Man in black

Wish I knew how to post my photo, ‘cos it’s even worse now! See that triangular field just above the stadium? All new houses. And the brownish area just below the warehouse behind the main stand? Those houses are now finished. Woo Hoo! managed it!! This was the stadium on 12 Feb 2019......

Yeah, they look different from 1000ft as well. It’s pretty clear from the unfinished stubs of new road that the development is intended to overrun the current stadium site plus the warehouse behind the main stand. The remaining space just does not look big enough to me for a new stadium. Hope I’m wrong.....

I flew over Blunsdon a couple of weeks ago in a light aircraft and was quite shocked by what I saw. The stadium is now surrounded on three sides by new housing, some of which is right up to the stadium boundary. Don’t see how re-shaping the existing track will help, nor does it look like there is enough remaining space for a new stadium. I can post a photo if someone can tell me how?

Just tried to watch this afternoon's replay of Poole vs Swindon on my laptop at my inlaws who have BT Internet with BT Sport. Yes, I got the meeting but the left third of the screen was taken up by a panel showing football scores which changed every few seconds and the bottom quarter by a panel with a constantly running football news ribbon. This not only knocked the speedway down to just over half the screen but also made it completely unwatchable, so I gave up and watched it on YouTube instead. If I tune to a channel showing 2 hrs of speedway, why does BT Sport think I actually want to see 2 hrs of football scores and news? So glad I don't subscribe to BT Sport .......

You really have got it in for Mr Sandhu, haven't you. Remind me who won the Elite League in 2010 and who was the club owner - and how the speedway authorities rewarded him for his success? Maybe if they'd acted differently we wouldn't be where we are today. Avtar Sandhu made no secret he bought the stadium for redevelopment, but the economic climate made that unviable in the short term. He could have let the site become derelict, but instead he invested and we have had a further 7 seasons of speedway and stox under his ownership. Also a further 7 years to find an alternative venue, 'cos we knew this was coming at some point. Doubt we'll ever find out the truth behind the current shambles, but I'm quite sure all parties bear some responsibility. Speedway fans would be outnumbered 5 to 1 so I doubt anyone would notice - but I follow both sports and please don't think the stox fans are any less p****ed off than the speedway fans.

Technical summary here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nitromethane. (Never quite trust "Wiki" but this seems to be pretty much OK). Amongst other things nitromethane releases oxygen on combustion and this is the primary "benefit" when used in small amounts as an additive to methanol. This of course changes the combustion process inside the engine, so unless you change the jetting and ignition to suit its main effect is to double the cost of your fuel and halve reliability. I'll bet Ivan Mauger got it right though......... True, but model aero fuel is 15-20% oil 'cos the engines are 2-strokes..... Sponge inside the carb is an interesting idea - I can see that it might work, though my gut feeling is that a big squirt of nitro is just as likely to kill the engine as give you a lightning getaway..... must try it sometime!

I wonder how many other riders have seen how Tai's application, dedication and hard work have transformed a reasonably talented rider into a proper World Champion and thought "If he can do that, so can I......". Could there be a few more surprises when the tapes go up in 2014?

Whoa.......steady on there Westhamboy! I may not like his tattoos, but where did I suggest Tai was a bad person or that his choice in body art was "socially unacceptable"? Indeed I thought I had judged him for his performance - to quote my own post "...he put in one hell of a lot of work off track, is unquestionably the most improved rider of 2013 and a deserving World Champ to boot.. "

I'm no fan of Woffinden but he put in one hell of a lot of work off track, is unquestionably the most improved rider of 2013 and a deserving World Champ to boot (still hate the "tats" though...). Top of the pile for me in 2013 – but can he keep it going this year? Ward has more talent than any rider I've seen in 40 years & if he learns from Tai he could become the best ever – time will tell. He's the rider I most enjoy watching on track. As an earlier poster said, we don't see Hampel in the UK so it's harder to judge. Personally I see him in the Leigh Adams mould – a superb rider lacking the final piece to put him at the very top. Pity Emil's season finished early – could he have held off Woffinden? Will he be World Champ in the future? "Maybe" to the first, "I hope so" to the second. NKI had a great 2013, but best in the world? Not just yet. Holder didn't look like keeping his crown, but the Coventry crash finished that anyway. I just hope he makes a full recovery back to his best.

No question for me – Exeter, especially in the Mauger/Autrey/Verner years. I was living in Bristol at the time and, although Swindon was much closer, I preferred to go to Exeter. It didn't matter if the racing was often poor – you were so close to the action it was simply breathtaking. My favourite spot was coming off bend 4 just by the steps to the upstairs bar. Seeing Ivan Mauger (and many more of the world's greatest riders) stop right in front of me to do a practice start, often less than an arm's length away will always remain amongst my greatest speedway memories. The track was so fast and the bends so narrow that overtaking was rare and only for the brave, but watching the home riders setting up and making a 4th bend outside pass was a real treat. Just a shame it didn't happen more often. A County Ground memory of a different sort was a Bank Holiday Monday meeting circa 1977, Exeter v Reading I think. It was a hot day and the place was packed (how times have changed.....) with loads of well-dressed families standing three and four deep on the bends. When the dust cleared after the first race there were a lot of brown, coughing people looking for spaces on the straights. I guess they hadn't been to the County Ground before.............

One of my most memorable moments from the EL on Sky was a top rider being interviewed after a critical heat in a close match and saying "I have absolutely no idea what the score is...." At that moment I realised that the only difference between individual metings and team meetings is that the rider's points are added together at the end. This single event is one of the main reasons my interest in league speedway has evaporated - if the team members themselves don't care, then why should the fans?

Maybe, but these sports don't seem to have a problem attracting spectators. What point are you trying to make?

Most of this post is absolutely spot on (though I'd reckon the chance is 90% by what I've seen this season) - it's all about entertainment and value for money to attract the casuaI spectators rather than relying on the die-hard fans. They don't need to know who won - they enjoy it just the same. I wonder what the admission price was for the banger meeting - bet it was less than the speedway......... Just one thing though - please don't confuse "crash-n-bash" Bangers with Stock Car racing! I'm a stock car fan as well as a speedway fan and I can assure you that Formula 1 stock car racing is very much a serious motorsport. There's a lot of money invested in hi-tech equipment and the lap times at Coventry for the F1s are very similar to the speedway bikes, so they sure aren't slow! I'd recommend any speedway fan to put their prejudices aside and go to Brandon on the first Saturday of the month for the Brisca F1 meeting. I'm sure you'll enjoy it, but don't be late 'cos there'll be a big crowd!

I thought that was a disappointing GP. Huge disparity betweeen the gate positions and a lifeless track making it very difficult to even catch up, never mind make a pass. I don't think it will be much of a guide to the season overall. Best performers for me in the heats were Holder and especially Ward as the only riders to reach the semis with three starts off the white & yellow gates. Pedersen started with two zeros, looked slow all night but still made the final, which is why he'll be in the mix come the end of the season. Hampel? His heats went with gate position, he had a great ride in the semi then Gollob inexplicably gifted him the inside gate in the final. All credit to Jarek, he won the races when it mattered. Nice to see Woffinden well on the pace. Biggest disappointment was Sayfutdinov, who didn't get near the semis despite having three starts off the inside gates. NKI had an unlucky exclusion but also failed to make the most of his gate positions. Out of curiosity over the gate statistics, I filled in a scoresheet with each race finishing R,B,W,Y. OK, this can only place riders into groups but the results were distressingly similar to the actual meeting, correctly predicting six of the eight semi-finalists, three of the finalists and three of the the bottom four.

Point taken, but I don't believe Greg or Tomasz peaked late in their career at all. Greg was World Champion at the age of 27 (1997) and in his late 20's Gollob was winning GPs for fun. What sets these two apart is that they maintained that level of performance for an extraordinary length of time and took World titles at a very late stage in their career. (...still don't think Freddie or KK are going to improve)

Thanks for the comment GRW, but I'll stand by my assessment. Lindgren has ridden 5 (I think) full GP seasons and only made the top 8 for automatic qualification last year. Sorry, but I think he's reached his peak. Same applies to KK - 14th in his only full GP season (2008) and I don't think he's a better rider now than he was then. I can assure you I'd be happy for either to prove me wrong, because the more riders genuinely competing for the title, the better the series will become. I'm a big fan of the SGP - you can be sure that every rider will give 100% in every race. It's not just another "pay day - who cares?" league match.

Nice to see this back on thread after the bickering. Here's my views: Main contenders - Holder & Pedersen Holder has progressed year on year and I see no reason why that won't continue in 2013. There's no chinks in his armour, I don't think he's yet reached his peak and he won't give up the title easily. Niki P is no longer quite the same force he was in 2007 & 2008, but he found his "mojo" again in 2012 and came very close to taking title no.4. With strong machinery and pit crew he could finish 2013 at the top of the pile. Best of the rest – Lindback, Sayfutdinov, Hampel Lindback seems to be getting his career back on track and won two GP's in a strong finish to 2012. One of the few riders in the field with potential for big improvement – already has speed & talent, just needs to find consistency. Maybe not (yet) world champion, but certainly a rostrum contender After a meteoric start to his SGP career and an injury-wrecked 2010 Sayfutdinov seems to have got stuck as a top 5 contender without looking like challenging for the title. If he can re-discover his 2009 form, there'll be no stopping him. Rostrum? Hampel is a classy and consistent rider who should finish well up the field, but I don't see him as a world champion. Seems to lack a little determination - when it really matters he'll be the rider who is passed, rather than the rider who does the passing. Top five. Improvers & Unpredictables – Ward, Vaculik, Iversen How good is Darcy Ward? I guess we'll find out this year. I expect him to make a big impact on the SGP, but likely to lose out by trying to win every race instead of taking the safe points. One thing for sure – he'll be good to watch! Top 8 for sure, probably better. World Champ 2013? For speedway and Darcy's sake, I hope not... Vaculik did well in his 6 GP's last year and should continue where he left off. The SGP series needs the newcomers to be challengers, not also-rans. Top 10. Iversen is difficult to predict. Had a great 2012, question is whether he can bring that form into the SGP. Previous history suggests not. Outside the top 8. On the wane – Hancock, Gollob Hancock started 2012 looking like he'd keep his title with ease but his will to win seemed to fade towards the end of the year. I expect him to make a few finals in 2013 and finish in the top 8, but how much longer can he stay motivated? There's no better sight than Gollob in full flight, but his best days are now behind him. He'll still win races in breathtaking style and quite possibly a GP, but not often enough to finish higher than midfield in 2013. Also-rans – Jonsson, Lindgren, Kasprzak, Woffinden, Zagar Jonsson & Lindgren should be in the top 10, but Kasprzak & Zagar I doubt will make much impact. Woffinden has potential to improve, but he may be out of his depth in this field.

Nice idea, but it won't make any difference. The same guys will still win because they are, quite simply, the best riders. At SGP level, there's already very little difference between the power output of the engines. This is one of the great things about speedway - it's 95% rider skill and 5% machinery, unlike F1 which is the other way round.

Looks like a stronger field in 2010 than the last few years, so I for one am looking forward to a close & competitive SGP series. I just hope Tony Olsson is willing to/is allowed to sort out the track preparation. Here's my take on the 2010 runners (but not necessarily in finishing order): 2010 Title Contenders Emil Sayfutdinov – What a first GP season! Assuming he learns from this year and doesn't get injured, the rest won't see him for dust in 2010. Nicki Pedersen - A year to forget for Nicki, but can he get back to his best for 2010? I do hope so, because Nicki on top form looks like the only real challenger to Sayfutdinov. Jason Crump – A worthy World Champion, but a shaky end to the 2009 campaign even before the injury. Doesn't seem to have the on-track aggression of a few years ago, so will he be motivated enough to challenge for a fourth title? Tomasz Gollob – More Polish GP rounds has to help Tomasz's cause and he's sure to be right up there in 2010, but has he got the temperament to go all the way? Improvers Freddie Lindgren – I don't see him as a title contender in 2010, but Freddie is one of the few SGP contestants with real potential for improvement. Made the breakthrough in the British Elite League in 2009, now needs to do the same in the SGP. Hans Andersen – I really thought Hans would be a title contender in 2009 but it just didn't happen. He'd be a good World Champion so I hope he can raise his game in 2010. Chris Holder – Lots of potential and I'm really looking forward to seeing Chris in the SGP but I think he's going to have a tough time to start with. A realistic target must be a top eight finish to qualify for 2011. Tai Woffinden – Same as for Chris Holder, but I think Tai's career is a year behind Holder's and a top eight finish may be out of reach. Britain's best prospect by miles, so presumably he's a safe bet for a permanent wild-card in 2011 in which case next year could provide a great learning opportunity. I'd love to see him qualify on merit though! Kenneth Bjerre – Kenneth is not a rider I have rated very highly in the past, but he did far better in the SGP than I expected. Qualified on merit but needs to find more aggression & determination when behind otherwise he'll go no further. Also-rans Andreas Jonsson – Doesn't seem able to make the last step from regular finalist & occasional GP winner to genuine title contender. In the top six, but not on the rostrum. Greg Hancock – What a star this man is, but how much longer can he keep going at this level? I hope I'm wrong, but I fear Greg will struggle to stay in the top 8 next year. Jarek Hampel – Haven't seen enough of Jarek to make a proper assessment, but he doesn't seem to have fulfilled the potential of a few years ago. A place in the top eight seems about the best he can hope for. Rune Holta – An all-round Good Bloke, but I'm not sure how motivated Rune will be in 2010. The field is stronger and I expect Rune to slip outside the top 10 and out of the SGP. Chris Harris – Will we ever forget that night in Cardiff. If only Chris could have kept it going....... Controversial wild-card for 2010, but he's in there again so......Come On Chris!!! Show us it wasn't a fluke! Please.......... Magnus Zetterstrom – Surely out of his depth at this level and the biggest argument for or against the qualifying system, depending on your point of view. One of the Good Guys and I'd like to see him do well, but common sense tells me it won't happen.

That is exactly the thought that came to my mind...........

Like Formula One, the SGP is a business masquerading as a sport and the prime objective is to make a profit for the promoting company. Much of the SGP revenue comes from the TV rights which in turn generates income from advertising. Advertisers are not going to pay good money for banners that become invisible after the first race, therefore the clean fence and riders is the only logical reason for the dry, slick tracks even if we'd prefer to stick the blame on Ole Olsen's ego. As F1 has proven for years, boring, sterile and processional "racing" does not matter one iota so long as we all keep switching on our tellies to watch. Will this situation change? Not unless the TV viewers walk away. Then the TV companies will follow suit and that will be the end of the SGP as we know it. Which may or may not be a Good Thing, depending on your point of view.......

OK, here's a suggestion: Let's keep the current seeding / qualification system, but select a further three "wildcard reserves". After the halfway point of the series, the bottom three riders in the standings are out and the wildcard reserves replace them for the second half of the series. This gets rid of the no-hopers and brings in new faces to refresh the lineup. It won't give the newcomers enough time to get a top 8 place, but it will put them in the shop window for a full-time wild-card entry for the next year. Do you think this would work and who would you pick? At the moment I'd go for Holder on ability and as a new face, Hampel because he's good enough to get another chance & Bjarne P. because he shouldn't have lost his place to Harris.

Despite all the moans on other threads about who should & should not be given the wild-cards, we have actually got most of the world's best riders in the SGP for next year. I don't think there are any genuine top 6 contenders who are missing and although Bjarne P and Chris Holder appear to have been harshly treated, this is on the assumption that they actually wanted to be in the SGP for 2009. Scott Nicholls may not be a top six contender, but he is certainly in the world's top 16 and thus deserves his place. I'm not going to comment on Chris Harris, but surely 09 must be last-chance saloon. I do think the SGP is pretty stale at the moment and I expect the top seven at the end of 2009 to contain the same names as 2008. It would be nice to see a real challenge to Nicki P and I think for 2009 Andersen is the most likely candidate, but my greatest hope is for Saifutdinov and Bjerre to make an impact. The SGP desperately needs new faces as genuine contenders rather than just making up the numbers and Lindgren apart, I don't see much potential for improvement in the rest of the 2009 field. Hancock, Gollob and Adams must be looking to retire soon and it would be nice to see other competitors moving up the standings on their own merit rather than because better riders have left. It's a pity Holder won't be there in 09, but there's a lot more to winning at this level than just riding the bike. If Chris himself doesn't believe he is ready then who are we to argue. Can't see anyone taking the title off Nicki next year, roll on 2010 when we should see Holder and hopefully a couple of other new faces with real potential!