25yearfan Posted December 30, 2004 Report Share Posted December 30, 2004 The very fact that Bristol hasn't staged speedway since 1978 is criminal. How can the Council in the late 70's and after justify shutting down the speedway which was hugely supported, so much that it was the best supported track in England? I thought a councils job was to encourage activities that its constituents wanted and supported. Me personally, if I was a councillor then I would do exactly that. For instance golf has never done much for me and probably never will but it is a very popular pastime in this Country and the courses are environment and nature friendly. For these reasons I would want golf courses built in the area I covered. Bristol is a very similar situation to my old team the Norwich Stars. Former popular centres for speedway with very unhelpful local council and nearby tracks (Somerset and King's Lynn) that although are established and do OK will never be proper replacements for the old Stars and Bulldogs teams in the fans eyes. in the future who knows? - We can only hope! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liontamer Posted December 31, 2004 Report Share Posted December 31, 2004 I thought a councils job was to encourage activities that its constituents wanted and supported. Oh stop it before I wet myself. You obviously don't come from Leicester 25yf. "You want a mosque? Here, have three". "You want a speedway track? Go whistle." This is not a racist remark before you all jump on me, but a fact. Niether Leicester City or County Councils want speedway back in the Leicester & I can't see it ever coming back I'm afraid, but we live in hope. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liontamer Posted December 31, 2004 Report Share Posted December 31, 2004 I thought a councils job was to encourage activities that its constituents wanted and supported. Oh stop it before I wet myself. You obviously don't come from Leicester 25yf. "You want a mosque? Here, have three". "You want a speedway track? Go whistle." This is not a racist remark before you all jump on me, but a fact. Niether Leicester City or County Councils want speedway back in Leicester & I can't see it ever coming back I'm afraid, but we live in hope. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gemini Posted December 31, 2004 Report Share Posted December 31, 2004 Did you want to say something else LT or did your finger slip twice? Perhaps about St. Margaret's Swimming Baths, the Leicester Tigers stadium, Granby Halls Skating Rink, the Basketball team.... I suppose Leicester is lucky to still have a football team, although the way they are playing at the moment...perhaps not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liontamer Posted December 31, 2004 Report Share Posted December 31, 2004 Did you want to say something else LT or did your finger slip twice? Gawd, I've started repeating myself now, I say, I've started repeating myself now our Ashley. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greyhoundp Posted December 31, 2004 Report Share Posted December 31, 2004 (edited) I thought a councils job was to encourage activities that its constituents wanted and supported. I am afraid we at Cradley are in the same boat as Liontamer,however we have about 20 Mosques in Dudley & Sandwell a no support for Speedway from the planning department, despite having a Brummie & Cradley fan in the Sandwell planning department so i ask what chance of it returning in Sandwell? so that leaves Dudley,draw your own conclusions. Edited December 31, 2004 by greyhoundp Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bulldog 77 / 78 Posted December 31, 2004 Report Share Posted December 31, 2004 Please correct me if Im wrong but I do remember hearing from somewhere that speedway clubs can submit an objection to planning applications if the proposed site is within a 25 mile radius of there own site ????? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
25yearfan Posted December 31, 2004 Report Share Posted December 31, 2004 I thought it was a 30 mile radius though I'm not sure? Would the Somerset promotion protest about a Bristol revival? Though I think if Bristol speedway was to ever return then Somerset would have to revert back to the less financially demanding Conference League in order to survive as the Bulldogs would take a lot of their support. Somerset would be a good feeder track for any Bristol set up. Same as I think a successful Norwich return would probably lose K lynn, Ipswich and Mildenhall a few supporters, though many new fans from Norwich would be enticed to go to Speedway benefiting the sport overall.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCB Posted December 31, 2004 Report Share Posted December 31, 2004 I thought it was a 30 mile radius though I'm not sure? Would the Somerset promotion protest about a Bristol revival? If it's 30 miles, Newport could complain about just about anywhere in Bristol as the crow flies, or about half or Bristol by road. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greyhoundp Posted January 1, 2005 Report Share Posted January 1, 2005 I would guess it must be a rule of thumb thing not ex number of miles otherwise,Coventry would object to Leicester coming back,The Brummies & Cradley would never come back because the Wolves would object,I think it has a lot to do with the catchment area.Though any return of Bristol would have an effect on Somersets crowd figures, i do not see realistically how they could stop Speedway returning to Bristol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arnieg Posted January 1, 2005 Report Share Posted January 1, 2005 Please correct me if Im wrong but I do remember hearing from somewhere that speedway clubs can submit an objection to planning applications if the proposed site is within a 25 mile radius of there own site ????? <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Nothing to do with planning It concerns the granting of a licence by the SCB In general planning law is blind to competition Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Steve Dixon Posted January 1, 2005 Report Share Posted January 1, 2005 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
25yearfan Posted January 2, 2005 Report Share Posted January 2, 2005 I would guess it must be a rule of thumb thing not ex number of miles otherwise,Coventry would object to Leicester coming back,The Brummies & Cradley would never come back because the Wolves would object,I think it has a lot to do with the catchment area.Though any return of Bristol would have an effect on Somersets crowd figures, i do not see realistically how they could stop Speedway returning to Bristol. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Given the fierce rivalry between Coventry and Leicester, I don't think many ex Lions fans go regularly to Brandon. Same also, Birmingham and Cradley fans don't go regularly to Wolves, although quite a few midland based fans used to go infrequently to all the various tracks that existed in this area in the late 70's and early 80's. So I don't think that these tracks reopening would decimate the crowds of Coventry and Wolves, but I know that present day promotors don't think like that. Though I know that people involved at Wolves have been helping those actively seeking a return for Birmingham. For instance Exeter have always attracted quite a few fans from Cornwall. When St Austell/Trelawny ran from 1997 - 2003, far from taking away some of Exeters support the Cornish track attracted new and former spectators back into speedway which benefited Exeter, particularly on the derby days. Someret would probably get interest from former speedway fans whose interest had been aroused by a Bristol Bulldogs revival. Overall though as I've previously stated on this subject I think that Somerset would go the way of Newport in the late 70's after a Bristol revival - Such was the enormous interest in Bristol speedway at Eastville, Newport at Somerton Park stuggled to attract the crowds and closed down. But in this day and age Somerset would have the saftey net of the Conference League to fall back onto. Indeed the Rebels would be an ideal nusery track for a sucessfull higher league Bristol Bulldogs outfit. A fact over the history of speedway in that in the majority of cases when a track closes down a large % of the tracks support stop going to speedway altogether. Most of the other % only go very sparingly to speedway, Cradley fans for instance. In my area East Anglia, ask anyone over the age of 55 and most will tell you of the great nights they had following Norwich Stars speedway team at the old Firs Stadium. I bet 80% if not more of these haven't been to speedway for donkeys years! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bulldog 77 / 78 Posted January 2, 2005 Report Share Posted January 2, 2005 Has anybody watched the Bristol Speedway video ? The director of Somerset Speedway is on it - stating that he has been trying for years to get a site in Bristol to revive the Bulldogs, yet he has been granted a licence to run the club at Highbridge..... Is it all down to planning????????? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gemini Posted January 2, 2005 Report Share Posted January 2, 2005 Given the fierce rivalry between Coventry and Leicester, I don't think many ex Lions fans go regularly to Brandon. Quite a few go every week, including me, my husband and the dog. I don't think it was so much the fierce rivalry between the Bees & Lions which stopped Leicester fans going in 1984 but the way in which the Coventry promoter, Charles Ochiltree, closed our track and sold the land to Barratts. A lot of Leicester fans wouldn't go to Brandon on principle. The rivalry didn't bother me as I just supported the visiting team, until I made friends with some Bees fans after a few years & then thought it would be more in my interests to support the Coventry team. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liontamer Posted January 2, 2005 Report Share Posted January 2, 2005 A lot of Leicester fans wouldn't go to Brandon on principle. I'd rather rub myself all over with a cheesegrater & roll in salt after chewing my own test***es off. (Although I have been a couple of times recently, but that was to meet up with forum members) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
25yearfan Posted January 2, 2005 Report Share Posted January 2, 2005 Its so frustrating having to talk about well supported spedway teams that are now defunct. In an ideal world Bristol, Trelawny, Birmingham, Cradley, Leicester, Norwich and many others would have operating speedway tracks. But just remember, who'd of thought that the likes of Workington, Wimbledon, Newport, Hull, Rye House, Weymouth etc would of returned to the world of speedway racing. While this world is still turning and their is speedway their is always a chance! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Brown Posted January 3, 2005 Report Share Posted January 3, 2005 Anybody got any action pictures of Speedway at this track? My old man used to go all the time but I was too young, maybe not even born at the time the team folded and still till this day have never seen a clip of them in action. Can anyone help? Cheers <{POST_SNAPBACK}> No riders going round but you can a few pictures of the stadium here http://www.apwj49.dsl.pipex.com/lost/eastvill.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gemini Posted January 5, 2005 Report Share Posted January 5, 2005 If anyone is interested in the Leicester Stadium I have a few photos on my webshots albums of the track in 1984 after closure and houses being built in 1988. Brings a tear to the eye of any Hunters/Lions fan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stansolo Posted January 6, 2005 Report Share Posted January 6, 2005 Great photo's Gemini, I noticed the Lee shot -82 @ Perry Barr, have you anymore from that meeting etc. P.S .........What I'd give now for a Brummies/Lions meeting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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