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was at the track yesterday. Track surface is down. Wooden fence is going up in front of the concrete wall ready for the air fence.

 

First practice is Thursday 21 at 1pm with official practice on Friday 22 at 5pm

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odds now up on ladbrokes and someother sites

 

Based on last year's showuing, Hanocok, Gollob and Lindback all look good value. Vaculik looks good odds for an outsider, while KK, Zagar and even Tai look decent odds for an each way bet.

 

DaRCY Ward 9/2 .

 

Chris Holder 9/2 . Nicki Pedersen 5/1 . Tomasz Gollob 8/1 . Greg Hancock 8/1 . Jaroslaw Hampel 8/1 . Emil Sayfutdinov 9/1 . Antonio Lindback 14/1 . Andreas Johnson 20/1 . Niels-Kristian Iversen 25/1 . Martin Vaculik 33/1 . Fredrik Lindgren 33/1 . Krzysztof Kasprzak 40/1 . Matej Zagar 66/1 . Tai Woffinden 100/1 . Jason Bunyan 500

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There doesn't appear to be any coverage on Sky NZ this year. It was on live last year.

 

We have a program on Sky called 'The Dirt' which covers the Midget and Sprint Cars from Western Springs and in the last program they had a 3 minute segment on the GP so I'm hopeful they might cover it? Any Kiwis in the know?

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BILL BUCKLEY – abridged interview.

Without this bloke in the faded overalls, who runs a nondescript factory in an Auckland industrial estate, you wouldn't have an iPhone, iPod, LCD television or DVD player. Bill Buckley, engineering genius, rather likes that you haven't heard of him. Buckley Systems Ltd, which has made Bill Buckley a rather rich man, does no business in New Zealand. Most people wouldn't know it existed. But in Silicon Valley, they know that Buckley machines work, and they are used to prepare 90 per cent of the world's silicon chips, the key component of almost every piece of modern technology on the planet. FIRST the science bit. Buckley Systems makes machines containing powerful magnets, which fire lasers at silicon wafers (which don't conduct electricity) to turn them into semi-conductive computer chips – an extremely precise process calculated to within a millionth of a centimetre. Buckley Systems is also part of an emerging market for new, non-invasive cancer treatments, particularly proton therapy, where a laser beam is fired through the skin to attack tumours. Buckley Systems was established in 1986, but not until last month did Buckley reluctantly pull on the penguin suit and gain recognition as New Zealand Entrepreneur of the Year. In February, he goes to Monte Carlo with a chance to win the world version. I point out that he must have known this would attract attention, but, he says, he didn't do it to drum up business, only to nudge the cause of his lifelong passion, speedway racing. Buckley is also the promoter at the Western Springs speedway track in Auckland, and because the council backed the awards, it seems he figured if he won, it would give him some heft when it comes to persuading them to renew his promoter's licence when it expires in 2014. He finds the council a cumbersome, irritating beast, perpetually thwarting his motorsport ambitions by limiting his event days (to a maximum of 26 a year). "I don't know what's going to happen after 2014. "There is so much red tape and bullrubbish You can't pin anyone down there. I would've had 10 or 15 people I had to report into at the council since I've been there. They all think they know what's going on down there, but they've never been to speedway. They haven't a clue what it's about." Buckley is an awkward bugger, typified by his $1.5 million investment into funding a chair at Auckland University to research global warming, principally because: "I just don't like being told bullrubbish I want to find out for myself. I would rather believe a scientist than a greenie that just loves hugging trees." He has also sunk another seven-figure sum into securing a round of the 2013 motorbike speedway world championships, a big deal in Europe where it draws huge crowds, but which has garnered minimal attention here, in keeping with the strange absence of media coverage for a sport which no longer attracts the big attendances of its heyday, but still draws well over 10,000 spectators to a regular meet. "We don't get any help from the press, we don't get any help from government, we don't get any help from council, we just get rubbish on all the time," he says. Buckley, incidentally, is trying to secure council funding for the event, on which he at least hopes to break even. "It would be nice to make a little bit, though," he says.

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ARRIVED in Auckland late on Sunday afternoon ... sure New Zealand is getting further away from the UK! Long, tedious trip and landed on a wet, grey afternoon.

 

Spoke to Ole Olsen in the hotel lobby ... says he is very happy with the track and that the rain today and tomorrow will be good for it. Forecast for the latter part of the week looks okay.

 

Riders and mechanics leave Heathrow on Sunday evening travelling to Auckland via Hong Kong. Greg Hancock coming in from LA tomorrow. Holder and Ward from Australia.

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ARRIVED in Auckland late on Sunday afternoon ... sure New Zealand is getting further away from the UK! Long, tedious trip and landed on a wet, grey afternoon.

 

Spoke to Ole Olsen in the hotel lobby ... says he is very happy with the track and that the rain today and tomorrow will be good for it. Forecast for the latter part of the week looks okay.

 

Riders and mechanics leave Heathrow on Sunday evening travelling to Auckland via Hong Kong. Greg Hancock coming in from LA tomorrow. Holder and Ward from Australia.

the whole north island is officially a drought zone, you arrive and it rains...typical bloody pom bringing the weather with you ;-)

Not complaining mind u, our water tsnk definity needs the rain and rain is all thsts likely to save the kiwi boys in the cricket.

Just hope it clears for saturday, after the incredible summer we have had , it would really suck if the weather contributes to a reduced crowd or spectacle on gp day

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were you in time for the earthquake in Auckland on Sunday afternoon?

 

NO but several people including Tony Briggs were telling us about it. Arrived in New Zealand (Auckland) for a holiday and to visit the Ross family in Christchurch (Larry's wife is my wife's sister) in 2011 on the day the big one hit there. Might be getting the blame soon!

 

Everyone seems very happy with set-up at Western Springs. Holder in from Oz today, big arrivals from Europe at Auckland international around 13.00 local time.

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just e-mailed the NZ TAB to see if they would be offering odds on the NZ Speedway GP - I got a very prompt reposnse, saying they would be putting up odds for the Indy Cars on Friday!

 

Phil - next time you see Larry, can you ask him if he remembers getting christmas cards and regular letters from a young kiwi lad who was a regular at Hyde Rd. I remember being gutted when he left the Aces at the end of 84, though at least he didn't move far, itj ust meant I got more regular visits to the Shay and then Odal to watch what bcamse my "second" team to follow. And also, how he got the nickname Rangi (according to a S Star interview, in which he wouldn't reveal why)?

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