Sings4Speedway

Its entirely a clubs choice how they operate but as ive said on other topics a price increase could easily force spectators away especially in a sport that is in my opinion right at the top of its price point. Use it or lose it is fair enough but if the value, entertainment or any other reason is enough to stop people attending then tracks will close the same way as a shop not offering value or a relevant product would fold. Businesses such as speedway need to look at ways of reducing costs to maintain a level of financial standing rather than continually forcing prices up. The numbers who will blindly pay any price are rapidly dwindling.

Im sure Gary knows fully well the benefits snd disadvantages of the currency engine. Obviously the testing is designed to iron these out. Im all for variety but its still an ambitious move to go up against the GM juggernaut and ultimately all other tuners.

Whilst Scott is a useful user to trial the engines i do wonder what benefit it has to him? Over recent years they have only proven successful on quite specific track conditions and lack power on larger circuits. With Scotts years of experience and the variety of combinations available for GM engines im a little surprised he doesn't have his go to builds by now. A Godden could prove to be a big advantage but if its not i wonder how long promotions will tolerate the testing?

Best quote/post i have read for a long time. Whilst no team meetings are truely even the IOW promotion have a great opportunity to provide equal level oppositions for the matches and greatly enhance the chances of a close run entertaining contest. Looking at any league fixtures for any club there are often very few that provide a shock/interesting result. By stacking the deck slightly in favour of the visiting sides and providing a track brilliantly suited to racing im sure IOWSTRC will provide many entertaining evenings.

Sadly i don't quite share age old views of "use it or lose it" clubs, promotions or any other business be it sport or entertainment do need to balance the books but to constantly push the cost onto the end user is very short sighted. Looking at expenditure, wastage and miss management are far better options. I would be very surprised (if an appeal was launched) that there wouldn't be a willing army of volunteers who would be happy to help/clean in exchange for a free entry. Minor loss of income to the club but happy existing customer base and potential gain of useful volunteer help.

Pleased to see that British Speedway is joining the social media boycott against online abuse and discrimination. This forum has sadly been a hotbed for insults against others both riders and others involved within the sport. I myself am certainly no angel in that respect and have often allowed emotions and personal opinions of people affect what i have posted about individuals/organisations. Therefore from now on i pledge to only comment upon riding performances, issues and incidents. To ratify that any of my comments are solely noted as my opinion on a particular matter. Perhaps most importantly to not making any sweeping statements but rather offer the my suggested course of action that may be required e.g replacing "he won't make a league speedway rider all the while its a two wheeled sport" with "i think that particular rider would benefit from additional time at a lower level and coaching on the techniques required to be a safe and successful speedway rider" With any fortune my pledge lasts and a few others follow suit.

Little bit bemused by the post above. You state that people need to consider the times we are living through and prioritise speedway? Im sorry i love the sport but given the current times its pretty low down the list of priorities for many, promotions do have additional challenges to face and there may be extra costs/reduced capacity but those problems shouldn't be pushed directly onto the paying public thats just lazy and short sighted business. Promotors may be barmy to run a team but it is solely their choice to do it, i personally am grateful that they do decide to do it but i don't feel in any way obligated to make sure that they succeed.

Love this. Favourite part of off season for me so thanks once again Islander 1. Kinsley 8.00 2. Clouting 3.13 3. Atkins 5.86 4. D Thompson 5.50 5. J Thompson 6.48 6. Hagon 3.00 7 Ablitt 3.00 Total 34.97......feeling lucky this year

Whilst the money does have to come from somewhere why does it always have to be found by adding onto the admission price? Those antics are always a gamble as it can just as easily put people off from going. Take 1000 fans for example you could easily argue that 100 people would be put off by another price hike. That 100 missing paying £18 is the same as the other 900 paying £2 more except that you have 100 fans staying away.

Love these especially as people get so precious about it. There are plenty of unknows from both the untried and returning riders but the top two have the picks of the rookie reserves, home advantages and solid scoring throughout. Eastboune Mildenhall Kent Leicester (were higher but loss of Halder has big impact) Belle Vue Berwick Armadale Newcastle

More likely than Danny Woodward

Heck of a fall to break it in 3 places. Desperately unlucky on both rider and club as he looked a real value signing this season. Very little about in the 4.5-5 ish averaged riders still available, i would think Scott Campos could almost name his price at this point.

Buying advance tickets online would have a far simpler refund process than the nonsense that occurs once within the stadium and meeting is abandoned

I can easily see the advance tickets being here to stay even in a partial way. Most other clubs that have advertised the entry process say that season ticket holders are guaranteed entry and full quota deducted from available tickets to be purchased in advance. But even beyond May/June why not keep the advance tickets maybe £1 saving or similar? it would speed up the queues getting in as advance tickets could use a separate turnstile to those who wish to purchase on the day.

I didn't read the press release as all affecting the speedway side but that doesn't mean its not the case. The water bowser that Brum had was certainly a useful tool and well suited in size for the multiple tasks it performed. It will be both tricky to replace and also scary as if these oiks continue operate outside the law thee is the fear than any replacements could be destroyed too. There are plenty of solutions to the issue i can think of but hardly any of the legal.

Certainly many points of interest here. On the speedway "breakaway league". exiles league or whatever they may be formed of good luck to them. The sport needs more opportunities at every level from pee wee youth through to veterans and everything in between at all standards, elitism and snobbery is one of the big drawbacks of the sport and every venture should be supported and nurtured "in the best interests of speedway". As for the ball kicky stuff its a bold move and should be considered a one way venture but the last sporting breakaway (darts) went pretty well. Im not saying that the football venture will become the leading light and the lower divisions will ultimately crumble but it has proven that by setting the bar at a certain level only the cream compete and the standard has continued to rise. Its not a closed shop though and only those who remain present are those who are there on merit

Whilst majorly unhelpful to the overall cause i guess the stadium break in didn't directly affect the Speedway side until the last spate of petty vandalism/arson that destroyed much needed equipment. The difficultly in replacing specialist items must be the harder task rather than the financing of items (theres barely a bowser in the country worth more than a couple of grand) despite the inevitable hint f needing to raise funds. I know all clubs are in a precarious position at the start of the season but comments like this do nothing but cast doubt over the viability of the project

How many guests and RR's will be utilised IF it goes ahead?

The blatancy of that night was pretty galling and amusing at the same time. The rivalry between Kent and Eastbourne that has built over the years is a fire that Len has happily stoked, these events and dramas just build up the matches between the teams, adds the atmosphere and ultimately boosts ticket sales. Meetings at Kent need a strong referee to keep them moving early one, a sensible interval, the two minutes to incorporate any gardening time and as few instances of RR as possible. I have no idea if the CL matches are going to run smoother or be more chaotic ?

This is where the sport has two very distinct fan groups and are at odds with each other as how Speedway should be. One side are the club supporting happy clappers who care mostly about the results of their own team and will defend even the worst riders until a better option comes along, those who happily sling mud at other teams but will not attend after a run of bad results. The other side are the Speedway fans who want to be entertained and the result is often secondary providing the racing on show is up to scratch. Obviously there are exceptions but for the most part there is one fan base split into two groups, you can't please everyone and yet the sport needs them all.

Sadly rent increases seem likely and access to the stadia which Len has always enjoyed quite freely to prepare the track could also be reduced. In the short term there may be no affect but as you state a longer term forced change of available race night may dictate which league the Kent side(s) are able to run in. Roger Cearns has provided great backing for the teams over the years but he is still a businessman and his involvement will remain as long as the ventures are still making money, Len has nothing but vision for the club but all dynasties need succession plans and there are limited numbers of crazy people out there willing to throw money into Speedway clubs that are not already doing so.

I have a vague recollection of the evening and do remember Len going rogue on that occasions but not by what degree. In fairness the anti residents log complaints throughout the winter and whenever there is a rain off so the validity of those is extremely questionable. Given the Council are the current owners of the facility they are not overly helpful for its usage and would be left with a heck of a white elephant if Speedway and Greyhounds walked away.

The lease or the stadium? i "thought" that the council owned the stadium and Roger Cearns held the lease?

Looks like a few stinkers occurred especially in a line up weakened by withdrawals but big congrats to the top 3.

I have to admit things have been far too quiet regarding Spooner for him to not be fixed up somewhere so makes sense