again. Sorry to go on at such length but, Sidney you have brought back memories of some of the best times of my life.

If you actually went to meetings you would know Cook drives one of the tractors when the other is out watering, but he is not the track curator. There is a new track curator this season and several times both home and away teams have said it was a well prepared track. See Matt Williamsons comments on Twitter for example after the Buxton meeting. Of course, you don't want to hear that because you only want to sit on the sidelines and snipe instead of giving credit where it's due. I noticed on Friday that Ken has taken a lot of bumps out of the track that were causing problems last year but weren't dealt with.

For what ? You not knowing there are two reserved dates available on the Lakeside fixture list and not knowing what rules apply in the event of a League fixture being rained off ? I think there is a bit more to it than meets th eye, like BV not wanting to come on dates when half their side are riding elsewhere. I don't know all the ins and outs of it, but from what I can make of it there is some gamesmanship going on.

Lakeside have dates left if you bother to check the fixture list before making stupid comments.

As with most of the visitors Brum not only have the team to beat but Kelvin's guidance to the lesser riders is invaluable. Kelvin is experienced enough to spot little mistakes and put them right far quicker than young inexperienced riders would. In the Buxton meeting for example the Lakeside reserves were slow off the gate and Kelvin had them switching to the inside round bends and picked up several points that way from poor starts. As for your disdain of the track you presumably didn't see the Twitter from Buxtons No 1 Matt Williamson, who said the track was well prepared and he enjoyed racing there, so it's all a matter of opinion.

The stock cars started in 1954 and overlapped with Speedwáy until Speedwáy finished in 1955. According to my father the introduction of stock cars made it necessary to widen the bends and that was the reason the track was shortened from 440 yards to 415 yards.My understanding is that it was the Tory entertainment tax that crippled Speedwáy at Custom House in the 1950's, although there were other reasons and speedways popularity was on the wane by the mid 50's. I am of the firm opinion that it was the Lokoren disaster that was the final nail in the West Ham coffin. After losing half the team, including riders with massive potential like Martyn Piddock and Peter Bradshaw the team or the entertainment value was never the same again. I did read somewhere that in the Stadiums last year of trading the dividend paid to the shareholders was only £700 between them and as the stands were more or less life expired and considerable investment was necessary so the decision to sell was more or less inevitable, but a Speedwáy meeting at Custom House Stadium on a warm summers evening was the best place to be in the history of the universe. Barry Briggs said it was the best track in the country so who are we to disagree ? Back to the point of the thread. Len Silver has to be among the off track greats. He has given his heart and soul to the sport and his contribution is tremendous. He is regarded as an opinionated, and difficult man to get on with but if he was not opinionated and difficult he would not have achieved a fraction of what he has achieved.

I agree 100% with that. Speedwáy is lucky to have people like that . He was called Gentleman George because he had been offered terms by Dave Lanning to ride for West Ham then Len Silver tried to poach him but as he had already given his word to Lanning he stuck to the deal with Lanning. If George gave his word he would stick to it. That was why Len Silver coined the nickname Gentleman George. He did of course eventually ride for Len Silver at Sunderland (I think it was Sunderland anyway), One reason Speedwáy is in such a mess is because there are not enough people like Gentleman George around. He is far too honourable to be involved with the Cowboys that run the sport these days.

So who gave you this little gem of inside information ? Some bloke in the pub or other individual you are not prepared to name ? Or does this source have a name ? How come you didn't mention it before ? How come you knew about this bit of gossip but David Mason didn't ? From the time Paul Hurry turned up at press and practice the rumour mill was in action, with this story and 50 others as it always is from those who claim to be "in the know" . Actually there is only one person in the know and that is Jon Cook, but he I can assure you plays his cards very close to his chest. It didn't take a lot to work out the Paul was a potential signing if there were injuries or a collapse in form but a lot of people in Speedwáy like to think they are in the know when only one person is and he is very tight lipped. As Claret 73 says Mason never was a popular choice and Hurry will at least do something to maintain crowd levels.

Lakeside have published attendance figures in the programme notes. Not every week but from time to time. Cook has also given information at fans forums, including some details of losses in the 5 meetings last year when attendances were affected by traffic congestion on Dartford Bridge, and the relative cost of running an NL meeting as opposed to PL. Historically the clubs pulling in the biggest crowds at Lakeside have invariably been Eastbourne Coventry and Poole in that order. With both Eastbourne and Coventry now gone, and no Darcy Ward at Poole even Diane Abbott could see how overall income would be hit.

Whatever it was at Newcastle it wasn't like it at Lakeside. Granted, Davey like most Aussies could have a short fuse st times and had his bad days but he wasn't appointed Captain for no reason. He was made Captain because he was always trying to work with the younger riders in the pits before and after races. He did great work with riders like Richard Lawson, Ben Morely and Adam Ellis, especially Lawson. Davey is not perfect but when the balance sheet sheet of his career is made up, he gave the sport more than he took out. Happy retirement Davey.

I wouldn't say they made them look that amateur. If the useless David Mason had performed remotely like the third heatleader he is supposed to be and scored 6 points instead of his actual 2 Lakeside would have won on aggregate. He knows the track and claims he likes tight trechnical tracks so if he can't perform well there I dread to think what he will be like elsewhere. Two points in unacceptable for a third heatleader on a 6 point starting average.