East End Fan

You make quick decisions then ?

Like, I think, lots of fans, the weekly "fix" of racing is important to me. I know that some tracks have big gaps between meetings and one of the best things since I started to drive down the M2 is that it is every week. If Kent only did Championship that would not happen IMO.

We have two new youngsters this year, Jamie Bursill, who I believe has ridden for IOW and Josh Warren who is something to do with Danny King. I can't seem to find out much about these two. Has anyone actually seen either of them action ? Or knows anything more about them ? If either or both of them start scoring points early on, I think this team could take some beating. Eastbourne are looking good with Knight as an outstanding number One. Matches against the Sussex side will be among he best to be seen, I think.

Glad to hear that I am not the only one ! Aren't kids free at Sittingbourne ? Must help a bit. My thoughts might have been different if I had to stand up all evening.

I think it is very bold of Kent to operate two teams. It shows a policy of growing their own riders for the future. Riders like Gilkes and Mulford and for me that holds great interest as we watch them improving. To a degree ( and only my personal opinion) the price of admission is not a factor in deciding. whether I attend or not. I am fortunate in having enough to be able to afford to go. If I did not have the money, a £10 admission would still be too much. For me, a good night out for £20.

Kent are not allowed to do double headers and also have other issues with Planning Permission and everyone knows that it restricts the numbers attending. When push comes to shove, the riders have to be paid and even raw novices have to have top class bikes these days. Personally, I am very glad that it is planned to have Speedway every week once Maytime come in. A lot of clubs do not do that. But the Covid bug has not yet disappeared, so lots can change between now and then.

Yes. Spend the money on petrol

In a very shortened season because of Covid, it is no surprise to see National League fixtures at Kent less than perfect. Doubt if it will affect performances. Just do not see this 7 getting "hammered". Typical of Sings to be so negative.

But surely, one of the enjoyments of the National League is watching the new young riders progress and improve. This year my eyes will be on Mulford and Clouting. Mulford in particular showed signs of exceptional ability on occasions and I believe is outstanding on Grass Track ( not the same, I know, but relevant). Clouting has taken a bit longer to progress but has quite a classic style which I love. The "class of 2016" were no better when their careers began.

All this is fascinating stuff, but what is it doing on an IOW thread ? I think if the Speedway rules were subject to scrutiny, there would be quite a lot of legally questionable items, restraint of trade being a glaring one. No restraint of trade on the Island, though....sadly.

I think there is an exagerration of a drop in standard. Our Royals team has 3 very good heat leaders in Ryan Kinsley ( don't know too much about him except that he has been a heat leader at MIldenhall), Danny Gilkes and Rob Ledwith plus an improving Jacob Clouting and the very exciting Jake Mulford. I think that's as good a top 5 as we have ever had IMO. The two newcomers are a question mark, but if one of them turns up trumps, we are in for a good season. I also keep reading of riders joining our near neighbours at Eastie and none them are nobodies. Isn't Jake Knight their No 1 ?? the only time I saw him at Central Park he was sensational.

It just depends on the entertainment value. If the meetings at both levels are exciting, I think the public will support it. I certainly will

Just been on Companies House web site re Silver Ski. No mention there of administration or bankruptcy. All seems strange.

Thank you for the info. I winder how many businesses have been lost where the owners are close to Speedway? Very sad.

Where did you pick up that news ? I have not seen it. Very sad if true, but many businesses have gone the same way in this awful Pandemic. May have an effect on Kent Speedway, but I hope not.

They will not struggle for me. I like my weekly fix and I'm just as happy for that fix to be from National League as it is for anything else. I get an extra kick from seeing the new riders progress. In 2019, our last active season, I was delighted to see Danny Gilkes move up to heat leader standard in only a few short weeks after a nasty injury, then along came Jake Mulford out of the blue and showed that he can hold onto a bucking speedway bike even though he had no experience. So, for me, having two teams with the obvious connection at Kent will get me to the track each and every week so long as I am fit and well.

Surely the costa for a newcomer in machinery, travel, loss of income from normal employment, is exactly the same as it is for more experienced riders. So why do we assume that these riders are cheaper to employ ? To be realistic, it could be true of week-end tracks as the riders can still hold down a normal job. But all of them are expected to travel to midweek tracks all over the country. I have no idea how these costs are met. Do riders fund travel out of their own pocket ? I doubt it. I am very doubtful that new riders accept very low pay once they have been in a team for more than a few weeks. I have never had to maintain a Speedway bike, but it cannot be cheap. There is always talk among fans of engine tuning bills of over £1000. If that is true, no rider unless with rich parents could meet such bills. Add the tyre costs too.

I have never seen the point in restrictions in the National League. I remember when the 3rd Division was formed after the war. It was filled with riders of modest ability who could not hack it in the higher leagues, new riders trying to climb the ladder and a few old pre-war riders on their way to retirement. No special rules. Survival of the fittest. It started to produce riders for the upper leagues and continued to do so for many years. That is what the National League should still be doing, new riders having to show they are better than the more experienced to earn places in the Championship/Premiership. Riders with talent do not need complicated rules to help them succeed.

Must agree. The video was very revealing. Excellent racing and Heeps looked like a fighter, so I have already taken a liking to him. I think Central Park will be to his liking.

Always nice to consider that lower prices should be what we enjoy. Sadly, in real life it is rarely true. Take my hat off to Eastbourne for announcing a £10 price for National League. Week-end tracks have always had an advantage over the rest, going back to my earliest days watching Speedway. They do seem to have all things ready and deserve to succeed business-wise. It ensures a future for Sussex fans. If clubs lose money, they disappear.

If that is true, he will become very popular with Kent fans. My gut feeling has always been that a trier will always be more popular than a rider who gets all his points from the gate. I'm beginning to become a bit more optimistic about results at Central Park. We might just surprise a few people.

Is it true that the Isle of Wight shut down because of the rules laid down by BSPA ? I'd really like to know more detail as there must be more to this than meets the eye. The sport can ill afford to lose clubs and I'm sure many fans had their Summer holidays on the Island because Speedway was there. Never seen it myself, but I'm told it is quite a big track.

Has anyone got any ideas or thoughts about what restrictions might be I place when we start racing ? Facemasks ? Distancing ? Hand cleansing ? etc No one has mentioned any of that stuff yet. I am lucky because I will have had my 2nd injection, so I'll feel pretty safe. Still quite a few weeks ahead, and things are looking quite good at present, so normality MIGHT exist. Been a long wait.

Best quote of the day. Made me grin for a moment

Sings is clearly a glass half empty man....what makes him laugh ??