Steve Shovlar Posted October 19, 2003 Report Share Posted October 19, 2003 Interesting news from Eastbourne was that there will be at least two new clubs joining the elite league this winter from the premier. Also the points limit will be thrown out, in favour of a grading system, (and something I have long advocated). Each club will have one grade A rider, Two Grade B, 2 Grade C and Two Grade D's. This is not finalised as some promoters are saying there should be a few more grades to seperate 8.99 raders from 8.01 riders. This will help riders who are missing out on team berths due to having an average 0.01 over. The Tenerife conference next month will discuss this in more detail. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCB Posted October 19, 2003 Report Share Posted October 19, 2003 Grading riders is pants! This way one team could have 1 rider on 9.99 and another tem have a rider in the same grade on 9.00 thats 0.99 difference, thats difference multiplied by 7 is nearly 7 points. Poole (richest club) to win the leage and Ipswich(poorest) to get a wooden spoon then. Well done the BSPA!! The points limit is one of the few things that works, why piss about with it?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Jones Posted October 19, 2003 Report Share Posted October 19, 2003 Grading riders is pants! This way one team could have 1 rider on 9.99 and another tem have a rider in the same grade on 9.00 thats 0.99 difference, thats difference multiplied by 7 is nearly 7 points. Poole (richest club) to win the leage and Ipswich(poorest) to get a wooden spoon then. Well done the BSPA!! The points limit is one of the few things that works, why piss about with it?! Who says Poole are the richest club? They have a team of loanee,s and a rented stadium,to be considered rich a club needs assets.Matt Ford could walk away anytime and leave Poole speedway with nothing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tsunami Posted October 19, 2003 Report Share Posted October 19, 2003 SCB Yes I agree. Grades are just a very blunt version of the points system. With the points system you know 45.01 is over. So all riders who are at the top of the grade will be wanted but riders at the bottom will not. Say a grade starts at 6.00 a rider on 6.01 is not good business but a rider on 5.99 is most wanted. Is this not worse than what we have got. :?: :?: :?: :?: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lioness Posted October 19, 2003 Report Share Posted October 19, 2003 I'm fully with you SCB whoever happens to be the richest and poorest in whatever league. To do something along those lines would make last years Bloody Loopy Cup running look efficient and fair. It will also encourage riders to 'throw' races when the gradings are about to be re-allocated. I mean why struggle to be a grade A 9 point rider when you can be the pick of the crop of grade B on 8.99. Height of stupidity in my opinion. They just seem to get worse Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sean Posted October 19, 2003 Report Share Posted October 19, 2003 B.S.P.A up to there usual tricks....changing the only good thing in our sport..the points system for team building. is it me or are they really trying there hardest to kill the sport ?? and nice to see there conference is in Teneriffe too!! jeese..!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgl07 Posted October 19, 2003 Report Share Posted October 19, 2003 I'm fully with you SCB whoever happens to be the richest and poorest in whatever league.To do something along those lines would make last years Bloody Loopy Cup running look efficient and fair. It will also encourage riders to 'throw' races when the gradings are about to be re-allocated. I mean why struggle to be a grade A 9 point rider when you can be the pick of the crop of grade B on 8.99. Height of stupidity in my opinion. They just seem to get worse Yes Rory Schlein has got it right with an end of season average of 7.97. That dropped chain in heat four will have worked wonders preventing him from ending on 8.05. Peter Carr got it totally wrong ending the season on 9.07. Had he failed to score in heat fifteen this would have dropped to 8.99. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCB Posted October 19, 2003 Report Share Posted October 19, 2003 And Kenneth Bjerre 15 point max vs Newport put him on 10.00 instead of 9.98(ish). How bloody fair! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jill Posted October 20, 2003 Report Share Posted October 20, 2003 And Kenneth Bjerre 15 point max vs Newport put him on 10.00 instead of 9.98(ish). How bloody fair! ohhh calm down shawn !! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtc Posted October 20, 2003 Report Share Posted October 20, 2003 simple answer to the problem there would be lap overs ,if say a rider had 9.99 average the promoter could choose eather an "A class" rider or a "B class" at eather the begining of the season or when transfered to the team. The rider then stays at that grade for the season. if he gets better great. if the rider sudanly had a bad spell and his average drops though, you have a bad "a class" rider. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Posted October 20, 2003 Report Share Posted October 20, 2003 As we know the BSPA often fail to produce a set of rules and instead have an idea and make it up as they go along. Can you really see this happening or working? Why do people think this would be better than current averages? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Racer X Posted October 20, 2003 Report Share Posted October 20, 2003 Interesting news from Eastbourne was that there will be at least two new clubs joining the elite league this winter from the premier. Also the points limit will be thrown out, in favour of a grading system, (and something I have long advocated). Each club will have one grade A rider, Two Grade B, 2 Grade C and Two Grade D's. This is not finalised as some promoters are saying there should be a few more grades to seperate 8.99 raders from 8.01 riders. This will help riders who are missing out on team berths due to having an average 0.01 over. The Tenerife conference next month will discuss this in more detail. How is this going to work then Mr Something I have Long advocated? Take Grade A riders for example. Ten clubs next year yes? So we need 10 grade A riders at least don't we? They would go from Crump on 10.79 to Protasiewicz on 8.65 I can guess that you wouldn't be advocating going for Pepe. There's not enough riders to supply the 8 El sides as it stands - how can they hope to introduce a grading system? Utter madness. THIS WILL FAIL DISMALLY Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sussex bulldog Posted October 20, 2003 Report Share Posted October 20, 2003 I have to agree that team building should not be based upon such wide bands but I think that what was said has been oversimplified. As I understand it this would not replace the points limit but will stop teams becoming too top heavy or unbalanced. It is in place of limiting the number of GP riders. We shall just have to see what happens when the promoters get back from their annual shindig. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Midnight_Lady Posted October 20, 2003 Report Share Posted October 20, 2003 We shall just have to see what happens when the promoters get back from their annual shindig. They will be recovering from sunburn, sunstroke, hangovers and credit cards that will have gone through the roof when the little woman has been on the rampage. What makes you think they will have been doing anything of note :?: They haven't in the past and I have absolute faith that the majority of them will once again do their utmost to bring British speedway to it's knees with their selfishness :x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sussex bulldog Posted October 20, 2003 Report Share Posted October 20, 2003 We shall just have to see what happens when the promoters get back from their annual shindig. They will be recovering from sunburn, sunstroke, hangovers and credit cards that will have gone through the roof when the little woman has been on the rampage. What makes you think they will have been doing anything of note :?: They haven't in the past and I have absolute faith that the majority of them will once again do their utmost to bring British speedway to it's knees with their selfishness :x Yes I fear that you will be right but I live in hope. It's that place just along the coast from Eastbourne. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diamonds_are_forever Posted October 20, 2003 Report Share Posted October 20, 2003 If this system is meant to balance out teams its stupid! If for example the grades added up to roughly 45 points in the middle of the grade eg. grade A 8-9 points mid point would be 8.5, it would mean that some teams who end up with people all on something.02 or .03, would be 0.5x7 weaker than the 'average speedway team' =3.5 points weaker. In contrast, clubs who splash the cash & get all the good finds on .99 or .98 averages would be 0.5x7 stronger = 3.5 points stronger. Although its unlikely to be this extreme, it is a possibility for teams to start on averages ranging between 41.5-48.5. There could be a difference in points of 7, before a wheel was even turned. What a stupid bloody idea. :roll: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GREDON Posted October 21, 2003 Report Share Posted October 21, 2003 To put riders in Grades A B C etc according to averages is an excellent idea, and has been moted to me before, but is usually thrown out by some promoters. The cut off point for Grade A riders can be determined by the number of teams in the league, if ten teams then the ten top riders in the averages go to Grade A. That way each team will have one rider, perhaps they have them already. If a team did not want a Grade A rider they could have perhaps an additional Bgrade. It has always been silly that an experienced 3point rider has to be slotted in just to get round the points limit, based on averages for the previous season. After all some riders may improve, whilst others may reduce their average. Also if a guest has to be found there might be a few more available. No one will be doing away with the averages, so I think the grading might be worth trying for a season. After all the promoters have been moving the goal posts every year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Meynell Posted October 21, 2003 Report Share Posted October 21, 2003 To put riders in Grades A B C etc according to averages is an excellent idea I think it's a daft idea, and is simply the points limit in another more unfair form. As others have already pointed out, averages actually become even more critical than before, and you lose the flexibility to formulate your team the way you want (e.g. top-heavy or strong reserves). If the aim is to attract more teams into the BEL and/or reduce costs, you really need limits on top-end strength. However, this could be done by limiting each team to (say) one 8.00+ rider, or imposing a points limit (say 24 points) for the heat-leaders. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Meynell Posted October 21, 2003 Report Share Posted October 21, 2003 If this system is meant to balance out teams its stupid! It's all pointless tinkering around the edges. There are far more important issues to deal with in speedway, yet the BSPA are seemingly intent on concentrating on trivial issues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brightonbob Posted October 28, 2003 Report Share Posted October 28, 2003 As a new boy to speedway (and a total convert) I have to say whoever designed a 15 race speedway meeting was a very clever boy. I love it and even my sport hating missus loves it. Guest riders: However, I still really struggle with guesting GP riders. No other sport does this, cricket for example loses plyers to internationals and has to grin and bare it. I try to explain why Loram is riding for Poole or Nicholls is riding for us to people and they just don't get it. I don't blame them. My feeling is that guesting riders over an ave of 7 points should be strictly limited to (a) teams outside the top four placing in the league (on ave points). This would mean that the bigger clubs, my own beloved Eagles included, would have to carry more depth in a squad. It would also even things up a bit. Further, bit less of a reason to pack your squad with GP riders. SWC: Superb. Can't wait for it to come to England/Wales/Scotland one day. More internationals please. Relegation/promotion: Its in everyones interest in my view and if it means limiting GP riders and lowering the limit, in the end speedway will be the winner. GP: I have not got a downer on the GP and think a lot of moaners ought to support what Benfield Sports are trying to do. Every sport needs a flagship to attract new fans and Sky do it fantastically well. BLC: I've loved it, but the handicapping needs looking at. It needs a better formula as I've seen a few utter thrashing this season. Press: Speedway has to be the best kept secret in the world. I think a weekly highlights program has to be offered to terrestial TV by Sky. Its in both our interests. Crowds: I've been amazed there is so few bikers at speedway. The superbikes circuit is massive business, More has to done to tap into what would be a hugely lucrative group. Get them and sponsorships will follow too. Thats my twopenneth for what its worth except to say thanks to all the promoters from Trelawny to Edingurgh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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