Wolves v Sheffield Monday 28th August Live on Eurosport

[GeneralMelchett]

9 minutes ago, tellboy said:

Me too.League racing is what it's all about.

same for me - accept others points but for me league racing is where it is, I have never really been a fan of individual meetings.

On another note whilst the score was a bit one sided there was some good racing / overtaking last night, heat 10 probably the best heat for some time. In my view Wolves (hopefully temporary) and Monmore will be a sad loss.

[mikebv]

2 hours ago, tellboy said:

Me too.League racing is what it's all about.

You are 100% right...

And all the problems are down to it....

When something you run becomes beyond parody then you have a major problem..

When extracting the urine out of something is sctually less funny that the actual decisions you are taking the pee out of, then you might as well close the operation down...

As there usually isn't any way back in the business world for that kind of organisation..

The "good news" is that we have two less tracks going forward so the "rider shortage" should improve...

[bellevueace]

The league format isnt the problem, that is down to the powers that be that implement the rules, for me the rot set in when the old school promoters who actually knew how to promote disappeared.

[SteveLyric2]

45 minutes ago, mikebv said:

You are 100% right...

And all the problems are down to it....

When something you run becomes beyond parody then you have a major problem..

When extracting the urine out of something is sctually less funny that the actual decisions you are taking the pee out of, then you might as well close the operation down...

As there usually isn't any way back in the business world for that kind of organisation..

The "good news" is that we have two less tracks going forward so the "rider shortage" should improve...

Only two??

[mikebv]

7 minutes ago, Skidder1 said:

Only two??

Peterborough and Wolves....

Any more for next year? 

[mikebv]

19 minutes ago, bellevueace said:

The league format isnt the problem, that is down to the powers that be that implement the rules, for me the rot set in when the old school promoters who actually knew how to promote disappeared.

Agree, when it became a "plaything" for most of them, rather than a bona fide stand alone business, it started to become ran that way...

The rot also set in though when they tried to keep running the sport the way they always did, after the internet had come along...

Instant news nowadays..

You used to find out the biggest name wasn't going to be there after you had paid to get in...

You used to find out that you were going to watch a guestfest when the announcer read out the teams.. 

You used to find out that the weather was poor when you got there rather than hours in front, or en route so you can turn around...

And then moaned to a few people around you.

Now, all its failings are there for all to see well in advance, and shared around thousands, not tens.....

Hence many decide not to bother, depending on the circumstances....

 

[IronScorpion]

17 hours ago, Dnorthstar1970 said:

So no wolves next year ,speedway in the uk is dying slowly and the idiots running it haven’t got a clue 

We know speedway in the UK is struggling but so are some clubs abroad in Sweden & Poland with non payment of riders. Rules & Regulations(SCB) are not enforced & open to interpretation. The BSP Ltd & other promoters have not helped themselves with self interest.

But look at the main Issues of Landlords(ARC) charging unaffordable rent, land prices where housing development takes place & the general changing of interests(phones, social media, tiktok , influencers). Money is being used elsewhere.

 Look at your own towns & cities. How many schools have closed down & amalgamated with others to be one, parks even industrial areas now being sold on for "affordable housing"? What about the number of boarded up houses on estates that could have a bit of money spent on them by the councils & re-used.

[mikebv]

4 minutes ago, IronScorpion said:

We know speedway in the UK is struggling but so are some clubs abroad in Sweden & Poland with non payment of riders. Rules & Regulations(SCB) are not enforced & open to interpretation. The BSP Ltd & other promoters have not helped themselves with self interest.

But look at the main Issues of Landlords(ARC) charging unaffordable rent, land prices where housing development takes place & the general changing of interests(phones, social media, tiktok , influencers). Money is being used elsewhere.

 Look at your own towns & cities. How many schools have closed down & amalgamated with others to be one, parks even industrial areas now being sold on for "affordable housing"? What about the number of boarded up houses on estates that could have a bit of money spent on them by the councils & re-used.

100%....

So to keep doing the same thing year on year that is consistently failing each season, and expect a different result,  is unfathomable....

Evolution is always needed for any entity to survive...

[Tinker]

3 hours ago, bellevueace said:

After 55 years following speedway if we had no league speedway i would walk away from it.

Agree entirely. Apart from the GP's, never really been a fan of individual events. All about league racing for me and always will be. Just wish we could go back to the halcyon days of say Halifax riding at Cradley with all the rivalry and large crowds etc.

Needs to be more a sense of belonging to a team for both riders and supporters and as MikeBV regularly points out, greater financial rewards for winning the league and a proper trophy to go with it.

[truthsayer]

32 minutes ago, IronScorpion said:

We know speedway in the UK is struggling but so are some clubs abroad in Sweden & Poland with non payment of riders. Rules & Regulations(SCB) are not enforced & open to interpretation. The BSP Ltd & other promoters have not helped themselves with self interest.

But look at the main Issues of Landlords(ARC) charging unaffordable rent, land prices where housing development takes place & the general changing of interests(phones, social media, tiktok , influencers). Money is being used elsewhere.

 Look at your own towns & cities. How many schools have closed down & amalgamated with others to be one, parks even industrial areas now being sold on for "affordable housing"? What about the number of boarded up houses on estates that could have a bit of money spent on them by the councils & re-used.

I don't really get your point. Are you saying that the demise of speedway is inevitable or are you saying speedway has to diversify and move with the times?

Speedway's biggest problem is that it has failed to move with the times. It got a TV deal and thought it was enough to just televise the product it had, when other sports modernised and adapted for the new, television based, audience. Every TV deal becomes worse and worse. It'll be on SportyStuff TV next!

People don't want to stand on a dilapidated terrace, shouting 2,4,6,8 every 10 minutes, anymore. We've become more sophisticated as consumers and speedway's just an outdated spectator sport. GPs have tried to push the needle by promoting it as a Monster Energy extreme sport, but the reality between that and the average British spectator is a mile away. 

British speedway failed to adapt and it is coming home to roost now. Not enough spectators, not enough competitors and not enough venues. The business model that worked in the 1960s doesn't work now and never will again. The only chance to survive is to build from the ground up as a participant sport, with a vision to become a TV-friendly spectacle, but reheating the old team speedway format as the only show in town is a one way path to oblivion. If that means losing the octogenarian audience, so be it. There won't be speedway in five years anyway.

[ruckerroo]

i reckon 99% of speedway enthusiasts are team sport orientated, its a sign of the times with what these companys are doing, motivated by money and balance sheets and seemingly years of tradition mean zero  . Its a dreadful state of affairs really.

The thing that really pisses on my chips as a casual fan is there is no regular  saturday speedway club in the uk bar berwick. The day of the week where anybody can go with the family and be under no pressure time wise .

Lets hope a rye house or eastbourne miracle takes place close season 

[mikebv]

9 minutes ago, Tinker said:

Agree entirely. Apart from the GP's, never really been a fan of individual events. All about league racing for me and always will be. Just wish we could go back to the halcyon days of say Halifax riding at Cradley with all the rivalry and large crowds etc.

Needs to be more a sense of belonging to a team for both riders and supporters and as MikeBV regularly points out, greater financial rewards for winning the league and a proper trophy to go with it.

There are big financial rewards already in place, which is the frustration...

The Aces for example will have 12 meetings this year in the league itself..

At circa average £20 a punter, with around 1300 a week (maybe more as some good crowds this year), that would deliver over £300k...

Seven teams delivering that as an average would generate well over £2.1M...

And that is without sponsorship.. 

A huge amount for a sport that, in the grand scheme of things, hardly anyone has heard of...

And, given it appears most clubs don't make "tens of thousands" of profit each season, you can only presume most of it goes to the riders...

Smoke and Mirrors maybe but that kind of financial reward needs to be publicised to prick interest...

[DazS]

20 hours ago, Noelinho said:

Yeah, individual events are nice, but league racing is the glue.

yes no league racing how can you cheer for a 5-1.

[truthsayer]

2 hours ago, mikebv said:

There are big financial rewards already in place, which is the frustration...

The Aces for example will have 12 meetings this year in the league itself..

At circa average £20 a punter, with around 1300 a week (maybe more as some good crowds this year), that would deliver over £300k...

Seven teams delivering that as an average would generate well over £2.1M...

And that is without sponsorship.. 

A huge amount for a sport that, in the grand scheme of things, hardly anyone has heard of...

 And, given it appears most clubs don't make "tens of thousands" of profit each season, you can only presume most of it goes to the riders...

Smoke and Mirrors maybe but that kind of financial reward needs to be publicised to prick interest...

You really think £26,000 income a meeting is viable?

[Baldyman]

Think I prefer individual racing myself,,,, team racing is an utter shower of schitt with the way it's been allowed to implode. I haven't missed a single gp on the TV,,, but I get free BSN on my dodgy firestick and eurosport and I think I've watched 2 british league meetings,,, although I have watched nearly all the Polish leagues meetings,, so it must just be the crap way it's run over here why I don't bother anymore 

[MattB]

5 hours ago, IronScorpion said:

We know speedway in the UK is struggling but so are some clubs abroad in Sweden & Poland with non payment of riders. Rules & Regulations(SCB) are not enforced & open to interpretation. The BSP Ltd & other promoters have not helped themselves with self interest.

But look at the main Issues of Landlords(ARC) charging unaffordable rent, land prices where housing development takes place & the general changing of interests(phones, social media, tiktok , influencers). Money is being used elsewhere.

 Look at your own towns & cities. How many schools have closed down & amalgamated with others to be one, parks even industrial areas now being sold on for "affordable housing"? What about the number of boarded up houses on estates that could have a bit of money spent on them by the councils & re-used.

Any club that does not own its own stadium has the same noose hanging over their head that we have and also Peterborough.  If the owner of the site sells it for redevelopment or just decides they don't want you there anymore,  you don't have a leg to stand on even if your a viable operation.  Coventry and Cradley were viable,  but that didn't stop the stadiums being taken from underneath them.

Us, Peterborough, Poole, Birmingham and Edinburgh are all facing that problem and these are just the known clubs.  I know of at least two others that face a real threat of having no home in the next 18 months.

[bellevueace]

5 hours ago, Tinker said:

Agree entirely. Apart from the GP's, never really been a fan of individual events. All about league racing for me and always will be. Just wish we could go back to the halcyon days of say Halifax riding at Cradley with all the rivalry and large crowds etc.

Needs to be more a sense of belonging to a team for both riders and supporters and as MikeBV regularly points out, greater financial rewards for winning the league and a proper trophy to go with it.

For me  even the  GP,s are becoming played out, there were great individual meetings in the past the BLRC which usually had a field that was better than the world final, the British Final at Coventry packed with world class talent, and every track had their own big individual meetings again packed with the top talent available. I remember travelling to Kings Lynn for the Pride of the East for example. I suppose those meetings back then were popular due the riders participating, compare to this years British Final for example.

[IainB]

6 hours ago, ruckerroo said:

The thing that really pisses on my chips as a casual fan is there is no regular  saturday speedway club in the uk bar berwick. The day of the week where anybody can go with the family and be under no pressure time wise .

Is that the sound of the nail being hit on the head?

It's totally obvious you run on the night when you can get your best crowds. British Speedway really could have its cake and eat it. It's been shown at Leicester this year that running on Thursday's with the big stars in town really hasn't added the extra amount of fans needed to pay for it. 

There was a big crowd at Peterborough last night, was that because of the riders on display or because it was a Bank Holiday? The latter I would suggest and it was a local derby of course. 

The British League(s) need to run credible teams on the race night that suits them, this is not rocket science, they need the riders to commit to a full season, contracts to be honoured and if the riders aren't in... they're out and the league(s) structures are adjusted accordingly. That's the having your cake bit. 

The eating it is putting on open individual meetings with your Emil's, Bewley's, Woffy's etc. Like the PCMT has shown crowds will flock to these when there's a decent competitive field. 

Test Matches, crowds used to love to turn out to watch the national team ride and as the national team are doing so well we don't get to see them at all this year in the UK and the extra publicity this would bring

[GeneralMelchett]

1 hour ago, iainb said:

Is that the sound of the nail being hit on the head?

It's totally obvious you run on the night when you can get your best crowds. British Speedway really could have its cake and eat it. It's been shown at Leicester this year that running on Thursday's with the big stars in town really hasn't added the extra amount of fans needed to pay for it. 

There was a big crowd at Peterborough last night, was that because of the riders on display or because it was a Bank Holiday? The latter I would suggest and it was a local derby of course. 

The British League(s) need to run credible teams on the race night that suits them, this is not rocket science, they need the riders to commit to a full season, contracts to be honoured and if the riders aren't in... they're out and the league(s) structures are adjusted accordingly. That's the having your cake bit. 

The eating it is putting on open individual meetings with your Emil's, Bewley's, Woffy's etc. Like the PCMT has shown crowds will flock to these when there's a decent competitive field. 

Test Matches, crowds used to love to turn out to watch the national team ride and as the national team are doing so well we don't get to see them at all this year in the UK and the extra publicity this would bring

As a young new to speedway fan my old man took me up to Ipswich to see the England or was it GB test match V's Denmark (1988) - absolutely loved it as I got to see Tatum Wigg Donkey, Morton, Cross, Havelock and Silver  V's Nielsen, Gundersen, Jan O Pedersen, Ravn and co - as a NL fan we never got to see these riders usually. The place was packed and GB won 47-43.

I do prefer team events - the old Autumn triangles and 4TT qualifiers / events always got decent crowds in as it packed 2-3 teams into a night so the away attendance was always bigger.

When I moved to Sheffield I did usually attended the PLRC which again was always pretty packed out and run on a Sunday. In the old days the NLRC was at Coventry on a saturday night which we attended a couple of times. One of the biggest mistakes in my view was the downgrading of the British Final to a weekday slot. I loved the 2 or 3  I attended in the late 80s, always on a Sunday with a packed out Brandon.

On the team front bank holiday double meetings were always a draw. Lunchtime up at Ipswich - back down to Arena in the evening, the crowds at Foxhall in the lunchtime meeting would always be about 3000+ and often 2000+ at Arena in the evening.

 

Edited August 29, 2023 by GeneralMelchett

[bellevueace]

The wednesday night British finals were always packed out every time i went, always thought it strange being mid week even though the quality on display was top class.

Edited August 29, 2023 by bellevueace