21st century heathen

There's an update on the Wolves website that could have only posted very recently. Of particular importance is that they've upped the admission to £17. The line-up is barely reasonable and certainly doesn't justify an extra two quid. Lindgren, Woffinden, Haines, Kildemand, Isometta, Bridger, Skornicki, Schlein, Gjedde, Janniro and Lyons are all mentioned. I expect to see Howe, Monberg, Klindt and Lindgren The Younger join them. That leaves one spot open, but to whom? So just two recognised EL heat leaders, and only one of whom makes the top 10 in the league. A good EL second string, seven EL 4½-5½ point riders (incl. Skornicki as the best and L Lindgren as the worst), three PL riders, and two untried riders. Schlien F Lindgren Bridger

Fair comment re Reading. For anyone not on the doorstep and planning to go anyway, it would be quite nice to know the line-up. I'll be there, unless an act of God intervenes.

You're absolutely right Snaily. Wolves are leaving themselves no time to promote the meeting anywhere outside the West Midlands. The only thing I would say to you is get yourself along to Monmore anyway. The line-up will be a decent mix, it always is, although not as good as at times in the past. Monmore is usually prepared well and provides good racing anyway, so this format just adds an extra dimension. I'd love to see Swidders ride in this one. He's been superb value this season and it should be good to see him coming through from the back. I can see it being quite open this season.

Sorry for using the nicknames/abreviations.

As per my signature, the weekend has seen both speedway and F1 find new lows. Gutted for everyone, not just those we know, that went. Surely pressure must have been building on Olsen to go with all the sh!te tracks he oversees, and this has to be the final straw?

You can find a list of all the track records (right back to the beginning in '47) at Dudley Wood on the Cradley website. Click on 'Features'. It was broken most years.

If you don't mind putting your hand in your pocket you can get a taxi from right outside the train station. It shouldn't cost more than £5 and take about 10mins (although I've never taken a taxi from there myself). The bus station is right by the train station as well. And the metro is only a 5 minute walk away too. 79 Bus timetable Metro timetable

Well at least some of the original line-up were there. Aren't we blessed. Oh, and nice of them to do a victory lap...eventually!! Oh, and whoever arranges the printing of the programme would you kindly stipulate a 120gsm(ish) Cartridge (or similar) for the centre spread (score card). It's easier to write on than Silk. And we'll be needing more room to write all the replacement names in at the top in future as well. (8 of the original 16 missing in the end) Agree with a previous comment that having Herne and Priest as reserves for this meeting was a bit of a joke. No disrespect to either rider, but this was an EL meeting. Right, that's the moans out of the way. It's a shame the track wasn't quite at it's best, although not a total disaster. By the time the guys had it sussed out the dirt was very wide making passing difficult. 11 of the 16 riders won at least one race proving that even lower standard EL riders can win races on a new track straight of the box, so-to-speak. However, winning from the start and being able to work out racing lines to catch and pass someone are two completely different things. As proven by the eventual winner. He (Jason) was comfortably beaten in his second and third rides, and then again in the semi. Congrats to him on his win, but I felt Rory was the faster rider on show, even if the track wasn't allowing it to be shown on the stop watch. He just looked quicker than anyone else to me. Ride of the night had to be Rory chasing down the pack after the elbow on the first turn from Freddie. He was a mile at the back on the first turn. He caught and passed Charlie in a couple of laps, and then set after Freddie. He must have made up about 30 yards on him, and half of that on the last bend. Cracking effort. Holder - Solid all night and kept Crump honest in heat 1. Thought he had him once but the inside wasn't quite as quick as usual (when I'm there anyway). Crump - Not the best rider overall but won the one that matters. Congrats and, although I don't like him (as a rider), hats off for a determined nights racing. He wasn't giving the fence any more room than usual. Top pro. Lindgren - Dreadful early on but picked up a bit. Great race with PUK for his heat win. Adams - Took a ride to work it out, and then reeled off four cracking wins. Did well to hold off a surprisingly determined inside surge by Roo when they met. Ditto my closing comments about Jason. Don't like him either, but top pro. Janiro - Started off okay, but it all went a bit wrong after that. Looked very uncomfortable going back to the changing rooms. Hope he's ok. The Bees need him v Lakeside. (Still no idea why Stead or Allen didn't ride) Kennett - Nothing wrong with his straight line speed, but his gating was poor and when he caught riders he looked a bit lost. Mistakes cost him the ground he'd just made up. Swidders - Probably the biggest disappointment of the night. Bike problems in his first may be a clue to his performance though. Bjerre - Cracking night on the whole, but I can't recall a single pass. But then it's not his fault if the others gate slower than him half the time. Gjedde - Looked like he couldn't be bothered. Full length of the straight behind more than once. Batchelor - Looked awesome when beating Crump in the fastest time of the night second time out, but failed to build on it and appeared to quit when behind. Watt - A very good replacement for 'he that can not be bothered' (well I have yet to hear any kind of explanation for his absence). Deserved his place in the semi. He can never be accused of not trying, even if it doesn't work. King - Challenged Lindgren for the worst start to the meeting, and then picked up in his last three. Schlein - Only his second ride was poor. Left trailing then. Other than that he was very good value and provided as much passing as the rest put together. MOTM. Bridger - Turned out to be the second most entertaining rider with his efforts. A stunning first lap to hold off Crump and Watt in his third ride gave him 7 three. Sadly, he couldn't make a start after that. He was good value with his attempts to get on terms and make passes though. Cracking performance. PUK - Terrible early on, but very steady in his last three to record a reasonable 7 points and a mid 'table' finish.

I'd expect the first announcements around the latter part of next week. They'll get the P'brgh meetings out of the way first, I'd have thought.

Thanks for the clip. It's certainly an awkward looking fall. He takes most of the impact on his backside and then hits his shoulder. I'm quite suprised he hasn't bruised his back actually. I still don't think a dead arm two days ago is enough to keep him out tonight. Ask yourself whether you think he'd miss the GP for a dead arm.

Hans' frustration should be aimed at the former P'brgh promotion, not the current, the BSPA or the British fans.

If you sign a contract to ride for a British club you accept the rules (I don't know off the top of my head how it's worded) in this country. The BSPA applied the rules. Hans was treated badly by the club, not the BSPA. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Just for the record I'm a big Hans Andersen fan. He's a good, hard rider. He's on a sensible average so I'd sign him for Cradley (if only) and he's always good for a quote. He's a real character and not afraid to speak his mind.

Me to laugh at you as your prediction goes titus verticus.

First time I've ever known a rider be kept out of a meeting two days after recieving a dead arm. If he has a more significant injury than that I apologise.

This is their second season of three, so a little breathing space. Swidders is a bit of a dark horse for this meeting. He loves to creep around the curb, and that will usually work nicely at PB. Well, apart from the fact that he won't represent the club as their top rider in this meeting. Good shout.

Perhaps he's in as a replacement for someone else? That's what I've assumed, but I don't know for sure. Alternative suggestions? Before answering remember that this is the re-stage date, and that the Brummies have had a lot of rain-offs this season. They can only race on Wednesday or four (I think) Sundays (all of which have been used), and they've had to apply for special permision to start early and run more heats. Or crash in the GP. The risk is no greater tonight than any other. And just as I was going to say that Adams and Crump are top riders that take it seriously.

How on earth can Billy be next in line? I like Billy but on form this season he has no business being anywhere near the Second City today. This meeting is supposed to showcase the top riders from each club so Stead and then Allen would be ahead of him in the pecking order. Even if the BSPA now choose to select riders based on average regardless of club then Watt and Batchelor would be next in line. Utterly ridiculous. To answer the question posed about Jonas, I would guess he missed the boat because he was still injured when the line-up was announced. It would be a bit harsh to turn around to Leigh and say 'sorry mate you are no longer required'. That's a shame for Lakeside because Adam is also ruled out and it appears AJ can't be @r$£d to get the sat nav out and find his way to the stadium. On the wider subject of the meeting as a whole, is it time for riders to have this meeting written into their contract? If they miss it without a valid reason they are fined/banned as they would be for a club league meeting. It seems that Lee may have a genuine injury (anyone know anything for sure?), Chris is clearly unfit and Hans may have an injury but a dead arm seems a poor reason to miss a meeting two days after the incident. Other than that Scott and Andreas can't be bothered, and now some suggestion that Jurica won't be there. What's his excuse? I would also place a question mark over Davey and Troy until I know (not that the powers-that-be will ever explain to the paying public) why they weren't next in line to replace missing riders. It's still the strongest line-up that is 'ever' likely to be seen around Perry Barr, so I'll go along. But I can't help but wonder if this will descend into farce.

Really? Who's the fourth rider?

He did, and perhaps you're right. He got through the meeting and rode pretty well though. Tomorrow will have given him another 48 hours to recover. I'm sure he could ride if invited and willing. His style around the outside should make for interesting viewing at Perry Barr. It's not always effective for him but it can be spectacular to watch. The big wide line works at PB, as does the white line for the curb crawlers. Neither have I, but it should be good regardless.

The forecast within a reliable period has always been very good for Wednesday this week, so not sure where you got that forecast from. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- With Hans and Chris failing to complete the meeting at BV last night I will not expect to see either tomorrow. I can understand Chris struggling to recover. I can't believe he got back on a bike so soon. I didn't see Hans' fall so I'll reserve judgement if he doesn't ride. Watt and Batchelor next in line for a call-up?

Okay, time for something a bit more positvie after all the moans we've had recently. Who's going to win it? Will the track record go? Perhaps there's even a case for how many times. Crump Andersen Adams Track record to Adams.

They aren't having one. V Lakeside is their last meeting.

There are no meetings at Wolves this week, next week or the last week of the month. So it could have been fitted in. The relegation play off will be on the 14th and they have the Olympique on the 20th. Potentially there's just the PO final to fit in if they lose to the other EL team. There must have been opportunities ear;ier in the year too.

I agree iris, but at present it seems only two riders will have gone AWOL. Does anyone know of a genuine reason for Nicholls and Jonsson to be missing? I stress again, at present the advertised line-up this season is strong.