Colin C

I think the meetings are done and dusted quite early at Ipswich, not sure about a curfew. Never had a problem getting out of car park at any track, like most tracks it is clear within 20 mins or so,

is John Fortune (164) Ex f2 driver?

first bend 2005.

Oh I see, I get it now, Bit like saying aycliffe used to get 25-30 cars, and Northampton 50 -60 or Nelson 40 cars, Coventry 60 back in the 70s/80.? Tracks, areas have always been different. And car counts have never been the same at all tracks. As I have said many times, I raced at a 28 car Aycliffe meeting, 2 heats of 14, and 9 car consy the format was rigid heats/consy back then no matter how many car, at least these days with the various formats you get more cars in the races. Anyhoo, lets return to the topic, First trip to my local track this season, I am looking forward to it.

Ged, 33 now, two less than less year, and 9 more than 2015.. How can that be suffering from lesser bookings?

Ged, 35 raced at Buxton last year, 4 cars down on last year at the moment, and 7 up on the 2015 car turnout, so not really a lack of interest is it?. Seems to me that people are always trying to talk the sport down. If there was 10 cars booked in, I could understand it, but more cars than 2 years ago, and just around the same as last year.. Come on folks leave the fake news to the Election and facebook, not our sport!!

Good to see the "Biggleswade Basher" Mark Cooper (204) booked in, many of you know Mark from Ed Creations Model stock cars.

yep. never been to a Nothing meeting, all of them have a meaning. Should be a good one , I am looking forward to it.

Good turnout, and always good to see some of our Dutch friends , and Irish, over. They add to event both on and off track!!

Dick Zimmerman was a former CRA sprint car champion, a good friend of harry van der Spuij, Zimmerma went to live in South Africa, where he sadly died after a road crash.

No, Dick Bergrenn didn't race here, he was the editor of Stock car mag ( Usa) and then went on to his own magazine Speedway Illustrated. he was TV commentator for Nascar as well. He is certainly someone who knows about racing!

Only 22 in F1gp, does that diminish the champion? Yes, I have taken people racing and they just didn't like it. Not everyone has the same tastes... I just hope your friends don't go circuit racing or to Santa pod where a 4 hour meeting would be a short one! However, I do agree that people do have an attention span and anything over that does cause people to loose interest. The NFL ( American Football) Has spent a lot of time and money into research on the optimum attention span of fans, and Dick Bergrenn did a great article in the USA stock car magazine about racing and how to keep fans attention. I am going to have to find that, and make it a separate thread! Like I say, we can't all like the same thing, I still love Stock cars, i have tried other sports, pastimes, but always come back to stock cars.. Nothing else like it :-)

Harryg, the point being made was that a first timer didn't ike a meeting because not enough cars and too many formula. My point, if you have never been before how can you compare? And if you have never been before, how do you know if you would like f1s, f2s, bangers, Saloons, etc. It's like saying "I like Bruce Springsteen's music, but not Bon Jovi" before you have heard either of them! In truth you might not like either of them.. We all think everyone will love stock cars, but sadly that is not the case.

I can't see what difference car numbers or formula would have on a first time visitor to a stock car meeting? You wouldn't know what formula you like before going? And if you have never seen a 60 car meeting, how would you know the difference?

Not a telling off, just explaining that drivers race when and where they want to. for them it is a hobby and they are not contracted to race every meeting like you would be in F1GP or nascar.

I have no idea why Dan isn't racing at Hedno, but not every driver likes to race at every track, and not every driver wants to race twice in a weekend all the time. Let's respect drivers choice and be thankful that they put so much effort into racing and race at all, otherwise we wouldn't have a sport to follow!!

great booking list for Hedno!

wow!!

Ian, I don't think you will see an increase at other tracks, It never happened in the past, and I don't think it will now. Not all drivers want to travel further afield, they might change to race on tar so they can race local, but again, not everyone wants to do that. I think you will see around the same level at most tracks, It is a concern that tracks are closing, the sum total of the sport is bigger than it's individual parts, but keep taking away parts of it then the sum total will be affected. let's hope a replacement track can be found in the Coventry area.

Got to say I think it is a great turnout at King's Lynn... Drivers race where and when they can, plenty of circumstances dictate that, time, money , etc being a major factor. I think Brum had the highest non Cov turnout last year as well? Cov not running has dealt a blow to a lot of people, but let's try and be positive and stick to facts, not even in the so called glory days were tracks getting 60/70 cars!

Carl, That would explain the number then!

See you down there Chris53 and LSF, I have mixed emotions about this meeting, looking forward to it and at the same time I will feel deflated that I will not be going there again. I feel a little disappointing that the meeting hasn't been given a push as far as the F1s are concerned, but I appreciate the effort being made by those who are going. I have decided to give a little bit of sponsorship for the meeting for the F1s, as well as the Saloon Stock Cars and Superstox for the effort they have put in.. I am sure it will be a meeting to remember.

I am really looking forward to this meeting, it is a shame that there are not more F1s, but I am grateful to the drivers who are going to be there.. Sadly it will be the last ever meeting in London, a city where the sport started and flourished until the developers moved in during the 1950, 60 and 70s, closing tracks like West Ham, Harringay, New Cross, White City, Rayleigh, Crayford, Staines, a trend that came to the Midlands and Northern tracks a few decades later. Let's hope that the rest of the country doesn't follow suit again after Wimbledon closes. As Joni Mitchell once said "You don't know what you've got till it's gone"

Got to say Starting times, finishing times, length of meetings are all things that can determine if a fan goes to a meeting. And more importantly if they return again! Back in the day, Harringay meetings used to start at 7.45pm, good job they did,as my dad worked until 5.30 , a bite to eat then off to the track, just about 30mins away... On Sunday Brafield started at 3.00pm, again good job , as my dad would referee a Sunday league football match in the morning, then after lunch we would drive up to Northampton, an hour away, in time for the start of the meeting... our family probably wouldn't have become regular race fans if some of todays start times were around back then.

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