theknow 2 Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 The benefit to Speedway really is quite simple. It keeps and makes our great sport visible and relevant to other sports fans. It is that simple. The rest of the job IS NOT for SKY to bring in people through the turnstiles. That is the job of our promoters. As others have said, SKY show sports with sparse support in the crowd. SKY SHOW the sports,the promotions of various sports PROMOTE their sports. I cannot believe people blame SKY for fall in attendance and all that is wrong in our sport. That falls at the feet of our promotions who don't do enough (or don't know how to to do more) for the continued fall in attendance. It was happening before SKY, which some seem to choose to ignore. Likewise i have neighbours, friends, associates who can make an informed opinion on Speedway BECAUSE of SKY showing our sport. That cannot be measured in the amount of people through the turnstiles. I know (and have introduced) many `newcomer` to Speedway since SKY came on board because they wanted to see it live. If the supporters are doing there bit to promote Speedway its now up to the promotions to follow suit, because the visibility that SKY give our sport cannot be measured either. Agree with you for once. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NTB Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 I enjoy the Monday night speedway me and my mates get together with a boat load of chicken wings. It def brightens up another dull Monday! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevebrum Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 Agree with you for once. Well, i make a lot of sense you know! ;-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conkers in Gravy Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 You are probably NOT in the minority. Personally - I LOVE the Speedway on SKY - I watch all of it. I think the SKY Team do a great job. BUT - looking at it in the round - I ask, is Speedway itself benefiting from the Television Coverage - the ONLY answer that I can come up with is that it isn't. Speedway has declined since Sky started live coverage, we can all agree on that. But how many other sports have had live TV coverage and got worse? Rugby League was close to death's door before Sky came along and although some clubs have their troubles, the professional game is played to a high standard, in mostly comfortable, clean stadia with two or three games a week well-presented on TV. I used the example of Brentford v Gillingham earlier and that's true of all football. There's more football on TV than it's possible to watch (15 games in three days on Sky and BT starting next Friday night), yet grounds are packed with fans prepared to pay anything between £20 and £60 for a ticket. People see football and rugby on TV and want to be part of it. It's easy to blame TV for speedway's problems, but I think it's putting two and two together and making five. Remove live speedway from TV and you've killed off the last chance for national exposure of the sport and I think it would decline down to grasstrack levels. Other sports use TV to generate interest and then deliver in terms of excitement and value when folk go to games. Speedway obviously doesn't do that despite having a privileged position with Sky that other comparable sports like basketball and ice hockey haven't. You need to look at the sport for the answer, not blame an organisation which has given speedway a platform to promote itself and handed over quite a bit of cash in the process. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevebrum Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 Speedway has declined since Sky started live coverage, we can all agree on that. But how many other sports have had live TV coverage and got worse? No we cant. Speedway attendance was falling before SKY - have we agreed who was to blame for that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BWitcher Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 No we cant. Speedway attendance was falling before SKY - have we agreed who was to blame for that? You misunderstand him Steve, he's not saying it's 'because' of Sky. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevebrum Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 You misunderstand him Steve, he's not saying it's 'because' of Sky. Sorry should have elaborated the reply because obviously the post was pro SKY. Think what we both agree on is that the issue lies firmly at the feet of the governing body why we have the issues of falling attendances over a prolonged period of time. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The White Knight Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 Speedway has declined since Sky started live coverage, we can all agree on that. But how many other sports have had live TV coverage and got worse? Rugby League was close to death's door before Sky came along and although some clubs have their troubles, the professional game is played to a high standard, in mostly comfortable, clean stadia with two or three games a week well-presented on TV. I used the example of Brentford v Gillingham earlier and that's true of all football. There's more football on TV than it's possible to watch (15 games in three days on Sky and BT starting next Friday night), yet grounds are packed with fans prepared to pay anything between £20 and £60 for a ticket. People see football and rugby on TV and want to be part of it. It's easy to blame TV for speedway's problems, but I think it's putting two and two together and making five. Remove live speedway from TV and you've killed off the last chance for national exposure of the sport and I think it would decline down to grasstrack levels. Other sports use TV to generate interest and then deliver in terms of excitement and value when folk go to games. Speedway obviously doesn't do that despite having a privileged position with Sky that other comparable sports like basketball and ice hockey haven't. You need to look at the sport for the answer, not blame an organisation which has given speedway a platform to promote itself and handed over quite a bit of cash in the process. Speedway support, as I said earlier was declining before SKY came along - that is true - but the decline, I contend, has speeded up since. Again, as I have said before if ONE Person decides to watch his/her Speedway on the Television and packs up attending their local Track - THAT is a further decline that would NOT have happened had there been no Speedway on the Television. I am on record as saying that I love Speedway on SKY - I do - I am in no way criticising SKY either - I believe they do a great job. I would LOVE them to put more Speedway on. I asked is the coverage good for Speedway, to me anyway, the answer is no. I just think that anything that DIScourages folk from attending their Track is, sadly, a bad thing. The increased attendances from exposure on SKY have simply not materialised. Please believe me when I say that I am trying to be as honest as I can here. We would ALL love to watch Speedway every night of the week on Television, but I'm afraid, that isn't the right question. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theknow 2 Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 Lets face it speedway is on its knees, Sky only came back in as the BBC has nicked loads off them and they needed something to air. They knew they could offer far less as people were not beating the door down to take it on. Yes its good to have it on the tele but the overall Sky package of presenting speedway has been pants. Quite often a bore fest hosted by the DH brothers and the sister with the wonkie eye. Let hope the new deal brings in new things and faces. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveLyric2 Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 The one obvious benefit Sky's involvement with speedway has had is keeping at least an 8-team EL going for 15years - because without the dosh slushing around the promoters, several clubs would have gone to the wall ages ago!! What the promoters have done with the dosh - including the live meeting fees - is a totally separate issue!! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starman2006 Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 Well, i make a lot of sense you know! ;-) Ive just spate my Coffee all over my keyboard... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
george.m Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 You are probably NOT in the minority. Personally - I LOVE the Speedway on SKY - I watch all of it. I think the SKY Team do a great job. BUT - looking at it in the round - I ask, is Speedway itself benefiting from the Television Coverage - the ONLY answer that I can come up with is that it isn't. Does it not make it easier for a rider to get sponsorship if he can claim potential TV coverage? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevebrum Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 (edited) Ive just spate my Coffee all over my keyboard... Must be an odd state of affair, making sensible comments. You must try it sometime. :rofl: Edited January 27, 2014 by stevebrum Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
weatherwatcher Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 We need the BSPA, to do something in someway to advertise the sport. Don't think that showing it on the television hurts our sport in any way. How many towns and city's that have speedway meetings actualy let people in that region know that there is actually a speedway track our a race night going on. I know my team do. It is in the local paper on the radio. With posters around the town centre. There must be more the BPSA can do though. Not everyone has SKY and not everyone has the internet. So come on it is time to get your act in gear if not speedway will be lost in this country, It will not take to long either. We have clubs folding and in financial difficulties. Clubs having to close due to losing thier land. The rot needs to be stopped before it is to late. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conkers in Gravy Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 No we cant. Speedway attendance was falling before SKY - have we agreed who was to blame for that? Of course speedway has declined since the introduction of live TV - I think it's pretty clear from the post that I realise the decline had already started and that I don't blame TV. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BWitcher Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 Speedway support, as I said earlier was declining before SKY came along - that is true - but the decline, I contend, has speeded up since. Again, as I have said before if ONE Person decides to watch his/her Speedway on the Television and packs up attending their local Track - THAT is a further decline that would NOT have happened had there been no Speedway on the Television. I am on record as saying that I love Speedway on SKY - I do - I am in no way criticising SKY either - I believe they do a great job. I would LOVE them to put more Speedway on. I asked is the coverage good for Speedway, to me anyway, the answer is no. I just think that anything that DIScourages folk from attending their Track is, sadly, a bad thing. The increased attendances from exposure on SKY have simply not materialised. Please believe me when I say that I am trying to be as honest as I can here. We would ALL love to watch Speedway every night of the week on Television, but I'm afraid, that isn't the right question. Who are these people WK? Speedway supporters for the most part support their own team. When their team closes, most of them don't go anymore, I'd say 95% at least. You get a few who continue around other tracks. So with that in mind, who are these supporters who would stop going to their own track on a Thursday night because there is a speedway match that most of the time won't involved their team on tv on a Monday night.. I doubt there are anything like a significant number. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conkers in Gravy Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 Speedway support, as I said earlier was declining before SKY came along - that is true - but the decline, I contend, has speeded up since. Again, as I have said before if ONE Person decides to watch his/her Speedway on the Television and packs up attending their local Track - THAT is a further decline that would NOT have happened had there been no Speedway on the Television. I am on record as saying that I love Speedway on SKY - I do - I am in no way criticising SKY either - I believe they do a great job. I would LOVE them to put more Speedway on. I asked is the coverage good for Speedway, to me anyway, the answer is no. I just think that anything that DIScourages folk from attending their Track is, sadly, a bad thing. The increased attendances from exposure on SKY have simply not materialised. Please believe me when I say that I am trying to be as honest as I can here. We would ALL love to watch Speedway every night of the week on Television, but I'm afraid, that isn't the right question. I have to disagree. I accept that logic would suggest that televised sport would discourage potential fans from attending in 'real life', but the evidence of virtually every other sport is overwhelmingly the opposite. Speedway has so far failed to capitalise on national exposure to hundreds of thousands, even millions, of Sky subscribers and viewers and this new deal - assuming it materialises - seems to be the last chance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Pedaler Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 What new deal? Another day passes, another day without an announcement. Has anyone considered the possibility that by Matt Ford prematurely leaking the information to his journalistic mate at the Bournemouth Echo, he might have upset SkySports enough for them to cancel what was going to be the deal? No doubt the Russells would have been going flat out to rescue what remains of it, and who knows how long that would take, but would anyone think that Ford would be upset if the Russells were in difficulties? Only a theory, mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The White Knight Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 Does it not make it easier for a rider to get sponsorship if he can claim potential TV coverage? THAT is the Rider - NOT the Sport in general. I want Speedway to be a prosperous, well run Sport. Having said that - they have had SKY money for fifteen years - and that just seems to have gone down drain. Who are these people WK? Speedway supporters for the most part support their own team. When their team closes, most of them don't go anymore, I'd say 95% at least. You get a few who continue around other tracks. So with that in mind, who are these supporters who would stop going to their own track on a Thursday night because there is a speedway match that most of the time won't involved their team on tv on a Monday night.. I doubt there are anything like a significant number. I obviously can't name them BW - but - ANY number would be too many. :sad: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BWitcher Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 What new deal? Another day passes, another day without an announcement. Has anyone considered the possibility that by Matt Ford prematurely leaking the information to his journalistic mate at the Bournemouth Echo, he might have upset SkySports enough for them to cancel what was going to be the deal? No doubt the Russells would have been going flat out to rescue what remains of it, and who knows how long that would take, but would anyone think that Ford would be upset if the Russells were in difficulties? Only a theory, mind. Time you renamed yourself The Troller. THAT is the Rider - NOT the Sport in general. I want Speedway to be a prosperous, well run Sport. Having said that - they have had SKY money for fifteen years - and that just seems to have gone down drain. I obviously can't name them BW - but - ANY number would be too many. :sad: Well there's been a number of people who have posted they have rekindled their interest because of Sky.. so we're in the positive for Sky 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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