Drugs - Just Say No!

[Debbi]

11 hours ago, Technik said:

The drug testing company used turn up in the pits only about an hour prior to the start time & only the Referee will be told to expect them. As the rules state that all riders need to be at the track at least an hour before they should not be missing. I'm not saying it has not happened in the past but the testers learn quickly. There can be no excuse for taking any type of drug, the selected riders are asked before any testing is done have they taken any drugs at all & even headache & flu medication would be suggested.

I know a rider once failed an alcohol test after using mouthwash. It was a minimal reading & the tester offered him time &suggested he rinse with cold water then the second test was a zero reading.

Happened at Oxford last year where a rider arrived with less than 20 mins, yet had been in Oxford and at a pub in the afternoon and couldn’t say they didn’t know where the stadium was as they rode here.

[Debbi]

3 hours ago, iainb said:

Personally I think it'd be far easier to make quick gains by mechanically cheating before pumping yourself full of performance enhancers

That doesn’t lower your inhibition’s though, one of the reasons for using cocaine for example (and going on what other rider have said) is that it gives you a false sense of confidence which means you go for gaps that any other rider would not dream of taking.

[Bald Bloke]

11 minutes ago, Debbi said:

That doesn’t lower your inhibition’s though, one of the reasons for using cocaine for example (and going on what other rider have said) is that it gives you a false sense of confidence which means you go for gaps that any other rider would not dream of taking.

That is correct

[IainB]

16 minutes ago, Debbi said:

That doesn’t lower your inhibition’s though, one of the reasons for using cocaine for example (and going on what other rider have said) is that it gives you a false sense of confidence which means you go for gaps that any other rider would not dream of taking.

So that's using "recreational" drugs as a performance enhancer, like taking a bravery pill... I suppose if you're daft enough to cheat anything is possible

Edited September 6, 2023 by iainb

[noaksey]

There won't be mandatory testing of every rider at every meeting without a contract with an independent testing agent that would cost far in excess of what would be affordable for the sport

Matchroom are currently considering introducing this for all of their fighters using VARDA, the rumours suggest a cost north of 20k per fight although this is bloods not just urine.

Does anyone know who carries out the speedway testing currently?

[DazS]

2 hours ago, Debbi said:

That doesn’t lower your inhibition’s though, one of the reasons for using cocaine for example (and going on what other rider have said) is that it gives you a false sense of confidence which means you go for gaps that any other rider would not dream of taking.

zmarzlic needs testing then

[rocketrod]

The word drug indicates recreational substance. A lot of riders will take dietary supplements for extra edge in the gym as fitness is paramount now with elite sportsmen. Most are illegal but will be taken pre season when working out. 
Also enhancements for faster recovery from injury can go unnoticed as rider will stop before racing again. 
Alcohol wise back in the 90’s I was involved with a team on a northern tour. They got smashed literally in a match then back at the hotel after. Word got out on the  next match of the exploits of the monumental night before and word reached that all the riders would be alcohol tested. meaning I had to frantically run to shops to get as many boiled sweets as I could as it affected alcohol test. They wasn’t drunk at time of riding obviously They all passed the alcohol test due to the boiled sweets. But did get soundly beaten though. !!! 
More recent was Swedish snuff contained stimulant that was deemed harmless but never really showed in tests , so was very popular.

There will always be riders that will chance if needed not just speedway but any professional sport. 

[TheWellBehavedWorrall]

20 hours ago, iainb said:

Personally I think it'd be far easier to make quick gains by mechanically cheating before pumping yourself full of performance enhancers

This, 100%.

For the avoidance of coming across as a know-it-all, I didn’t remain in the field post-graduation, so I’m not an expert, but I studied Sport & Exercise Science at university and one of the modules was around performance enhancers.

Speedway isn’t even close to fitting the profile for this topic and for so many reasons.

This sport is arguably 50% mechanical and 50% physical, so it’s a significant financial risk to invest in performance enhancers, only for your chain to snap on the first lap. Even then, being stronger or having more stamina through artificial gains is irrelevant if the rider to your left is simply on a quicker bike.

@iainb is highly likely spot on; cheating mechanically is where illegal gains are to be made in Speedway.

17 hours ago, Debbi said:

That doesn’t lower your inhibition’s though, one of the reasons for using cocaine for example (and going on what other rider have said) is that it gives you a false sense of confidence which means you go for gaps that any other rider would not dream of taking.

As someone who spent his youthful summers in Ibiza, but who eventually grew-up, I’m 99.9% positive no-one is using cocaine for confidence in speedway.

In the finance industry where outbound, non-face-to-face interactions are the regular, yes. In motorsport, no. Despite what you see on TV, such as confidence and self-assurance, the riders’ condition would instantly be recognisable and his handling of the bike would be beyond concerning.

Don’t get me wrong, I imagine, as with most professions, there are those who enjoy casual drug taking within social settings, but I can categorically confirm that no rider is taking cocaine before a race for performance enhancement purposes. I genuinely shudder at the thought of that, but rest assured that it would be identified before said rider reached the tapes.

Edited September 7, 2023 by TheWellBehavedWorrall

[tyretrax]

21 hours ago, lisa-colette said:

Good ones there. If he wasn't going through such a tough time atm Craig Cook did cause a rider to be flipped onto dog track before. But I feel bad for him atm, so we'll leave him off 

Why name check him then?

[tyretrax]

15 hours ago, noaksey said:

There won't be mandatory testing of every rider at every meeting without a contract with an independent testing agent that would cost far in excess of what would be affordable for the sport

Matchroom are currently considering introducing this for all of their fighters using VARDA, the rumours suggest a cost north of 20k per fight although this is bloods not just urine.

Does anyone know who carries out the speedway testing currently?

In greyhound racing every dog was sampled pre-meeting, it became too costly so now a GBG Steward comes in unannounced and takes random samples, some pre race and some post race. The track stewards can also request a sample if they consider it nessesary after a race.

Edited September 7, 2023 by tyretrax

[IainB]

8 minutes ago, tyretrax said:

In greyhound racing every dog was sampled pre-meeting, it became too costly so now a GBG Steward comes in unannounced and takes random samples, some pre race and some post race. The track stewards can also request a sample if they consider it nessesary after a race.

Who tests the Hare? They never catch it 

[RoundTheBoards]

I read somewhere on here someone saying that you always hear about positive drug tests, but we never hear of any meetings where tests were done and all was OK.

Interesting that this is now on the SCB website

 

During the month of August two events were selected for Alcohol and Drug Testing...

• Belle Vue v Workington - NDL - Friday 25th August 2023
• Poole v Birmingham - Championship - Wednesday 30th August 2023
At both event's four riders (two from each team) were randomly selected and in all cases all riders produced a negative result.

The SCB will continually select fixtures for random testing.

 

[IainB]

57 minutes ago, RoundTheBoards said:

I read somewhere on here someone saying that you always hear about positive drug tests, but we never hear of any meetings where tests were done and all was OK.

Interesting that this is now on the SCB website

 

During the month of August two events were selected for Alcohol and Drug Testing...

• Belle Vue v Workington - NDL - Friday 25th August 2023
• Poole v Birmingham - Championship - Wednesday 30th August 2023
At both event's four riders (two from each team) were randomly selected and in all cases all riders produced a negative result.

The SCB will continually select fixtures for random testing.

 

That's not a lot really is it? Makes the fact that they've had 3 non-negative results since the 12th of July all the more worrying

[DazS]

its a good job the riders dont react like you lot have or else no one would be racing. i dont think any riders worry about, i wonder if that rider is on drugs or alcoholic before they race. if they did they would say something.

[Wee Eck]

5 minutes ago, DazS said:

its a good job the riders dont react like you lot have or else no one would be racing. i dont think any riders worry about, i wonder if that rider is on drugs or alcoholic before they race. if they did they would say something.

Do you not think the riders know full well which other riders take or have taken recreational drugs? It’s like with the silencer issue. Many knew who were doing an “Eddie” but felt it wasn’t their place to dob a fellow rider in

[DazS]

Just now, Wee Eck said:

Do you not think the riders know full well which other riders take or have taken recreational drugs? It’s like with the silencer issue. Many knew who were doing an “Eddie” but felt it wasn’t their place to dob a fellow rider in

they must not think their lives are at risk as much as you lot do. 

[mikebv]

DURGS! JUST SAY NO!.

Was written boldly on the side of a train holding shed just outside Picc station in Manchester in the eighties...

I was on the way to Old Trafford and read it as I went past one Saturday on the way to the match...

The following match I looked again to the see if the graffiti had been removed, it hadn't, and instead someone had added...

DYSLEXIA JUST SAY ON!

[DazS]

the biggest pushers of drugs are the government's.

[IainB]

Has anybody read what Edinburgh Director Mike Hunter has said on Facebook? 

Drugs - Just Say Yes!

https://twitter.com/SocialSpeedway/status/1700416387661832240?s=20

Unbelievable!

Edited September 9, 2023 by iainb

[arnieg]

13 minutes ago, iainb said:

Has anybody read what Edinburgh Director Mike Hunter has said on Facebook? 

Drugs - Just Say Yes!

https://twitter.com/SocialSpeedway/status/1700416387661832240?s=20

Unbelievable!

It's a perfectly valid argument, reasonably expressed. After all speedway culture often encourages and celebrates drug use. 

I was once handed drugs on the centre green by the Leicester management to give to a 15 year old rider.