Coventry 2017

[Woz01]

Are you aware of who runs Brandon Estates ?

If you're implying Sandhu I gather that's not the case although I do have doubts.

[Tsunami]

I'll start this reply by saying how sorry I am for the fans of Coventry, very sad news. One of the best Speedway stadiums in the country gone.

Now I'll reply to your post.

Why would the stadium in have a "short lifespan"?

Correct I do not like the BSPA as in my opinion they are, for the most part, incompetent. The latest issue with Coventry being a good example.

Please tell me what there is to like about the BSPA?

The sport at the top level in this country cannot be a "low capital" sport and survive. You don't seem to get that. The lower divisions are the place for it to be "low capital".

How long have Sky being pumping money into the sport and where has it gone? You will say it's been distributed to the various clubs. Ok, what has it been invested in? Or more accurately what has it been spent on? And how did the clubs finance those things prior to the Sky money?

The tone of your post basically reveals that the sport will cease to exist in the near future.

Is the Sky contract now in danger due to the loss of Coventry?

 

Putting your present hatred of the BSPA to one side for a moment.

 

The BSPA is set up to run speedway, not stadia. It has never been their intention to underwrite and run a club, as, with most member clubs, the members need to be responsible for it's running and viability. If Coventry had been bought by the BSPA, and support from the team dwindled to the point of not being viable they would close it. But what then. Sell it for housing, which others were/are already unable to do so to date. It would be a millstone the other promoters, who make up the BSPA, would not want, especially as the association does not have that sort of reserves, nor would the members be prepared to put it in.

YOU do not seem to 'get it' that speedway is very much a minority sport, kept afloat by mostly sincere folks who are prepared to put some money in, usually just to keep it running. In very few cases does it provide the owners with a decent wage, or even a return of their financial investment. Speedway will never get gates like other sports like Football, Rugby, etc, so there is no case for making it a 'high capital sport" as no promotion/advertising they put into it to try, will make it substantially bigger. Remember in many cases, that speedway is not the owners main business.

You must be very new or naive not to know what happened to the new influx of SKY money around 2000. Their offer to televise the Sport was very generous, and it was seen by some as the saviour of the sport to keep it running. Unfortunately riders had other thoughts, and the top riders insisted and would not sign for the same money with top riders asking for say 4 times their previous contracts. Because some clubs could still afford it, they paid the demanded money to the riders, which made it once again hard to make the sport pay. The money may be shared out to each EL club, and some to the PL, but the money went to pay the riders demands, so an opportunity to make the sport a paying concern was lost. But you probably know that, but choose not to believe it. Tough.

The tone of the some BSF members is very much that the sport will cease to exist in the near future. But that is only some BSF members.

NO.

So it was Sandhu that promised the money?

That's what I read on here. It was stated around the time, or just after, the original head banging meeting with Councillor Stokes as part of a make and mend.

[stevebrum]

That puts some meat on the bones as what really happened and who did what. We know it was Sandhu to blame, and Horton, probably for the first time, was not a culprit but a victim.

It was clear all along let's face it, yet some are happy to blame Horton and think of Sandhu still as the saviour.

And yes I believe he is involved with Brandon Estates too.

Councilor Stokes posts certainly have given much flavour to what has been going on than any of the 3 involved put together.

[gee jay]

What infuriates and at the same time saddens me is that these money grabbing oafs have no understanding of how their decisions actually affects the fans. For my family going to Brandon for our speedway fix wasn't just about our love of speedway, it was also meeting up with the many people who we now consider to be friends. I just hope now that planning permission is never granted and that the Bees will one day return to Brandon.

you are wrong i'm affraid , they know full well , they just don't give a phutt . they can't see peoples tears from behind their piles of money.

[Tsunami]

It was clear all along let's face it, yet some are happy to blame Horton and think of Sandhu still as the saviour.

And yes I believe he is involved with Brandon Estates too.

Councilor Stokes posts certainly have given much flavour to what has been going on than any of the 3 involved put together.

I agree Steve. An apparently well liked or appreciated local Councillor gets involved to sort out a very sad situation in his constituency. One party tries his best to help, whilst the other employs wrecking tactics which eventually causes the agreement to break down. And Coventry Speedway, a well loved and supported bastion club within the Sport, is lost.

 

And then some on here would try to have you believe it's all the BSPA and Horton's fault. Unbelievable.

you are wrong i'm affraid , they know full well , they just don't give a phutt . they can't see peoples tears from behind their piles of money.

 

Correction. HE not THEY.

[The White Knight]

I would just like to offer my sympathy to the Riders and Supporters of Coventry Speedway. You must all be feeling awful now - I know I did when my Track closed.

 

I sincerely hope that a way can be found to resurrect Coventry Speedway in the very near future.

 

In the meantime, sadly all we can do is to hope for the best.

 

Very best wishes for the future.

 

Ian.

[BluPanther]

Oh bollax, what terrible news Sandhu is just a snake in the grass

[stevebrum]

I agree Steve. An apparently well liked or appreciated local Councillor gets involved to sort out a very sad situation in his constituency. One party tries his best to help, whilst the other employs wrecking tactics which eventually causes the agreement to break down. And Coventry Speedway, a well loved and supported bastion club within the Sport, is lost.

 

And then some on here would try to have you believe it's all the BSPA and Horton's fault. Unbelievable.

 

Such a shame when you have council members actually trying to keep speedway that those involved still put points scoring above anything else.

What more the BSPA could have done when it's clear there has been no intention of speedway to return is beyond me.

[Lord Skid]

Read that James Serjent is now without a Team place, does that mean a Work permit should be revoked, as one of our own is without a job, which he is fully qualified to do.

[hyderd]

Gutted, especially for the fans of this once great club, and the riders who've had their season gone before a race was raced.

I truly hope that something can come of this and a new home be found. The league table does not look the same without the Coventry Bees name there.

[False dawn]

So did Brandon Estates call in the police reference Sandhu's actions or not?

 

If they did, it makes a nonsense of the belief that these two are one and the same.

If they did, which police force is investigating this alleged offence?

If they did, why has it taken so long to progress this investigation?

If they did, would the police not say that this is a contractual dispute and therefore a civil matter?

 

If they didn't, then we have been lied to.

 

So I challenge you Brandon Estates, Tell us which police force is dealing with this dispute and the progress of that investigation. OR admit you did nothing, meaning you were quite happy to see this stadium in an unusable condition.

Actually, I'll make it easier for you. Brandon Estates, tell us anything of any substance.

 

It is clear from only a few hours real investigation that both Sandhu and Brandon Estates do not want the rest of us to know the nature and detail of their businesses. Both are clouded in mystery, intermediaries and in the case of Brandon Estates, an off shore registration.

[YerRopes]

What desperate news..

 

I shall miss my annual trip(s) to Brandon !

 

All the best Bees fans

[jenga]

not the best news everyone was waiting for .

[A ORLOV]

Really feel for the fans and the riders who have got very little time to sort something out for this year.

I saw a tweet earlier that stated that there was a delay from friday till today so that Coventry could inform the riders before this decision went public but it seems from at least one rider that he has not received any notification about the closure until he read about it today on the SGP site.

 

As others have said the league will not be the same without The Coventry Bees.

[abbo]

I congratulate Mick Horton for coming to the table eventually to partially explain the current situation on the state of the Coventry Bees. It was clear at the end of the meeting last Thursdsy that we were finished and that they were unlikely to compete the season. Correct action has been taken to allow the riders some time to get fixed up with new teams and avoid spectators losing their money on the "half season tickets".

Edited February 27, 2017 by abbo

[robert72]

If you're implying Sandhu I gather that's not the case although I do have doubts.

I didn't say Avtar Sandhu

[hyabb17]

I have a lot of sympathy for the riders signed by Coventry, how the riders found out by social media is excusable. The owners have to take responsibility for this. Why they've been string along is beyond me. I also have sympathy for the fans. Again led up the garden path. Am I surprised this has happened, no....am I'm surprised by the timing.....yes. Is the BSPA to be blamed for this.....no.

 

I hope that Cov can return from this in 2018.

Edited February 26, 2017 by hyabb17

[Jacques]

So did Brandon Estates call in the police reference Sandhu's actions or not?

 

If they did, it makes a nonsense of the belief that these two are one and the same.

If they did, which police force is investigating this alleged offence?

If they did, why has it taken so long to progress this investigation?

If they did, would the police not say that this is a contractual dispute and therefore a civil matter?

 

If they didn't, then we have been lied to.

 

So I challenge you Brandon Estates, Tell us which police force is dealing with this dispute and the progress of that investigation. OR admit you did nothing, meaning you were quite happy to see this stadium in an unusable condition.

Actually, I'll make it easier for you. Brandon Estates, tell us anything of any substance.

 

It is clear from only a few hours real investigation that both Sandhu and Brandon Estates do not want the rest of us to know the nature and detail of their businesses. Both are clouded in mystery, intermediaries and in the case of Brandon Estates, an off shore registration.

 

The force would have been Warwickshire police, Rugby.

 

 

 

 

The first question they would ask is, .Who owns the stadium and or the contents that were damaged. If it's still Sandhu, then it's his property to damage.

 

We've never really understood who owns what have we .............??

 

Once that has been established, then they would be able to make a decision as to what if any offences have been committed or whether it's a civil matter...

[G the Bee]

 

Putting your present hatred of the BSPA to one side for a moment.

 

The BSPA is set up to run speedway, not stadia. It has never been their intention to underwrite and run a club, as, with most member clubs, the members need to be responsible for it's running and viability. If Coventry had been bought by the BSPA, and support from the team dwindled to the point of not being viable they would close it. But what then. Sell it for housing, which others were/are already unable to do so to date. It would be a millstone the other promoters, who make up the BSPA, would not want, especially as the association does not have that sort of reserves, nor would the members be prepared to put it in.

YOU do not seem to 'get it' that speedway is very much a minority sport, kept afloat by mostly sincere folks who are prepared to put some money in, usually just to keep it running. In very few cases does it provide the owners with a decent wage, or even a return of their financial investment. Speedway will never get gates like other sports like Football, Rugby, etc, so there is no case for making it a 'high capital sport" as no promotion/advertising they put into it to try, will make it substantially bigger. Remember in many cases, that speedway is not the owners main business.

You must be very new or naive not to know what happened to the new influx of SKY money around 2000. Their offer to televise the Sport was very generous, and it was seen by some as the saviour of the sport to keep it running. Unfortunately riders had other thoughts, and the top riders insisted and would not sign for the same money with top riders asking for say 4 times their previous contracts. Because some clubs could still afford it, they paid the demanded money to the riders, which made it once again hard to make the sport pay. The money may be shared out to each EL club, and some to the PL, but the money went to pay the riders demands, so an opportunity to make the sport a paying concern was lost. But you probably know that, but choose not to believe it. Tough.

The tone of the some BSF members is very much that the sport will cease to exist in the near future. But that is only some BSF members.

NO.

That's what I read on here. It was stated around the time, or just after, the original head banging meeting with Councillor Stokes as part of a make and mend.

 

If anything proves what a short-sighted organisation, stumbling along from one-year to the next, the BSPA are, it is the events that have culminated in today's state of affairs.

 

We can talk all we like about whether Sandhu, Horton or the BSPA are to blame. As I said in a previous post, the real damage was done in 2002 when the Ochiltrees sold to a speedway outsider.

 

To my mind, the BSPA should never have let Brandon be sold outside the sport. It was well known around that time that the Ochiltrees were looking to sell or, at the least, looking for extra investment. The BSPA should have had a bit of foresight and purchased the stadium from the Ochiltrees. It could then have been turned into a centre of excellence for the sport. The administrative offices would have moved there from Rugby, a youth academy could have been set up, every major BSPA shared event could have been held there (it's central location with excellent motorway facilities would have made it ideal for this). The stadium could have been available for riders to practise outside of meeting times. We all know that a constant bugbear of British riders is that they struggle to get the same amount of practise time as their Polish counterparts. The possibilities were huge.

 

The running of the Bees as a speedway team could then have been franchised out to a licensed promoter at a fair and reasonable price and made money for the association. The stock cars, which draw excellent crowds, could also have made money.

 

Over time, Brandon could have become speedway's equivalent to Twickenham (albeit a stadium which also stages weekly league meetings and, of course, on a much smaller scale).

 

As good a stadium as Belle Vue's National Speedway Stadium is, I've constantly found it a source of amusement that we have spent years bigging up the development of, and giving a fancy (meaningless) name to a new stadium which is no better than Brandon (at least a Brandon which had not been allowed to deteriorate for the last 10 or so years).

 

Of course, for this to happen, it would have meant that the BSPA promoters (of all leagues) would have had to have seen past the self-interest, partisanship and short-term thinking that has always characterised their organisation.

 

It was never going to happen, was it.

 

Hence the greatest stadium in the sport at the time was sold to someone who wanted the land to build houses on. And here we are, 14 years down the line, reaping the results of the BSPA's lack of vision (in more ways than one).

Edited February 26, 2017 by G the Bee

[waiheke1]

Awful news and awful timing. Sympathies to the Bees fans and hoping this is just a single year. Fond memories of trips to Brandon as a youngster.