Screen machine

BWitcher, I thought in my previous post I had made it explicit that Bradford Hawk and I are separate people, although we are related, and again as I've already said perhaps this prejudices my opinion on what's wrong with with our sport. So I shall dumb things down a little, we are two separate people who share some common perspectives. How I can prove this to you I do not know. If you wish to persist in your incorrect view that we are the same person then fine, clearly it pleases you to be incorrect. I am keen to ask you why you keep drawing on the comparison of football, when clearly the two sports share little to nothing in common? My observations are based on MY problems with speedway, so to me it seems a little incongruous to keep citing football. Yes there is no back reference at a football match to a previous fixture, but this is due to the more advanced (I will not say competent) communication through the media of the previous results. This in MY experience is not the case with speedway, and I simply suggested this would go some way to improving the sports image. Again this is only in my opinion, clearly you don't agree so let's leave it there. Again you seem more than able to criticise other opinions on what's wrong with the sport, which is of course fine, so I shall ask you again, rather than merely slating what others think, what do you think is wrong with the sport? Surely the whole point of this particular discussion thread is to discuss the way forward, not to pull apart other opinions (which can of course never be wrong)? We are all fans concerned about the ailing state of the sport, so let's share some ideas about what's wrong aye? This would be much more productive. Please direct your response to me 'screen machine' and not 'Bradford Hawk' as it is me that anticipates a response as to your problems or ideas. I look forward to hearing what positive ideas you may have. Screen machine x

BWitcher...in answer to your first question yes we are different people, although we are related, so perhaps it's only natural we share some similar concerns, and yes in hindsight I perhaps should have said as much, maybe my views are influenced by this who knows. To be honest this probably makes my first post a little less valuable, my mistake I apologise! Then again related or not I have my own mind, and as you can patently see I don't agree with everything said by Bradford Hawk. The reason I do not name clubs is because the issues I raised (wrongly or rightly) are not unique to just one or two clubs in my experience. I do not wish to post anything that may come across as a directed attack at a specific person or club. My observations (admittedly based on limited experience) are merely a channel for me to voice my opinions, as you have yours, and rightly so with regard to both of us. And yes I believe it was a premier league play off meeting, so thank you for providing some much needed clarification. This adds more weight to my concern, that speedway is too insular and too much is assumed to be known/understood. This to me is a key concern, that speedway can sometimes isolate new fans or less regular (but no less keen) fans such as myself. Clearly people will disagree with things I have said and that is of course fine, it's their right to do so, all I have done is merely offer what I consider to be my own concerns (and as afore mentioned), perhaps these may be a little mis-guided. You say my concerns are irrelevant, which indeed they may be. From one fan to another (who are both clearly worried by the sports current state) I would be interested to hear what your views are? There might even be a common ground, who knows! All the best Screen machine x

I agree with many of the issues raised by Bradford Hawk, I too am a long term speedway fan, but since the closure of my club have no regular club to attend and simply survive off any scraps I can. As I've already said I'm a keen fan and merely offer my opinion not to criticise, but to offer my thoughts on what in my opinion is causing the gradual (and dare I say it unstoppable) decline of our sport, and perhaps what could be done to slow or stop this decline. Quite simply there are two main issues, the over complication of rules and scoring, and the total lack of communication to the fans (or worse still to new people attending) On more than one occasion this year I attended a rained off meeting (again I shall not name the clubs), the fans were at no point kept informed of what was happening and what the likely result would be. Of course we a regular attendees can generally gauge ourselves whether a meeting is likely to be rained off, but what of new fans? It leaves a rather poor first impression of our sport, to offer no apology or explanation. Good communication costs nothing, and in these times where the leisure penny is a hard one to win surely this would go a long way not only to keeping the regulars faithful but also drawing in some new faces? Nearly every club/promoter stresses the importance of bringing in bigger crowds, but to do this must we not at least get the basics of professional presentation and communication right to stand any chance? The solution to me would seem very simple, keep the crowd informed and tell them about the re-admission procedure in the event of a rained off meeting, this would go some way at the very least to minimising their frustrations! As I've already said it's the over complication of scoring and rules that to me also seem to be a significant detriment to our sport. Ten years ago I had a almost text book understanding of the scoring and rules within our sport. Now as a non regular attendee my understanding is a little patchy to say the least! But this is perhaps a good thing, as it enables me to see things from a perspective of a new or first time attendee, as they too are likely to have a limited grasp of the rules. At a recent second leg play off meeting (again I won't mention specific clubs) there was no explanation of what was required by either side to progress to the next round. This too could also fall under the poor communication I've already mentioned. The solution to me could be twofold, first (and perhaps a little complex to execute) would appear to be a fundamental overhaul of the rules and scoring system. I as keen fan am left a little confused by the current regulations to say the least, so what chance does a new-comer have?! Make the rules simpler and make them more easily accessible, surely with the medium of the internet this would not be hard to execute and communicate to the fans? Secondly (and in my opinion less favourably) leave the rules and scoring as they are, but again keep the fans informed. Perhaps before the parade, a brief explanation of the significance of the meeting and the possible outcomes of it. Again it's merely professional presentation and good presentation costs nothing. These two things would they not keep the current generation faithful and perhaps bring in some more faces? I am aware my views may not be shared by everybody, but these are things to me that leave me frustrated and confused. I am not trying to criticise, merely to offer my thoughts on the problems within the sport I love so much and to arrest it's gradual decline! Screen machine