cityrebel

the naming of teams is definitley an issue for some fans. the idea of letting long time defunct clubs like boston and hackney run in the league doesn't sit well with me. on the other hand this years combined sheffield and scunny team seems to have no identity, even the BSPA webite not knowing how to list their away fixtures. regarding the CL shield and trophy matches, didn't some teams riding in those matches use riders from teams that were only competing in the league. at wimbledon joel parsons rode for the dons in the trophy and rye house in the league.

i thought it was a good idea when sittingbourne and weymouth just rode trophy fixtures. an ideal solution for those tracks that can't commit to running a full season of matches.

bike problems was the rumour i heard at sittingbourne on sunday. i find that hard to believe when you are riding against one of the weakest teams in the PL. who knows what goes on in the world of uncle len these days.

hi phil, dave doesn't post on here but when i see him at rye i will ask him if he has made any mildenhall badges.

regardless of the team name NL speedway was too expensive at arena and rye. when clubs run two sides most fans will always attend the higher level of racing. unless uncle len drops the price at the launch pad nothing will change.

i agree shads. NL prices at rye have reached their limit for me. i might pay it to see the top teams or if i'm desperate for a meeting.

sensible decision with all this awful weather today.

there is a lot of rain forecast for tomorrow, but it's the gale force winds blowing along the coast i'm more worried about!

thanks for the info.

this is a very interesting debate. my favourite track of all time west ham only ran 31 seasons of racing. 1928-39, 1946-55 and 1964-72. even more suprising is that the wembley lions only staged league racing for 24 seasons. 1929-39, 1946-56 and 1970- 71. it's amazing that two of this countrys most famous venues had such short histories compared to some of the tracks mentioned in this topic.

years ago at all levels of racing it was common practice for two teams using r/r to cancel the facility and promote the no.8's. these days though it never seems to happen.

indeed he did john, i have it in my collection of speedway books.

i worked for the GRA for 22 years. i was based at wimbledon but also worked at the other GRA london tracks. i was involved in both the speedway and greyhound racing.

i used to work with lionel in the refs box at wimbledon. my job was to operate the track lights and update the electronic scoreboards at each end of the stadium. i enjoyed listening to his stories about speedway at the crystal palace.

i was there last night and technically nick simmons and cameron heeps both scored full maxiumums without racing against each other. heeps was classed as a non starter in heat 15 due to his fall and i'm pretty sure that don't count as a ride.

i witnessed a truly horrendous crash involving paul starke and danny halsey on the island last night. it was a miracle that these two boys got up and walked away. they are a tough breed these speedway riders, but i bet they are feeling the pain this morning.

i've been to leicester twice this season. my first visit against somerset was pretty poor but the second match v. workington was a decent meeting. if this venue was in the london/south east area i wouldn't be complaining. my three nearest tracks are lakeside, rye house and eastbourne, all small and tricky.

the problem with trying to ressurect any form of speedway in london is the lack of intrest in the capital city. the population has changed so much in recent years and those of us ex london teams fans still following the sport have already migrated to lakeside or rye house to get our regular speedway fix.

a good post that just about sums it up for me!

jon cook also said that NL racing is a no goer at lakeside in its present format.

jon cook said in last nights lakeside programme that there would be no more hackney meetings staged at arena after this season. jon reckons the hackney name has alienated some fans and i tend to agree with him. will uncle len carry on next year with the hawks team or revert back to the cobras, who knows.

if the postponed dudley and mildenhall meetings can be restaged during the peak holiday season they could be real money spinners for the islanders.

thanks to you all!

hi does anyone have a complete list of mondays race winning times. the longer the meeting went on the more confused i got, with all those jokers and tactical rides. the old brain is not as fast as it used to be!

a nice website paul, and i say that as a wimbledon fan!