Should Tai Woffinden Ride For Team Gb ?

[Trees]

OMG, Tai riding in the EL does nothing in passing off his knowledge.

Who do you think would benefit in the current Wolves team say if he rode for them?

How would Tai riding for Wolves benefit the Worrall brothers, Kerr, Lambert, Bates, Ellis etc etc?

 

Tai has put a plan together to deliver and share his knowledge but needs backing from the BSPA.

THEY'VE NOT SHOWN ANY INTEREST.

Where do you think the problems lie in youth progression?

 

So you've been privvy to the emails between Tai and the BSPA? Is he asking for too much money? Is the money the stumbling block, I haven't a clue, do you?

 

Of course Tai racing in the BEL would help the youngsters, he would lead by example, hopefully give them tips and help, telling them about his journey to the top, he could hold impromptu schools as he would have his machinery here, simply he would be involved in British Speedway instead of doing his thing only in Poland and Sweden.

[Red Flag]

But as a result of their communism all their tracks are state owned aren't they? But where has all this investment come from? Where do all the thousands and thousands of pounds of wages come from? Is it right that Gorzow council (or whatever it is called) have invested massively into the club, can you imagine any british town or city council prioritising a speedway club over other things? Yes, Manchester has invested in the National Stadium but they're going to get their investment back in rent ....

The BSPA have made a start with the Poultec scheme at least. Surely we need Tai to pass on his knowledge to our young riders though by racing here, being involved, being available, being a role model?[/quote Are you serious? with perhaps 1 or even 2 exceptions most of the Poultec boys will only ever be training school boys who enjoy riding [nothing wrong with that ] JPB, Jack Smith,Bickley etc are the boys we need to be investing in

[Trees]

 

But as a result of their communism all their tracks are state owned aren't they? But where has all this investment come from? Where do all the thousands and thousands of pounds of wages come from? Is it right that Gorzow council (or whatever it is called) have invested massively into the club, can you imagine any british town or city council prioritising a speedway club over other things? Yes, Manchester has invested in the National Stadium but they're going to get their investment back in rent ....

The BSPA have made a start with the Poultec scheme at least. Surely we need Tai to pass on his knowledge to our young riders though by racing here, being involved, being available, being a role model?

Are you serious? with perhaps 1 or even 2 exceptions most of the Poultec boys will only ever be training school boys who enjoy riding [nothing wrong with that ]

JPB, Jack Smith,Bickley etc are the boys we need to be investing in

It's surely a good start, they learn about everything from psychology to mechanics? Is it money or time and knowledge that these boys need. Certainly track time, I guess having the development leagues and the BNL helps, certain promoters invest in these learning leagues whereas others certainly do not.

 

If only the TV paid more for speedway ala football, then the promoters could do loads more ......

Edited July 31, 2016 by Trees

[Red Flag]

It's surely a good start, they learn about everything from psychology to mechanics? Is it money or time and knowledge that these boys need. Certainly track time, I guess having the development leagues and the BNL helps, certain promoters invest in these learning leagues whereas others certainly do not.

If only the TV paid more for speedway ala football, then the promoters could do loads more ......

But all football does is invest in foreign players and local lads who are in academies get loaned out and in the main disappear down the leagues, we need the PL to stop investing in sub standard foreigners and bring through British youngsters who will progress into the EL and then Team GB, eg Dawid Stachyra how sad is that

[Trees]

But all football does is invest in foreign players and local lads who are in academies get loaned out and in the main disappear down the leagues, we need the PL to stop investing in sub standard foreigners and bring through British youngsters who will progress into the EL and then Team GB, eg Dawid Stachyra how sad is that

Of course we need the boys to go through the system from academy, development league, NL, PL, EL then whatever. The good boys invariably do mind ..... if the promoters can give them every opportunity, the fans can help with that in attending their club meetings. To get our boys to GP standard they need club racing, hence it pees me off when people rave over the GPs but don't support our leagues.

[Chewbacca]

I can understand individual rider sponsorship fair enough.

 

But to back a Speedway nation against your own country I find very galling.

 

Its not even as though his club had any connection with any of the Aussie riders.

 

He is longstanding sponsor of Mark Lemon

[waiheke1]

No way should tai be in the team. Lacks quality at this level, and lack of practice at the NSS will count against him. He should learn what putting your country first means to true professionals like Nick Pedersen and Greg Hancock.

[Wackie]

No way should tai be in the team. Lacks quality at this level, and lack of practice at the NSS will count against him. He should learn what putting your country first means to true professionals like Nick Pedersen and Greg Hancock.

 

Yep, and pulling stunts like this won't impress anyone either!

 

https://www.facebook.com/hilary.battersby/videos/10153927065207568/

[uk_martin]

But as a result of their communism all their tracks are state owned aren't they? But where has all this investment come from? Where do all the thousands and thousands of pounds of wages come from? Is it right that Gorzow council (or whatever it is called) have invested massively into the club, can you imagine any british town or city council prioritising a speedway club over other things? Yes, Manchester has invested in the National Stadium but they're going to get their investment back in rent ....

I don't know about every stadium's ownership. Some like Gorzow are owned by local authorities, others like Torun are privately owned. There seem to be plenty of businesses prepared to invest in speedway in Poland in sponsorship of one type or another. Just look at the advertising boards in the centre greens. One stadium in Poland will have more advertisers on show than all the stadiums in the UK put together. That means money is coming in. These companies pay for sponsorship becaust they think there will be a return from the audience who see their adverts. And the people are there because the product is good, well presented and an afternoon or an evening at the races is good value entertainment.

 

Can I imagine a local authority in Britain investing in stadiums? Yes. London invested in a whole range of them for the Olympics. Birmingham has invested in the Alexander Stadium for athletics. Manchester...well, you've said yourself. Do local authorities invest in speedway...well again maybe you should look at Manchester. I don't know the full story, but I'm sure that Manchester council lent at least a helping hand to get the NSS built.

 

The BSPA have made a start with the Poultec scheme at least. Surely we need Tai to pass on his knowledge to our young riders though by racing here, being involved, being available, being a role model?

Is taking 3 years to "make a start" really something to be proud of? And what's the BSPA's involvement with it? As far as I can see, it's a private company offering a college course in the style of one of these "modern apprenticeships" that the Government are more responsible for than the BSPA. OK, so the BSPA got Poultec to run these courses. A couple of weeks worth of negotiating and then let Poultec crack on with it...what else have the BSPA done in the last 3 years?

[Trees]

The money Manchester Council has put in has to be paid back, probably at a premium?

 

I personally don't think Polish Speedway is presented any better than any other speedway meeting. They do nothing extra that I saw. But they don't need to cos the people just turn up in their thousands to support their team, they go there up for a good time, just like fans who go to Cardiff, the SWC etc. I didn't see any kids on the centre, no sponsors watching from the centre green, no supporters club presenting Rider of the Night, no child doing the coin toss. But they just don't need to, the fans turn up anyways, all they want is to see their team win, they are passionate about their teams. The top riders want to race over there. They're getting their thousands of pounds or zlotys from somewhere to pay the riders. They have it made at the moment ...... just like British Speedway did in the 50s, 60s and 70s ..... everything is easy when the money is flowing ..... but as you say all is not perfect in the Polish Speedway world.

 

As for what the BSPA has done in the last 3 years, from what I can see from the outside, I guess many promoters are shoring up the running of BNL teams and quite possibly their BPL and BEL teams because the fan base and sponsors aren't. The Poultec course has happened, whether they are financially supporting it or not ....

 

I don't know what Tai wants to happen but the riders themselves need to do all they can to be the best, surely that is what Tai has done, he has worked out what it takes, he's had the will to do it without any special support from the BSPA? If you are good enough to break into Polish and Swedish clubs then things become that much easier financially wise although you are then under plenty of pressure to perform consistently, but the Poles help their riders quite a bit don't they, cos they can, cos the fans want their teams to win full stop.

 

I haven't a clue whether any money has gone into TeamGB, I don't know if there is any money in the coffers to be invested even of course.

 

As we have seen this weekend, not even the mighty BSI/IMG can get column inches in the tabloids for speedway so what chance does the BSPA stand on that score. They do a reasonable job locally although I think more could be done of course.

 

BSI/IMG haven't found many new sponsors for their plum comps only Monster but they sponsor nearly all motorcycle sport so that's no surprise. So clearly the BSPA find that one hard ......although Buster Chapman has a league sponsor lined up for next year apparently or so I have read ....

 

I'll never be in a position to join the inner circle of the BSPA, unless I win the lottery ha, so will never know why certain things are done or not done, I'll just keep supporting my team, enjoying the racing and flying the flag

[chris4gillian]

_{This is the first chance I've had to come online since Saturday's fantastic SWC Final. I'd just like to echo many of you on here and say a huge well done to Tai and the rest of the boys for an outstanding effort.}

 

_{So as we all (well most of us) have stated from the outset, YES Tai should have ridden for Team GB and he's now proven things. Without him we would most definitely have come last. For me he was ultra professional throughout on Saturday and it was clear to see that he rides for GB with a huge amount of pride so that's gotta be the biggest custard pie ever in the face of the forums currently absent porky pier! LOVE IT!}

 

 

_{p.s. Doyley's comments were very disappointing, if Team GB were 'very weak' then the Aussies must be woeful...which we know they're not. Rather silly thing to have said.}

Edited August 1, 2016 by chris4gillian

[sparkafag]

Doyle’s comment aren’t that farfetched in all honesty.

 

Australia as a nation (Denmark, Poland, Sweden, Russia) all provide far more depth of talent than Britain currently do irrespective of the performance on Saturday, as a nation Britain is behind all despite the result of one meeting, it is regularly said on here.

[screm]

Seems Tai will be releasing a statement later today about Team GB and his thoughts on the weekend.

[sparkafag]

Re: Woffinden.

 

Not to sound what is supposedly “sycophantic” but to utterly trash the majority of comments made by Robert72, irrespective of the mostly trolling, looking for a reaction and idiotic nature of them….

 

Woffindens conduct on Saturday night was genuinely excellent from start to finish, presented himself, consciously and smartly negated questions to emphasise it wasn’t about him, was clearly hands on in his efforts to ensure the best finish possible.

 

He is also actively vocal about bettering British Speedway, be it his wants for Team GB, his openness to holding training schools or even general tweets about his feeling re the state of British tracks.

 

Not to say he should be listened to at every turn, but he should at least be used as a sounding board and conduit between Organisations/Riders re discussions about Speedway in this country given what he has already achieved in it IMO.

[SCB]

 

Yep, and pulling stunts like this won't impress anyone either!

 

https://www.facebook.com/hilary.battersby/videos/10153927065207568/

Ive not hidden the fact I' don't really like Tai, not for his riding as I love watching him race but more for his PR skills. He says and does the wrong thing very often (and I don't even care about the swearing at Cardiff) but he handled Saturday perfectly, scored the points, come across well when interviewed and IMO said the right thing ("not here to get second, even if it is nice. I want to win") and then taking that young girl onto the podium and giving her the medal, brilliant. I heard someone say how stupid giving away his medal but Tai will have many medals when he retires. On the other hand this girl will probably only ever have one. When she goes back to school (or nursery) in September and they ask her what she did this summer she can show her class a World Championship 2nd place medal and she'll have that memory for a life time and hopefully that means she'll be a speedway fan all her life too.

 

So well done Tai! You get a lot of stick, some of it deserved but you deserve all the praise going for this weekend.

[Trees]

Of course he raced really well for TeamGB, nobody can say any different whether we think he should, on principle, be in the team or not.

 

His conduct had to improve after the last GP though, jeez!

[speedibee]

 

 

But as a result of their communism all their tracks are state owned aren't they? But where has all this investment come from? Where do all the thousands and thousands of pounds of wages come from? Is it right that Gorzow council (or whatever it is called) have invested massively into the club, can you imagine any british town or city council prioritising a speedway club over other things? Yes, Manchester has invested in the National Stadium but they're going to get their investment back in rent ....

The BSPA have made a start with the Poultec scheme at least. Surely we need Tai to pass on his knowledge to our young riders though by racing here, being involved, being available, being a role model?[/quote Are you serious? with perhaps 1 or even 2 exceptions most of the Poultec boys will only ever be training school boys who enjoy riding [nothing wrong with that ] JPB, Jack Smith,Bickley etc are the boys we need to be investing in

I agree with most of that .except the Bspa doing anything , Poultec are responsible for the poultec scheme ( most likely done in spite of rather than with assistance from the BSPA ) all praise and accollades for their succesful scheme belong to them .

Edited August 1, 2016 by speedibee

[iris123]

Well they have done one thing, built a polishesque track, BV. Good start .....

 

Poland are so lucky, they have everything in place, as we all know it's not so easy here, no 24\7 tracks, no huge sponsors/promoters, no state owned tracks, few speedway only tracks, small crowds, hardly any funding from tv companies ...... our boys face an uphill battle.

 

Perhaps Tai would like to use his influence in Poland to get Robert Lambert a team spot and macinery chucked at him, he certainly has the talent.

The thing is Poland is one of the most corrupt countries in Europe.Ok,they are not quite in the Nigeria or Sudan league in world terms,but corruption runs through the whole system even into sport.Just like we have recently seen with Russia(and the suspicions are that with the Togliatti boss being gunned down on the street,speedway is also involved)it is hard to be envious of one small aspect of a country when you see what is involved.Of course we can look at the stadiums and wish we had them,but if it means all the other things invlved then honestly i'd rather have a decent country and run of the mill facilities/leagues.Poland it seems are happy taking EU development money,but don't want to make the social reforms the EU require.If that happens,i wonder if the whole speedway pack of cards will fall......

Edited August 1, 2016 by iris123

[OveFundinFan]

Interesting post Iris123. i didnt have a clue what was/is going on in Poland.

[Wackie]

Ive not hidden the fact I' don't really like Tai, not for his riding as I love watching him race but more for his PR skills. He says and does the wrong thing very often (and I don't even care about the swearing at Cardiff) but he handled Saturday perfectly, scored the points, come across well when interviewed and IMO said the right thing ("not here to get second, even if it is nice. I want to win") and then taking that young girl onto the podium and giving her the medal, brilliant. I heard someone say how stupid giving away his medal but Tai will have many medals when he retires. On the other hand this girl will probably only ever have one. When she goes back to school (or nursery) in September and they ask her what she did this summer she can show her class a World Championship 2nd place medal and she'll have that memory for a life time and hopefully that means she'll be a speedway fan all her life too.

 

So well done Tai! You get a lot of stick, some of it deserved but you deserve all the praise going for this weekend.

 

Same as that Shawn.

 

I didn't like Crump or Nicki Pedersen for years, but grew to be fans of both. I put Woffinden in the same bracket as these two, in fact there's many similar traits! But I am warming to him, can't deny that he is a fantastic to watch on track, and despite what anyone says, he is British, wants to ride for Team GB and at the moment is pretty much flying that Union Jack single handedly on the interrnational stage.

 

Will the BSPA take any notice of him and how he wants to take Team GB and British speedway forward? I doubt it, too many vested interests in their own business and not enough longterm outlook - been the same for decades, and has driven the sport into a downwards spirals in this country. It's a shame, because whatever he's done, it's obviously worked and isn't just about fast engines.

 

Was an interview with Woffinden during/after the final on Saturday where he stated the Brits got together at the start of the season for a meal and one of the riders stated that training etc. wasn't required, just the will to win - be interesting to find out who that was and whether they made the team for Saturday's final. Seems like it's not just the BSPA singing from his hymn sheet too though.

 

 

Edit: Did you see the photo's on facebook of the little girl he took onto the rostrum tucked up in bed with her medal still round her neck and that massive grin still on her face? That is priceless and one of the things I love most about this sport. Doesn't matter whether they're a PL reserve of a world champ, riders still interact at a very personal level with the fans, you don't see that in many other sports these days.

Edited August 1, 2016 by Wackie