Tai Woffinden book at £8.99

[fatface]

33 minutes ago, Sidney the robin said:

 better than Craven, Collins,Lee a big NO for me.

 

 

 

Are you absolutely sure of that Sidney?  

[Sidney the robin]

21 minutes ago, falcace said:

Are you absolutely sure of that Sidney?  

Totally falcace  for me Barty and Ward were better riders than Woffinden both riders in his era.One of those was  never given the chance to prove it.

Edited May 3, 2020 by Sidney the robin

[AFCB Wildcat]

36 minutes ago, Sidney the robin said:

He was very very lucky to even get another shot at the big time without really earning it.He forgets that big time.Saying all of that i have to admire him he got fitter more professional moved up a few levels better than Craven, Collins,Lee a big NO for me.

 

 

 

Yes I agree, I have nothing but admiration for what he has achieved and the sacrifices and work he has put in to achieve it. I'm certainly not a hater.

It must be frustrating too when you're putting in the hard yards and your team mates aren't,  I get that.

He's right about fitness, no doubt. Look at Dave Norris. He spent most of his career playing at it then after cutting out the booze and getting himself fit he almost became a world beater till injury ended his career. I wonder what could have been if he'd done it earlier? 

There's been plenty of Aussies too though that have come here and lived the party life style without attracting Tai's criticism. It's his almost resentment of his heritage that doesn't sit comfortably with me. I understand though that after living surfboard lifestyle in the sun then moving to a caravan in Scunthorpe you might have a tainted view of the UK!

[Sidney the robin]

10 minutes ago, AFCB Wildcat said:

Yes I agree, I have nothing but admiration for what he has achieved and the sacrifices and work he has put in to achieve it. I'm certainly not a hater.

It must be frustrating too when you're putting in the hard yards and your team mates aren't,  I get that.

He's right about fitness, no doubt. Look at Dave Norris. He spent most of his career playing at it then after cutting out the booze and getting himself fit he almost became a world beater till injury ended his career. I wonder what could have been if he'd done it earlier? 

There's been plenty of Aussies too though that have come here and lived the party life style without attracting Tai's criticism. It's his almost resentment of his heritage that doesn't sit comfortably with me. I understand though that after living surfboard lifestyle in the sun then moving to a caravan in Scunthorpe you might have a tainted view of the UK!

His stance with England  really  p......d  me off who is he to dictate and preach how our Country progresses.He  could not be bothered to ride in British Finals( often commentated though!!!) also how many of those Ben fund meetings over the years could he be assed to ride in.? Was never a mate of Rossiter ever but Woffinden made his position with England unteniable  for me Woffinden is what he is all  out for HIMSELF alone.

Edited May 3, 2020 by Sidney the robin

[craigACE]

i thought the book would have sold more and got a better reaction that it has got. For me seeing it on the shelves in a big supermarket makes it worth it just for that.

[noaksey]

I was disappointed with it. Struggled to pick it up. 

[waiheke1]

5 hours ago, Sidney the robin said:

His stance with England  really  p......d  me off who is he to dictate and preach how our Country progresses.He  could not be bothered to ride in British Finals( often commentated though!!!) also how many of those Ben fund meetings over the years could he be assed to ride in.? Was never a mate of Rossiter ever but Woffinden made his position with England unteniable  for me Woffinden is what he is all  out for HIMSELF alone.

What are your thoughts on Peter Collins who made himself unavailable for test matches for England in 85, and turned his back on British speedway for a year in 1981. Do you think he would have returned to British speedway in 82 if the premiere domestic speedway league was overseas? More or less selfish? 

[chunky]

1 hour ago, waiheke1 said:

What are your thoughts on Peter Collins who made himself unavailable for test matches for England in 85, and turned his back on British speedway for a year in 1981. Do you think he would have returned to British speedway in 82 if the premiere domestic speedway league was overseas? More or less selfish? 

We've been through this several times... PC isn't the only rider to have done this over the years, and when falcace made a well-thought-out recent post on here about top riders "looking out for themselves", that caused a real stir...

[Sidney the robin]

10 hours ago, waiheke1 said:

What are your thoughts on Peter Collins who made himself unavailable for test matches for England in 85, and turned his back on British speedway for a year in 1981. Do you think he would have returned to British speedway in 82 if the premiere domestic speedway league was overseas? More or less selfish? 

Missing 1981 was that more because of the  Injury he sustained at Cradley Heath??? he never totally recovered from that.And you would have to say he always proudly put on that England race jacket  on  over the years and riding internationally then usually cost you money to do so.

[Hacksaw Jim Duggan]

"Woffinden is only in it for himself" yes, if you just completely ignore the detail he goes into when explaining he isn't and actually wants to drag Team GB up to his level. 

Woffinden has treated the GB race jacket with more respect than those who are seen as "pure" and "honest" - his views and outlook has seen him reach the pinnacle of the sport multiple times, he probably is worth listening to. 

Without his presence in recent years Britain would have been a kick in the arse of being at the level of a side like Germany  on the world stage.  Thankfully for GB he has used the system to his advantage as his doing so has worked for the advantage of Team GB

Edited May 4, 2020 by Hacksaw Jim Duggan

[fatface]

10 hours ago, waiheke1 said:

What are your thoughts on Peter Collins who made himself unavailable for test matches for England in 85, and turned his back on British speedway for a year in 1981. Do you think he would have returned to British speedway in 82 if the premiere domestic speedway league was overseas? More or less selfish? 

PC, Lee, Mauger, Briggs, Olsen, Penhall, pick anyone you like. If they were in the modern era, they would not be riding in Britain, they would be straight where the richest pickings were. To suggest they raced in the UK out of loyalty and/or pride above finance is hopelessly naive. 

Edited May 4, 2020 by falcace

[steve roberts]

Just now, falcace said:

PC, Lee, Mauger, Briggs, Olsen, Penhall, pick anyone you like. If they were in the modern era, they would not be riding in Britain, they would be straight were the richest pickings were. To suggest they raced in the UK out of loyalty and/or pride above finance is hopelessly naive. 

They were all taking rich pickings on the continent on Sundays as well as fullfilling British League engagements but it's all pretty academic really.

[fatface]

1 minute ago, steve roberts said:

They were all taking rich pickings on the continent on Sundays as well as fullfilling British League engagements but it's all pretty academic really.

Of course. And if there were more lucrative league speedway outside of the UK, that would be their priority. It's silly to debate otherwise. 

[steve roberts]

2 minutes ago, falcace said:

Of course. And if there were more lucrative league speedway outside of the UK, that would be their priority. It's silly to debate otherwise. 

Also one needs to remember that some riders were riding 3 -4 times a week in Britain in what was a pretty comprehensive fixture list unlike today.

[DC2]

6 minutes ago, steve roberts said:

They were all taking rich pickings on the continent on Sundays as well as fullfilling British League engagements but it's all pretty academic really.

 

Penhall didn’t ride many UK seasons, did he?

As regards the others, let’s face it, the British League was the biggest and best in the world in the 70s so why wouldn’t they ride here!

[steve roberts]

22 minutes ago, DC2 said:

 

Penhall didn’t ride many UK seasons, did he?

As regards the others, let’s face it, the British League was the biggest and best in the world in the 70s so why wouldn’t they ride here!

...and, of course, it was always said that to become World Champion one had to compete in Britain (despite a couple of exceptions!) regularly riding against the best and even Egon Muller took up the chance (1976) so as to tune himself up for the forthcoming World Final before disappearing...but as I say it's all pretty academic and the 'goal posts' were moved many years ago now with different criteria at play.

Edited May 4, 2020 by steve roberts

[fatface]

57 minutes ago, steve roberts said:

Also one needs to remember that some riders were riding 3 -4 times a week in Britain in what was a pretty comprehensive fixture list unlike today.

It certainly would be interesting to compare the schedules of the top riders of yesteryear with today's top riders.

It's a bit apples and pears of course because the stars of the 70s and 80s would spend the majority of their week in the UK, with perhaps one lucrative Sunday in Germany, as opposed to today's riders racing in 3-4 countries every week taking multiple leagues and GPs into account. I suspect the schedules would be comparable. I would imagine Nicki Pedersen has been the busiest rider of the modern era, balancing commitments in Sweden, Poland, UK, Russia, Denmark and GPs.

[Sidney the robin]

2 hours ago, falcace said:

PC, Lee, Mauger, Briggs, Olsen, Penhall, pick anyone you like. If they were in the modern era, they would not be riding in Britain, they would be straight where the richest pickings were. To suggest they raced in the UK out of loyalty and/or pride above finance is hopelessly naive. 

You are totally  right but to get to the top in speedway then you had to ride in England.Also we all know Mauger, Briggs, Ole, PC, Lee (etc) over the years turned down endless chances of making more money on lucrative continental engagements.

 

[iris123]

Think if I remember rightly Fundin had quite a hectic schedule, what with being based in out of the way Norwich in the days of old cars and not so great roads and then fitting in Sweden and world championship rounds abroad. The British riders had it better i'd guess. Especially those based in London

[steve roberts]

1 hour ago, falcace said:

It certainly would be interesting to compare the schedules of the top riders of yesteryear with today's top riders.

It's a bit apples and pears of course because the stars of the 70s and 80s would spend the majority of their week in the UK, with perhaps one lucrative Sunday in Germany, as opposed to today's riders racing in 3-4 countries every week taking multiple leagues and GPs into account. I suspect the schedules would be comparable. I would imagine Nicki Pedersen has been the busiest rider of the modern era, balancing commitments in Sweden, Poland, UK, Russia, Denmark and GPs.

I remember reading an article about Peter Collins and he said that during one period during the seventies he rode over a three week period something like 19 meetings or something similar and that wasn't uncommon he stated?

Edited May 4, 2020 by steve roberts