Grachan

I guess Swindon must just have the most miserable arsed people in the UK. I'm from elsewhere so I probably just got lucky. Anyway, I enjoyed last night and when things are bad I'm quick to complain.

Well me, my wife and my son were shouting during races, and so were people around us near the start line. I don't go every week and if I pay to go somewhere I do my best to enjoy it. I guess I just didn't see all the miserable sods stood around complaining about there being no atmosphere. It's not case of getting people rushing through the turnstiles, but it may stop some of the kids there thinking it's dated and old fashioned. It's probably subliminal, but surely it needs to be kept modern. When I went as a kid in the 70s they were playing up to date music. They weren't playing Glenn Miller and 40s stuff.

Not to mention Jurica Pavlic.

Yes, I have noticed this.

I thought the atmosphere was ok actually. Some decent races and a fair bit of shouting and cheering going on. You are right about the music, though. I just don't understand why they have to play music from over 30 years ago.

Every time Swindon ride against Lakeside I look at the line-ups and think we'll win. Then we lose. Anyway, looking at the line-ups, I think we'll win.

Kildemand now confirmed. Looks like until the end of May.

Why would Swindon fans be there at 6pm?

All it needs is a simple grading system. Rory Schlein - heatleader - CMA 6.22 Josh Grajczonek - Second String - CMA 6.40 Guest for Grajczonek would need to be a second string 6.40 or below. Guest for Schlein could be any heatleader below 6.22 or any second string (regardless of average). Not difficult really. So, if anything, you're saying they should be using Watt's average instead of Grajczonek? Otherwise, Grajczonek is a member of the side. Sure, Grajczonek's average is way too high. But that's not Poole's fault. That's the BSPA's fault.

Poole have flouted nothing. If Swindon needed a guest for Nick Morris at Coventry and Rory Schlein became available would you expect them to say no?

Surprised that James Wright is at this level now. He was a decent rider for us a few years back.

Nothing wrong with an interval. It's just that they should have it about half way through the meeting, and just have one instead of fourteen of them.

Good move by Coventry, who look a lot stronger now - if, perhaps, a little inconsistent. I wonder why they didn't just have this team in the first place if Kylmakorpi fitted.

Perhaps she's the top rider in Argentina.

I see football has announced plans to restrict the number of non EU players. http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/32024808 Can't help but wonder if this is part of the same issue being dressed up as an FA decision.

The paper says 2,500, the same as the current stadium. So one way or the other they've got it wrong.

What a shame GB aren't taking part in this. I don't think we do ourselves any favours there. Alun Rossiter has publicy said he believes we should be in it, so who says we shouldn't? And why?

There were some good kiosks in the early day. Or, at least, as good as kiosks can get! I remember a big shop at the back of the back straight stand. Reading v Swindon was massive. Swindon used to fill the back straight and there wad a real tense atmosphere for those early matches. The stadium was never finished either. The home straight bars were put in as temporary and never got replaced. Went to Smallmead a lot and it became my nearest track when I moved to Newbury. I didn't attend the first match at Reading but was there for the second one, and even did the Reading reports for Speedway Mail for a couple of years. Speedway just isn't the same without Reading and Oxford.

Just looked this one up! It was a Charity meeting in aid of The Widows and Orphans of the Printers' Pension Corporation. If you know what that is then you're a better man than I! There were seven trophies, all of which were won on a knockout basis, and the meeting was repeated in the second half using handicaps. Winners were: Daily Mirror: Gote Nordin Daily Telegraph: Terry Betts ATV Sportsweek: Gote Nordin Thomson House: Anders Michanek News of the World: Gote Nordin Daily Express: Sverre Harrfeldt Daily Mail: Gote Nordin.

Adrien Miedinski has his testimonial in Poland so probably deserves the benefit of the doubt on this one.

Just as well he's not Australian then!

It should be 6.00. So many riders got over 5 without breaking sweat, but getting to 6 is a bit more difficult.

"a rider returning to the UK must have achieved an Elite League CMA of 6.25 or a Premier League CMA of 7.00" A bit of an imbalance there, surely?

Actually it seems to be SCB who has noticed this, and pointed out how Poole could benefit. As far as we know, this isn't in Poole's planning, though it might be now!! The silly thing is, people pointed out before last season how the averages would be affected, yet they've done nothing about it. I'm not a fan of grading, which didn't work well for me last time it was used, but there should be some sort of grading in team building - ie heatleader, second string, reserve. So that North can only be replaced by someone with a lower average who is graded as "second string". To have a situation where Dakota North can be replaced by Krzysztof Kasprzak shows a lack of forward thinking - particularly as 90% of people here could see this sort of thing happening when the new race format was introduced.

You'd have thought so, wouldn't you. Maybe it's down to the BSPA not being qualified to act as a sponsor at this particular time?