Leicester Track Break In

[Skodaman]

No-one likes to see speedway clubs suffer crime and I agree with that point totally.

 

However, do you not think that in many ways all the "negative" comments you refer to towards the club are brought upon themselves? After all, the promoter himself said in the Speedway Star a couple of weeks back that he had to "break a few eggs to make an omelette". Leaving aside that he actually made scrambled eggs rather than an omelette, if your modus operandi is to continually look after number one and generally pee off a whole succession of people around you, then you're going to get some of it come back at you. It's almost inevitable in any walk of life.

 

Also, wasn't it him that designed and implemented the useless track that everyone moans about? Most of the negative criticism centres on that fact and it's hard to deflect it away when the club are seemingly in denial about it, and as such have done what amounts to virtually nothing to correct it. As a result it's inevitable the "criticism" just keeps on coming and the only surprise it that people such as yourself are surprised by it. Leicester fans waited 28 years for speedway to return but still ended up with one of, if not the, worst track in the country.

 

By the way, the "bumper night's takings" robbery was after the Premier Fours meeting in August 2011, which were the BSPA's takings.

Actually, the bar takings which were the clubs!!

[Halifaxtiger]

Firstly, I'm not defending anything that David Hemsley, or anyone else connected with the promotion may or may not haver done, or how many people they may or may not have peed off along the way. What I am saying is that:

1) For three years & more we have had people like Volty, Robert72 etc. continually banging on about the track over & over again to the point that it just looks desperate & childish. We got the message a very long time ago. I personally think the track is far from perfect & needs sorting out, but regardless of whether that work is ever done, I have made a conscious decision to support my team & continue to pay my entrance money every week. That is my decision & the decision of every other person who chooses to do the same. If however you are so unhappy with the track, or any other aspect regarding Leicester speedway, then you have the option of not attending, & if enough people choose to stay away, then there are two options left for the people who run the business, they either close the thing down, or they make the necessary changes. The people who continually knock everything Leicester in here are perfectly entitled to make their feelings known, & they too can either support the team or stay at home. What doesn't help anyone is the constant repetitive posts made over & over again, which, after three years have lost any credibility.

I hope that changes to the track will be made eventually, but I'm not holding my breath.

2) As far as the "bumper night's takings" robbery is concerned, does it really matter if it was the BSPA's money, or Leicester speedway's? It still doesn't alter the fact that the latest break in is the third serious blow to the business in three years. How many times can the speedway keep running if incidents like this continue (Milton Keynes anyone)?

I certainly do have a sense of humour, & try to be as fair as possible with people, but last night, after only just hearing about the break in, I had a look at the forum expecting just a tiny smidgeon of sympathy....how wrong can you be. A bit of banter hurts no one, but I thought it went way beyond that. Maybe I'm just getting old.

Anyway, I'll leave everyone to their own opinions & just keep supporting my team for as long as they continue. Lt.

 

I think this is a very fair post but I am not sure I agree with all of it.

 

I certainly think the point about Leicester's track has been made over and over again but, let's face it, its not just Robert and Volty, its virtually everyone. True, it does become repetitive but the alternative is that no-one says anything, and clearly to me that is the less preferable option.

 

I am not sure about childish but desperate is about right. Desperate to see things improve. You yourself want that; is it more likely to happen if you make noise about it or not ?

 

I am also not sure about Robert but Volty strikes me as a passionate Leicester fan who is upset and frustrated that the team he loves are slowly going down hill as a result of a promoter who apparently thinks that tracks like Scunthorpe are boring and is glad that he doesn't have one like it. That, to me, is the view of someone who doesn't live on this planet.

 

In the end, though, you're right in that it comes down to individual choice and what you do with your money. Isn't it a shame, though, that with the quality of the stadium that you have at BP you have a track that is putting literally hundreds off attending and a promoter who not only refuses to make changes but refuses to even admit they are necessary ?

 

I thought AF's comment was hilarious but the break in is anything but. In truth, it should have attracted more sympathy than it did because no-one wants to see any track suffer a financial loss of this nature.

[bornagainlion]

Firstly, I'm not defending anything that David Hemsley, or anyone else connected with the promotion may or may not haver done, or how many people they may or may not have peed off along the way. What I am saying is that:

1) For three years & more we have had people like Volty, Robert72 etc. continually banging on about the track over & over again to the point that it just looks desperate & childish. We got the message a very long time ago. I personally think the track is far from perfect & needs sorting out, but regardless of whether that work is ever done, I have made a conscious decision to support my team & continue to pay my entrance money every week. That is my decision & the decision of every other person who chooses to do the same. If however you are so unhappy with the track, or any other aspect regarding Leicester speedway, then you have the option of not attending, & if enough people choose to stay away, then there are two options left for the people who run the business, they either close the thing down, or they make the necessary changes. The people who continually knock everything Leicester in here are perfectly entitled to make their feelings known, & they too can either support the team or stay at home. What doesn't help anyone is the constant repetitive posts made over & over again, which, after three years have lost any credibility.

I hope that changes to the track will be made eventually, but I'm not holding my breath.

2) As far as the "bumper night's takings" robbery is concerned, does it really matter if it was the BSPA's money, or Leicester speedway's? It still doesn't alter the fact that the latest break in is the third serious blow to the business in three years. How many times can the speedway keep running if incidents like this continue (Milton Keynes anyone)?

I certainly do have a sense of humour, & try to be as fair as possible with people, but last night, after only just hearing about the break in, I had a look at the forum expecting just a tiny smidgeon of sympathy....how wrong can you be. A bit of banter hurts no one, but I thought it went way beyond that. Maybe I'm just getting old.

Anyway, I'll leave everyone to their own opinions & just keep supporting my team for as long as they continue. Lt.

 

Sad to hear this has happened hope most can be recovered through insurance etc.

 

The "bumber night takings robbery" was not a matter of whose money it was but a young girl and her father going about their business only to be physically and violently threatened. I remember seeing the Hemsleys at Plymouth a week or so after and they were all still visably shaken by what had happened so correct no laughing matter.

 

I do though think the part in bold is a little off the mark considering in the first season Volty was as much as a supporter of the promotion and the Lions return as most on here. He, in his opinion and from what I read, only became disillusined when promised track changes etc that he brought seasons tickets on the back of didn't happen.

Edited April 30, 2014 by bornagainlion

[Vince]

It's sometimes not hard to see why this forum is so disliked by many within the sport.

 

Covered by insurance or not it's a massive loss to any club, even if the payout covers it in full next years premiums will hurt financially. A bit of sympathy for a club that's just suffered a major blow would have been a more suitable reaction I believe.

 

It's a great little stadium and the efforts to improve the track over the past couple of years are there for anybody who looks to see. In my opinion they will hit on a solution that will provide more lines before very much longer with the work being carried out. Out of the experts on here advising them what needs doing I wonder how many have the experience of either riding or producing a Speedway track that Glyn has? Like most things what looks blindingly obvious to those with a little knowledge is actually not so through the eyes of those who have genuine expertise.

[Leicester Lion]

It's sometimes not hard to see why this forum is so disliked by many within the sport.

 

Covered by insurance or not it's a massive loss to any club, even if the payout covers it in full next years premiums will hurt financially. A bit of sympathy for a club that's just suffered a major blow would have been a more suitable reaction I believe.

 

It's a great little stadium and the efforts to improve the track over the past couple of years are there for anybody who looks to see. In my opinion they will hit on a solution that will provide more lines before very much longer with the work being carried out. Out of the experts on here advising them what needs doing I wonder how many have the experience of either riding or producing a Speedway track that Glyn has? Like most things what looks blindingly obvious to those with a little knowledge is actually not so through the eyes of those who have genuine expertise.

A variation on the 'you can't know unless you've done it yourself' argument, which does a disservice to supporters who genuinely care. It's no mystery, one doesn't need to be a rider or track preparation guru to see the dimensions of the track are inhibiting close racing.

 

What 'efforts to improve the track' have been made? Shaving a tiny amount off the inside line on the entry and exits to the bends was declared a masterstroke by the 'experts' but has actually made no discernable difference.

 

It's a crying shame that the 'genuine expertise' that is apparently such a prized commodity wasn't used in the first place before the track was built.

Edited April 30, 2014 by Leicester Lion

[Happy Hunter]

There is now a report about the break in on the Leicester Mercury website - http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Burglars-leave-trail-destruction-Leicester-s/story-21033146-detail/story.html

[Halifaxtiger]

 

What 'efforts to improve the track' have been made? Shaving a tiny amount off the inside line on the entry and exits to the bends was declared a masterstroke by the 'experts' but has actually made no discernable difference.

 

 

 

I am a big fan of Vince's posts normally, but here I agree with you.

 

I haven't seen any difference whatsoever - and from comments made, neither has anyone else.

[Vince]

First thing that struck me when I arrived on Sunday was just how much banking had been added to turns 1 & 2, it's a huge difference and I thought very noticeable. The inside line off turn 2 has also been moved in a fair amount for sure and they are now working on adding banking at the other end. The track is the shape it is and now they are working to make the best of what they have, nobody not even the 'experts' can have all the answers but my bet is that Glyn is more likely to come up with a result than somebody who has never been on a bike or worked on a track. My personal opinion is that eventually they will get there.

 

Certainly he knows a lot more about Speedway tracks than I do and if anybody thinks they know better go and have a chat with him, I learned and I've been riding bikes and building race tracks for best part of 40 years.

 

If anybody really believes that standing on the sidelines watching gives you an insight into how to work shale and how it will ride in various conditions then they are very much mistaken. You only have to look at how often riders get it wrong and have to completely change things after their first race to realise it's never that simple.

[jim the whipper]

It's sometimes not hard to see why this forum is so disliked by many within the sport.

 

Covered by insurance or not it's a massive loss to any club, even if the payout covers it in full next years premiums will hurt financially. A bit of sympathy for a club that's just suffered a major blow would have been a more suitable reaction I believe.

 

It's a great little stadium and the efforts to improve the track over the past couple of years are there for anybody who looks to see. In my opinion they will hit on a solution that will provide more lines before very much longer with the work being carried out. Out of the experts on here advising them what needs doing I wonder how many have the experience of either riding or producing a Speedway track that Glyn has? Like most things what looks blindingly obvious to those with a little knowledge is actually not so through the eyes of those who have genuine expertise.

What has leicester 's track got to do with Glyn taylor's expertise at producing a track ? he was nothing to do with the layout of the track and just does the best he can with the sows ear Hemsley marked out , because he knew better than all the experts who had already marked a track out and still tries to convince everyone there is nothing wrong with ,but of course the people who go to leicester regularly and pay their money have no right to an opinion , that should be left to experts like you who know everything becauee they visit twice a year

[weatherwatcher]

There are no 2 speedway tracks the same, and it is nothing to do with track shapes. I was always told that a good rider could, and never would blame a track for a bad ride, it is always down to the rider to get the set up of his bike to suit the track and to get to soner rather than latter to get to know how to ride the track.

I think a lot of what goes on at the Lions is down to rider comitment rather than lack of racing lines.

I have seen some good racing there and some good passes. If one or more riders can do it then so should the others be able to.

Maybe the shape and the way tracks are produced now make it that most tracks are not much different to the rest.

With the longer straights at the Lions the riders should be more than able to makes those overtaking moves but they chicken out long before they get to the bends, where there is plenty of space for them to carry the manovers through.

So yes, the track is different and yes many people want it changing, but all the moaning on here will do nothing about it what so ever.

We will have to wait out for the end of the season to see if anything will be done, not sure it will, Because there is not enough time to change what needs to be done before the end of this season.

Still not sure that there is enough room down there to play with much. To much cramped into to small a space.

Just look at other tracks to see how big the central green area's are. Make this one much smaller and you have a grass verge at the side of the road.

I would have thought that with the amount of space all around that the whole stadium would have or could have had a much larger footprint.

The Poles can do it so why do all the stadiums over here have to follow along the same old dog track stock car racing track days.

[jim the whipper]

There are no 2 speedway tracks the same, and it is nothing to do with track shapes. I was always told that a good rider could, and never would blame a track for a bad ride, it is always down to the rider to get the set up of his bike to suit the track and to get to soner rather than latter to get to know how to ride the track.

I think a lot of what goes on at the Lions is down to rider comitment rather than lack of racing lines.

I have seen some good racing there and some good passes. If one or more riders can do it then so should the others be able to.

Maybe the shape and the way tracks are produced now make it that most tracks are not much different to the rest.

With the longer straights at the Lions the riders should be more than able to makes those overtaking moves but they chicken out long before they get to the bends, where there is plenty of space for them to carry the manovers through.

So yes, the track is different and yes many people want it changing, but all the moaning on here will do nothing about it what so ever.

We will have to wait out for the end of the season to see if anything will be done, not sure it will, Because there is not enough time to change what needs to be done before the end of this season.

Still not sure that there is enough room down there to play with much. To much cramped into to small a space.

Just look at other tracks to see how big the central green area's are. Make this one much smaller and you have a grass verge at the side of the road.

I would have thought that with the amount of space all around that the whole stadium would have or could have had a much larger footprint.

The Poles can do it so why do all the stadiums over here have to follow along the same old dog track stock car racing track days.

This is classic !! hahahahahahaha

[Skodaman]

What has leicester 's track got to do with Glyn taylor's expertise at producing a track ? he was nothing to do with the layout of the track and just does the best he can with the sows ear Hemsley marked out , because he knew better than all the experts who had already marked a track out and still tries to convince everyone there is nothing wrong with ,but of course the people who go to leicester regularly and pay their money have no right to an opinion , that should be left to experts like you who know everything becauee they visit twice a year

Why insult Vince; he was only giving his honest opinion. I think the shape is wrong but I agree with what Vince says.

 

Consider heat one last weekend; The passing and repassing between Doyle and Pedersen. If they can do it, why cant others?

[weatherwatcher]

I think from some of the sad comments on here some people have not got paast they stage of reading Janet and John books yet.

What Fanmail and what I said if some riders can do do and some riders can ride BP then there is no reason at all why the other riders can't do the same.

[Vince]

What has leicester 's track got to do with Glyn taylor's expertise at producing a track ? he was nothing to do with the layout of the track and just does the best he can with the sows ear Hemsley marked out , because he knew better than all the experts who had already marked a track out and still tries to convince everyone there is nothing wrong with ,but of course the people who go to leicester regularly and pay their money have no right to an opinion , that should be left to experts like you who know everything becauee they visit twice a year

 

You should use your eyes before you start typing. Read the post immediately above yours and you will realise that I make the point that I am no expert and that Glyn has to do his best with whats there. I apologise for ruining your opportunity to have another whine though.

[BritPete]

I've worked somewhere when a group of 'travellers' set up nearby and they caused havoc - trying to break in to the premises and damaging it, stealing the guttering, defecating in the premises entrance, and scattering rubbish and litter everywhere.

And that was only the women!

[Big Al]

First thing that struck me when I arrived on Sunday was just how much banking had been added to turns 1 & 2, it's a huge difference and I thought very noticeable. The inside line off turn 2 has also been moved in a fair amount for sure and they are now working on adding banking at the other end. The track is the shape it is and now they are working to make the best of what they have, nobody not even the 'experts' can have all the answers but my bet is that Glyn is more likely to come up with a result than somebody who has never been on a bike or worked on a track. My personal opinion is that eventually they will get there.

 

Certainly he knows a lot more about Speedway tracks than I do and if anybody thinks they know better go and have a chat with him, I learned and I've been riding bikes and building race tracks for best part of 40 years.

 

If anybody really believes that standing on the sidelines watching gives you an insight into how to work shale and how it will ride in various conditions then they are very much mistaken. You only have to look at how often riders get it wrong and have to completely change things after their first race to realise it's never that simple.

These changes you noticed - when was the previous time you visited the stadium? Are they recent or could they possibly have been carried out longer ago (e.g. during winter 2012/13)?

It's true that Glyn should now have more time to devote to track matters than was the case when he was trying to combine it with managing the team, and as you say if anybody can get it right, it will be him. From what i've gleaned about track work a curator needs to be skilled in minerology, civil engineering, meteorology, horticulture, geology, and have ability with electrics - to name a few.

But no matter how good he is, or how many different methods are tried, if people continue to see or hear about mostly strung out and processional racing week after week, they're going to spend their cash and time in other ways and will become less and less likely to give it another go. Most of those who come along and want to be entertained for their money, are not much interested in the finer nuances of track preparation, and its those sort of punters who are desperately needed. We'll see if you prove right - but I'm afraid many have already made their decisions.

[Vince]

Think some were carried out the previous winter but was there a few months ago and there have been further changes since and Glyn said he was still working on changes. Hopefully he will make a small change that has a major effect soon. My personal opinion is that it could be a small change that transforms the track and that it can and will be done.

[Shale Searcher]

Well, here we go again! The thread is about the recent break-in at Leicester Speedway, it should contain sympathetic messages, perhaps offers of help to tidy up, perhaps loan offers of equipment etc, but NO, it has degenerated like every other thread involving Leicester Speedway into complaints about THE TRACK!!!!!!

That subject has been done to death, and did not need bringing up in this thread....

What you lot gonna do come Saturday, if the stadium is ,not fit to open for the meeting against Belle Vue? then the next meeting, and the next? All of a sudden no track to slag off....

Well it would serve you all right.

 

Disgusted..

[Big Al]

Think some were carried out the previous winter but was there a few months ago and there have been further changes since and Glyn said he was still working on changes. Hopefully he will make a small change that has a major effect soon. My personal opinion is that it could be a small change that transforms the track and that it can and will be done.

Thanks for the input. A balanced and thoughtful (and well-informed?) comment in defense of the Leicester track, for a change! I really do hope you prove to be right, but you can also appreciate why many have already given up and are spending time & money on other things.

[weatherwatcher]

Leicester put a lot of time and money into getting the stadium up and running. It would be a shame for some stuppid mindless idiots who have nothing better to do with thier time than to break into the stadium, Taking items that don't belong to them that seriously jepardize the club, when the time comes to renew it insurance next year as the cost are bound to go up.

This thread was not about the track and lots of people just thought it was a great big joke.

I am sure if this had been your own property that had been broken into you would look at it from a different mind.