Gelsenkirchen Off !

[Parsloes 1928 nearly]

Well I plan to try and sue the powers that be!!!! I suggest everyone writes to them informing them of what they intend to do, send an itemised invoice for hotel bills/flights etc...... In the letter give them a date which you would like a reply by (e.g. 2 weeks or so) and advise them that if you don't receive a reply by that date you will commence proceedings in the small claims court!!! THAT IS WHAT I SHALL BE DOING!!!!!!!

 

I went over with my 2 daughters and my friend I have never been more angry and upset, everyone had there own story as to why they chose ths GP, and most was because and indoor meeting could not be cancelled by the weather!!!!! My Husband I go to quite a lot of GP's abroard but I think we will think twice in future, I HOPE IT PISSES DOWN NEXT SATURDAY AND IS CALLED OFF. the officials whoever they are a bunch of tossers and should be shot!!!!!

 

Now THIS is what I would've posted if I'd have gone and been a victim of this near-criminal act!! Up to now there have been far too many people willing to shrug their shoulders and say it's one of those things..! Admirable "British upper-lip" stuff sure..: but IMHO unacceptable as it gets these charlatans off the hook..

 

I'm still intrigued (from afar!!) by the story about the programmes. Being involved with producing programmes over here I know that if a meeting is called off and is rearranged, say the next week, one would certainly use the same already printed prog.

 

But at the venue on Saturday we've already heard it said that no progs were for sale.. I still haven't heard if any were seen. Can someone clarify this..?

 

IF the prog. for the rearranged meeting in Poland next Saturday turns out not to be a copy printed for this Saturday (and that'll be easy enuff to identify containing references to Gelsenkirchen/Germany etc.) then it's further evidence that something potentially very underhand has happened here...

 

I also agree that the extra prize money next week should be forsaken and passed on as compensation instead to those who travelled...

[ianmartin]

I doubt very much that the Star will kick up a stink about this.

Managing Editor Philip Rising & that bloody eegit Olsen have been pals for a very long time.

 

Speedway Star will not say very much at all. The journalistic integrity seems to have disappeared where that Magazine is concerned - it has become a Photograph Album - a nice glossy one true - but still - just an Album.

 

Eric Linden from the old Speedway Star would have had a field day with this farce. He probably would have torn the organisers to shreds. Now he WAS a Speedway Journalist......................

 

[Sandie]

Yep the buck stops at bsi, on the other hand we had a great weekend. More to life than speedway and no point in getting up tight about it. S--t happens.

With the greatest respect its okay if you can throw away money but for those that havent yet made their fortunes it was nothing to laugh about.

 

My daughter took Friday off work which was now a wasted days leave. Flights possibly not refunded as she chose to use a cheap carrier (cant afford BA etc!!!), additional flights needed paying for as did the hotel bill, and land travel costs included taxi's fuel and parking costys.

 

Some of these are down to incompetence some down to weather - but it all leaves a bitter taste in the mouth and if she wanted to have a 'fun' weekend she probably wouldnt have chosen Gelsenkirchen!!!

 

I assume you were not this weekends sponsors!!!!

 

I know you are a good person but I do think your post was extremelly selfish

 

[BigFatDave]

Don't think anyone's whacked this on yet so Earwiggo - From the Coventry Chipwrapper: ( Sorry !)Telegraph

 

Bees hit after GP chaos in Germany

Oct 13 2008 By David Rowe

 

COVENTRY'S home leg of the Craven Shield Final will have to be re-arranged - after Saturday's German Grand Prix was sensationally postponed.

 

There were major track problems at the indoor Gelsenkirchen stadium, which were blamed on adverse weather conditions during the transport of the material and at the stadium itself, and after an aborted practice session the meeting was called off six hours before the scheduled start.

 

It was a major embarrassment for series organisers ahead of the last round of the season - but the knock-on effect is that the meeting will be re-staged this Saturday at Polish venue Bydgoszcz, which will host its second GP of the season.

 

And that will be good news for track specialist Tomasz Gollob, who will now be hot favourite to edge out Greg Hancock and Buildbase Bees' No.1 Hans Andersen for third place overall.

 

Bees co-promoter Colin Pratt will speak to his Lakeside counterpart Jon Cook regarding the Craven Shield Final this morning, but the home leg at least will need to be moved as the Grand Prix riders will be attending practice on Friday.

 

The most obvious solution would be for the meeting to take place on the following Friday, October 24, but that is unconfirmed at this stage.

 

It is an unhappy reminder of 2003 for the Grand Prix organisers as the Scandinavian event in Gothenburg was abandoned after three farcical races, and they were clearly not willing to risk a repeat.

 

But once again, a swift rearrangement of a GP meeting for the following weekend is set to play havoc with the domestic racing calendar at a crucial stage of the season.

 

Pratt said: "I wasn't out there so I'm not fully aware of what went on but it's an almost unbelievable situation with a track not being able to be laid.

 

"here have been all sorts of different rumours going around, but whatever the case it's a pretty poor show to have an indoor meeting that can't go ahead, and I feel sorry for the people who spent money on flights and tickets. I'm sure there are plenty of riders who are unhappy too as there is big money on this meeting and going to Bydgoszcz obviously favours certain riders, whereas the German track should have been even for everyone.

 

"It's also a major disruption to domestic leagues with Cup Finals and so on. We had a good arrangement with Lakeside to run back to back on Thursday and Friday and that will now have to be changed."

 

I love the bit where he says "Bydgoszcz obviously favours certain riders, whereas the German track should have been even for everyone." I think instead of "Even" he could have used another word.

Edited October 14, 2008 by BigFatDave

[sadiemae]

We heard programmes had been printed with the Swedish line up and that is why they were not available.

Also, QUOTE FROM SPEEDWAY STAR DATED 20TH SEPTEMBER - PAGE 36, starts:

 

"Tony Steele will referree the FIM German Speedway Grand Prix"

 

FINISHES WITH!

 

"Incidentally, BSI Speedway are bemused by rumours circulating in Poland that the German Grand Prix would not go ahead. It will!"

 

Anyone else find this strange!!!!!!

[Humphrey Appleby]

We heard programmes had been printed with the Swedish line up and that is why they were not available.

 

That's pretty incompetent in itself.

 

[RPNY]

We heard programmes had been printed with the Swedish line up and that is why they were not available.

Also, QUOTE FROM SPEEDWAY STAR DATED 20TH SEPTEMBER - PAGE 36, starts:

 

"Tony Steele will referree the FIM German Speedway Grand Prix"

 

FINISHES WITH!

 

"Incidentally, BSI Speedway are bemused by rumours circulating in Poland that the German Grand Prix would not go ahead. It will!"

 

Anyone else find this strange!!!!!!

 

Ah yea I remeber that now.. The whole thing stinks & as far as I can see they have got away with this far too easily.

JP for all his sins, at least faced the cameras after the Gothenburg fiasco.

[Shale Shaker]

It's all very well for people to talk about BSI being able to claim on the insurance for last weekend. But surely the insurance was taken out at a reasonable premium only because the likelihood of an indoor rain-off was so, so low. What is the chance that any insurance company will ever again offer a price that anyone could afford when they know it so easily can happen!

 

 

But would they actaully be able to make a valid claim, since the cancellation was down to their own incompetence.

 

Also, if the cancellation was indeed pre-meditated, then any insurance claim would be serious fraud ???

 

If my car was stolen because I left it unlocked, with the engine running, I've no doubt my insurance company would be somewhat less than willing to stump up.

Edited October 14, 2008 by Shale Shaker

[Trees]

I assume you were not this weekends sponsors!!!!

The s**t might have hit the fan if he had been, he wouldn't be so forgiving in his postings then I doubt

[The Know]

With the greatest respect its okay if you can throw away money but for those that havent yet made their fortunes it was nothing to laugh about.

 

My daughter took Friday off work which was now a wasted days leave. Flights possibly not refunded as she chose to use a cheap carrier (cant afford BA etc!!!), additional flights needed paying for as did the hotel bill, and land travel costs included taxi's fuel and parking costys.

 

Some of these are down to incompetence some down to weather - but it all leaves a bitter taste in the mouth and if she wanted to have a 'fun' weekend she probably wouldnt have chosen Gelsenkirchen!!!

 

I assume you were not this weekends sponsors!!!!

 

I know you are a good person but I do think your post was extremelly selfish

Sorry if you took my post the wrong way. all i was saying was we had a good time, but yes it would have been better if the speedway was on. In the past yes i would of been angry but you get let down so much in speedway it now just goes over my head.

 

It would of been our name on the bike fronts as it will be in poland.

[The Know]

The s**t might have hit the fan if he had been, he wouldn't be so forgiving in his postings then I doubt

How wrong you can be about people you dont KNOW

[bigcatdiary]

Yep the buck stops at bsi, on the other hand we had a great weekend. More to life than speedway and no point in getting up tight about it. S--t happens.

 

 

Yeah and it always seems to figure highly in your posts.

 

Not to long ago I recall you backing Paul Bellamy's comments about the EL getting its house in order, after the rain off in an indoor arena and putting a German cover only on a re print of the 2008 Scandinavian GP Programme, Bellamy & others should keep comments like that to themselves.

 

I am sure you have heard the saying "Better to be thought a prat, than to open your mouth and confirm it".

[Jeff.]

Not necessarily. I remain to be convinced the SGP does as well as people think, so it may eventually die a death of its own, particularly with fiascos like this weekend.

 

Nevertheless, the power to change things lies with the national leagues who ultimately hold the balance of power because they're the ones paying the living wages to the riders. If all the main leagues stuck together and made it a condition of contract that their riders only exclusively rode for their teams, I think you'd find the SGP would die a pretty quick death. The SGP doesn't generate enough money to sustain a full-time circus, so even if IMG/BSI have the rights for the next 18 years (or whatever), they'd be pretty worthless without the top riders.

 

I'm not especially against the concept of the SGP (although I do think it's overblown), but it's ridiculous that the rights were sold to a third-party for them to make money without having to return a thing to the sport. I doubt Gelsenkirchen will be a nail in the coffin of the SGP any more than Gothenburg was, but it's certainly punctured the myth of BSI being a professional promotional organisation.

 

Does your employer impose such conditions as to what you do when not working for them, your free time as it were.

 

Competing in the World Championship has always been an expensive pursuit for all but the very few but riders still did compete.

 

Incidentally without the GP that you are so against, and without BSI/IMG, where do you think the World Final would be today. Paqcking Wembley out like some of the clowns on here seem to think, or dead in the water with fans giving the largely meaningless qualifiers a miss (imagine the standard of a British Quarter Final today, it would consist of conference league riders) and the final itself largely ignored by the fans and TV.

 

 

 

[Blazeaway]

Does your employer impose such conditions as to what you do when not working for them, your free time as it were.

 

Competing in the World Championship has always been an expensive pursuit for all but the very few but riders still did compete.

 

Incidentally without the GP that you are so against, and without BSI/IMG, where do you think the World Final would be today. Paqcking Wembley out like some of the clowns on here seem to think, or dead in the water with fans giving the largely meaningless qualifiers a miss (imagine the standard of a British Quarter Final today, it would consist of conference league riders) and the final itself largely ignored by the fans and TV.

 

 

Nail hit firmly on the head.

[Trees]

To add to the conspiracy theory I just checked in my weekly tv magazine that came in Saturday's local newspaper to see if there were any repeats of the GP on SKY listed for the early hours Sunday or Sunday morning/afternoon ................ nothing .............. how odd ............... did they know something we didn't! Unless of course they didn't have any time in their schedule to repeat the GP, feasible I guess ...............

Incidentally without the GP that you are so against, and without BSI/IMG, where do you think the World Final would be today. Paqcking Wembley out like some of the clowns on here seem to think, or dead in the water with fans giving the largely meaningless qualifiers a miss (imagine the standard of a British Quarter Final today, it would consist of conference league riders) and the final itself largely ignored by the fans and TV.

Nobody really knows although I think the private tv companies would have bought the rights to show World Championship Speedway off of whoever was promoting it over the last few years ..............

Edited October 14, 2008 by Trees

[The Know]

Yeah and it always seems to figure highly in your posts.

 

Not to long ago I recall you backing Paul Bellamy's comments about the EL getting its house in order, after the rain off in an indoor arena and putting a German cover only on a re print of the 2008 Scandinavian GP Programme, Bellamy & others should keep comments like that to themselves.

 

I am sure you have heard the saying "Better to be thought a prat, than to open your mouth and confirm it".

 

Think you only have to look at the press releases over the last few days from pboro to confirm what your saying

[Trees]

Think you only have to look at the press releases over the last few days from pboro to confirm what your saying

Looks as though the press releases have worked then haha

[Humphrey Appleby]

Does your employer impose such conditions as to what you do when not working for them, your free time as it were.

 

There are two separate issues here. Firstly, if it weren't for the GPs, some of the riders would be working for their employers during those weekends. The fact is that tracks can no longer run on one of the most profitable days of the weeks because the GP has the pick of them.

 

Secondly, if I were involved in work for a third party which stood a good chance of me getting injured and being unable to work for my main employer, they'd most definitely have something to say about it. In my particular case, I'm also required to be available for work as and when necessary, and not to undertake work that directly conflicts with my employer's business.

 

Competing in the World Championship has always been an expensive pursuit for all but the very few but riders still did compete.

 

That's not the point. In the past, the World Final profits went to associations and promoters who actually ran speedway on a day-to-day basis, not some third party taking the money out of the sport. The simple fact is there would be no SGP without the national leagues paying the bulk of the wages, because they certainly couldn't live off the SGP prize money.

 

Incidentally without the GP that you are so against, and without BSI/IMG, where do you think the World Final would be today.

 

Firstly, I'm not against the SGP per se, just the way in which it was given away by the FIM to a third-party that actually isn't that good at running it. Your question though is impossible to answer because the SGP existed for a few years before BSI came along, and then only after the World Final had been run into the ground. However, as I tire of pointing out, Cardiff and Copenhagen aside, BSI have actually done little with the SGP, which is largely still held in provincial backwaters in front of small crowds. The Polish GPs get decent crowds, but then they always did before BSI came along. Even the attendance at much hyped Cardiff isn't much higher than that of the 1992 World Final, supposedly at a time when the World Final couldn't fill medium-sized stadiums any more.

 

The rot set-in with the World Final when it was taken to a succession of backwater venues outside the main speedway countries. If it had stayed in Britain, Poland and Sweden, then I don't think it would unrealistic to maintain crowd levels around those of the GPs in these countries today. No-one would deny the people running the World Final in the latter years lacked vision, but had somewhere like the Millenium Stadium been available to stage the World Final with the hype that British GP gets, then I don't think it would be a greatly different situation. Of course, neither the Millenium Stadium or Parken (in their current incarnations) were built then, and so it's all a moot point.

 

giving the largely meaningless qualifiers a miss (imagine the standard of a British Quarter Final today, it would consist of conference league riders) and the final itself largely ignored by the fans and TV.

 

There were too many qualifiers, but the latter rounds were often some of the best meetings, and the crowds even towards the end were often as good as some of the GPs today. You also can't compare the television situation then, with the situation now. There wasn't the plethora of cable and satellite channels with airtime to fill, and I suspect many of the qualifiers would have been televised in this day-and-age. After all, they even show racing from local kart clubs on Motors TV these days.

 

[RPNY]

Incidentally without the GP that you are so against, and without BSI/IMG, where do you think the World Final would be today. Packing Wembley out like some of the clowns on here seem to think, or dead in the water with fans giving the largely meaningless qualifiers a miss (imagine the standard of a British Quarter Final today, it would consist of conference league riders) and the final itself largely ignored by the fans and TV.

 

I do kind of get what you are saying. And I am certainly pro GP. We couldnt go back to one off World finals now. However I dont agree with all your comments. Since the last one off in '94, digital TV has meant there are many more channels so I believe the qualifiers and final would definately be covered on TV. Also the qualifiers would not be meanigless as they would be a steppingstone to a riders ultimate goal of a world championship. I can rememebr the British, Commonwealth & Overseas finals of the early 90's they were superb meetings. And the World semi final at Bradford in 94 was a absolute classic. And if you look at the last few years, it was only the 93 final that was in a crap stadium - still a decent sized crowd tho.

 

 

The GP's are great, I really enjoy them (except my journey to germany on Saturday!) But they have some problems they really need to iron out.

 

 

 

[Christine Hawes]

 

Thinking about some protest banner which I could hang on the fence at the backstraight on Saturday, among all those flags. Just to release my anger a bit. It will probably end up as an argument with a few specnaz looking security guys but I may prepare something.

 

 

 

I remember a banner at the World Team Cup at Peterborough a few years back - "Great sport - shame about the monkeys that run it". I agree with their sentiments entirely. Within two heats those responsible for the banner had been evicted from the stadium.

 

Like others, I was in Koblenz when we got the news. Unbelievable considering we hadn't had any rain since Tuesday when we arrived in Germany. The more we hear about it - no programmes, no scheduled repeats - the more I smell a rat!