|
Post by schumi on Aug 8, 2007 11:10:48 GMT
Fuck it. Steve Turner, you're my flapperjack nomination for comments made this evening. Sure that'll give the spies something to report back. What's he said now? Something I blew out of proportion and should probably apologise for. I should also apologise to Nevs, Donsking and poor KeithM who bore the brunt of my bad temper last night without knowing why. Well, maybe KeithM did deserve it a little.
|
|
|
Post by Genghis on Aug 8, 2007 12:06:03 GMT
PS - the magic roundabout in Swindon is a work of genius! Grachan, Now we now you're taking the mick ;D ;D Seriously though, I can see your side of the argument, even though I don't agree with it! I think there will be a nine-team first division next season, but I would expect it to be bereft of the GP riders. It would be extremely harsh on the likes of Adams, who has been a tremendous servant to British Speedway over the years, but something has to be done to slash costs, which have spiralled out of control in the last couple of seasons. Yes, those responsible for pushing costs up have departed the two Thames Valley clubs in question, but can you see the riders now accepting that was situation, and allowing their wages to drop back down. As you say, this probably needs a thread of its own!! All the best Rob
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Aug 8, 2007 12:27:08 GMT
The points limit was too high, but that only really became apparent when riders started jumping ship. The points limit is just something you can point your finger at, but the problems run much deeper. Further tinkering with it will not solve the underlying problems, because the whole structure of top-flight speedway is wrong. I'm not so sure fans are heamorraging away. By all accounts crowds at Ipswich, Reading and Belle Vue have all risen in the recent past. Yes they are. You can find examples where crowds are up slightly in the short-term, but the long-term trend is downwards. People seem to think 1,500 is a decent crowd for a BEL track these days, but that would have been laughable even for a lower league track not so many years ago. Anyway, crowds are not the whole story, because at the end of the day it comes down to what teams have to pay for their riders. The number of tracks where the promotion has changed several times in recent years is indicative that EL speedway is not paying in its current format. Yes, some tracks seem to be able to make it work, but unfortunately not enough for a viable league. I also wonder how well the 'big four' are actually doing. I suspect they're pretty marginal as well. The Belle Vue rise is an interesing one, as it came with big a promotion push and a lower admission cost, which they have decided to keep going for the rest of August. It shows there is a potential there to attract fans. The sport can perhaps thrive at a slightly reduced level if it's made cheaper for the fans, but that can only happen if overall costs are reduced. People would be far more willing to try out the sport if it were just a tenner, but GBP 15 is simply beyond the pale for most. Neither is there any point comparing admission prices to football - different types of entertainment, mostly different types of fans, not to mention that speedway is already behind other sports in the pecking order. If speedway goes back to grassroots level then I feel it would be the end of the sport in this country. I completely disagree. There are still enough people around to keep it alive if it can be run cheaply enough. However, I do not think there will be enough people (or fans) around to keep it alive if it remains expensive. More to the point though, why do some BPL (and even one BCL) track have better crowds than some BEL tracks if fans will only turn-out to watch the top riders? It needs positive promotion, not dragging further and further down every time there are problems. Aside from the fact there simply aren't that many good promoters around and that is unlikely to change, the 'speculate to accumulate' approach has been tried several times (with the BL/NL merger, the 'one big league', the BEL 'superleague' approach) and it's done absolutely nothing to reverse the downward trend. I now think it's time to be realistic, and realise the sport has now reached such a low-level that radical changes need to be made.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Aug 8, 2007 12:30:33 GMT
It would be extremely harsh on the likes of Adams, who has been a tremendous servant to British Speedway over the years Apart from the fact that Adams is rumoured to be relatively reasonable in his wage demands compared to some, I think it's somewhat of an irrelevance. He's getting close to the end of his career now, and might opt for the BEL over the SGP anyway, if not retire outright.
|
|
|
Post by Genghis on Aug 8, 2007 12:41:15 GMT
Apart from the fact that Adams is rumoured to be relatively reasonable in his wage demands compared to some, I think it's somewhat of an irrelevance. He's getting close to the end of his career now, and might opt for the BEL over the SGP anyway, if not retire outright. Wibblemuis, True. I've remained to have something of a soft spot for Mr. Adams, though, he did a damn good job for Oxford and I'm sure the fans at his other tracks would say the same. All the best Rob
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Aug 8, 2007 13:01:23 GMT
Yes, those responsible for pushing costs up have departed the two Thames Valley clubs in question, but can you see the riders now accepting that was situation, and allowing their wages to drop back down. Very true, although it does seem open to question exactly how much of this promised money the riders themselves were ever actually paid. (Bugger. Posted again after promising I wouldn't.)
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Aug 8, 2007 13:52:16 GMT
We have gone all sensible!!
|
|
|
Post by donsking on Aug 8, 2007 13:56:36 GMT
My old man's a mushroom.................................wibble!
Is that less sensible enough?
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Aug 8, 2007 13:59:34 GMT
Nope ;D
|
|
|
Post by Genghis on Aug 8, 2007 15:40:53 GMT
I think the obvious winner of this week's award would be Mr. Peter Waite.
All the best Rob
|
|
|
Post by admin on Aug 8, 2007 15:43:09 GMT
I think the obvious winner of this week's award would be Mr. Peter Waite. Why? I stand should-to-shoulder with young Waite on this one. The BSPA not applying the rules in a consistent manner, if you ask me.
|
|
|
Post by Genghis on Aug 8, 2007 15:57:57 GMT
Why? I stand should-to-shoulder with young Waite on this one. The BSPA not applying the rules in a consistent manner, if you ask me. Sub, The BSPA has NEVER applied the rules in a consistent manner. But if Waite believed he was going to get anyway with what he did on Sunday, he must be living in cloud cuckooland. All the best Rob
|
|
|
Post by admin on Aug 8, 2007 16:02:44 GMT
Sub, The BSPA has NEVER applied the rules in a consistent manner. But if Waite believed he was going to get anyway with what he did on Sunday, he must be living in cloud cuckooland. All the best Rob Why? Were the Weirdity and Truminski with-holding their services? It seems that Peter Waite deemed that they were and that's usually good enough for the BSPA when any other promotion claims it. Greg Hancock claims he isn't with-holding his services, but Reading still get a guest. Was Waite hoping to get away with slipping them back into his line-up? No, it appears he was satisfied to let them have a 28-day ban.
|
|
|
Post by Genghis on Aug 8, 2007 16:21:01 GMT
Were the Weirdity and Truminski with-holding their services? It seems that Peter Waite deemed that they were and that's usually good enough for the BSPA when any other promotion claims it. Greg Hancock claims he isn't with-holding his services, but Reading still get a guest. Was Waite hoping to get away with slipping them back into his line-up? No, it appears he was satisfied to let them have a 28-day ban. Sub, It's most unlike you to try to defend the indefensible. It would seem that Peter Waite was told beforehand that he couldn't have facilities, yet still turned up with Lee Complin. The outcome was inevitable. All the best Rob
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Aug 8, 2007 16:36:55 GMT
Fight fight!!!
|
|