Cheers Ole for a great track!

[Trees]

There's plenty of passing in the superbike series .............. what do they do different to F1 and SGP?

 

I was sooooooo damned annoyed at how Bydgoszcz was prepared this year. Two years ago we saw an absolutely terrific meeting from there but the last two years the quality of racing has gone down and down, why, a slick track grrrrrrrrrrrrrr. You look forward to Bydgoszcz being the best meeting of the GP season racing/passing wise and when it ends up processional there's something wrong!!

[suzuki star 882]

I dont know why but Ole seems obsessed with slick, hard tracks. BSI need to realise that the fans ( and riders probably ) want more chances of passing. I think they are considering using more permanent tracks next year, but they will only produce good racing if Ole does not interfere with them !

[sandman]

I know that with me it seems I am on the same old soap box, but it occured to me that maybe the riders themselves like the slicker tracks. It may go back to what I said some months ago, just maybe the contemporary speedway bike is too difficult to handle in deep conditions? If that is the case, that is still no excuse because it wouldnt take the riders very long to come up with the necessary changes and adjustments to make them work.. And.. there is some truth concerning the equality of the top riders making it so difficult for them to pass, however, slick tracks only compound the problem. One line racing makes passing impossible. Some of the superbike and moto gp races this year have been absolutely ace, with loads of passing. The crowds are growing, the riders are making serious money and the fans go away happy. Speedway gp has serious problems in those areas and the powers that be need to address them now..I am sure that the people who are responsible for these events read the forum, I just wish they would take note...for the good of this wonderful sport.

[sandman]

I shall go away quietly now..

Edited October 4, 2004 by sandman

[Guest wilburforce]

Congratulations to ole olsen and benfield for making the last 2 sgp s like formula 1 ... No overtaking and boring Zzzzzzzzzzzzz.The only incidents being on the first corner.

 

If they want to make the sport appeal to the non speedway supporter and fill stadiums as small as Hamar they need to look at the track and make as many racing lines as possible. So that we get overtaking, passing and close fought racing. Not the procession I watched on staturday and endured for 3 hours ........

 

The conclusion of the World Championship a battle for 3/4 th place. Drama as riders hoped to qualify for next years series and it proved to be the biggest anti climax and a complete crock of rubbishe !!!!

 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Totally agree. Why do we have to watch such boring rubbish?? Even Bydgoszcz was pants this year (racing, not atmosphere - BSI/Olsen could never take that away). I am getting SO fed up with watching boring racing, week in week out, not just GP's but in the league too. It is annoying that speedway gooers get all excited if they manage to see a couple of good meetings a year. We should be watching GREAT speedway, every week. Any ideas as to why we aren't?

[iris123]

Do we have the possibility of an Australian gp in 2006 to be added to the rounds?.It could replace one of the two rounds currently being enjoyed by Poland i think it is.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Just leave two rounds in Poland thanks very much Both were well attended this season

 

Rico

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Don't know the figures for the last GP in Poland but the first only had 8,000,which is about half the gate of some of the league matches.How is that well attended

[fatface]

  I dont know why but Ole seems obsessed with slick, hard tracks. BSI need to realise that the fans ( and riders probably ) want more chances of passing. I think they are considering using more permanent tracks next year, but they will only produce good racing if Ole does not interfere with them !

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

I'm not going to pretend I know more about track preparation than a three-time World Champion and it is quite absurd for anyone else on this forum to either. It seems to me that it is a very finely balanced job, particularly in terms of the temporary tracks.

 

It can go either way - Cardiff is the best example. 2002 - too rough, racing quite chaotic, 2003 - too smooth, racing processional. 2004 - perfect, great night's racing. We've gone both ways for Norway now, so let's have a little trust that Ole can get it right for Hamar in 2005.

[Rico]

Don't know the figures for the last GP in Poland but the first only had 8,000,which is about half the gate of some of the league matches.How is that well attended

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I've never seen an official figure for the crowd at Wroclaw but I was there and there certainly seemed a lot more than 8,000 at the meeting. I prepare to stand corrected on the matter.

 

Rico

Edited October 4, 2004 by Rico

[iris123]

8,000 was the figure i saw and there seems to be a tendency to give a figure larger than the reality.Think of Cardiff and now i have seen some doubt about the 8,000 given from Krsko.From what i have read most journalists seem to think 5,000 tops

And even if it was a lot more what are we talking about? 12,000 ,still only league level.We ain't talking unusualy large crowds,given that the attendance is boosted by speedway tourists like yourself

Edited October 4, 2004 by iris123

[Rico]

8,000 was the figure i saw and there seems to be a tendency to give a figure larger than the reality.Think of Cardiff and now i have seen some doubt about the 8,000 given from Krsko.From what i have read most journalists seem to think 5,000 tops

And even if it was a lot more what are we talking about? 12,000 ,still only league level.We ain't talking unusualy large crowds,given that the attendance is boosted by speedway tourists like yourself

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I guess we'll have to disagree on this one for the time being. I'd be interested to hear from any of our Polish friends if they know what the official attendance was.

 

I think the main problem in enticing fans to GPs is the pricing. Given that the tickets started from memory at around £15 which equates to about 4 or 5 times the cost of a league match in Poland clearly the locals don't get quite as enthused at those prices.

 

Wroclaw's capacity is officially 40,000 btw, which I'm sure would be reduced a little bit for the GP.

 

I'd have hated to have seen the attendance in Norway if it wasn't for the 'speedway tourists'.

 

Rico

[iris123]

oops,just looked up the crowd figure and it was circa 25,000.So i appologise,should have looked before i posted,what with my memory

[HenryW]

Don't know the figures for the last GP in Poland but the first only had 8,000,which is about half the gate of some of the league matches.How is that well attended

The stadium was apparently at capacity for the Bydgoszcz GP.

As for the Wroclaw GP, like Rico, I find it very hard to believe that there were only 8,000 there for that meeting. I've just had a flick back through my photos from the night and the crowd looks pretty good to me!

Where did that figure come from?

[sandman]

The most exciting sport in motor racing is quickly becoming the most boring..Falcace,..... Ole, being promoter at Vojens and his experience combined make him a person who knows exactly how to make a good racing surface with different passing lines..He was a rider who preferred slicker tracks when he raced but often excelled in deep conditions when he had to.. Im still a bit lost on this one..

Edited October 4, 2004 by sandman

[Rico]

oops,just looked up the crowd figure and it was circa 25,000.So i appologise,should have looked before i posted,what with my memory

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Thanks for clearing that up. Were you perhaps thinking of Prague Iris123 ??

 

I thought I was going mad for a minute or 3.

 

Rico

[iris123]

oops,just looked up the crowd figure and it was circa 25,000.So i appologise,should have looked before i posted,what with my memory

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Thanks for clearing that up. Were you perhaps thinking of Prague Iris123 ??

 

I thought I was going mad for a minute or 3.

 

Rico

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Could have been Prague,could have been the U21 Final.Not sure.But seriously thought it was the GP as i was astonished that so few went

[HenryW]

  I dont know why but Ole seems obsessed with slick, hard tracks. BSI need to realise that the fans ( and riders probably ) want more chances of passing. I think they are considering using more permanent tracks next year, but they will only produce good racing if Ole does not interfere with them !

Does anyone know for sure whether Ole actually had anything to do with the track preparation for Bydgoszcz this year?

I have seen several people both here and on the YahooGroups list blaming him for the lack of passing there this year, but I would be very surprised if he actually had much to do with the track preparation.

It seems more likely that the track at Bydgoszcz was produced to a standard that the top Polish rider(s) wanted it.

[mark cox]

Not one overtaking in some Norwegian glorified oval shed with no rain guaranteed is a pathetic performance and makes me almost agree with the 'ol farts brigade in their longing for the unpredictability of the old one-off finals.

At least the best man won.

Eh????

Did you never see a one off World final where the track was slick and produced vitually no racing?

If you didn't then I guess you missed quite a few of them!

The beauty of the GP series is that it helps to ensure that the best man does win.

Even though one meeting doesn't provide the best track, there were still 8 others to help decide the title.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

There have always been slick tracks and always will be, whether they are one-off Finals, GP's or Conference League matches. And bloody awful they are too!

 

I did say ALMOST agree with the'ol farts brigade (whose membership I shall be applying for next year after turning 40), as I do think the GP's are better as they are fairer, and we now have 9 Finals a year on live TV, rather than 4 heats shown on World of Sport a year.

My point is that the biggest obstacle to a meeting being completed is the weather, as it takes a brave promotion to water a track when rain is forecast. But the Viking Shed has a roof! Therefore no threat of rain and so proper track grading and regular watering can happen! Or maybe it can't as we're all mad baboons...

 

I'm a GP convert. In my mind, anyone who trots out the "it wi' better in ma day wi' t'old one-off finals" line must have cleansed their minds of Pocking, Norden, Vojens, Munich etc.

 

But having said that, why Norway is the climax for the series is beyond me. It is quite obviously the least atmospheric venue of all and with a very questionable track. A World Champion should be crowned on a grander stage than this surely?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Absolutely bang on!

 

Sorry but the better the riders then the less chance of mistakes being made and so the less chance of overtaking - regardless of the quality of the track. It's not a new phenomenon in speedway, it's not even unique to our sport.

Formula 1 is not the most exciting form of motor racing ... it is simply where the best riders race. GP speedway is no different.

Ivan Mauger didn't win six titles because he was the greatest racer but because he consistently came out of the second bend ahead. Peter Collins won only once because he didn't, Mark Loram has the same problem

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Yes gaters will always be more successful in speedway, but good track prep will always provide real racing. The first 3 GP's this year were brilliant, whether this was a fluke or not who knows, but on Saturday it seemed that the races were a lottery, over very quickly, and very bad entertainment.

Its official: track prep is rocket science!

[Jive]

I remember a few years back in the speedway star Ole Olsen was all for a diamond shaped track where the bends actually had a sharper apex meaning a rider could either: A, go inside but would drift out on the exit or B Go in wide making a sharper turn. Olsen seemed to think this would make for better racing?

 

This track seemed to be heading that way with to me it looked well weird corners but it was a terrible track and not fitting of a world championship finale

[f-s-p]

I was told earlier today that the big guns actually liked the track at Hamar. This means Leigh, Trick and the lot. Why wouldn't they, because the watering and hardening (whats the word for making the track harder?) started when their heats were coming. Point was that it wasn't as slick as in Bydgos and Krsko. Too small though with tight bends.

Bjarne ended his GP career on a pile of talcum powder in the middle of the track, Joonas suffered from the yellow gate and the soft material as did the others. It was the worst GP I've ever seen live or on tv.

[tape2tapevideo]

So you thought the track was bad, I was there and compared to the hot dogs, the track was brilliant! (cost nearly as much for a hot dog as it did to go in too!)