False dawn

So before the championship started, if we'd asked Denmark which meeting they wanted to be in, what do you think they would have said? Denmark, Scandanavia. There's a clue in the question! No disrespect intended. But for Denmark to go out tonight is massive news. To lose to Russia and Latvia is shocking. I might sound like Uncle Albert (you know, "In the war.....") but I remember Russia touring over here (a long time ago) and getting thrashed. They have one (or two) pretty good riders now and that means more will follow. Latvia? I know a few of their riders but who had any money on them tonight? Well done and no mistake. A huge result for them and well done. No if's and but's. Speedway is in decline. But someone didn't tell some of these foreigners. There's hope for us all. That's what everyone said we had tonight (before the meeting).

Event 1 Czech Republic Matej Kus Vaclav Milik USA Ricky Wells Gino Manzares Australia Jason Doyle Troy Batchelor Great Britain Craig Cook Robert Lambert Event 2 Sweden Fredrik Lindgren Andreas Jonsson Latvia Andrzej Lebedevs Maksims Bogdanovs Denmark Kenneth Bjerre Niels-Kristian Iversen Russia Emil Sayfutdinov Grigori Laguta Race Off Latvia Andrzej Lebedevs Maksims Bogdanovs Russia Emil Sayfutdinov Grigori Laguta Vadim Tarasenko Australia Jason Doyle Chris Holder USA Ricky Wells Gino Manzares Final Sweden Fredrik Lindgren Antonio Lindback Poland Maciej Janowski Poitr Pawlicki Great Britain Craig Cook Chris Harris Russia Emil Sayfutdinov Vadim Tarasenko

Your description supports my conjecture.I can be a nerd at times, I admit. And I would be truly interested to know the (small) percentage of meetings that meet my criteria. But I can't think of an easy way to determine the exact number and I have a life.

K Bjerre £50 more Jonsson £50 more

Had an email today saying mine have been despatched

And still we suffer endless guests and RRs. So that strategy isn't working. Anyone have any idea how many league and cup meetings have actually taken place with two full teams, 1-7?

I do believe that Scotty still has no desire to ride for Team GB. If the right Danny King turns up, he could be a real asset.

A brave (and honest) assessment of the track. I hope it invokes the proper response and not the sack!

As a Bees fan, this post is a bit hypothetical. But when we race against Poole, all I want is for us to win. I'll shout at their fans. I'll even accuse their promoter of "bending" the rules. The joy of going to Wimbourne Road and winning the playoffs was beyond description. But when it's all done, I'm happy to have a beer with the Poole fans (and continue to debate the rights and wrongs!). This is sport, not real life. Of course, sometimes sport spills over into to real life, when one of our heroes is badly hurt. Then you realise just how meaningless any silliness between opposing fans really is. Get real. This constant bickering is pissing off 99% of the real fans on here (I can't speak for 100% like some seem to). I was there when this forum started and we wanted a place to debate issues and share news. I despair when I see some of the childish nonsense.

I have been watching speedway at Brandon regularly since 1970. And just in case you think I'm casual supporter, I do have vague memories of going with my Dad in the late 50's. I am heartbroken with the loss of a team that riders from all over the World wanted to ride for. There were a few other clubs who came close, but the Bees were the best. Okay, I'm biased and Belle Vue were pretty good and a few others had their day. Don't get into keyboard warrior mode, I'm just trying to illustrate a point. So there are two key things to remember. 1) NEVER give up. The patient is in ITU and is fading. But the disease is treatable and will only give up when we do. 2) There is still some great speedway out there. Oh, the authorities don't know their arse from their elbows, but it has always been so. But despite that, there are youngsters still putting it on the line to win races. And what about the World stage? You've got to be very good to even compete at that level now. Start looking for the good my friends. Please.

The stats don't support that conclusion. BV have only dropped 5 league points at home (44-46 to Somerset and 46-46 to Poole). However their away record speaks for itself. In fact they have an aggregate advantage over everyone except Somerset so far.

Bit concerned by Hans's comment about crunching noises in the back of his head when he turned it. Might be worth chacking out properly.

I didn't say there was anything wrong with gate 4. I'm just imagining myself making the first pick in the final (well I can dream!). Someone whispers in my ear, "half of the races up to heat 16 were won from gate 4". Then adds, "there hasn't been a winner from gate 4 in the last 6 races". My decision might be a touch difficult. Oh I know not all races are won from the gate and these stats can only be an indication. But such stark numbers must indicate something significant.

This year's field will not allow anyone to cruise to the top 8. After 5 rounds, Tai is 3 points ahead of the 8th place rider. And in 9th and 10th you have PP and Zmarzlik. There is, of course, the also ran's further down the field, like NKI and Chris Holder, yeh right. You sit on your laurels at your peril.

So what did they do to gate 4 after heat 16? 8 wins out of 16 races and then not 1 in the remaining 7 races. Call me a nerd. But don't tell me that track "preparation" doesn't make a difference. Still a good meeting. For the record, points scored from each gate and races won from each gate (1 to 4) 2016 38 41 34 25 8 9 4 2 2017 30 40 33 34 4 6 5 8

Chris H got a last in his last race and he's in gate 4 this time out. Any predictions? Gate 3 is a graveyard

interim report..... Gates 1-3 have won 5 races between them. Gate 4 has won 7. I love it.

I watched a meeting at Peterborough recently and, from memory, gate 3 was a massive advantage. Had won more than the other 3 put together. So I went down to the start line to inspect the condition of the track. Guess what? All 4 gates looked identical. I think Excel tells us more about track conditions than the amount of shale in place. I'm still a student of statistics and my own analysis is a strong indication as to what might happen. But riders defy the stats every meeting I go to. And long may it be so. P.S. I'll post the 2016 vs 2017 stats at the end of the meeting

What price statistics? 3 heats. 2 wins from gate 4. That's as many wins from gate 4 as we had from 23 heats last year

Perhaps a way around this problem is for riders to make a long term commitment. So if you ride in a "National event" for one country, you are barred from riding for another for say. five years. This should be in addition to the current British requirement of passport holding and residence etc. You could even make such riders make themselves available for the National team in the SWC and so on. Whoops, sorry Scott.

There are always ways. I've been to all the Bees fixtures this season and although we might be pushing water uphill, I'll go to all the others. Sadly, with this cancellation and the silly predicament at Leicester, we might not see anymore. Oh, I know it's a tough call and we may be looking at the death throws of a once famous club, but I ain't ready to throw in the towel just yet. There are people who have as much as millions of pounds "invested" in Brandon. I have (this latest period) 47 years of my life, man and boy, invested in this club. Before that, I went with my Dad as a nipper. Stadiums come and go (ask Belle Vue). But a club has life all it's own. The odds ain't good but they are not non existent.

Sometimes it's hard to comprehend what I'm reading in terms of the track conditions at KL. What has happened? This was a promotion that prided themselves on preparing the best of racing circuits. I know what the track looked like first hard just a handful of years ago. Albeit on a sidecar. But I did know a well prepared track when I saw it (I ate some of that shale last time I was there). I went to Oz twice and people out there asked me what KL was like and I compared it to Gillman in Adelaide which is considered one of the best circuits out there (I crashed there too!). There is nothing wrong with the shape, the bends, the banking and when I knew it, the shale. Why, oh why, do I keep reading these poor reports?

It's June. No "R" in the month. Sorry, I don't mean to be flippant. But, many weeks ago, I gave up trying to keep up with the rules. Especially those pertaining to averages and team building. Am I alone in this?

But only if there's an "R" in the month

False dawn, on 21 Jun 2017 - 10:02 AM, said: I repeat my questions