2018 Celebration of Speedway

[Dave Stummings]

   

I’ll be off to this year’s Celebration of Speedway as it is an enjoyable day out. But I do have reservations over the price that has increased to £10 per person this year. If I am correct the event was originally free if you produced a copy of the Speedway Star advert. Then I recall it became a voluntary donation, then it was £5 and now it’s up to a tenner.

Prices for drinks and food aren’t exactly cheap either and I’m sure they would still make money by charging less. I fully except the admission price to walk around the Wildlife Park is considerably more but not everyone wants to walk around the park as nice as it is and especially if the weather is inclement!

I’m sure there are people who take advantage of the cheap price on the day to use all the facilities on site but as I say not everyone want to use them. Surely the Speedway Star idea should still be used?

I do think the event is now becoming a money earner for the park. Does money on the day go to the World Speedway Riders Association, to the park, the speedway museum [is that part of the World Speedway Riders Association?] or do they all benefit?

Maybe as an olden these days on a pension I expect too much.

High Beach the spiritual home of the first meeting did outgrow its self but it would have been an idea perhaps to have something there this year as after all it is speedways 90^th anniversary.

 

[Ghosty]

The museum is a great asset for GB speedway, if this was a stand alone facility I don't think it would work! Therefor working with the wildlife park can only be to the benefit of all parties.  

[steve roberts]

35 minutes ago, Ghosty said:

The museum is a great asset for GB speedway, if this was a stand alone facility I don't think it would work! Therefor working with the wildlife park can only be to the benefit of all parties.  

I would agree...both the museum and Wildlife Park are great attractions but to have some sort of commemoration at High Beech would have been good in my view.

[cityrebel]

I used to love the annual do at high beech, it was a real pilgrimage. Paradise park is bigger with better facilities, but kings oak was the real deal.

[steve roberts]

32 minutes ago, cityrebel said:

I used to love the annual do at high beech, it was a real pilgrimage. Paradise park is bigger with better facilities, but kings oak was the real deal.

...visited High Beech many years ago as I was passing by and got to see the plaque commemorating the very first meeting at the visitor centre next to the King's Oak. Wandered around trying to make out where the track would have been but was difficult to make out.

Well worth the visit, however, in visiting the spiritual home of the sport...although there are some claims that it started elsewhere in the UK but High Beech seems to be the accepted birthplace.

[steve roberts]

[cityrebel]

2 hours ago, steve roberts said:

...visited High Beech many years ago as I was passing by and got to see the plaque commemorating the very first meeting at the visitor centre next to the King's Oak. Wandered around trying to make out where the track would have been but was difficult to make out.

Well worth the visit, however, in visiting the spiritual home of the sport...although there are some claims that it started elsewhere in the UK but High Beech seems to be the accepted birthplace.

I guess It depends if you are a southerner or a northerner!.

[steve roberts]

20 minutes ago, cityrebel said:

I guess It depends if you are a southerner or a northerner!.

..I'm most definitely a southerner!

[Aces51]

The place to be this year is the NSS on Saturday 24th March for Belle Vue's 90th Anniversary Celebration Meeting. The only Speedway club that has run every year since 1928. No details yet on who will be racing but it's bound to be a brilliant night.

[Dave Stummings]

4 hours ago, Aces51 said:

The place to be this year is the NSS on Saturday 24th March for Belle Vue's 90th Anniversary Celebration Meeting. The only Speedway club that has run every year since 1928. No details yet on who will be racing but it's bound to be a brilliant night.

In years gone by Len Silver would have run an anniversary meeting at Rye House as it's probably the nearest track to High Beech. It's a shame the current Rye promoters didn’t have a meeting the night before the Celebration of Speedway at Rye. Yes the weather could be iffy but it couldn’t be as cold as in 1978 although of course rain may be an issue, but that can cause mayhem during the summer. But no doubt the BSPA would want a fortune to run from Rye House [or any other track] to hold a meeting out of season. But surely this would have been great PR to run a meeting close to that original date/venue and support the event. But I'm afraid in my view the sport is run by pot-bellied old men, with little or no interest in promoting speedway other than that of their own track, but what do I know!

[hammer1969]

Last year it was a voluntary donation with a suggestion of £5 a person which I believed was all donated to the speedway association.  This year it appears to be £10 entry to Paradise Park 1% of which will be donated, this works out at £1 per person. I imagine most if not all who went last year were probably giving £5 each it seems to me speedway will lose out, unless the Park are donating 1% of all visitors entry fees on Sunday as there are probably many people visiting the zoo only who would not have  been going to the Speedway Celebration.

 

[Midland Red]

1% of £10 is 10p

[hammer1969]

5 minutes ago, Midland Red said:

1% of £10 is 10p

Ooops my maths never was any good but one things for sure the money raised for speedway will be a lot less than last year, surely Paradise Park can afford to donate a bit more than that especially as the speedway fans paying £10 entry each  on Sunday probably wouldn't be there on a cold February day  apart from attenting this event. 

[hammer1969]

I'l get it right in a minute it should have read 10% not 1% so £1 donation per entry - never mind sure we'l enjoy the day as long as the weather stays dry

[Hot Shoe]

The only reason i don't go and have never been to the speedway museum is that i would never visit a zoo or a wildlife park.

[steve roberts]

1 hour ago, Hot Shoe said:

The only reason i don't go and have never been to the speedway museum is that i would never visit a zoo or a wildlife park.

Unfortunately until the human race discontinues to decimate the natural world and ivory, for example (whatever the date it was exploited) is totally banned and deemed worthless, there will be a continual need for animals to be held within some sort of controlled environment...whether it zoos, wildlife parks and reservations otherwise we will continue to see the gradual (albeit increasing) extinction of many species.

I grew up when zoos were less than satisfactory (concrete pens with bars) but things have moved on dramatically and there are some superb collections where conservation programmes are the norm.

[Hot Shoe]

34 minutes ago, steve roberts said:

Unfortunately until the human race discontinues to decimate the natural world and ivory, for example (whatever the date it was exploited) is totally banned and deemed worthless, there will be a continual need for animals to be held within some sort of controlled environment...whether it zoos, wildlife parks and reservations otherwise we will continue to see the gradual (albeit increasing) extinction of many species.

I grew up when zoos were less than satisfactory (concrete pens with bars) but things have moved on dramatically and there are some superb collections where conservation programmes are the norm.

Collections? That says it all for me.

Yes zoos have improved massively but they are still places i choose not to visit and certainly wouldn't want to contribute to money wise. If species become extinct then so be it. As someone said once 'a day with the sun on you back is worth more than a lifetime held in captivity' and i won't disagree with that.

[steve roberts]

15 minutes ago, Hot Shoe said:

Collections? That says it all for me.

Yes zoos have improved massively but they are still places i choose not to visit and certainly wouldn't want to contribute to money wise. If species become extinct then so be it. As someone said once 'a day with the sun on you back is worth more than a lifetime held in captivity' and i won't disagree with that.

...thru the actions of mankind. Evolution is one thing but the destruction of their natural habitat is quite another. 

[Hot Shoe]

23 minutes ago, steve roberts said:

...thru the actions of mankind. Evolution is one thing but the destruction of their natural habitat is quite another. 

Yes i totally agree but putting animals behind bars is not the solution. I think also that a lot of the so called 'breeding programmes' are just a way for zoos to try justify their existence because they realise that public opinion is changing on animals being kept in carptivity. Hopefully the day won't be far away when zoos become extinct.

 

[Gemini]

47 minutes ago, Hot Shoe said:

Collections? That says it all for me.

Yes zoos have improved massively but they are still places i choose not to visit and certainly wouldn't want to contribute to money wise. If species become extinct then so be it. As someone said once 'a day with the sun on you back is worth more than a lifetime held in captivity' and i won't disagree with that.

I'm sure the helpless one day old baby of some species is happy with the sun on its back before being eaten alive by a Lion, Tiger, Leopard etc. etc. in the wild.