lucifer sam

Oxford and Swindon speedway are completely independent, and there's a 45-minute journey between the two. The return of one does not affect the other. All the best Rob

Ivan Mauger rode in the actual SAL league competition as well. For Rye House in 1957. All the best Rob

People's opinions are subjective, so therefore, there can't be a definitive answer. I've given my opinion, in that I think Cradley Heath '83 were the strongest side from 1-to-7. All the best Rob

Grachan, a 49-29 away win at Blunsdon is nothing. I remember Oxford '86 winning 56-21 at Swindon (with Robins' reject Per Sorensen returning to score a paid maximum for Cheetahs). Cradley Heath 1983 were the strongest side from 1-to-7 - I remember doing a piece on that side for the Speedway Star and what struck me wasn't the fact that they won all but two of their BL fixtures, but the constant size of the victories. Belle Vue '72 had Mauger, but not quite the all-around strength of Heathens '83. Peter Ravn and Jan O Pedersen's reserve averages were remarkable. The 100% team was Oxford '86. That was a different type of side - the ultimate top heavy side and therefore so hard to beat over 13 heats. The BL averages for Nielsen (11.83) and Wigg (11.01) made it almost impossible to close out a win against that side - Marvyn Cox was in the form of his life for the last few months of the season as well. I remember Cheetahs used tactical subs at both Cradley and Reading and yet ended up winning both meetings with relative ease. On paper, the Oxford '86 looked slightly weaker than Oxford '85. On the track, I think a lot of the Oxford riders simply had their best-ever season. The likes of Per Sorensen and Nigel De'ath had seasons that they never repeated. Cradley '83 were a powerhouse team from 1-to-7. But arguably the 13-heat-formula suited top heavy teams. And that's why Cradley did lose twice in 1983, while Oxford had a 100% record in 1986. And let's not forget that Coventry - another team with a terrific top end - were unbeaten (with 3 draws) in 1987 as well. All the best Rob

Assuming no dropped points and no dead-heats: 1 rider takes 5 rides and scores 8 to win the meeting without a run-off 13 riders take 5 rides and score 7 2 riders turn up late for the meeting, miss their opening 2 outings and score 7 from their remaining 3 rides 1 reserve scores 4 points from 2 reserve rides 1 reserve scores 3 points from 2 reserve rides I make it 8. All the best Rob

Gustix: 1. I believe Wimbledon closed in 1991, not 1992. 2. The crowd for the first meeting in 2002 was massive. Unfortunately, the track was an abomination and many never returned. If Oxford comes back and it is run correctly, I can't see why it can't be successful. I think we have a bigger hardcore than Wimbledon in any case. When there was a Wimbledon v Oxford challenge meeting at Reading in 2008, there seemed to be no more than around 50 Wimbledon fans there, but a good 300-400 Oxford fans present. All the best Rob

A right ray of sunlight, you are. It would be the same as everywhere else - deprive people of speedway for a decade, and then bring it back, and you get bumper crowds. People realise what they've been missing, and tend to remember the good times rather than the bad. All the best Rob

I believe the value it was sold and bought last year (by the same people) was £1.4 million. All the best Rob

Ooooops - now corrected. All the best Rob

The conservation area status is on the whole stadium, in particular the two racing circuits. It lasts for a 'generation' and a challenge to it was thrown out in High Court. There's been little movement since the whole situation was explained in the Speedway Star last March. It's still the same stalemate, which can only be broken if the council go ahead with a CPO. Even the 'sale' of the stadium (the buyers were exactly the same people as the sellers!!) last Autumn hasn't affected the situation. All the best Rob

Well, the Leicester cock-up is Horton's, for starters. But yes, Mr Sandhu shoulders most of the blame for this. He's sold Coventry Speedway down the river. The late, great Charles Ochiltree must be turning in his grave. All the best Rob

Wiggy by a mile. All the best Rob

SCUNTHORPE SCORPIONS will unveil their new clubhouse – at the team’s press and practice. The grand opening will take place at 6pm on Friday, March 17th. Owner Rob Godfrey has always been keen to improve facilities at the track, and sees the clubhouse, which is situated on the first and second bends, as a huge step forward. “The clubhouse has been a big investment, but it will pay for itself”, he says. “If I’m honest, it’s one area where we had previously been lacking. But that’s not the case anymore, and we’ll make the most of the new opportunities that our new clubhouse provides. “There’s so much space inside, and will fit 200 people with comfort. “It means we have social functions at the track, both during the season and the winter months as well. “It also means we can entertain our hospitality guests better.” There’s been a huge amount of work to get the new building ready. “At one stage just before Christmas, I did wonder if we could get everything that I wanted to do this winter”, admits Godfrey. “But we’ve had a lot of help, and I’m so grateful for that. “It’s almost there. We’ve just had the pumps fitted for the bar. There’s just a little more work to do and then we’ll be there.” Godfrey plans to celebrate the official opening of the clubhouse in style. “We’ll cut the ribbon at 6pm on March 17th and we’ll toast the opening with champagne”, he explains. “And then, after that, we’ll have our Press & Practice. “For me, it feels like we’re entering a whole new era for the club. I can’t wait to get the season started.”

Tactical subs were introduced in 1955. All the best Rob

Facebook group is here: https://www.facebook.com/f2speedway/ Pete Seaton and his F2 bikes are at the event at Paradise Park two weeks today. All the best Rob

It's worth pointing out there hasn't been a constant decline since 1930, as some seem to be suggesting. The sport was much healthier in the mid 70s than the mid 50s. In fact, there's never been as few teams as there were in 1958. Even the SAL didn't run that year. So there were just 10 league teams that year. For some reason, they needed much bigger crowds to be able to operate back then (maybe admission prices were incredibly cheap in comparison), but as you can see, speedway is in a healthier state in 2017 than it was in 1958. All the best Rob

I remember going up at Glasgow when Oxford were there in 1994. On the parade, Mick Poole received boos, but he just ignored them. It then came around to Burt (Martin Goodwin). The Tigers faithful booed him even more - his response was to grin and cheerfully wave at them. He was a character. All the best Rob

Star Lady, surely if you're counting football as 90 minutes, then you have to count the amount of time that speedway bikes are out on the track for a race. I reckon it's about 3 minutes most of the time. So that's 45 minutes, not 90. All the best Rob

I met Dennis (Merlin), after being introduced by Paulco. He was so obviously speedway through-and-through; one of these chaps would do anything for his local club. And generous as well - I remember him going out of his way to drop Paulco and myself back at the station. RIP Dennis - a sad loss. All the best Rob

You'll lose your money then. All the best Rob

Fixtures here: http://scunthorpescorpions.co/?p=6605 All the best Rob

Is the pairs still at Somerset this season the day before Cardiff? All the best Rob

SCUNTHORPE SCORPIONS have brought forward their regular Sunday evening start-time to 5.30pm for the 2017 season. It’s an hour earlier than in 2016, when meetings started at 6.30pm. Promoter Rob Godfrey explains: “We’ve listened to the fans – it’s down to customer feedback. “We were told that people would like to get home just a little bit sooner on a Sunday evening. And for those with children, it means that the kids can go off to bed earlier. “I spoke with Graham (Trollope), our track curator, and it won’t make any difference to the track – we can prepare an excellent track for a 5.30pm start-time, just as we could last year at 6.30pm.” Fixtures for the new-look SGB Championship are set to be released soon.

RIP Bryn. While it's a sad day today, I feel privileged to have known you. Thanks very much for accepting me down the pits for the away meetings in 2005, as we plotted victory towards the Conference League title. I learnt so much from you. While today is sad, I remember the good times, in particular the day the Oxford Academy secured the league title. You were a smashing chap, speedway mad and a font of knowledge. RIP mate. All the best Rob

Gustix, quick question. Why did you start in 1928 then? Speedway did not start in 1928. It's difficult to pinpoint exactly, but around 1924 seems to be the starting point (I don't think West Maitland in December 1923 was speedway). Why not make it all a bit easier: Top 20s from: The 20s and 30s The 40s and 50s The 60s and 70s The 80s and 90s 2000 onwards All the best Rob