Hammers Vs Stoke 3/9

[waco]

I thought Cook mentioned Edwards coming in at Buxton if he wants it...Personally i would prefer Championship racing next year ,,many more meetings and the riders of a similar standard throughout which could make for better racing

[liam]

I thought Cook mentioned Edwards coming in at Buxton if he wants it...Personally i would prefer Championship racing next year ,,many more meetings and the riders of a similar standard throughout which could make for better racing

I agree I would prefer championship aswell. I hope Edwards does ride at Buxton I have enjoyed watching his progress and he has had some cracking races with Nathan Ablitt before the main meetings this season, I think it's Nathan Ablitt anyway lol.

[The Voice Of Reason]

Maybe it isn't a choice between the top flight and amateur level; what about Championship Speedway (with half decent/some Premier riders) and a SECOND HALF of National League teams doing battle?

 

Whoooooops, sorry. Promoters these days giving people better value for money than 15 minutes worth of entertainment?

 

What in hell was I thinking.

[East End Fan]

The "Voice of Reason" seems to think that a second half with teams from the National League would be free of charge to the promoter.

Far from the case...ALL riders are at the very least semi-professional, so need paying. I note he refers to the current level as "amateur"

How naive is that ? Does he think that Paul, Zach and Ben ride for nothing ?

[HAMMER180]

must agree not a great meeting yesterday but as the saying goes you

can only beat whats put in front of you. the crowd was the lowest or very close to

I have seen over the arena the crowds have dwindled over the last few meetings

so I can understand why jon says its not viable things must be bad if we cant pay

the £3/400 for the sound system. on a happier note just glad we are carrying on next

season in whatever format as I was worried this year would be the last. and jons interview

yesterday there is still a glimmer of hope on our own stadium. but I do feel there needs to be

better communication at what is going on as the loyal fans like myself seem to be left out

in the cold.

[cityrebel]

There is a very long winter to negotiate first, probably one of the most important in the history of the sport.

[cityrebel]

All it needs is for the National League to declare UDI

that would suit me. It's already partly detached from the madness suffocating the sport.

[Prince Regent]

El Addio: "The problem now though, is that having lost fans by dropping down a couple of divisions, whether they can attract them back."

 

We were talking about this yesterday, but as someone said, when we dropped to the NL (or equivalent) last time, with Peter Thorogood, the crowds were probably even worse, and they did come back once we went back up to a higher level.

[cityrebel]

That was a lifetime ago though. There are a lot less punters to go around these days.

[Dave Stummings]

The hammers lost money at EL level last season. With the risk of no TV money and the loss of a Friday race night, I can't see how top flight racing is viable at arena.

I think the issues at Lakeside go far deeper than we all know. I have never been a fan of the track, but the reasons for a drop to a lower league were of course due to the money being lost over the last few years at Lakeside. Stuart Douglas has been probably the only reason Lakeside are still racing today.

To go from seeing the top riders in the then Elite league to the third tier will of course mean the gates will drop, especially as Rye House had taken the step up to the first tier of British Speedway.

Monday nights at Lakeside would I believe would be a bigger disaster next season, as this year has been. Look at the crowds when Sky Sports Monday meetings were televised, probably similar crowd to yesterday! Thursday race nights, well of course Arena have ridden before on Thursdays with reasonable crowds.

My own personal view would be second division racing, however I can’t see that being much cheaper to run than last year. In the second tier that means they could race when the club want, in conjunction with the stadium owners. However I thought the stadium was under the spotlight as being sold and that was one of the reasons Lakeside went into the NL?

Is there a way forward? If riders such as Jason Doyle don't want to ride next season unless a Monday or Thursday then let them not bother riding here in the UK. But has the UK enough riders to go around without the likes of Doyle and co? It's the GP's that have really hammered British Speedway's in to the depths is currently in. Season's finishing in late August early September is crazy. Long gone are the days when a club would have 30 home meetings a year. At least Kent are running meetings every Monday, who've probably had double the meetings Lakeside have had this season. And what of the Lakeside season ticket holders, have they lost out this year with the club pulling out of the NLKOC?

It’s all a mess at Lakeside, like the rest of British Speedway. As I said at the start of my reply to City Rebel the issues at Lakeside go far deeper than we all know.

[cityrebel]

An excellent post with some very valid points.

[The Voice Of Reason]

The "Voice of Reason" seems to think that a second half with teams from the National League would be free of charge to the promoter.

Far from the case...ALL riders are at the very least semi-professional, so need paying. I note he refers to the current level as "amateur"

How naive is that ? Does he think that Paul, Zach and Ben ride for nothing ?

No, he doesn't think they ride for nothing.

 

But please enlighten me as to how much they actually do get paid.

 

But there you go. You are clearly happy enough to pay money and watch 15 heats of a drawn-out borefest.

 

So let's do nothing. Everything will work out fine; gates will increase sooner or later, as a raft of newbies discover what excellent VFM speedway now delivers.

Edited September 4, 2017 by The Voice Of Reason

[cityrebel]

So is Mr.douglas going to bankroll this return to the top flight, or is there a new sugar daddy in the pipeline.

[marko]

Can anyone actually confirm 100% that Stuart Douglas still owns the franchise?

[KevtheRev]

As somebody that has switched from lakeside to Rye I have to ask myself several questions:

 

1. Journey time - Rye is 15 minutes further.

2. Cost - Rye is cheaper than Lakeside (last year) for admittance and program

3. Officials - Rye staff always seem happy and part of a team

4. Promoters - Huge respect from what they are trying to achieve at Rye and I just cannot trust Cook ever again. To much negativity and talking rubbish.

5. Viewing - Much closer viewing and plenty of seating at Rye

6. Weather - Rye stadium is much better protected from the weather

7. Atmosphere - Positive atmosphere and sense of belonging at Rye. The opposite at Lakeside

8. Racing - Maybe its the better viewing but I think the racing is better at Rye. The comments following the TV match were very positive.

 

Before anyone says where is your loyalty, well that will always be for Waterden Road.

 

So will I be back, Nope.

[Prince Regent]

Ok, Kev, so in your case your loyalty is to Waterden Road, not Lakeside, so fair enough. But for those whose loyalty is to Lakeside, supporting another team is unthinkable, and the facilities and everything else don't even come into it.

 

Incidentally, a few years ago, when Stuart Douglas first arrived, Lakeside was buzzing too; let's see if Rye is still the same in a few years' time (and I truly hope it is).

Edited September 4, 2017 by Prince Regent

[teaboy279]

Have Arena Essex ever had a "big" following?

[marko]

Your assuming Loyalty is blind but it is not, if the experiance you are used to changes or no longer meets your requirements then its quite possible some will seek those experiances elsewhere but more often than not they will simply drift away and not go anywhere else.

 

I have to quote your bit about Stuart Douglas and the place being lifted, that is totally correct and even when the road got a bit bumpy he would be able to address the fans and we knew, yes, this will be ok eventually, he was well respected and more importantly he was trusted with his words, he wasn't tainted like the old school speedway administrations.

Unfortunately since the apparent departure of Mr Douglas, that's where things have taken a turn, few trusts Jon Cook, his words are meaningless, he shows little to no charisma, and he clearly does not want supporters to have a voice, its his way or the highway and that's that.

[liam]

I can't believe any loyal fan of any sport would go and support another team because the facilities are better or the manager comes across better. I can't get my head around people just jumping from one team to another, maybe that's just me.

[cityrebel]

I think the problem is, a lot of the lakeside crowd used to support other teams, me included. Therefore it's a lot easier to jump ship, if you are just going to watch the racing without any bond to the team.