Nikko

Without getting into the politics of what has happened this week I would like to make 2 points: 1) Everyone seems to have forgotton that the catalyst for last years problems, which it seems have still been a factor in this weeks decision, was the death of a very fine person and life long Fen Tigers and speedway fan. This was an exceptional circumstance. In hindsight everyone can say things should and could have been dealt with differently, and they could have been, but unless you are in that situation I suggest it is wrong to judge. Personally I can understand that the other Chairman may have been nervous about Mildenhall after what happened last season but as per the above, they were exceptional circumstances. 2)My second point is that, as my wife has told me numerous times over the last 3 days, my phone has not stopped ringing, and my emails are blocked with people wanting to know how they can help. The hardcore support for Mildenhall is exceptional as is shown by the SMS, by the people who year in year out find hard earned money to help sponsor the riders, by the fans who spent vasts amount of money following the Fen Tigers away. People have commented recently that Mildenhall over the last 5 or so years always seem to have had problems and I remember someone writing that it would be best if they just stayed shut. Well for teh moment the governing body and other NL Chairmen seem to agree with that statement but if they heard the calls I have taken over the last 3 days, read the emails I have received etc they would know that there are alot of people who believe that a professionally run Mildenhall Fen Tigers would be an asset to National League. Young British riders need as much opportunity to race in proper meetings as possible if they are to progress. To help ensure this happens we should be encouraging tracks to enter the NL, not turning them away. We now have Mildenhall, Weymouth, Peterborough, Iwade/Sittingbourne, Coventry, Lydd all with tracks and no teams !! Where are the future young British riders going to learn their trade? Nikko

A very sensible post. As it stands the only track in the NL covering the whole of the south of England is the Isle of Wight !! You then have the Hawks at Rye/Lakeside (sorry cant call them Hackney) covering London/Herts and now only Kings Lynn covering East Anglia (and I wonder if they stay EL for more than one season whether their NL team will stay). Where are the young riders of Kent, Sussex, Dorset etc going to race? With diesel costs as they are travelling 200+ miles to race is very expensive and then there are the costs as mentioned in the above post. I have serious concerns for the future, there are a number of people trying their best with the youngesters like Phil Morris, Neil Vatcher etc but this needs to come from the top and I fear that at the moment the infrastructure is just not in place. People complain about the young riders coming from other countries, but until we have the same 80cc, 125cc opportunities for young people to try the sport, in a cost effective way, then the sport we all love so much will continue its slow decine.

Wonder if it would have been different if the BSPA Press Officer was part of the Mildenhall bid? Dudley, where of course he is heavily involved, have already been able to confirm today that Adam Roynon has signed for them today so the rules must be known. This news is already on the BSPA website !!! Pleased for Adam who has had a tough run with injuries, and for Dudley fans who have a team to support. Dudley come out of the meeting with a new rider, the Mildenhall fans come out of the meeting with no team.

Lets hope so but I cant see this happening now until the 2012 season and that would mean no speedway at Mildenhall for nearly 2 years. People forget very quickly and find other things to do. It was going to be a very difficult job for any promotion taking over after last years events, it will be even harder after nearly 2 years away. On saying that the fans deserve it so lets hope there is someone out there willing to take on the Fen Tigers who gets approval from the BSPA/NL Chairman. For all the rights and wrongs of todays decision, what I dont understand is why the BSPA or NL Chairman waited until today to give Kevin Jolly the news after he had arrived at the NL AGM. Was there some secret ballot, as seems to be suggested on Twitter, and if so I wonder who voted? I received a voicemail from Kevin this afternoon, clearly upset that he had been told the decision and therefore couldnt attend the AGM itself. Did they have to wait all this time, if they were not happy with the "money" behind the prospective new promotion (and I have no opinion one way of the other as I do not know Mr Ribbons) why wait until now to tell them. If the application was always going to be turned down, why not tell them upfront and maybe Dave Coventry could have come up with something else. I am not critising anyone, but you have to say that this whole situation could have been handled better.

To be fair the intial statement is clearly headed as a statement from the proposed promoters of Mildenhall speedway rather than from "the club" itself although at the moment of course there is no club and thats the biggest shame about all this.

Simons in Dehli at the moment it make take a while for him to find out. As for myself, who worked with the Mick Horton promotion, Simon Barton promotion, the Chapmans promotion and the Mascall promotion all I will say is that I am gutted for the Fen Tigers fans.

It does make you wonder a 26 year old American on a 3 point average This year the young lads have got to buy the new silencers, wait to see if they even have a NL place, and then try to progress up the ladder. When will we next see a young british rider go though the Under 15s (now Under 16s), NL, PL then EL? It could take some time but like others, I'm going to work as hard as possible to give them a chance but frustrated would be an understatement.

Hopefully Wizzer will read this thread or someone who has the 2011 rulebook. I have been informed that all Under 16 riders and NL riders HAVE to have the new silencers full stop. Is that correct? Regards Nikko

Ha Ha you've forgot my two trips to Scunthorpe, one for the Fen Tigers the other for Adam Now I live in Kent mate, home meetings are a 200 mile round trip but then you know all about that.

Great news, any chance of borrowing some floor space mate if the Fen Tigers race there

Interesting as the points limit has not been set, the points money has not been set (chance it may be fixed) age restrictions on riders not agreed, rules about non British riders has not been agreed. Agree that clubs have spoken to riders but I would be very surprised if a promotion had sorted their whole team unless they are planning on going well under the current points limit, are paying minimum points money and have 7 Brits all under 25 because thats probably what you would need to be sure to meet the rules if you set your team now. 10 out of 10 to any promotion who have managed to do that

Its certaintly going to a very busy February & March !!! I also cannot see many NL teams starting before Easter, but hopefully the weather may be better by then. Not many riders have had chance to practice over the last 3 months and so will be rusty.

I think this is a great idea although there is an issue with calling 2nd half teams Academy hence why the Nikko Racing Ninjas have been formed. Malcolm and I may disagree with the points limit needed in the National League, no doubt it comes from the age old issue of the different needs of a standalone club and a second team of a PL/EL team, but we all need to work together to make the NL a success and give the young British lads every opportunity. Thats why Nikko Racing was setup and thats why we will continue to work with and support young British riders. Lets hope the NL AGM can be sorted out asap, as many teams as possible can be confirmed, riders signed up and we can start to look forward.

I read all the posts. As someone who freqently posts on NL matters I am fully aware of the facts and enjoy a good debate. I also have followed the forums rules and attacked the post not the person who posted it, and therefore under the forum rules I have nothing to apologise for however as you feel you deserve an apology from me then I apologise. Unlike some on this forum I am not going to get into a "one on one" argument with another forum member, we all have our opinions and post accordingly, and therefore will not respond further. For all NL fans, and speedway fans, lets hope this gets resolved.

That just shows a lack of knowledge in your post because the EL,PL and NL do have something to do with me, as they do for anyone involved in the sport. All three leagues, and all licences held by clubs in all three leagues come under the BSPA. They are not seperate and the future of the sport in this country depends on all of them. If your club were in the NL I am sure your views would be different.

Looking at it purely from a riders perspective, which I can do as we are working with 6-7 riders who may well end up in the National League this season. At the moment we dont know how many teams there will be in the National League, and personally I dont count Coventry and Peterborough as I dont think they will be in the NL, but this delay must be having a major effect on the possible future of Mildenhall and Weymouth and therefore 14 riders at least. Assuming the National League starts in late April, it will not be ready for March, that means that from now until then riders have got to: 1) Decide if they have the sponsorship to ride in 2011 as none of them can do it without sponsorship/help from others. One key question for any sponsor would be which team the rider will be with. There are very few national sponsorships at NL level so riders need to find local sponsors once they know where they are riding. 2) There has been alot of talk about pay rates for the NL. As well as sponsorship riders need to know what their rates will be. This cant be sorted out until after the AGM. The same applies to mileage rates. How can riders know how much to spend on bikes, engines etc now when they have no idea if they have a team place for 2011? In previous years that would be the situation for NL riders in November/December but not the end of January/February and that is why the National League AGM needs to take place asap. Personally I cannot understand Jim the Whippers comment, tongue in cheek or not, of course the National League needs to be part of the overall picture but anyone who has had anything to do with the third tier in the last 5 years will know that it hasnt been given the time or management from the BSPA it needs. I believe that if the next Mark Loram is out there he will come through the National League. In business if you have a major problem, and lets be honest here British Speedway does have a major problem, and you want to put in place a long term solution you fix the problem from the bottom up not the top down. Therefore the National League should not have its AGM after the EL/PL ones the whole of British Speedway should resolve its problems together and that means sorting out the NL now and in the future the annual meeting should include the NL as well. For now it looks like we have from the middle/end of January for riders to find a team,sponsors,agree contracts,work out their budgets, get their supplies for the season , engines tuned, parts bought, await the fixtures, wait for them to be changed, receive the final fixtures, arrange time of work for these dates and all be ready in approx 10 weeks !!! Also how long before clubs such as Mildenhall and Weymouth will even be ready to talk to riders about any of the above as at the moment these clubs dont have licences.

Hi Simon and all Fen Tigers fans. The new promotion whoever they may be and whenever they actualy take charge will need all the support and help they can get to be ready for the 2011 season. Lets not underestimate the task at hand, there is alot of work to do in a very short period of time. The club has got a lot of ground to cover with fans, and certaintly sponsors after what happened last season, and I suspect with potential riders as well. I, as others have mentioned am also concerned that with Ipswich now having regular PL meetings every week it may reduce the support we have received from Witches fans over the last few years. Although a smaller impact with Kings Lynn now EL that may also have an effect. This is not to say the Fen Tigers cannot be successful because they can but the new promoter has the hardest task of any in the last 10 years. Also as someone who worked alongside the fantastic track staff at Mildenhall for a number of years the new promotion should also not underestimate the work involved in putting up the fence, or getting a track ready and suitable for speedway. Manageable yes, but certainly not to be taken lightly. Its a job that must be done right, and done right first time everytime for the health and safety of the riders. So lets hope that a new promoter can be confirmed as soon as possible and they have the experience and backroom staff to make the Fen Tigers a success again. Finally in response to Simons last line - Sorry again mate A Happy New Year to all Fen Tigers, and speedway fans. Nikko

Thanks mate, Happy New Year

Hi If anyone has a contact number for Stuart Parnaby could you please PM it to me. Thanks Nikko

Lets just hope the great Fen Tigers fans have a team to follow in 2011

I hope Sarah and Kelvin dont mind me posting against their great news about the 2nd half league, and more details will be in the Amateur section but I can also confirm that another new amateur team has been setup for 2011 - The Nikko Racing Ninjas. Hopefully we will be able to join the new league. Full details on the Ninjas 2011 section at www.nikkoracing.co.uk (link in the signature)including our new Racejackets. Regards Nikko

On another thread someone says the NL AGM is not until the 11th January, does anyone know for sure what is going on? Is it December or January?

Its such a shame that the playoffs have turned into such a PR disaster this season. If the PL/KO finals are run as a double header, or the NLRC / NL Fours do not go ahead then some people need to take a long hard look at themselves. Dark days for the NL indeed, but hopefully it can rise again.

The key to the NL even surviving into next season is for the BSPA Management Commitee to start making decisions now, and not wait until January as they normally do. Teams in the third tier should have same rights as those in the EL & PL and that includes all decisions, conferences etc being at the same time. The third tier is the start of most riders careers, if it is not run professionally how can you expect them to be professional later on. Until the BSPA concentrate on the NL and not leave it as an afterthought all the time it will struggle. Personally I believe in the NL its the only league I want to be involved in. Lets hope all those who feel the same have the chance in 2011.

Appreciate your not having a go, and that engine costs etc are the same. What I was trying to say was that to help young British talent is it going to take alot of effort from a number of people including the BSPA and wouldnt it be good if young NL riders were given help with costs such as tuning etc. I wish you all the success as you pursue your dreams, and hope you get as many rides as possible in the future. Regards Nikko