Cornishfisherman

Do you have Specsavers in Poland ?

Weather Forecast for tomorrow doesn't look any better-nor Monday- Tuesday or Wednesday - bet they don't draw straws if unable to run before Thursday !

What a sad state of affairs Speedway has got itself into and now a rider is without a team ! Who or what is to blame ? The Rider, A Team, The Rules or has something backfired ?

I have known Jean a very long time and well remember her on the terraces at Mildenhall in the seventies. Always an avid Fen Tigers supporter, always friendly and her kindness and help in those early days will always be remembered. Through good days and bad Jean was always 100% Mildenhall and I dare say that her love of the sport had a great deal to do with Ray coming forward and saving the Tigers from extinction last year. It is with great sadness that I learned of her passing yesterday and my heartfelt sympathy and thoughts are with Ray at this difficult time. Colin

Yes I am surprised that there has not been much in the way of repys for this one and if you look at this carefully some of the Polish riders are paid very poorly compared with the foreigners, the poorest appears to be Miskowiak, one of their top scorers !

Reading the various posts and links regarding clubs owing riders money etc., I must say that I am disturbed that some British riders choose to ride in re-arranged Polish fixtures. Surely they would have the sense to look after their British clubs first and foremost as apart from a slight hiccup last season with one particular club it is rarely that you hear of riders not being paid by British clubs. It would appear that some riders have had a good run on the Continent, perhaps the gravy train is coming off the rails and soon they will have to live in the real world.

Whether you like him or loathe him Scott Nicholls has in the past given of his best for his teams and his Country. It was entirely up to him if he decided to go to Peterborough or not and certainly none of our business. He is probably one of the most sociable riders in Speedway and the time he spends with fans is enormous. Try having a chat with the likes of Gollob and a few more of the top riders whether they be Brits, Aussies, Danes or Poles. One thing Scott realises is that the fans at the end of the day pay his wages. Many top riders think they are a cut above fans, something special but at the end of the day they all come into this world with nothing and leave with nothing.

Yes he beat one of them if I remember rightly- and almost beat Gollob- 'Oh ye of little faith' ! and top scored if you disregard the extra joker 3 points gained by Bomber. Do you feel a bit of a 'Charlie' now !

A number of folk both here and abroad have ridiculed British scene for not having all the top riders riding here week in and week out, however the warning signals of foreign teams paying big money have been flashing for at least a couple of years now and with the World Economy in tatters the 'chickens have come home to roost.' At least, in the UK the Promoters have, to use a phrase out of the Gordon Brown vocabulary, been prudent and British Speedway so far appears to be much the same as it was before the credit crunch, with possible savings made from absent friends who thought they were going to make their fortunes abroad. From what I have seen and heard this season the quality of racing hasn't suffered at all.

Not forgetting Olle Nygren in the same set of stamps in 2002. For anyone interested the Stanley Gibbons catalogue numbers are SG2240/2247 the set of 6 (all motor cycle sprtsmen) from SG will cost you about 6GBPs. The first accepted stamp on Speedway was from Poland commemorating the World Championship held in Chorzow in 1973 the Gibbons number for that particular stamp is SG2258 and is price by them at the princely sum of 10p.

With he present economic climate and the the future outlook I feel that the GP has shot itself in the foot big time and unless things change dramatically people just won't be bothered. I will certainly NEVER attend one ! Let's just hope that domestic speedway survives, which, after all is the average fans first love.

Probably the most sensible comment made on this particular subject so far! I have never been the greatest fan of Jason Crump but on this particular occasion Tomasz was definitely at fault, how contributors can argue with the Polish referee, the close up replays and the pundits ,who have considerably more experience in such matters as anyone on this forum, goodness only knows. Perhaps on this occasion Gollob misjudged his run into the corner, or was he trying to move Crump out to let his team mate through who was in desperate need of points? Had anyone thought of either of these two points.

Yes, strange that, outside gates when there was no dirt on the outside and later on Inside gates when the dirt had moved out !

Don't blame the riders - blame the organisers, they realise that their gates both here and abroad would suffer quite considerably without a British rider or so. Self interest is a phrase that is often thrown at the British Promoters, it appears that it is also applicable to the organisers of the GPs and SWC. It's all about bums on seats old chum!

What can you expect when our teams are full of Danish and Polish riders- the UK lads don't get too many chances. Let's face if many of the top non UK riders did their apprenticeships on UK tracks.

Some things are difficult to understand, How many times in a hundred races would Sitera or Nermark beat Nicholls, or Tomicek beat Harris - some strange results which don't make too much sense. I suppose that the track suited Denmark as it often seems to in most events, they didn't need a practice at Vojens on Thursday they had this tonight. So many things could be said but better un-said- why not enjoy the domestic racing scene in the UK, at the end of the day it beats all the GPs and SWC's -If I had to choose it would be a domestic fixture every day of the week.

When you look at the prize money and the expenses that the riders incur I wonder why most of them bother. Let's face it there are only 3 or 4 riders that are capable of becoming World Champion and I am sure that the other 12-13 realise this but can't accept it. How many top actors would go on stage 11 times in a year if it was actually going to cost them money ? Also the cheek of Mr Bellamy last week telling the British League they ought to get their house in order ! Does he realise that the BL, Polish and Swedish Leagues are actually sponsoring his GPs- that is where most of the riders earn their bread and butter. Take them away and the GPs would fall apart. Furthermore with a World recession on the way he really ought to keep his comments to himself.