Kent Kings 2020?

[mac101]

there will be covid restrictions also to deal with inside stadiums so it won’t be 50% more like 25% capacity 

[East End Fan]

6 hours ago, mac101 said:

there will be covid restrictions also to deal with inside stadiums so it won’t be 50% more like 25% capacity 

This comment from Mac101 highlighted for me how difficult this period is and has been for all the promoters up and down the country.

They have all the normal considerations now added to countless Covid restrictions. And no one is giving them more money to compensate

for the extra work ( and obviously extra costs too ).  Yet there are some on this forum who are very critical of their own promoter or manager.

Some seem so fed up that they suggest that their time following our sport is about over.  Sad people. They need to consider the times we are

living through.

[Sings4Speedway]

10 hours ago, East End Fan said:

This comment from Mac101 highlighted for me how difficult this period is and has been for all the promoters up and down the country.

They have all the normal considerations now added to countless Covid restrictions. And no one is giving them more money to compensate

for the extra work ( and obviously extra costs too ).  Yet there are some on this forum who are very critical of their own promoter or manager.

Some seem so fed up that they suggest that their time following our sport is about over.  Sad people. They need to consider the times we are

living through.

Little bit bemused by the post above. You state that people need to consider the times we are living through and prioritise speedway? Im sorry i love the sport but given the current times its pretty low down the list of priorities for many, promotions do have additional challenges to face and there may be extra costs/reduced capacity but those problems shouldn't be pushed directly onto the paying public thats just lazy and short sighted business. Promotors may be barmy to run a team but it is solely their choice to do it, i personally am grateful that they do decide to do it but i don't feel in any way obligated to make sure that they succeed.

[East End Fan]

8 hours ago, Sings4Speedway said:

Little bit bemused by the post above. You state that people need to consider the times we are living through and prioritise speedway? Im sorry i love the sport but given the current times its pretty low down the list of priorities for many, promotions do have additional challenges to face and there may be extra costs/reduced capacity but those problems shouldn't be pushed directly onto the paying public thats just lazy and short sighted business. Promotors may be barmy to run a team but it is solely their choice to do it, i personally am grateful that they do decide to do it but i don't feel in any way obligated to make sure that they succeed.

What a ridiculous viewpoint.  If there are additional costs for ANY entertainment it has naturally got to be passed on to the public who enjoy it.

All businesses are in being to earn a profit. That is what makes the World go round.  Why on earth should a Speedway promoter be expected to

put his hand in his pocket so that the fans can enjoy what he is paying for ?   I am sure many of them actually do that...but NOT from choice, of

that I am sure. If fans do not support their club, it will die and their pleasure ceases. Simple really and I am very happy to pay my share of the 

costs so that I can get my once a week fix of Speedway.  Been like that since I was a teenager and that was a very long time ago.

[Sings4Speedway]

1 hour ago, East End Fan said:

What a ridiculous viewpoint.  If there are additional costs for ANY entertainment it has naturally got to be passed on to the public who enjoy it.

All businesses are in being to earn a profit. That is what makes the World go round.  Why on earth should a Speedway promoter be expected to

put his hand in his pocket so that the fans can enjoy what he is paying for ?   I am sure many of them actually do that...but NOT from choice, of

that I am sure. If fans do not support their club, it will die and their pleasure ceases. Simple really and I am very happy to pay my share of the 

costs so that I can get my once a week fix of Speedway.  Been like that since I was a teenager and that was a very long time ago.

Sadly i don't quite share age old views of "use it or lose it" clubs, promotions or any other business be it sport or entertainment do need to balance the books but to constantly push the cost onto the end user is very short sighted. Looking at expenditure,  wastage and miss management are far better options. I would be very surprised (if an appeal was launched) that there wouldn't be a willing army of volunteers who would be happy to help/clean in exchange for a free entry. Minor loss of income to the club but happy existing customer base and potential gain of useful volunteer help.

[East End Fan]

16 hours ago, Sings4Speedway said:

Sadly i don't quite share age old views of "use it or lose it" clubs, promotions or any other business be it sport or entertainment do need to balance the books but to constantly push the cost onto the end user is very short sighted. Looking at expenditure,  wastage and miss management are far better options. I would be very surprised (if an appeal was launched) that there wouldn't be a willing army of volunteers who would be happy to help/clean in exchange for a free entry. Minor loss of income to the club but happy existing customer base and potential gain of useful volunteer help.

I think that most Speedways already use lots of volunteer labour already.  What extra ones would make it all viable Sings ?  And a volunteer who gets free entry is

actually being paid whatever the cost of entry is, so the club pay one way or. another.  If Sings does not consider the "Use or Lose it" philosophy to be true, he must

come from another Planet. If we stopped going to Speedway, the sport would die...as it has in so many places in the past. If the "end user" does not pay the costs,

then who does ? Every business is only viable so long as the income from the end user pays all the costs plus a little more for a profit margin.  What other way could

there possibly be ???

[Sings4Speedway]

2 hours ago, East End Fan said:

I think that most Speedways already use lots of volunteer labour already.  What extra ones would make it all viable Sings ?  And a volunteer who gets free entry is

actually being paid whatever the cost of entry is, so the club pay one way or. another.  If Sings does not consider the "Use or Lose it" philosophy to be true, he must

come from another Planet. If we stopped going to Speedway, the sport would die...as it has in so many places in the past. If the "end user" does not pay the costs,

then who does ? Every business is only viable so long as the income from the end user pays all the costs plus a little more for a profit margin.  What other way could

there possibly be ???

Its entirely a clubs choice how they operate but as ive said on other topics a price increase could easily force spectators away especially in a sport that is in my opinion right at the top of its price point.  

Use it or lose it is fair enough but if the value, entertainment or any other reason is enough to stop people attending then tracks will close the same way as a shop not offering value or a relevant product would fold. 

Businesses such as speedway need to look at ways of reducing costs to maintain a level of financial standing rather than continually forcing prices up. The numbers who will blindly pay any price are rapidly dwindling.

[East End Fan]

On 5/1/2021 at 4:05 PM, Sings4Speedway said:

Its entirely a clubs choice how they operate but as ive said on other topics a price increase could easily force spectators away especially in a sport that is in my opinion right at the top of its price point.  

Use it or lose it is fair enough but if the value, entertainment or any other reason is enough to stop people attending then tracks will close the same way as a shop not offering value or a relevant product would fold. 

Businesses such as speedway need to look at ways of reducing costs to maintain a level of financial standing rather than continually forcing prices up. The numbers who will blindly pay any price are rapidly dwindling.

Do you think that promoters do not think about ways of cutting costs ? Of course they do, just like all business people.  But since time began, prices have 

steadily risen in all things, food, materials and entertainment....just as wages have risen over the years. When I earned £5 a week it was 2 shillings to go

to Speedway.. Sings wants the world to change to suit him.  Well...It will not.

[lewy]

I don't know what the fuss is about 15 to 20 quid is not unreasonable imo,especially compared to other motorsports

[Sings4Speedway]

5 hours ago, East End Fan said:

Do you think that promoters do not think about ways of cutting costs ? Of course they do, just like all business people.  But since time began, prices have 

steadily risen in all things, food, materials and entertainment....just as wages have risen over the years. When I earned £5 a week it was 2 shillings to go

to Speedway.. Sings wants the world to change to suit him.  Well...It will not.

Sadly i do feel that some promotions dont think hard enough. Im not pointing the finger solely at Kent for that.

Im certainly not going to dig into how much admission has risen vs average wage increases that would be digging out figures to suit my point and anyone can do that. 

I dont want the world to change for me in the grand scheme im just as thoroughly irrelevant as you are. What i want is the sport to think and evolve so it has a chance of survival rather than hanging on with back dated ideas. 

[Bagpuss]

5 hours ago, lewy said:

I don't know what the fuss is about 15 to 20 quid is not unreasonable imo,especially compared to other motorsports

It’s all about VFM though......how often is a night out at speedway in this country worth 15-20 sheets? 

[StevePark]

10 hours ago, Bagpuss said:

It’s all about VFM though......how often is a night out at speedway in this country worth 15-20 sheets? 

Could be worse.  You could be paying £100, just like the F1 GP at Silverstone, to watch follow the leader there.

[IronScorpion]

1 hour ago, StevePark said:

Could be worse.  You could be paying £100, just like the F1 GP at Silverstone, to watch follow the leader there.

But you only see part of the track unless you are looking at the big screens which is the tv footage which also tells the story that if you are watching the big screens, you might as well be at home unless you like the atmosphere.

[Pinny]

1 hour ago, StevePark said:

Could be worse.  You could be paying £100, just like the F1 GP at Silverstone, to watch follow the leader there.

But people year on year pay in huge numbers to go. 
 

Speedway would love to have that many fans through the gates even if they all paid 20pence each to get in. 

[geoff100]

1 hour ago, StevePark said:

Could be worse.  You could be paying £100, just like the F1 GP at Silverstone, to watch follow the leader there.

F1 GP let the drivers practice for 3 days then put the fastest at the front and call it racing 

[Tinker]

18 hours ago, lewy said:

I don't know what the fuss is about 15 to 20 quid is not unreasonable imo,especially compared to other motorsports

Agree entirely. I have been to many speedway meetings over the years and have never felt short changed. Some great matches and some not so good ones but that's just like any other sport. It's always the anticipation of thinking it's going to be a great meeting.

In the grand scheme of things I don't think people should moan about having to pay £15 to £18 per meeting.

[StevePark]

2 hours ago, Richard Weston said:

£100, blimey you do Silverstone on the cheap.

I don't do Silverstone at all....... but.....

https://www.silverstone.co.uk/events/formula-1-british-grand-prix/tickets

[old bob at herne bay]

Comparisons with a F1 meeting to a league speedway meeting are irrelevant. Maybe a speedway GP meeting is a more reasonable comparison. Even then they are entirely different sports that attract a different crowd. The F1 boys complain that speedway riders just go round and round in circles and follow the leader ! Bottom line is that the crowds turn up for F1 worldwide in far greater numbers than speedway GPs. 

In my “career “ of supporting speedway, I have felt short changed on several occasions.

Endless delays to meetings due to so many excuses too numerous to mention...standing on a grass/mud bank in spartan conditions which often result in.........

matches finished early due to “curfews” usually due to incompetent refereeing and/or meeting presentation. Declared result with 12 heats and no refunds.

Arriving at stadiums to discover teams missing top riders and using R/R . ( pre internet days) now check online before travelling. Teams of 6 or even 5 riders

........infamous match England vs USA at Ipswich cancelled at short notice due to lack of a USA team! Wasted journey of 200 miles on a sunny evening. 

My £20 now pays for 15 heats, maybe only 12 with a declared result, as against my 2 bob paying for 19 or 20 heats . Oh yes 3d. for a programme, now laughingly priced at £3. Delays and more delays don’t deliver value  for money for me and maybe have attended my last speedway meeting. 

I do however have to defend the Kent Kings stadium,  who possibly have the best appointed spectator facilities in British Speedway. 

 

 

[topaz325]

1 hour ago, StevePark said:

I don't do Silverstone at all....... but.....

https://www.silverstone.co.uk/events/formula-1-british-grand-prix/tickets

I opted for the 3 day paddock club, £3340.0 excluding vat.

[East End Fan]

5 hours ago, old bob at herne bay said:

Comparisons with a F1 meeting to a league speedway meeting are irrelevant. Maybe a speedway GP meeting is a more reasonable comparison. Even then they are entirely different sports that attract a different crowd. The F1 boys complain that speedway riders just go round and round in circles and follow the leader ! Bottom line is that the crowds turn up for F1 worldwide in far greater numbers than speedway GPs. 

In my “career “ of supporting speedway, I have felt short changed on several occasions.

Endless delays to meetings due to so many excuses too numerous to mention...standing on a grass/mud bank in spartan conditions which often result in.........

matches finished early due to “curfews” usually due to incompetent refereeing and/or meeting presentation. Declared result with 12 heats and no refunds.

Arriving at stadiums to discover teams missing top riders and using R/R . ( pre internet days) now check online before travelling. Teams of 6 or even 5 riders

........infamous match England vs USA at Ipswich cancelled at short notice due to lack of a USA team! Wasted journey of 200 miles on a sunny evening. 

My £20 now pays for 15 heats, maybe only 12 with a declared result, as against my 2 bob paying for 19 or 20 heats . Oh yes 3d. for a programme, now laughingly priced at £3. Delays and more delays don’t deliver value  for money for me and maybe have attended my last speedway meeting. 

I do however have to defend the Kent Kings stadium,  who possibly have the best appointed spectator facilities in British Speedway. 

 

 

Old Bob of Herne Bay is quite right in pointing out many of the faults that exist in Speedway and we all get exasperated by them from time to time. But

for me, the good times very much outweighs the bad times. Like Bob, I enjoy Central Park Stadium and it is the very reason why, when Arena closed, it was

an easy choice to make even though it is a 45 minutes drive down the M2. Never paid £3 for a programme as he suggests though.