The Start Of The Decline

[Jonny the spud]

Failing to move with the times, Supercross was unheard of 30 years ago, now with loud modern music and razzmatazz they pull in hundreds of thousands of young (and old) fans worldwide. Speedway spends too much time looking backwards then wonders why other forms of motorcycle sport are way ahead of them. I'm trying hard to think of another kind of motorcycle sport that has declined so much from its former glory and what do people moan about on here ???????

 

ehh in the old days we had 2 valve zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

[skydog]

Although I remember it, I was too young to know what the impact was... but I'm surprised nobody has mentioned the News Of The World.

[waiheke1]

i've got programmes/speedway stars from the 80s lamenting the decline of speedway, so it must have started in the 70s or earlier.

causes mentioned back in the 80s were slick tracks/poorly prepared tracks which didn't provide exciting racing, too many mediocre foreigners, people having less money/competing attrractions etc. - pretty much the same complaints as today!

I guess in terms of the British League being the number one one world speedway, the fall of communism and rise of speedway (and presence of money in speedway) in POland was one fo the main factors.

1980 was i guess the last year that England was a superpower of speedway, grandslam winners, then of course the following year i believe it was either the SCB or the BSPA made the brilliant call of refusing to allow Peter Collins to ride either for England or in the world championship as he was takeing a year out from British domestioc speedway, Mike Lee started to go off the rails, and arguably never since have England/GB been the sports leading nation.

Of course the decicsion in the early 70sfor Great Britain to mean just that, rather than includign the commonwealth nations, was also a pretty big factor, if the Aussies raced for Team GB of course GBwould still be a super power with a reigning world champion.

in terms of crowd attendances, i'm guessing speedway has technically been in decline since the end of the boon post-war years of the 40s/50s?

and as someone eslse has already mentioned, tvs becoming a standard household feature (rather than a rare luxury) was porbably a significant factor in declining attendances.

 

Its not all doom and gloom though - last seasons's GP series was superb (IMHO) in terms of the quality of racing, and the 2013 series has arguably one ogf the great all time lineups, personally i can't wait for it to kick off MArch 24th at Western Springs

[ShadowCaptain]

Not sure I agree with the premise that speedway did something wrong that started the decline. Was the problem not that speedway did nothing while other sports worked hard to modernise, and to retain existing supporters and get new supporters?

[Gatwick Rocket]

This is an interesting topic. Clearly over a lengthy period of time the decline can be attributed to more than one thing. For me the biggest negative developments have been:

 

1. The 1950s entertainment tax, which massively reduced crowds and saw a number of tracks fold

2. The 4-valve engine and then the lay down engine, for successively ramping up the cost of taking part and making it more a contest of machine than a contest of man

3. The points limit, which penalises success and rider loyalty as promoters form new teams each year

4. Absence of track covers or other means of preventing meetings being postponed due to weather

5. The limited effort put in to promote the sport to new customers (as far as I can see)

6. Planning laws that make it nigh on impossible to establish new tracks, which severely restricts the ability of the sport to expand its geographic footprint

 

The proliferation of alternative forms of entertainment hasn't helped but speedway needs to get its own house in order rather than blame others.

 

PS I've got programmes from the 1950s with promoters complaining that crowds are down to single figure thousands so please bring a friend

[topaz325]

I blame Thatcher.....every year someting happens its the end for Speedway.....its still here....for now!!

[cityrebel]

_{in my era 1968 onwards, the start of speedway's decline was the loss of wembley as a world final venue after 1981. within a couple of seasons the BL had started to lose long established top flight venues like wimbledon, hackney, halifax, leicester, poole and birmingham. some to the NL and others to redevelopment. the BL never recovered from losing these tracks and it's been going downhill ever since.}

[michaelcroucher]

SPeedway was decline when speedway stadiums start to close down. ALso when big sponors got invlolved. Takling about whe riders use to turn up with 2 bikes and thats it was true but if you look at the GP nows. tomasz gollob turns up he has 19 engines with him just for the weekeend. Thats stupid. Also if you look at what a rider gets now compare to what they use to get. Its not a sport as it use to be its a business.

[oldace]

Although I remember it, I was too young to know what the impact was... but I'm surprised nobody has mentioned the News Of The World.

 

It was the Sunday People not the NOTW

 

SPeedway was decline when speedway stadiums start to close down. ALso when big sponors got invlolved. Takling about whe riders use to turn up with 2 bikes and thats it was true but if you look at the GP nows. tomasz gollob turns up he has 19 engines with him just for the weekeend. Thats stupid. Also if you look at what a rider gets now compare to what they use to get. Its not a sport as it use to be its a business.

 

It is a bit of a myth that speedway was ever really a credible successful sport for any sustained period.

 

The late 20s/early 30s it was a new phenomenon but it was in decline within a few years. Team racing was invented and that gave it a boost before the war. Of course the war put paid to most racing for 6 years and when the war ended the nation were clamoring for live sport and so speedway was in demand but by the early/mid fifties it was in serious decline again. The formation of the British League in 1965 gave the sport its longest period of stability (16 or 17 years) but by the early 80s it went into decline again, a decline that has continues to this day. In a history of 85 years probably only 25 years has the sport been really popular

[ch958]

Oldace, great post and it puts things in proper perspective. For me I believe we should reduce expenses to a level commensurate with crowd levels, even if it means losing star names. The sport is essentially about 4 evenly matched riders racing - doesn't have to be world names. Plenty of PL fans, NL fans never see world class names and yet they still pay to go in and watch. And are entertained.

[Grand Central]

It is a bit of a myth that speedway was ever really a credible successful sport for any sustained period.

 

The late 20s/early 30s it was a new phenomenon but it was in decline within a few years. Team racing was invented and that gave it a boost before the war. Of course the war put paid to most racing for 6 years and when the war ended the nation were clamoring for live sport and so speedway was in demand but by the early/mid fifties it was in serious decline again. The formation of the British League in 1965 gave the sport its longest period of stability (16 or 17 years) but by the early 80s it went into decline again, a decline that has continues to this day. In a history of 85 years probably only 25 years has the sport been really popular

 

Yes, I think this is the best assessment by far.

 

It is all so easy to pick out each and everyone of the external and internal changes and, depending on your own bug-bear, make a case for each one. But oldace's critique holds most water.

 

The saying that 'even a stopped clock tells the correct time twice a day' is quite apt for Speedway.

Just a few times in it's existence it's been in the right place at the right time to be a bit of a success story.

And for the rest it never really did get it right.

[Soul Crew]

Speedway got caught standing still and has now been overtaken.

 

Its unique to all other forms of motorsport, so comparisons are pointless.

[Ommer Mon]

Great Topic Dean.

 

Initially, I sprang to the same conclusion as you - the retirement of Bruce Penhall. That removed the greatest rivalry in the sport at the time between him and Kenny Carter. Erik and Hans kept it going for another 7 years but Speedway used to thrive on these rivalries.

 

I remember going to Monmore in the early 70s to see a Wolves / Belle Vue challenge just to see Olsen and Mauger clash (and they actually didn't as Ivan was excluded under two mins when he was coming over the dog track - nice one ref!).

 

The Grand Prix may have played a part. It removed the one off World Final and tied up a load of dates for the top stars. This and the rise of the other Leagues has meant an exodus of star names. Look back at your programmes from the 80s and some second strings would be No1s in today's so called Elite League!

 

All this plus the failure to promote the sport properly.

 

Blimey, I'm getting quite depressed now and believe me I'm actually really looking forward to the start of this season!

[pugwash]

Pretty easy answer ....when the league's in Poland and Sweden got bigger and better than the uk's and we became 3rd choice to riders .

Got to agree.

[TesarRacing]

The entertainment tax in the 50's.

......or pensioners getting in on the cheap!

[mickthemuppet]

THE MAIN PROBLEM speedway has are.

 

1. STADIUMS

- Most stadiums that Speedway operate in are not very good. The toilets in most are awful . The catering facilities leave a lot to be desired. I would think most people never eat anything in a stadium but to be fair mosty are not operated by the speedway promoters so it is out of their hands.

 

2. GUEST RIDERS

Try explain to outsiders that we have a guest rider or riders from other clubs. This makes speedway only one step up from professional wrestling. How many teams did Kevin Doohan or Leigh Lanham ride for last season. Both rode for and against Ipswich. How can you take a sport seriously when this happens. No wonder there are never any reports in national newspapers about matches.

 

3. WORLD FINALS

The British Speedway Promoters were responsible for the world finals held at Wembley after the war in 1949..All profits made there went for the benefit of British speedway. They should never let Johnny Foreigner share the World finals as it was their baby. How could a world final go from Wembley to Malmo. and then have a gate of 75% less than Wembley. Promoters what were you doing..After all the world snooker and darts final are still held in this country every year. . Then the worst thing of all was no more Wembley finals which was one of the biggest knockbacks for the sport ever

4..BIKES

As much has been said on here already changing from 2 valve to 4 valve was a great mistake. How much further cost did this add to riders expenses and for what benefit.

 

5.RACE PROGRAMES

A completely new set of the heats of a speedway match. What is the point of heat 4 when you have a top riders out against reserves. That does not make for competive racing. The old system of the reserves meeting twice is a much better idea than we have today. . Both teams should not be allowed to use rider replacement. Both should promote their number 8

Perhaps the last three heats should be 5th and 6th highest scorers then the penultimate heat the 3rd and 4th highest scorer ,then the final heat the 1st and 2nd highest scores of each team. If a team becomes six or more points behind that team should be given choice of gates.

6. MEDIA

Newspapers now carries virtually no reports of Speedway results or reports. If it were not for local papers you would think that speedway had ceased. Going back through the years nearly all national newspapers sponsored Speedway .On a thursday night in London the Evening News used to have a full broadsheet write up on that night's speedway meeting at Wembley with visiting riders photos and form statistics league tables and heat details. Then the next morning there would be a write up of the meeting and heat details and points.in most national papers. All now gone

 

7. EUROPEAN LEAGUES

The emergence of the Swedish and Polish Leagues. This has no doubt hurt Speedway in GB., without these leagues all the top riders would still be riding in Britain. The advantage these leagues have or might not have is they are nearly all supported by local authorities. The original Swedish promoters all went broke. and the local authorities took over. the tracks.and they leased them out

If Europes financial problems continue how long will they keep subsidising these clubs.

[rob tatum]

Difficult to pin down a specific moment in time for the decline of speedway I just feel that its more the decline of LEAGUE speedway in this country. Look around Shabby stadiums ,over priced meetings ,teams that change every year ,no building a loyalty to a favourite rider as there with you one year and gone the next ,bizarre rules and rule changes which make our simple sport totally baffling to most people. The GP s are criticised BUT at least they look and are a quality product. I just think standards in most sports have improved unfortunately in ours apart from the GPs time has stood still. God I'm depressed apparently this is the most depressing day of the year.

[Beckford Boy]

Brilliant post Mick,agree with everything you say. I well remember the words of the legendary John S Hoskins: Speedway has been written off every year since 1928 but it is still here. In some form I think it always will be, but at what level.Without doubt the fact that hardly any clubs own their own stadium and in the main are treated with disdain by their landlords is one of the biggest problems.

This absolute nonsense of riders competing in half a dozen leagues causes massive problems and expense to the sport and needs to stop.We can't afford the top riders and people will not pay to watch a load of wobblers,so the answer could be to concentrate on the middle grade riders.A settled team who injuries apart are available every meeting would help to bring back the bond between riders and fans. You would then have a situation whereby we could have the travelling circus known as the Grand Prix and genuine Test Matches as the occasional icing on the cake, as in days of old we had the one off World Final and proper Test Matches.

[Richard Tyrrell]

For me the decline of speedway started with the ease of international travel. When I started going riders by and large belonged to the clubs they rode for and there was loyalty and continuity with some big star meetings annually at most tracks. There was a Golden Helmet series after which the two combatants stayed and rode in the second half. Visiting teams only visited once a season, maybe twice in a knockout cup, and these matches became 'must see' matches if you wanted to see their top riders. International club teams visited to tour and there were international Test matches with the mystique of visiting riders of which little was known.

 

Compare that to today. Loyalty? Forget it. I read in this weeks Star, for instance, the goings on between Coventry/Brimingham/Kings Lynn over riders. Its been the same for years and will be into the future, and these riders all 'belong' to clubs in three/four different countries. With the guest rider system you could see the same riders every fortnight, or every week if you've got Sky. And thats another problem. Why not stay at home and watch the invitation world championship?

 

Top flight speedway has become one big travelling international circus and I don't know how you can now stop it. So don't miss it when it comes to your town, the field the tents are pitched on may be needed for housing!

[iris123]

For me it was the change from homemade bobble hats to baseball caps