CHEAP AND CHEERFUL!

With British speedway soaked to the skin all last week, 70% of scheduled meetings were washed –- or winded –- out from Tuesday to yesterday -– and there were all sorts of problems and delays at some places where matches actually did get staged.

Except one track, one club.

I’ve just checked – and every team in Britain has already been affected by the weather, losing at least one home or away engagement this season.

Except one.

What’s happening to the world?

Just for once, we seem to be the club on which the sun is shining. So we’re all pretty cheerful, yes?

Ours was the only press and practice date that I know of where the weather allowed a full session of skidding, as well as pictures.

Then three matches, three wins. Unbeaten home or away. A trophy already!

And the league champions, led by Bomber and Leon — the club with an apparent hex on us since 2019 — defeated on Saturday night in a most-satisfactory manner.

So a big well done to all concerned.

Stewart, working to the club’s budget with the promotion, for constructing and managing this new-look team of Jewson Bandits.

The team itself: Lewi, for a “big hitting #1” performance of course, and going right down to wee Bastian for a really energetic showing at #7 – this lad’s a real trier!

Then there’s Razor and his squad. To provide us with a smooth, hard track surface on Saturday – we had to call on Billy the Bowser a couple of times – was quite remarkable work. Respect.

Plus the little things – like extra loudspeakers on the back straight on Saturday, augmenting the frankly inadequate (for a speedway crowd) system provided to us by the football people in that part of the stadium.

The two-minute clock which has greatly smartened-up starting procedures, and a smoother entry/exit system at the pits gate.

In short, things are going very well indeed so far. Hopefully the lads can make it three in a row this coming Saturday, when those Edinburgh Monarchs come a-calling.

I well remember last season, when they grabbed a very sneaky win, mainly due to Leon Flint’s last-race puncture at a point he was placed to save the match, although on reflection we were really dumped that night by the Shielfield debut of a young Danish rookie called Bastian Borke, who racked up paid eleven on a circuit he’d never seen before!

I loved his reply when I was interviewing Bastian on Saturday’s victory parade, and asked him how he liked being a Bandit.

“I am having so much fun!” he laughed. “Never enjoyed myself so much – this is a great club, the fans and everyone are making me feel so welcome. I love it!”

Well, that’ll do -– and we have to hope he will continue to enjoy things this week, against his former employers…….

Not that Bastian’s the only former Monarch we’ll have on our side of the pits on Saturday. Drew Kemp did a late-season shift at Armadale in 2021, Rory was a notable star in their first league-winning team and – of course – Jye rode for them too………

Reggie loves sticking it to the Edinburgh folks – he was a standout top-scorer in last year’s meeting, racking up a big 14 points – and I suspect he has every intention of doing much the same thing on Saturday night……

All of which indicates we could have ourselves another good night out at the skids this week.

Remember the 10% discount if you buy your – instantly refundable if the meeting’s off – ticket online before midnight on Friday, by the way. I told you we were cheap, as well as cheerful, did I not?

In fact, having done a bit of research -– and I know there will be a lorra, lorra people correcting me if I’m wrong —I believe that an adult who likes to sit, under cover, anywhere on the home straight to watch their speedway, can do so for just £18 at Shielfield Park.

Nowhere else in either Championship or Premiership speedway, is this possible. Cheap as chips – and, going by our first two matches, cracking racing as well!

Oh, and you can bring a couple of young teenagers in with you for nowt. Plus (dare I say it) parking right outside the stadium is free.

Speedway at Shielfield – your affordable delight!

See you Saturday?

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Want to disagree with Dick (as so many do)? He is always happy to hear from interesting people on dick@crystalfm.co.uk