BigFatDave Posted January 29, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 29, 2011 If it's the one with the monkeys on, they will all be blue. It's freezing cold over here! Brrrrr! Today's one had PIGS on, FFS! Sorry to boar you, but Spiderweb tried to get in for his chop and offered to extend his years of experience in Makin' Bacon; alas his generous tender(loin) was rejected. He remains a broken, shapeless hunk of brawn. One of his rasher promises I fear. Tusk, tusk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crazysue Posted January 29, 2011 Report Share Posted January 29, 2011 But the nightie was blue to go with the weather..... Awww poor Spiderweb....although it would have been a tad difficult, Australia is not just around the corner you know! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigFatDave Posted January 30, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 30, 2011 Righto, I've got a bit of time up me sleeve - Cricket doesn't start for a little while, aircon's flat chat - 41C today in Mildura - fridge is stocked (I'm just checking that the Pure Blondes are the correct temperature for consumption by internal evaluation - works for me) so I thought I'd better get my thoughts down while they're still fresh in what passes for my mind and before I descend into my usual post-meeting Sunday Arvo stupor. I've got no desire to harp on the early events last night; I reckon I've covered them elsewhere. Suffice it to say that by the end of round 2 and heat 8 the track had settled down a bit and was conducive to the kind of great racing we've become accustomed to at Olympic Park. By this stage it was obvious we were in for an upset result: four of the favourites; Davey, Chris, Justin and Cam had all dropped heats; Davey falling while leading: Chris losing his primary chain when leading on turn four on the final lap and visiting the fence; Cam through what I considered was a pretty harsh exclusion when the track was still playing a major part in proceedings and Justin starting well but going all the way backwards. Ty was looking good as was Cory; Rory & Sweets were tootling along quite nicely; Kozza was not quite as invincible as at Broken Hill and the rest had work to do. We'd lost Mitchell Davey after an altercation with the fence and the rest had serious work to do in order to keep up. Oh, did I forget someone - of course - our two-time World Under-21 Champ Darcy Ward was ON FIRE! I don't know about youse mob but when he's in full flight like last night I'd crawl over broken glass to see him! Round three saw a few interesting developements on the scoreboard: Darcy kept his Mojo working while Chris's fire went out when he got done by Kozza; Ty continued his steady progress; Davey's horror night continued while Kyle Newman came out and blitzed 'em, silencing his detractors and heat twelve saw Cory wreck the U-beaut technicolor tapes when his clutch slipped prior to starter's orders and a magnificent win from Rooboy, which sent the vociferous pro-Rory section of the crowd - Me & Mrs S - into raptures. The Track was really working by now and the confidence that gave the riders was evident as the times got faster and the racing more and more exciting. Round four saw wins to Kozza. and Sam; Chris showing us what he can really do and a thriller between Darcy, Rory and Ty after Darcy fell on the first bend with an all four back re-run then comig pout and smokin' em in the re-run. I think Davey could have been excused for a bit of helmet-hurling by now - nothing was going right for him by this stage of proceedings. The final round saw Davey putting the disappointments of the evening behind him and doing what he does best, blitzing Kozza and Cory; Thanks for that mate. Cam was firing by now and Chris's wretched night concluded with another fall; he seemed to pick up drive while leading in lap 2 on turn four and slid off to meet up with the fence again. By this stage of the series I reckon he'd have had bruises on top of bruises, but to his credit he never gave up and was generous in defeat. Heat 19 saw a thilling four-lap match race between Rory and Kyle - the prize a direct trip to the A Main - needless to say the ensuing Schlein Victory set me & Mrs S off again, while Heat 20 saw Justin - If it wasn't for bad luck he'd have no luck at all - Sedgmen using his local track knowledge to become the only rider on the night to lower Darcy's colours. Geez, this is thirsty work. Time Out!! (Gargle-argle-argle - Burrrrp!) Seconds out, Round Two! B Main time, and Kozza locked up on turn three, bringing a brilliant lay-down from Ty, who sensibly stayed down until the red light came on. Kozza didn't seem too thrilled with his subsequent exclusion but Dave Mills got that one right, I reckon. The ensuing re-run saw Justin streaking away, hotly pursued by Kyle who never gave up hunting his quarry down and finally got him on the fourth turn of the last lap - a ripper pure and simple. Right - we'd finally made it to the sharp end, and to be honest there was a fair bit of fatigue evident in the crowd - a signficant proportion of the Cam Woodward Support Group Team members were about as fatigued as Parrots by this stage of the proceedings, and noisy to boot - Country Boys eh - way past their bedtimes, perhaps? Can't take the pace I reckon - the Speedway Updates crew were fresh as daisies in comparison, if given to talking in tongues, burping and belching and twitching noticeably, but hey, that's Speedway. Darcy cleared out, hotly pursued by Cam, while Rory and Kyle enjoyed their own match race a few yard behind,and that was the way the race continued until Kyle decided to start practising for the 2012 London Olympics Acrobatics section following a coming-together at the head of the main straight by performing seven somersaults and a reverse backflip (with pike) between the start/finish line and turn one - degree of difficulty about 6.4 I reckon - while his bike continued on for another thirty yards or so before noticing it's complete lack of rider and coming to a halt halfway around the bend. Talking of halfway around the bend a heckler in the pro-Cam section decided to pay out on Kyle after he arose - to the cheers of the crowd - and started giving it to him on account of his Pomgolian Parentage and Passport - Kyle's response with a reference to the recent Ashes Tour and the possession of the Little Urn was priceless - Y'all come back Downunder real soon, Kyle! Re-run time and again Cam and Darcy battled it out for all four laps, with Rory content to keep on their hammer and wait for the inevitable fall-out - alas not to be - a well-deserved victory to Darcy; one can only ponder what might have been had he not had a 'mare at Broken Hill. We weren't finished yet, however, as Saturday morphed into Sunday with a run-off between Darcy and Davey to decide 2nd place in the championship - try as he might, the veteran of the field couldn't catch the young Queenslander, and capped off a great night for our Great White Hope - Onya Darcy!! So another Series comes to an end - Chris Holder a worthy champ - AGAIN!! To all who took part - riders , official, merchandisers and fans - a huge THANKYOU from this little black duck - see you next year on the hill. A great post-meeting barby in the clubhouse with special guests including Arthur Sissis' sister gave us Speedway Tragics the chance to thank our heroes in person; alas I couldn't shake Chris's hand; a good squeeze would have put him in Intensive Care - but in case I missed anyone or got your name wrong - I was operating on remote by this stage of the proceedings, thankfully the Automatic Pilot had kicked in, onya George - thanks again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrystalCastles Posted January 30, 2011 Report Share Posted January 30, 2011 Cheers for the review again excellent as always BFD. Great result for Kyle Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigFatDave Posted January 30, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 30, 2011 We are just about to head of to the annual Johnno BBQ, it will be a good follow up from Matty Cheshire's 16th (Dave's son) which included Tai, Steady, Johnno and Neil Machin. Should be a ripper Can't beat going for a schnitzel at The Gateway BFD. How did you know I had the Schnitzel - that's Cosmic, Man! If you catch up with Steady can you ask him if the - er - educational email got through OK? Otherwise I've stuffed it up - BigFatFingers strikes again - you'd relate to that, you fat bastard. Cheers for the review again excellent as always BFD. Great result for Kyle I does me best on a limited budget, Shirl. Incidentally I'll be in attendance at Queensway Meadows for the Welsh Open in June -I'm a lonely guy from outta town, with access to an incredible array of Pharmaceuticals and Herbal Remedies, and I just wondered......... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigFatDave Posted January 31, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 31, 2011 Phew! Back in good ol' Darwin again after a 14,500 km oddysey around Australia taking in the best that Planet Speedway can offer. I met a few hardy souls from Britain & Poland along the way, all battling the Heat, the Mozzies, the Bushflies, the Tyranny of Distance - all rapt to be over here and loving it to bits! Hopefully next year the series will be over a two-and-a half week period which would include a qualifying meeting - if we can get enough riders interested in competing and giving something back to Aussie Speedway; this year the field was certainly the thinnest for quite a while but still provided the usual dose of excellent racing. A couple of noticeable absentees from the series who can be exonerated were Travis McGowan, who got married last week so I suppose we can go easy on him - Onya Moose! - and Troy Batchelor, who took a week off from his hectic Pomgolian real estate venture to pop over and give us two fantastic performances, taking out the Leigh Adams Cheerio and Gillman three days later then jetting back to the North Pole. Anyhow, I'm sinking slowly in the West but I'd just like to extend a big "Come On Down Next Year" to all adventurers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigFatDave Posted February 1, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 1, 2011 (edited) This weekend attention shifts away from regular tracks and goes either long or short - The Aussie Solo & Sidecar Longtrack championships are on at Tamworth in NSW, which is a decent long distance circuit as I recall; a real fast track; rumour hath it that some of the NSW Ozchamps riders including Kozza will be bringing out their Longtrack bikes for this one while the sidecar boys will all be upping their cogs, while over in WA it's the Solo Sizzlers and Gordon Rowland Under-16 Memorial. Hafta check if Cam Heeps is back for that one - should be a ripper at the postage-stamp sized Pinjar Park - and that's the Long and the Short of it. Edited February 1, 2011 by BigFatDave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigFatDave Posted February 2, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 2, 2011 (edited) Straight from the Champion's Mouth - Chris Holder's Blog. LEGEND!! Edited February 2, 2011 by BigFatDave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCOTLAND1314 Posted February 2, 2011 Report Share Posted February 2, 2011 Well my Aussie speedway experience is coming to an end. What a fantastic 6 weeks of entertainment. The UK promotions could learn a thing or three from some of their Aussie counterparts. I'm not saying it's perfect but the Aussie speedway experience is the best value for money you'll find on the planet, IMO. Senior solos Junior solos Sidecars on the majority of race nights I attended. Out of all the racing I saw, whilst the Leigh Adam's senior event and the three Aussie title rounds I attended (Gillman, Broken Hill and Mildura) were great the cream of the racing came from the junior ranks. The meetings at Sidewinders were absolutely fantastic action (despite the commentary ;-)). I don't know the talent that is coming through in Sweden, Denmark, Poland and the like, but Australia are more than well off for young guns coming through. I just feel absolutely privileged to have seen them, my only hope is that they all make it at senior level. If they do, the world of speedway will be delighted with what is coming its way. They will be coming to a UK track near you in the next few years, perhaps earlier. If they do turn up for second halves etc, stay behind to watch them. IMO there are approximately 8 to 12 of the crop that look like they can make the grade at the highest level, if only Scotland had half that number, but that's for another day. And I'm sure I've witnessed at least one future world champion. And last but no means least to the company I kept in Oz, Spider, Howard, the Kirby's, Frosty, Mike, and by no means least BFD. Thanks for the travel, tickets, socialising but work on those jokes... ;-). These guys went out of their way to make me feel welcome, much appreciated gents and I won't forget it. ATB and I hope to see you all soon. To anyone that out is out there who may have thought about going to Oz for the speedway, do it just do it, you won't regret it. I'll be going back that's for sure, hopefully at the end of the year. If I can offer any advice or if you have questions just ask me. Now where are my six layers of clothing Scotland beckons.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spiderweb Posted February 4, 2011 Report Share Posted February 4, 2011 Now that would make a good trip hey Scott! March 12 Mildura Sidecar Spectacular March 13 Gillman Sidecar Masters (Sunday Night) March 19 Gillman Sidecar meeting March 25 Practice and Qualification (Friday Night) March 26 K&J Transport Australian Sidecar Championship Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigFatDave Posted February 4, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 4, 2011 Now that would make a good trip hey Scott! March 12 Mildura Sidecar Spectacular March 13 Gillman Sidecar Masters (Sunday Night) March 19 Gillman Sidecar meeting March 25 Practice and Qualification (Friday Night) March 26 K&J Transport Australian Sidecar Championship You left out March 27 Sidewinders Under 16s Sidecars Championships. I thought you'd remember as you're supposed to be providing transportation to & from the track for a certain BigFatVisiting fan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigFatDave Posted February 6, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 6, 2011 (edited) Johnnie Hoskins Founders Cup - Kurri Kurri Saturday Feb 12th - this one looks a ripper! Should be the last hit out for a few of the boys before they head back to the North Pole again. Looks like Brady Kurtz will be back after doing his shoulder at Leigh's Cheerio. Daniel Begley could be in doubt - he had a bad off at Tamworth in the Aussie Long Track champs last night - ambulance job apparently, fingers crossed he's ok, nice lad. I'm trying to find out if he's OK, as soon as I know anything I'll let you know. (Edit) Broken Collarbone apparently. SOLOS Mason Campton Kozza Smith Jay Herne Ben Russell Daniel Begley Todd Kurtz Rohan Tungate Bryce Johnston Dane Cartwright Nicholas Rowe Tom Armstrong Tim Heffernan Alex Davies Michael Penfold Daine Stevens Joey Ringwood Richard Sweetman SIDECARS Cafe/Morris Bond/Cox Hinton/Cox JimBob/ Hughes/Donovan Tighe/Coglan Griffiths/Cornwell Newman/ 350'S Hunter Anderson Jack Holder Sean McClelland Matthew Thorne Robert Gottardi Brady Kurtz Jake Allen Tyson Snow Jordan Dall Hayden Bond Edited February 6, 2011 by BigFatDave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigFatDave Posted February 7, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 7, 2011 (edited) Update on Daniel Begley, courtesy of NSW sidecar pilot Darren Cafe - Dan has a broken collarbone and had bleeding on the brain. He said he can't remember any of the day (lucky bugger, it was hot Dan). So all good for Dan, he's due home today. Gillman has a show on this weekend - the Gillman Solo Championship, along with Sidecars, Junior Speedway. Eight solo riders and Former Aussie Sidecar Champion Glenn O'Brien are over from WA to race against the locals; Nigel Sadler will return this week and after a few laps on Thursday night, Robert Ksiezak may also be on the program if his injuries allow. A full list will be up later this week - courtesy of Dave Parker. Edited February 7, 2011 by BigFatDave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigFatDave Posted February 9, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 9, 2011 Gillman Solo Championship Riders List - with the international riders now heading back to the UK, this will be the last major event in SA for the Solos. Courtesy of the Gillman Site: Details: Gillman Solo Championship (10 races) Nigel Sadler (SA), Robert Ksiezak (SA), Robert Medson (SA), Brenton Barnfield (Vic), Leigh Boujos (WA), Daniel Winchester (WA), Kale Ballantyne (WA), Luke Mitchell (SA) Format: 8 heats (4 rides each) plus a final for the three highest scorers plus the winner of a last chance semi-final. Gillman Division 2 Solo Championship (10 races) Adam Briggs (SA), Tim Boujos (WA), Carley Gittus (WA), Ethan Ballantyne (WA), Jake Lewis (WA), Eugene Ekkelboom (WA), Kane Turner (SA), Sean Peterson (Vic), Damon Whelan (SA) Format: 8 heats (4 rides each) plus a final for the three highest scorers plus the winner of a last chance semi-final. Sidecars (10 races) Glenn O'Brien/Aaron Maynard (WA), Mark Plaisted/Jamie Banks (SA), Mark Mitchell/Tom Golding (SA), Trent Headland/Jesse Headland (SA), Daniel Puddy/Matt Morgan (SA), Damien Niesche/tba (SA), Tim Bichard/tba (SA), Michael Hoogland/Michael Bell (SA) Format: 8 heats (4 rides each) plus a final for the three highest scorers plus the winner of a last chance semi-final. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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