Mr Ore

e] I'm a big fan of Ronnie Corbett; comic genius. And Ronnie wasn't bad either. I don't usually apologise, but my dig is at the ridiculous names given to some meaningless speedway trophies and not an insult to the culinary gem that is pork scratchings.. Certainly seems we are kindred spirits, although it is 48 hours since I last indulged with 3 bags for a fiver at Ealing Beer Festival. Lush..

As a supporter of neither team, or any in the third tier, I am speaking with some impartiality. Should this decision be proven not to be urban legend (and you would think Cradley officials would have been told if it wasn’t by now) every team, other than the Heathens has been penalised for Mildenhall’s (in) actions. The suspended fine is actually no fine at all, as long as Kevin Jolly keeps his nose clean, so hardly punished; yet the innocents of Buxton, Isle of Wight etc., will be 4 points further behind Cradley as a result whereas Mildenhall will be……………….. oh yeah the same 4 points behind as the innocent parties here. We’ve had riders in the past fined, with no suspension period, far more for having the wrong shade of helmet colour even though, for a colour blind person like me, these rebels were actually a huge help as colour was easier to identify. Even if he has a big bogie coming down his left nostril during the suspension period the subsequent fine for Kevin is only really pocket money. OK I know he is an advisor to the club but how ironic that the hearing was, in Kevin’s absence held with the League Title Sponsor’s representative, speaking on behalf of the guilty party. I’m sure that he is an honourable person (and a great goalkeeper in his heyday in spite of his Donald Trump hairstyle) but it doesn’t help with transparency. A lot like Trevor Brooking adjudicating in the Carlos Tevez affair with his “neutrality” ensuring West Ham weren’t docked the points to relegate them that season, as they should have been. Obviously not my good self but some could even suggest dodgy handshakes and rolled up trouser legs being the deciding factor in reaching this conclusion, or the fear of pulling of the sponsorship. It would be hard to argue with whoever those people may be. It is not good PR that the much respected Title sponsor has fairly directly penalised the majority of clubs the company is supposedly supporting in agreeing with this decision. Surely the moral thing to do would be stop any points which were going to be awarded to Cradley but, as my learned friend here suggests, take them from Fen Tigers, who are the ones who’ve benefitted. Then replay the match and not some meaningless challenge for the Fen Pork Scratchings Trophy or similar, in its place. As some have said it would also have been a nice gesture to refund those travelling some distance in good faith to this match with their petrol or other travel costs. Like the other 30,000 on here who will no doubt be submitting a claim, I arrived at the stadium only to find no officials there I could speak to support my application and no match on. A £100 contribution to my petrol costs would indeed be the honourable thing to do. The trauma claims can come later.

Wally Loak. Couldn't for the life of me see their appeal, until he had a stall at one of the big events playing his tapes and TBH he was pretty good.. As I got very little spending money though I never invested. Didn't have a cassette player either 🤓

Possibly a rhetorical comment but I assume Saturday's National League fixture, which I'd diarised to go to, is postponed. Still showing on every relevant website, Facebook and twitter page as being on. Having paid for accommodation up front and travelled to Plymouth and gone to Ipswich for a rain off already this season I'd rather not travel this time, although as with the other two I'd find other things to do instead of feeling sorry for myself. Flatford Mill and Plymouth Hoe are rather more attractive options than Moss Side on a Saturday night though.

I went to what could well have been the final ever car meeting at the stadium on Sunday evening. TBH the place was a total dump which has no doubt been left to fester by the owners and it now has loads of obstructions to the viewing. Only the former back straight and wings open now. OK I would go irrespective if racing, no matter how temporary, was staged, but it would only be a gesture and not a pleasure. Being blunt it needs knocking down and rebuilding. However given the size of the site it could easily accommodate two stadia side by side, with underground parking but when shoebox sized flats will go for well into 7 figures on the same site it is a no brainer as far as the money men are concerned. Hate to say but Bo Jo playing politics here with mayoral elections coming up and the residential accommodation nearest the site being within Sadiq Khan's current constituency area.

Got a mail from them last night confirming it is off. Flights and hotel already booked and paid for. Second time this has happened to us at this venue but there are far worse places than Salzburg to be stranded in so extra Mozart birthday gigs, Red Bull FC pre season friendlies and Union basketball game instead. Only chose Sankt Johann in Pongau this time around when we got a wedding invite clashing with our intended trip to Almaty. Most available dates for possible restaging are no good so maybe no fix now this year. Well done to the promotion for keeping me updated and no grumbles with them at all, excreta happens.

Definitely not for a Question of Sport (tbh I wouldn't wipe my bum on that rubbish ) but a friend of mine wrote questions for the other series mentioned above; plus, more recently, the Chase. The speedway based references are definitely his; other than on QoS. He has never seen live speedway in his life, mainly because there are no tracks that near where he lives, but from TV and You tube viewing thinks it is a brilliant sport and we often talk about it when we meet. He used to have an action photo of Franky Zorn in his office too. Name dropping here but ex Dr Who Colin Baker's daughter, who worked alongside him at the BBC, was totally in awe of the Zorn pic too and, like many on this forum never goes but also thinks it is a really sensational sport. Maybe her dad could go back to the 1960s to check if speedway was actually better then. For those interested in potential future TV based speedway questions I would recommend the new series of 15 to 1 with Sandi Toksvig as worthy of a look.

Not even that far, I reckon. Parked near dog track for a rugby league international and a very easy stroll to Eithad possibly only just over a couple of miles.

You can just turn up on the day and get a ticket. (or buy a ticket for just one day from the stadium at any time) Same format for the second day, albeit in a different riding order, but the bottom two scorers (usually) on day 1 are replaced by the reserves on the Sunday. TBH the stadium is not the greatest for viewing and there is some very steep terracing steps to negotiate in places. 4th bend was always our preferred spot but became increasingly popular and was very uncomfortable the last time we used it. We went on the back straight this year and by moving along right towards the third bend had both a good view and plenty of space. I read other reports saying they had terrible views from that area so each to their own. If you were in Berlin from the Thursday they usually have the German Championships that night which is much cheaper and with a smaller crowd easier to check out your preferred viewing spot for the GP. If you do that I would just say not to judge standards by the racing then, although there will be some good ones but the GP takes it to another level. (Also GP practise is usually on the Friday, although not proper racing as such) Berlin is great place to visit, the track is easy to get to and, other than clearing the track of ice after every 4 heats, they get on with the meeting very efficiently. Music is as bad as over here though

There is some irony that the fan quoted as saying it is a £10 sport is quite well known for blagging lifts to matches and seeking free entry. £10 would be a bit of an increase for him. Going off at a total tangent now, in true BSF style, I saw a match at Curzon Ashton 3 years ago and remember thinking how good it would be if we had speedway stadia of that standard in the country. Clean, great seated grandstand, good car parking facility, reasonably priced food and drink and statues in the car park. No doubt council owned but as a blueprint it would be a great design for speedway stadia.

Do you still look like the photo in your avatar?

Are you sure it was Briggo? I'd heard it was a Rene Aas or at least that's what it sounded like.

I wasn't there so can't comment on the incident but have spoken with Buzz about it since. He said that in an earlier heat he had hit a rut causing him to run into Matej. A total accident and as I understand nobody fell. Based on what he then said it seems he wasn't as badly injured by the incident as he could have been but his bike was more or less written off. Buzz's take was that he'd rather have been punched in the face as it would have saved him loads of money. Mind you, taking this thread further off topic, you do have to question the blinkered attitude of many British fans. Zagar has a terrible ego but away from speedway is a nice and helpful guy and his PR and media relationships are good for the sport so I have no personal dislike of him.. However in a last heat at Reading v Sheffield match on every lap as Andre Compton was going round the outside of him on the bends he literally was driving into him; forcing him into fence and making him slow down drastically. On the last bend of the last lap though Andre got the drive out wide and blasted through on the inside to take the heat. A superb piece of riding with a clean pass and no toys out of the pram, owing to the earlier attempts to fence him. Never heard so many boos or threats of violence by fans towards a rider, and towards us for applauding him. Borrowing the blinkers for a second Greg Hancock was definitely not there on the night of the alleged incident so has no case to answer

Maybe a bit of credit for Josh Bailey whose from the back win in heat 8 was the first real racing of the day; even if it was his only points. Also loved Adam Shepherd's attitude by going out for his races even before the track has been fully exited from the previous heat. Always important to keep the action going and if riders help in getting the show rolling without the need for the two minute clock, so much the better.

AFAIK the arrangement was always only ever going to be temporary and all sides knew that. As Barncooseboy has alluded they even allowed the site to be used for longer than originally agreed They could have set up a lease with reversion rights very easily had the above been the case and pulled the plug a couple of years before they did. I don't know if there was any bad blood between the Annear family and Imerys and don't feel we should speculate to try to prove a point but Trelawney ran for 3 further seasons after their involvement, which hardly shows them as bad guys as far as speedway in Cornwall was concerned. There seems something underlyingly wrong when incorrect assumptions have to be made to tarnish someone who put loads into speedway. It maybe would have been better for them to have never even considered providing the site and covering establishment costs. Nobody would have been any the wiser even the Cornish folk who would have had no speedway on their doorstep for a longer time. Again someone heavily involved with speedway promotion in Cornwall and dealings with them has stressed what great landlords they were so why do people from hundreds of miles away and possibly having never visited the facility see a need to be disparaging towards them?

Many thanks for an excellent and informed report. I admit that my own post was based on memory but I am pleased that you have not only supported my beliefs regarding Imerys contribution to speedway but gone beyond to advise how much more they gave to the local community for nothing in return. Definitely not a reason to be uncomplimentary towards them As a member of the National Trust (Yes we younger people also show an interest in preserving our heritage) I knew that there had been no objections in the manner suggested to Bodmin and yet many sheepishly followed with insults towards them on this forum. I must admit until now I only knew of the NT's innocence in all the allegations but had no idea of how it was assumed they had objected or that an outsider had (ab)used their stationery to support his or her own equally unjust prejudices . If the poster who proudly boasted at the time that he told the NT where they could stick their application for membership because of their "stance" would like to bend over and spread them I am sure they would willingly allow me to return the compliment on behalf of their wrongly maligned membership. KY gel not supplied. Surely the object in starting this thread was to support the good people of Kernow in their efforts to get a track to support again but the unnecessary and ill informed overtly xenophobic insults and borderline racist comments towards those who have put far more into this, than they would ever do themselves, at best doesn't help but equally could sway opinion in the opposite direction. Still the motto of many on here is, “never let the facts get in the way of a good moan”. More power you your elbow Barncooseboy and even greater thanks than before to the French who gave several years of positive support to the great Cornish speedway nation.

I appreciate this is all banter but as I heard it Imreys were always going to want to excavate again so it was known that it couldn't be a permanent site. My feelings are that rather than criticise them for its demise a vote of thanks for providing a location to be used whilst the site was idle is in order. Went there several times. I always remember when Sheffield won at Exeter on the Monday followed by a visit to Trelawney the following night. It started to rain around heat 13 of the Exeter match followed by a downpour for nearly 20 hours afterwards. I am sure that had the Tigers team / fans not been in the area an early call off may have happened. The track was saturated at start time but they got the meeting underway around 9 p.m. Can't remember which heat but Sean Wilson and Chris Harris raced side by side for 4 laps for one of the best races I've seen anywhere; Chris praising Sean's ability and fairness over the tannoy which allowed him to also race like that. Agree that it was sad when it closed but don't feel that our French friends should be viewed as the villains. Monsieur Ore He Ore.

I have mentioned before that I deliberately wouldn't go to the meeting so I could give everything I would have spent to Ricky and passed on a couple of hundred notes in various forms to go directly to him. It is great to see many others who chose to do that as well. With things such as the Edinburgh soccer match, Newcastle club night, Magic and Benji's bike ride, Scunthorpe darts match and loads more hopefully contributions from the crowd on the day will be greatly swelled. I hope I don't come across as negative here but brilliant as this all is this is not the end of it all. I personally see it as the start for Ricky. I'd like to think positively that however long it may take, he will continue to progress and that all along he will still get our support. Why not make it a resolution to do an annual contribution or even a monthly one to his fund so he need never go wanting? I know I will

Exactly where I'm coming from. Other than Cardiff and abroad I don't think that more than one match I attended had over 1,000 there which is terrible. So when I see all these reports saying I was in a bumper (def:- something that is unusually large) crowd it frustrates. In modern parlance I'd accept 5,000 as being bumper. Be nice to be able to say that figure was c**p though. Once Arthur gets motoring though he may attract proper bumper crowds in

Be great to have a season with no match reports referring to a "bumper crowd" in attendance when what they actually mean is a c**p crowd. I can dream. More realistic, seeing Arthur Sissis in action.

In my haste to post it was Khomitsevitch and not Ivanov who Simon took on the last gend in heat 35 but still a class act to beat from behind. As you said ( and this time it was Danil Ivanov) Hans Weber also performed brilliantly with his dive between and around the Russians. Makes the future look a little more promising for the sport. Not disputing your impressions but we deliberately did the back straight both days and although it was not very comfortable near the entrance we found by moving along we had plenty of space at the ends and good views of the racing. We'd fallen out with the 4th bend where the view was excelent but was very crushed last time and a the banks were slipping under the numbers there. Personal choice but I wonder if it was the crowding near the entry which created the problems for you.

Some really good races over the two days. Harold Simon's last ( by a street) to first on the last bend, passing the last two World Champions in the process in heat 35 being the best. As for Ove Ledstrom the kid was just stunning. You kept hoping he would miss the start to see his passes. A pity he had the horrendous crash on Saturday; sadly his fault, so to ride so superbly on Sunday after that was incredible.

I'm a huge Ricky fan and followed his sister's tweets daily during the period he was in a coma. As has been said the pressure on his family has also been enormous and to see the pain coupled with dignity she showed was humbling. She travelled miles to be at his side as well as having her own studies to contend with and her grief was tear jerking stuff. I can't justify paying £90 to a petrol company to attend though when it would be better spent on the Ashworth family. Will therfore be sending the cost of fuel and two addmissions to the fund instead which would mean they get more than if we were there. It shouldn't matter who is riding or whether people can attend or not. Everyone is able to pay into the fund. Go if you can and support whoever is riding; it doesn't have to be big names, but still contribute if you can't. There really are no excuses.

How many times do we hear on this forum that the promoters never listen to the fans? Yet here we have a football club who, somewhat belatedly, have listened to the fans (over 150,000 remember) and yet the opposite stance is taken and they are berated by some. Fickle? I prefer unbelievable. Well done United, in accepting the views of their fans, and taking the correct decision. The more sceptical may suggest it may have been a financial consideration which caused this to happen but they should still not be admonished for ultimately doing the right thing. Deal with that through a different thread. We are not talking about stealing a bar of chocolate here either; we are dealing with a sexual offence. I deliberately have not used the word "serious" as EVERY case of rape is serious; although a minority of posters seem to feel the need to put a weighting on it. And back to the subject matter of this thread if a female celebrity with a speedway interest is able to use her "notoriety" and efforts to see this through again she should not be knocked for it. This simply shows that whatever the anti-Charlie brigade may think, she has the talents and determination of her views to see serious matters through. She is not the airhead some would wish her to be. Maybe she has to dumb down to the level of her audience. She was a victim of a sexual assault so knows what she is talking about and has had the bottle to declare this in public, she is a huge United fan yet is prepared to stand up for what is right rather than following some misguided loyalty and through her position has managed to speed this through and keep it in the public domain. Well done United and well done Charlie. Hopefully the morons who sent the threats to Jess Ennis-Hill; another true Blade who also put morality above devotion, will be dealt with appropriately or should someone threatening to rape a national sporting hero, after having more than enough time to consider their actions also be given a huge pat on the back? I am not some raving right wing nutter either and agree that there have been some terrible miscarriages of justice and I would never bring back the death penalty. And to continue with the hypocrisy shown in this thread it is quite remarkable how many who have looked to defend or support Evans went into overdrive about what should happen to Jerran Hart when he was accused of beating up a squaddie. No forgiveness there. Yet a sexual attack on a female…………………………….