teaboy279

I hate it when the oldies go on about the old days being better. But the modern ice speedway just does dont seem to excite me other the last decade, as much as it did when I was growing up in late 80s early 90s. I seem to recall tracks were a lot more choppy back then with riders bouncing all over and producing many incidents and over takes. Also seem to recall the Russians/soviets being slightly less dominant abiet slightly more scary too. Is this me just looking back with rose tinted glasses or has today's ice speedway become boring and predictable?

Personally I d go Kemp Ledwith Jenkins Spooner Rowe Gilkes Ablitt

Think it was so that no one knows the planned riding order.

Any chance of getting back to Kent now plz slowly getting to tapes up. Zzzzz

I d normally advocate a youngster, BUT I can't think of anyone outside the GPs who can feel more hard done by then Hampel. So for me he should get the wildcard. Just to add if he was any other nationality then Polish I am certain he would of had a wildcard place.

Mike Bushell can claim something that probably 80 percent of us forum users cant, he has fallen off a speedway bike. He has done pieces with Tai and Ruthless in the build up to British GPs.Dont know if he actually has any interest in the sport outside of his work life but unlike many Sports Presenters he treats every sport he covers with 100 percent respect. Be it Olympic sports right the way through to the highland games and everything in between.

In the banger, stock car, and hot rod scene Buxton struggles to attract numbers both in terms of competitors (in national formulas) and crowds size compared with more accessible circuits. So actually the comparison is valid although contradictory to the point Gustix thought he was originally making. Within both sports, the location restricts both potential competitors and spectators compared to its local rival tracks at belle vue and Sheffield.

No Budgies?

Whilst I think planning is in place for fridays still, the stadium is used by the dogs on a Friday now, so track is unavailable. Reading between the lines of what Len said the end of last season and in press releases, I think once Saturdays are secured then the step up a league or two will follow. My personal opinion is that I cant remember going to a Saturday speedway club for decades where the crowds were all that impressive. Except Rye's early Elite fixtures. As a whole there are so many things on a Saturday competing for your time and money especially for the younger fans that I think it's a big gamble. I think once you go up the leagues speedway on Saturdays can work, so that's why I ll support the clubs plans. Tbf the team we have this year, I can only see crowds rise and rise whatever night we race on. Really cant wait for the season to start, and the silver skis fours is probably the most exciting addition to the fixtures I ve seen since Kent have been in existence for sure. Really hope to do all four legs and the format gets resurrected permanently, used to be among my favourite meetings back in the Canterbury days and a format I miss greatly.

Don't really get the negativity (typical speedway mentality tbh), this can surely have no negative effects? It just makes the practice session that little more interesting. As it stood your starting number was a completed lottery and if you got the graveyard gate twice you was hampered from the start. At least now riders can do something to affect their starting positions. Let's not forget they are still choosing 24 hours before the event so even first pick won't guarantee the best gate twice, much like getting last pick might not guarantee a graveyard twice (krsko last four picks are gonna be a nightmare). Really all it is, is a bit of added fun for the event. I ve yet to do a GP and not go to practice as for me it's all part of the experience. Picking the 3 or 4 fastest riders to have a flutter on then find none of them make the semis a day later.... A bonus championship point, and a cash prize should be enough to ensure everyone goes flat out, moving forward. I don't really see how riders can finish just behind a rival to pick gate choice in their head to head. Times over 1 lap will be so close that the slightest roll out the throttle would see you fall from the front to the very back. In the example given a few pages back Zmarzlik would need to manage to finish a place or two behind Tai to gain any real chance of having an advantage. As I say I don't see it doing any harm, just gives extra interest to the Friday session.

That describes every ice speedway race I ve seen in the last 20 years. Only passes seem to be when a Russian misses the gate.

Cant speak for other people, but my own view is that despite being a nearly ever present at central park for what ever level or format of speedway was on offer since day 1, fear that if at Kent we get Saturdays I will miss more in a season then I have in the previous 6... Already have 2 gps booked to attend, and hoping to do two more if finances allow. So potentially 3 missed meetings (I am pretty sure I won't miss a meeting when I am at Cardiff) I am not trying to be negative about the project, the way forward is for all upper league clubs to have either a NL side or at least a development league side. It's the only way to bring on a consistent and steady stream of young talent through. I think most of us expected Sunday afternoon fixtures which I think would of worked well. I remember reading Horton saying he needed about 200 people to break even I assume that figure will be less for the Cubs as they won't have the rent to cover. One thing they do have is an attractive team and hopefully that will be enough to entice people in and balance the books.

I believe that later curfew permission on a Friday only applies to top flight speedway. I believe the appeal is because the meeting got sidetracked from what permission was actually asked for was. By all accounts the impression was that due to a campaign from a dismissed ex bookie at the dogs the councillors appeared to believe they were voting on whether we can run 7 days a week. When the only changes were to ask for permission to run saturdays and a slightly later start time. The application now only asks about running Saturdays. This really should be a simple amendment because in other hearings the main concerns of the local resident was it "keeping local kids awake on a school night" so moving to Saturdays should throw out that concern. As I understand all reference to a later start time has been completely removed.

That was when you only had one team though, so if people didn't go they didn't get live speedway. I dare say with this being a junior team vs GPs that Cubs attendances will be comparable to the Bees attendances. Back in 2014 Leicester entered the NT and when Kent rode there, there was no more then 120 people with well over half of us coming up the m1. Almost sounds to me like they are running against GPs so they can declare a 2nd team is not viable come the end of the season.

Aren't they signed up for another 2 or 3 years of gp, and not sure the contract length but think they are committed to league racing also.

I take your point but at least Ads are doing the rounds. Like I say a full hd 30 sec action video should draw people's attention.

Believe a decision is due in March. Our first 2 matches are set in stone, should we get Saturday planning all over fixtures will move from the Monday to the prior Saturday.

Been meaning to post for some weeks but kept forgetting. Like most of us I waste a fair bit of time playing a couple of games on my phone. Like many games if you watch videos it gives you extra gold or reduces build times etc. For the last few weeks a video advertising the speedway of nationals at the NSS has been popping up. I must say it's a very good ad and very eye catching and a full 30 seconds long . Just shows at world level at least that their are people willing to try new avenues to get the word out. I know a couple of stock car promoters used groupon with varied success as well. I am convinced we have a highly saleable product if we just try to reach out to new places.

She posted a few weeks back saying they would need to pay for all the licences associated with league racing to be able hold open meets.

I like a good conspiracy theory but he went to the tapes in the wrong helmet colour. It happens, even Greg Hancock got excluded for the same thing in a best pairs meeting about 3 or 4 years ago.

Good evening last night with all the riders in attendance for the unveiling of our new Sponsors Touch Tec. There was a real buzz about the place and already seems great team spirit between the lads. Roll on April...

I remember one chatty taxi driver was a massive Robert Kubica fan, and his speedway knowledge extended to knowing who Gollob was, that was it.

Talking to many locals last year and they all seemed to say that speedway was not popular in the capital and that the petrol heads of the city all watch F1. I must confess the only Poles I spoke to who were speedway fans, were ones that had travelled to Warsaw. For what it's worth I ve got a 2 bedroom Apparatment in the old town square for 190 quid for 4 nights.

I thought ice speedway was big in Russia, but the crowds I 've seen this year seem pretty small. Is the sport still state funded?

I plan to listen to views and suggestions at Kent's sponsor and meet the rider evening Sunday. Not sure the format Of the meeting butcivam preparing an introduction to myself and history in the sport. I then plan to table my own suggestions briefly. Mainly being around transparency and openness. And the need for a supremo independent of any club to take overall control of decision making. Then onto and in far more detail the main 3 or 4 issues the Kent fans bring to me. For example, my personal opinion is the play offs are a necessary evil that makes clubs decent gates, and gives the fans the sense of occasion. But the feedback I am getting is that Kent fans would like them scrapped, so that is the stance I will take in the meeting. I believe the expenses not being covered is probably less about saving money, but more so to weed out the potential trouble makers. I earn little over Nat Min Wage, and assuming they put the meeting somewhere central like Brum that's gonna cost me a hundred quid plus in train fares. That's probably half my monthly desposible income so Kent fans can rest assured I am taking the whole thing very seriously. Sure it may well fall on death ears, or get ruined by gob rubbishes, BUT also it may just work and our voices do get heard. Whilst I am representing my fellow fans at kent, I fully welcome views from supporters of any club current or former.