waytogo28

Must be Chinese Whispers then because in my contact with Buster and in talking to those who work alongside him there is no way he would ever accept what is effectively someone else running his speedway business. The only way he is likely to accept that, is if he was not the promoter or the owner of the speedway club.

Polski Zuzei wrote - among other things " Nowadays, it's not enough to hang a poster, you need a strategy, " said Josh Gudgeon." Sadly for years the BSPA has not bothered to do even basic advertising ( as part of an overall marketing strategy ), speedway does need a poster in every chipshop and takeaway and a fixture list in every supermarket ad. rack - there always was such a thing 25 years ago. A high percentage of people knew about the existence of the track and who the team were ( and the names of the star riders ) even if they did;t go to matches. There is none of that "nowadays". What kind of progress is that when the "presence" of the sport, for example in Norfolk and South Lincs ( in the case of KL Stars ) has faded away? Peter Oakes's extended piece on where UK speedway is now at, does say it all and almost all of it is totally correct. BUT is anyone within the BSPA listening to anyone ( even expert pundits ) outside their promoter's circle? And why not?

Krsko? Can't believe they are going back there unless the track has been completely re-built.

I agree with you Tsunami, But my point is that the BSPA have a poor record at explaining promptly and fully, what they talked about and how they came to the decisions they did. It is this which some fans feel let down about. One example of this is the Gerhardt engine project. Decisions do often seem as if they were made when people were putting their coats on and getting ready to leave. i.e. Not completely thought through. I hope they will fully and clearly explain this time around re doubling up, guests and r/r which seems to be the concern of many fans.

But, sadly, the one thing no-one at the BSPA is good at ( or even not so bad at ) is explanations.

I should say so because if what we were told of Pedersen's injuries is correct, he may not ride again after the first tumble of the year. He was a great rider and a box office draw but unlikely to reach those heights again.

Oh! So, Big Name riders ARE on the way back to top league UK speedway in 2018 - and all without the BSPA AGM discussing the structure of speedway. Amazingly prescient move by Leicester.

Such a pass and the How To acquire it will no doubt be announced around 20th October 2018.

That is an idea that would make for an interesting British Championship if they all followed Rory Schlein's example.

That is the hope and hopefully they will be meaningful and constructive in the eyes of the paying customers.

In answer to this rhetorical question - NO. Prices will not go down ( possibly UP at some places ) and crowds will go DOWN almost everywhere. The downward spiral of speedway, as a professional sport in the UK is now unstoppable and can only end in a dizzying crash. If there is any hope it is that enough tracks survive to form the basis of a simple semi pro racing scene - which if run under a completely new generation of promoters might begin to attract sufficient new fans to begin to rebuild league racing. Starting again with new ways of doing things is the only way forward.

A number of clubs ARE going to close either before next season or at the end of next season. Most are not viable without TV money or a major sponsor coming in with a major contribution.

I thought it was a pretty good attempt at sarcasm - as in the dictionary definition " to mock or convey contempt" which I was trying to do. As along term fan it's better to laugh than cry about what the BSPA have done to the sport of speedway in the UK over the last 20 years. Other posters may know, but are you a promoter or ex-promoter by any chance? You are very defensive of them particularly those at Newcastle.

Is that your photo? Or is it clone, doppelgänger or avatar?

Oh Lord Skid - how right you are! Or if not stupid then deaf to other people's ideas and stuck in the "We Are Right. I Know It" mode.

GRW123 ended his excellent post with " It is difficult to see where these ' More Customers' are coming from. Group 1 is an Elite fan, dwindling in numbers but diehard to the end. But they are a dying breed that will continue to disappear. Group 2, is a lost cause. The promotors had the opportunity to look after these valued fans but failed miserably. It will be very difficult to entice them back again. Which leaves us only with Group 3. For the sport to stand any chance of survival, it has to appeal to new fans. To do that, we need to put on a better show that will generate excitement and atmosphere at a cost most can afford. These new fans will not know of riders like Dolye, Holder, Woffy, so to pay top dollar for these would be of little importance. The product needs to be simple and straight forward. no stupid rules. One rider one team, someone the fans can relate with as their rider. We need to go back in time when the sport was so simple and appealing... The comments JC posted was so constructive and necessary. I don't agree with all he wrote about averages, but the majority was spot on. Unless we can find a recipe to restructure this sport , we haven't many years left. The sooner we start planning the better." I have just slipped from, his No1. Group ( Go every week it's on ) to No2. ( it will take a lot to get me to go back regularly ) . It's got to go back to something like - if not - as it was, for me to go back. Yes I appreciate the skills of Doyle and Iversen etc but I agree that it needs to go back to a simple and more appealing sport if it is ever going to attract some of the general public. All fans attending need to feel they are part of something and they need to go home feeling that the racing was close enough to bother to go back to next time. It does all come down to VFM. If I saw 15 good races with passing of some kind ( or the distinct possibility of it ) after the 2nd bend I would pay again.

With the volcano about to blow in Tenerife, Buster is 100% sure to call it off, especially after the "wind off" we had this season at KL . Tadcaster it is then?

Not a huge problem then, if the profits from the cafe would save Newcastle from closure? But a hell of a lot of pies would need to be sold to save Scunthorpe ( three per person? ). Perhaps it would work out with everyone also buying two portions of mushy peas ( bigger profit margin on the peas )?

Halifaxtiger wrote " There is a club in speedway which has increased its gates four fold on the previous promotion and, aside from one meeting, increased attendances on every single occasion in 2017 when compared with 2016 despite the fact that it finished bottom of its league. According to its promoter, it broke even this year. It remains my opinion (and I am anything but alone) that that is the case because of the huge amount of effort it puts into attracting new fans and then ensuring that it gives them what they want and treats each one as a highly valued customer." And they went back to basics to do their marketing which the BSPA and many individual clubs can't be bothered to do. Or can't find the volunteers to do it for them. Relying on Twitter and Facebook as your free social media as THE way to put the sport in front of new potential supporters will not work on it;s own, even though it obviously has it's place. You have to get out there and build up interest in your catchment area.

Somewhere far away beginning with T - NO not Turkey but nearly as sunny. And NO not Tadcaster. It is well known that the effect of the sun does aid inspiration but sadly all the thinking was done in ( or on the way to ) Rugby.

I too believe that the financial credibility of the sport is in grave danger of becoming non viable. If there is no TV income and no major sponsor the %age of income via paying supporters through the turnstiles becomes significantly higher ( towards covering costs ). So it's either raise the admission fee to say £20 ( or more ) or pay riders considerably less. I believe that fans will continue to walk away if there is not major re-structuring of the sport. Or are these already financially beleaguered promoters going to be prepared to take a bigger financial hit? And how many can afford to do that? The jchapman idea with a sensible average limit is the only other way forward that I can see.

More likely to be made Life President and Overall Ruler ad infinitum.

Craig Cook has realised his dream or riding in the GP and well done to him, but he will have to really raise his game on track to be other than a one season wonder. World Champions are made of very different stuff.

Emperor's new clothes springs to mind.

I am sure that he will get a reserve place if he has another good Aussie season ( out of retirement ) .That is what brought him into the spotlight in 2017. Holder was merely jet lagged and Bustered after a hard European season.