NO WORD FROM THE BSPA

[SPEEDY69]

22 minutes ago, acef said:

Which is completely out of order. I'm sure the whole forum knows who we are talking about and he has a BIG voice on the committee. 

Its exactly this type of scenario that needs to stop. 

Quite literally, 3 clubs could potentially fold just to protect his own business 

I'm also almost certain of the fact that Scunthorpe have avoided the league's top two teams in the Shield semis is nothing to do with Godfrey.

[NeilWatson]

10 minutes ago, SPEEDY69 said:

I'm also almost certain of the fact that Scunthorpe have avoided the league's top two teams in the Shield semis is nothing to do with Godfrey.

You would be correct - and don’t forget that on a +/- basis Workington are actually the top team!

[SPEEDY69]

5 minutes ago, NeilWatson said:

You would be correct - and don’t forget that on a +/- basis Workington are actually the top team!

I can't be the only one who doesn't really understand that.  When I look at the Championship table, it shows:

1	Peterborough	13	7	0	1	1	1	1	2	0	607	563	32
2	Lakeside	11	6	0	0	1	1	0	0	3	549	437	25
3	Glasgow	10	6	0	0	0	0	0	1	3	467.5	431.5	19
4	Berwick	12	6	0	1	0	0	0	1	4	537	541	19
5	Workington	9	2	0	0	1	2	0	1	3	408.5	399.5	17

 

So how Workington are actually top is beyond me.

[NeilWatson]

1 minute ago, SPEEDY69 said:

I can't be the only one who doesn't really understand that.  When I look at the Championship table, it shows:

1	Peterborough	13	7	0	1	1	1	1	2	0	607	563	32
2	Lakeside	11	6	0	0	1	1	0	0	3	549	437	25
3	Glasgow	10	6	0	0	0	0	0	1	3	467.5	431.5	19
4	Berwick	12	6	0	1	0	0	0	1	4	537	541	19
5	Workington	9	2	0	0	1	2	0	1	3	408.5	399.5	17

 

So how Workington are actually top is beyond me.

+/- measures away match points won less home match points lost and is a measure of form when the number of matches raced is unequal.

[NeilWatson]

http://www.speedway-forum.co.uk/forums/index.php?/topic/86535-away-points-won-minus-home-points-lost/

 

[lucifer sam]

Out of those three teams I would have said Scunny would have preferred Peterborough - we always go well around there.  So any conspiracy theory regarding the draw is daft.

[SPEEDY69]

9 minutes ago, NeilWatson said:

+/- measures away match points won less home match points lost and is a measure of form when the number of matches raced is unequal.

Thanks for the explanation.

I really don't see the point myself, or why it's not shown alongside the actual old-school table but why not take it further - by taking into account what teams have been raced against and how good they are, factor in the line-ups and track conditions as well so that a real analysis of form can be made............ 

[SPEEDY69]

2 minutes ago, lucifer sam said:

Out of those three teams I would have said Scunny would have preferred Peterborough - we always go well around there.  So any conspiracy theory regarding the draw is daft.

Really?  You'd rather take on a team that have beaten you home and away this season than a team who you mullered at home 54-36????

[lucifer sam]

Just now, SPEEDY69 said:

Really?  You'd rather take on a team that have beaten you home and away this season than a team who you mullered at home 54-36????

Apart from Stevie Worrall, we had the full team out against Workington.  Scunny normally strong around Peterborough - not always the case at Workington.  Plus Workington are the team in form at the moment. 

[acef]

1 hour ago, GWC said:

Peter Collins made the comment some years ago that since moving to lay down engines the majority of UK tracks are not wide enough to provide fast and safe racing.

Its the width/entrance to the corners that causes the issue. It's not the size. Scunthorpe is one of the best tracks in the UK and one of the smallest. 

The lay down has caused an issue but that is purely evolution of the bikes. It works everywhere else. 

You can't change the bikes to suit the tracks in one country alone. It would have to be done across the board. Given the product is absolutely fine on the continent where the sport is at its strongest, I find it delusional that some people want to start pissing around with the bikes themselves. 

The implications of that if we did it in the UK would kill the sport here. It would be curtains. 

[acef]

55 minutes ago, SPEEDY69 said:

I'm also almost certain of the fact that Scunthorpe have avoided the league's top two teams in the Shield semis is nothing to do with Godfrey.

Across the BSPA some people are heard more than others. That is bullrubbish. It needs to stop. It's this individual, selfish mentality that has created such instability throughout the committee. 

Theses people don't think of the sport. They think about where there own investment is and that is where it ends. I actually get it to a degree, but we are at the stage now where everyone needs to come together or they will have no assets to protect. 

[jenga]

so whats the difference between lay down engines and uprights ? please dont post the obvious .

[SPEEDY69]

46 minutes ago, lucifer sam said:

Apart from Stevie Worrall, we had the full team out against Workington.  Scunny normally strong around Peterborough - not always the case at Workington.  Plus Workington are the team in form at the moment. 

How far are you going back  for 'normally' - they lost home and away in 2017 as well.  Perhaps it wasn't Godfrey's choice, perhaps it wasn't the reduced travelling costs either, perhaps it was a plain old draw - but given the record of the BSPA and previous 'draws' e.g. British semi finals it's easy to see why conspiracies are thought of.  I still can't get over the Rye debacle and promoters circling like vultures around their riders.

[THE DEAN MACHINE]

2 hours ago, acef said:

The sport has developed. The sport has moved forward. The equipment is better than its ever been. 

The bikes are not the issue. The tracks are. If it works on the continent then it's the tracks that must change. The sport of speedway can't be different in one country alone. Its has to be uniform and unfortunately GB doesn't fit the in the jigsaw with the current state of the circuits. 

Developed into what ? Bikes that don’t work in the wet or on anything other than a billiard table of a track, if tracks need to be like BV then why are the crowds so low ? Even the poles are looking into  engines, tracks have worked before with different engines, and people who think big tracks are the answer are wrong, 2 big tracks in poland are Gdańsk and gorzow, both get big crowds both have poor racing . I don’t think people are grasping how close other teams are to going the same way as rye house and it’s nothing to do with the size of the tracks or the engines being ridden, but unless costs are addressed the riders are going to be well out of pocket 

Edited July 17, 2018 by THE DEAN MACHINE

[THE DEAN MACHINE]

33 minutes ago, jenga said:

so whats the difference between lay down engines and uprights ? please dont post the obvious .

The laydown revs a lot more although by now even on uprights  they would of got the revs up but the biggest difference is the chassis they are in, uprights are a fair bit more ridged, the problem isn’t the laydown engine, it’s the type of laydown engine, the early longstoke laydown we’re probably the best engine the sport has ever had 

[Argos]

How about back to the subject 

[moxey63]

57 minutes ago, Argos said:

How about back to the subject 

... still no word from the BSPA?

[Daytripper]

57 minutes ago, Argos said:

How about back to the subject 

 Yes back to the subject. The BSPA have now pulled the plug on the   Lakeside -v- Peterborough fixture on 27th July. This fixture has now  been submitted, approved , withdrawn, re-instated and  withdrawn again. This would have been a profitable fixture for Lakeside , partly because it is the start of the school holidays, and partly because Peterborough is near enough to attract more visiting fans than most other clubs. Interestingly, it so happens that Scunthorpe are racing the same day.

Still no comment from the BSPA.

There was a BSPA meeting due to be held today. It remains to be seen whether the fans are given more   information after todays conflab, or whether we will once again be referred to the nearest brick wall for a full statement.

[SteveLyric2]

Having spent the last 2 hours going through this whole thread (yes sad isn't it?!) and also reading the SS every week, it seems to me that the sport will never reach a true concensus for the way forward even if it managed to get views from 75% of its patrons - and by 'patrons'' I include sponsors, advertisers and fans as well as riders/mechanics/tuners etc.

IMO the average fan wants to be entertained and get value for money. We must also accept that some fans (and clubs) both current and lapsed will also want what they deem to be 'top level speedway with top stars competing' whilst others will simply want regular good racing at a decent price.

As life in general - and speedway in particular - is all about compromise and choices, why not try:-

A 'One League' model comprising all current PL and CL clubs (plus a seperate NL as now) at around or slightly above the current Championship level, possibly split into regions;

Teams comprising 5 or 6 riders only, and featuring only those riders who are based in UK for the whole season.

13 heat format, with some form of engine restriction/moderation for the bikes.

Adult Admission no more than £12; with very good family ticket prices.

PLUS - for those clubs/fans who have a history of and  feel that they would only support a strong top league, let them form a 'Super Elite League' if they feel it would work for them. So what if it might only have a handful of clubs and fixtures, but it features a good number of 'top' riders, if it works for them at whatever admission price would need to be set, then let them do it?! Some sponsors would definitely support it!

If it doesn't work then th'ey can still fall back to the 'One league' option the following season.?

 

Edited July 17, 2018 by Skidder1

[GWC]

2 hours ago, acef said:

Its the width/entrance to the corners that causes the issue. It's not the size. Scunthorpe is one of the best tracks in the UK and one of the smallest. 

The lay down has caused an issue but that is purely evolution of the bikes. It works everywhere else. 

You can't change the bikes to suit the tracks in one country alone. It would have to be done across the board. Given the product is absolutely fine on the continent where the sport is at its strongest, I find it delusional that some people want to start pissing around with the bikes themselves. 

The implications of that if we did it in the UK would kill the sport here. It would be curtains. 

The majority of European tracks are purpose built for speedway.

UK has a history of a uding greyhound tracks as a venue to fit a track into. It’s part one of the evolution of the sport pre war and after and without those tracks speedway would never have suceeded and become a world sport.

It was fine to a point when the bikes were less powerful but the faster you go the narrower the track gets, try it on the motorway!

Changing track dimensions within the confines of an out of date stadia has been an on going challenge and has resulted in the drop in racing quality over safety in some cases ie overtaking!