mikebv Posted October 3, 2013 Report Share Posted October 3, 2013 I am one (of the many on here) who can hark back to when 'speedway was great'... The reality though is that the speedway wasn't that much better than we have today (if at all).. You only have to look at youtube coverage of the 70/80/90's to see that one or two good races per meeting was about 'the norm' with the first rider round turn two winning the vast majority of races.. What is different today is that you watch the same kind of races in virtually empty stadia, which adversely effects any kind of atmosphere being generated.. In the 'golden years' the noise generated by the sheer crowd size made the most mundane 3-3 seem 'an event' hence the entertainment level appeared higher... I would go as far as to suggest it isn't the standard of racing that's the main reason crowds have decimated, but rather it is the 'mickey mouse' perception in the way the sport is run that has turned far more away, I know many who have simply 'given up' due to this and I myself have done so on more than one occasion!... Why can't all speedway be like this? Without a big crowd to generate an atmosphere, it cannot be. In the 'great meetings' tucked away in our memory banks you can bet the vast majority took place in front of a large vociferous crowd which made the occasion 'special'... Keep charging £20 to get in and buy a prog and speedway will never deliver 'great nights' consistently as simply not enough will turn up to generate that much needed noise and atmosphere... Keep coming up with the 'mickey mouse' ways of running (or should that say ruining?) the sport on top of this, and eventually it will be the crowd changes that get announced each week before the rider changes..!! 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stratton Posted October 3, 2013 Report Share Posted October 3, 2013 (edited) I am one (of the many on here) who can hark back to when 'speedway was great'... The reality though is that the speedway wasn't that much better than we have today (if at all).. You only have to look at youtube coverage of the 70/80/90's to see that one or two good races per meeting was about 'the norm' with the first rider round turn two winning the vast majority of races.. What is different today is that you watch the same kind of races in virtually empty stadia, which adversely effects any kind of atmosphere being generated.. In the 'golden years' the noise generated by the sheer crowd size made the most mundane 3-3 seem 'an event' hence the entertainment level appeared higher... I would go as far as to suggest it isn't the standard of racing that's the main reason crowds have decimated, but rather it is the 'mickey mouse' perception in the way the sport is run that has turned far more away, I know many who have simply 'given up' due to this and I myself have done so on more than one occasion!... Why can't all speedway be like this? Without a big crowd to generate an atmosphere, it cannot be. In the 'great meetings' tucked away in our memory banks you can bet the vast majority took place in front of a large vociferous crowd which made the occasion 'special'... Keep charging £20 to get in and buy a prog and speedway will never deliver 'great nights' consistently as simply not enough will turn up to generate that much needed noise and atmosphere... Keep coming up with the 'mickey mouse' ways of running (or should that say ruining?) the sport on top of this, and eventually it will be the crowd changes that get announced each week before the rider changes..!! As much as i enjoy speedway now, i will be shot down i exspect but theyre is no doubt in my mind speedway in yesteryear it was far superior to todays racing i watch.Dont get me wrong, the GP series is in great shape ( i am not a big supporter) but credit where it is due it is in a good place.League racing no comparison in my book the league racing say from 1970/88 far superior in my view.The annoying thing is the product is there i believe but i don't no if other elder supporters feel the same i have given up on the sport ever changing it won't ever happen not in my lifetime.I know years ago i did see alot of dross, it was not all great racing but now at times i can't wait for heat 15 to finish that's one thing i never felt from the first time i went with my uncle in 1969. Edited October 3, 2013 by sidney Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orion Posted October 3, 2013 Report Share Posted October 3, 2013 The main thing that has changed in Speedway is the passion of the fans ....in the old days that always made the match look and feel better than is was ...it was like the other night after losing to Poole I really did not care to much and that sort of feeling is what I sense at most tracks these days . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TonyE Posted October 3, 2013 Report Share Posted October 3, 2013 (edited) Not much hope when the farce that was Belle Vue v Poole on 9 September last appears to have the 'blessing' of all that run speedway in this country. Edited October 3, 2013 by TonyE Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The White Knight Posted October 3, 2013 Report Share Posted October 3, 2013 Not much hope when the farce that was Belle Vue v Poole on 9 September last appears to have the 'blessing' of all that run speedway in this country. It seemed a bit 'OFF' to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
New Science Posted October 3, 2013 Report Share Posted October 3, 2013 The main thing that has changed in Speedway is the passion of the fans ....in the old days that always made the match look and feel better than is was ...it was like the other night after losing to Poole I really did not care to much and that sort of feeling is what I sense at most tracks these days . The fans that were watching in the old days are pretty much the same fans that are watching now ! why have they lost the passion and if they have why do they still go ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The White Knight Posted October 4, 2013 Report Share Posted October 4, 2013 The fans that were watching in the old days are pretty much the same fans that are watching now ! why have they lost the passion and if they have why do they still go ? Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm - I sometime wonder myself. :sad: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCB Posted October 4, 2013 Report Share Posted October 4, 2013 The main thing that has changed in Speedway is the passion of the fans ....in the old days that always made the match look and feel better than is was ...it was like the other night after losing to Poole I really did not care to much and that sort of feeling is what I sense at most tracks these days . Exactly. The best example I can give is that during the Mallett era I'd go to Newport probably 6-8 times a season as a "neutral" and I'd feel odd for clapping or cheering as the 250 others in the stadium were spread out and doing the same, so nobody cheered. Then Newport made the 2011 KOC final and over 1000 people turned up, the place was buzzing with people cheering race times. It was a great meeting, finished about 65-25 to Newport, there was plenty of passing as every time Glasgow gated Newport just flew past them with an air of inevitability but nobody cared, they're cheered and shouted. It was a great meeting. Now of that meeting has been the league meeting a couple of weeks earlier it would have just been another meeting in stead it was one of the best meetings I've seen for a long time. People make a meeting exciting, more people = more noise. more noise = atmosphere and fun. atmosphere an fun = more people. Sadly, the reality is that the opposite is true of speedway these days Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barrow boy Posted October 5, 2013 Report Share Posted October 5, 2013 I don't like the 2 semi's in one night. You lose the thread keeping jumping around and don't get to see replays of all the better bits as they have zip off to the other track. Its all very disjointed, then you get a couple of falls as we did last night and it all goes to pot towards the end. Was at the Norfolk Arena a couple of years back when the Stars made the PO's - it was the worst nights entertainment I'd seen all season - not due to the racing, but continual stop / start nature of the racing and killed the atmosphere and it was a right drag. The play offs should be a great finale to the season, but in the current form they don't really work for either the spectator or arm chair viewer Can't they do it live from track A and then keep filtering in one recorded race from track B. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TonyOfBrum Posted October 5, 2013 Report Share Posted October 5, 2013 (edited) Can't they do it live from track A and then keep filtering in one recorded race from track B. That's the question we were asking at Perry Barr on Monday. At one point the riders were sat on their bikes for over 15 minutes, while the screen showed a heat from Poole, followed by Pearson and Ermolenko yakking away, followed by an interview, followed by Pearson and Ermolenko yakking away again, followed by adverts. OK, broadcasters and viewers love "live" sport, but with the numbers involved would it really matter if one meeting was live and the other tape delayed? 30 heats done and dusted by 9:45 that way. Edited October 5, 2013 by TonyOfBrum 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The White Knight Posted October 5, 2013 Report Share Posted October 5, 2013 Can't they do it live from track A and then keep filtering in one recorded race from track B. I think that is a great idea barrow boy. It would certainly help with continuity at both of the Tracks. :approve: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
van wolfswinkel Posted October 8, 2013 Report Share Posted October 8, 2013 The midlands racing was far superior to the west-country meeting, a lot more passing at Wolves in the first leg than at Swindon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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