Sings4Speedway

Whilst I'm not going to disagree that more could be done to give all youth riders more track time and not just the chosen few. The MDL is not in my opinion the place for it. It was created as a NL feeder league / speedway rider finishing school where skills could be honed before stepping up. It feels at the moment there is a real panic about fast tracking youth riders through to patch the holes that currently exist elsewhere in the sport

Perhaps the SCB would be so kind as to confirm why they felt there is now only one acceptable format despite running for the past few years without any objections? In addition what support and benefits are the SCB now going to offer after imposing the sanctions on the format?

Good on Kent for actually doing something to aid rider development especially as the curfew has previously prevented it. Im guessing Rowe, Spooner & Andrews if he fancies it will be involved? Considering Laurence Rodgers is the organiser its going to be a wide spread league from Kent down to Plymouth. Ive heard rumours that Reading may be involved somewhere (Eastbourne?), id be surprised if Exeter are not included and run from Somerset and would be good if Swindon got a team involved. Not sure of the format though as currently there is a SCB wally trying to spoil it for everyone and impose a format none of the MDL teams are currently happy with but don't know if that extends to the SDL?

I will be bolstering the crowds at a youth round so that i can find Vatcher and have some very choice words with him. Would be nice if some of the beneficiaries from MDL racing could pop along too as a demonstration of the riders who have progressed through it. I believe the deadline was yesterday from team registration so i guess by now the fate has been decided?

Has anybody else seen anything regarding the new tyre compound regulations? From what i have seen there will be a harder compound "yellow" ringed tyre that must be used in the Premiership & Championship? The original "red" ringed tyre can only be used at NL and below along with the harder compound if a rider chooses? Not seen any official release regarding this but there must be a fair amount of older "red" stock rattling around that is now going cheaper? Also what are the prices of the new harder tyre?

Given some of the financial issues since then if the Panthers were still in the "top flight" i suspect its more likely that they would not exist at all. The highest tier commands the highest outlay for a marginally higher product. I personally feel Peterborough are better off than most, good exciting division to be involved in & excellent venue to enjoy the spectacle. Being in the top tier doesn't always guarantee top speedway.

The trick of a star reserve is being able to keep him there all season. If Bickley is up into the team after a few meetings and stays there is will reduce his scoring power. Only seen results from the Woodhulls which have been ok but not spectacular and get the feeling it could be a year too early for them. The other big danger with this side is Bewley, Shuttleworth & Smith all doubling up and missing meetings. Theres no doubt that this is the most potential filled team but will they deliver.....

Six heats containing 8 riders so differing line ups throughout. However that's not the point. The point is the organisers who put in all the effort for the MDL want to run it as it has been since it's inception. Six heats of 500cc racing for riders who either started later or are not ready for NL racing after the youth rounds. Why should they be dictated to by the bspa who do little/nothing for the MDL except give them more hoops to jump through & raise the prices. I for one hope that they stand together on this, stick to their guns & refuse to enter unless it's in the format that all the orgainising teams want. Then we will see how Vatcher & his bspa chums react to potentially closing down the best league in this country.

What the hell is the SCB doing poking their nose in? They do nothing to assist the MDL in fact quite the opposite so why are they trying to ruin things further?

Is there any more news on this? Season is getting close now and must be hard to prepare/motivate riders if nobody has a clue what is going on.

Whilst i doubt the devils will be bottom i can see why some may think it. There will be a huge reliance on Boxall, Compton & Smart have huge question marks hanging over them. If Walker can maintain a 3-4 point average in the main body i would call his season a success. There is Atkins at reserve who is probably the under the radar signing of the season but still see this side towards the bottom of the table sadly.

The result i think Belle Vue Cradley Eastbourne Birmingham Mildenhall IOW Kent Kings Lynn Lakeside Stoke Plymouth Buxton The result id like to see IOW Buxton Plymouth Lakeside Stoke Kent Kings Lynn Eastbourne Mildenhall Cradley Belle Vue Birmingham

Sadly a sign of the times. Riders are being introduced to the NL with speed and enthusiasm but lacking basic speedway skill sets. There are still plenty of riders in the league who cannot lay the bike down when required (or have the assessment abilities to complete the task). I don't blame any rider for taking an opportunity if it is presented to them its the promoters fault and yet they seem to escape all blame. In a dangerous sport it is the promotions responsibility to track capable riders yet many choose to ignore this. Sadly i feel it is inevitable that there will be injuries caused because a rider lacks the basics skills to handle a pressure situation correctly. I must add that i am not aiming the above comments directly at Locke but at a variety of riders past & present.

As ever Stoke have a good top 3 but probably little back up unless Tedham hits a purple patch. I get that they want a dependable side as a stand alone club but riders like Speight have been there, done it and not really done very much, ditto Wallinger. RTD could still keep slowly improving but the others looked to have peaked / be on the way down.

Think he will do alright at home but not convinced about him on his travels. Much will depend on whether his equipment has been upgraded as it wasn't up to much last year? Really don't think Whitmore is ready yet. Shame as i think he is a case of could have been good in time, been thrown in too early & could possibly be lost to the sport quickly.

Good opportunity for Locke. Dont think anybody would question his determination last year and certainly a trier. The bigger nature of Kings Lynn may suit him although much will depend how long he spends in the number 2 jacket.

Running commentary is necessary on grasstracks as the number of riders involved and no requirement to identify themselves other than a riding number make it trickier to distinguish between riders especially for those less familiar with the sport. With speedway you have helmet colours plus suits/bibs to distinguish plus obviously only 4 riders to deal with. There is also the issue of whether a commentator would influence the referee and we all know decisions are tough enough to get right as it is (or most ref's seem to make hard work of it). However if the commentary was streamed via headphones / smartphones etc it could offer the choice to those who want it without enforcing it on all?

More crystal clear communications from the bspa then!. If they only brought 50 engines and still have plenty to shift its wasted money. Time will tell when the season begins but answers made need to be given? I would have thought any riders shifting to GTR's would have announced it by now? A better demo perhaps would have been to subsidise 7-8 engines to a NL team like Eastbourne (only selected as they have good technical support) let them run a season on the engines and see how competitive they are in the league? A supplied engine could result in lower points monies being paid & lower rider costs? Obviously any team / league would achieve the same even experiment as it would give a comparison against GM's throughout the whole team not just a few riders who they suit?

If a rider cannot cope with the pressure or amount of fixtures at junior level they are no way ready to step up. However I think that individual meetings & league format lower league racing could exist very happily side by side giving riders the choice to do one or both as they progress. Sadly most grasstrackers are heading over to speedway anyway as its on its @rse as a sport. But i do completely agree that there should be more subsidised introduction days into the sport. There are already organisations that do training / introduction days. If the scb/bspa were to invest in booking these on behalf of some genuinely interested newcomers it would definitely be a step in the right direction. Even if 5 from 30 for example considered taking the sport up it would be a huge bonus.

I agree the timing of the deal was a little late & sales will improve once more riders use them successfully however the bspa purchased 200/250 units? How many riders are competing in the UK this year? A similar number at a guess so that means every rider needs to buy one or 50% of riders need to buy two to shift the stock. Whilst the bulk price may lead to a nice little profit for the bspa & a major step forward in speedway, it could also be a huge financial lemon and they get stuck with loads of engines they cannot shift (is a GTR Mk2 coming next year?) and thrown loads of money that could have been better spent elsewhere away.

How dare you drag this conversation back on topic Was wondering this myself as there is a full page advert on the back of last weeks speedway star. If they were flying out the door why would they have bothered with additional advertising?

Perhaps it was Josh who was hesitant to take on the extra meetings? I don't know their exact circumstances but unless Josh can make NL pay for itself (not easy) and then make enough from reserve rides at the higher leagues to cover the costs of bikes & living for both himself & mechanic (Dad) then he they will need to try and hold jobs down as well. Not easy when you have 100 meetings to squeeze in as well. As for his sharing partner Kinsley is possible but i think Connor Mountain is a better shout?

You are fully entitled to your opinion. Personally I feel that the most important thing is maximum bike time available to riders and as many varied tracks as possible. I also think that team mentality and team riding is best learnt as early as possible. Who would fund these individual meetings?

Good point although would supporters be happy with RR all season? Again a very fair point made. Perhaps a limit on the number of times a team can use RR each season? Maybe twice home and twice away so that extreme cases can be covered but equally the facility isn't abused?

Have to admit I made assumptions surrounding Martin with his IOW commitments so even more hats off to him. I knew Steve quit due to being disalusioned but didn't know the circumstances surrounding his departure