Parsloes 1928 nearly

The World Cup came too late - can you imagine if we'd held on in the semi, played the Aussies yesterday and won... Not actually that big a leap in imagination..! Then clearly one of team (and I'd say Sam Burgess...) would be applicable to be nominated for SPOTY but by then it would've been too late!

I love sport. Yes, I love some sports more than others - obviously Speedway & Football plus Rugby League are higher up for me than , say, Tennis and Horse Racing. But, as I say, I do love basically all sport. So I have to say when Andy Murray won Wimbledon I recognised - as the huge majority of people in the country did - the enormity of the achievement: British's sport's longest wait (since the World Heavyweight voodoo was lifted by Lennox & Frank and then Wiggins winning the Tour De France last year) for a victory in a specific, very major event. And THAT is why Murray will win SPOTY - NOT because of any 'conspiracy' or defeciency in the 'rules'. It does Speedway fans no credit to be so anti other sports - you'd have thought considering the prejudice we face as a sport ourselves, we above all others would demonstrate a good attitude that says, 'live and let live'..

Er, no - obviously your reading skills are as poor as your grammar! No volunteers have any problem at all with riders getting paid; we're all happy to contribute to the sport we love. 'Contribute' being the operative word.. Not just sniping away continually like certain others!!

Last I heard you told us you NEVER buy a programme so frankly I can't think you'd have a tremendously informed opinion on the matter!!

The reason the notion of paying a Webmaster (sic) £300 a week is daft in the context of a Speedway club is because in the huge majority of cases, Club Press Officers & Programme Editors who put in hours of work each week are not paid (I should know, have done both roles in one way or another for many of the past 12 years and got been paid a bean..); not to mention people like announcers and all track & pits staff - all do it voluntarily. Pay someone £15k a year to, er, update feeds and in many cases simply populate a website with articles supplied by the PRO and I think then you'd have a lot of disgruntled folk who'd also want paying! Track Photographers are also not paid but, of course, get a goodly income often by being given exclusive rights to sell their photos at the track which 'employs' them...

Hmm, and it's easy to divert attention from the fact this data-base has deliberately omitted the league racing records of almost all current British riders, by going on about 'well you update it then'..! If the people who put together this web-site feel so strongly that the CL/NL isn't a proper league (which is exactly why they've left out the data, NOT because of the effort to find such data..) then they should stand by that. Am actually puzzled why those who hold the NL in such disdain would even be straying over to look at posts in this section of the BSF anyhow...

Hold on, the data isn't "missing" (you're thinking of the Lost City of Altantis!!) it has been deliberately left out! As all the data on CL/NL racing and riders' records is contained in Malcolm's superbly detailed books it would actually be a simple task to update - it's not there, not because it's some strange hidden data no one can access without years of research, it's missing because that one site CHOOSES to omit it because they don't have any regard for that part of Speedway in this country. They maintain this view that it's 'junior' and not worth any consideration, even though the league racing records of the World Champion and all his team-mates in the current Team GB squad are inaccurate as a result!!

Okay - just seeking clarity from other clubs and how they do things. I wonder what would happen if I exerted copyright over all the words I've written in Speedway programmes since 2002 - many of which have been copied and cribbed in other programmes and on websites..? One 'law' for writers and another for photographers apparently..?

Hmm, it's hardly anyone's fault other than the people who's website it is, that when a Racing Career Record site shows the complete absense of accurate info. (in this case missing out most of a rider's career!)someone is going to point out this ommission. The person pointing it out this time being the Third Tier's most distinguished historian and statistician, Mr. Vasey. And for those who've not followed the other thread, please note the people who compile this website have said it leaves out the CL/NL records not because of problems in updating these but as a deliberate policy because those behind the site regard CL/NL racing as 'junior' and of no interest. Fair enough if that's their opinion but then they need to take it on the chin when others comment on this and criticise such a premise.

I think you can guarantee there's not a single Speedway club out there which would be paying a 'website man' a salary of over £15k a year!!!

News this week of another death in Water Ski-ing, sixth in competition in Australia in last few years... Oh goodness, when are people going to get this fixation with the term 'Personality' out of their head. 'Personality' just means a person in Sport and NOT anything to do with what their 'personality' is like!!!

Is that right? I would've thought that the position of Track Photographer would bring with it the requirement to supply photos to the club which the Club would then have some rights over..? How does this work across the country with other clubs do people know?

They are massively incomplete - as Bryon has one of the longest and team-wise, most successful careers in the history of the CL/NL. Why anyone would want deliberately to tamper with riders' career records like they do on that website is utterly beyond me...

Hmm, you seriously think that's an 'offer'..?! The clue is in the words "I have no interest [in the NL]" - a sentiment expressed time & time again by those running this supposed database of riders' records.

Whoa there! What's with this double mention here of the dreaded 'D' word, 'Development'..?! For gawd's sake let's not start with this nonsense again! The working title of this division, used on ALL fixtures, League Tables, all marketing of the division by clubs is the National League - not the bleedin' NDL...!!!

I have to say though that I do not think it is accurate to say that our crowds reduced all year. There were very healthy sized crowds right up to the end of the campaign - the crowd at the closing meeting was very good despite the weather affecting things by then and despite it being an 'individual' which are often turn-offs at many other tracks.

I do have to say Smart's name was the one which leapt off the page when I read the list too - as a nailed-on 'last pick'... Would that make him Brummie bound..?!

Where was this then..? Not anywhere on this thread..?

Er, yes - but how is that profile going to be raised without some mainstream exposure? And this year Tai as World Champ and with the 'back story' could've been be in there...

Er, there HAVE been very clear statements on here several times by those who put together this website, that they have no interest in including third tier (CL/NL) records; and let's be honest. the proof of the pudding is, in any case, for those to see. Deliberately leaving out (in some cases) several years of riders' league racing career is tampering with such records in my book - what would you call it..? Being selective, I suppose! You seem to take exception to the word 'deliberately'... But you've hardly left out Tai Woffinden's CL career record by accident have you... If it wasn't 'deliberate' to miss that out, what would you call it?

Now THAT is a great idea!! All in all fantastic news - Plymouth is one of my absolute favourite places to watch Speedway!

Like what exactly..?

And it's not helping the NL clubs a whole lot either! Am sure there used to be a rule that under 23s weren't bound by this rule though...

Well we all now know that a database which is meant to be of riders' racing records is completely flawed, as it misses out significant sections of their league racing careers. If that's exposure you like, then you sure got it!!

To clarify the riders CAN do NL but can't double down from the PL