Rearranging the deckchairs on the Titanic

As always during the winter the powers that be of speedway had a rethink on the rules governing the sport apart from the short period when they advised the West Indies Cricket authorities about the choice of venue for the second test in Antigua. Most of these “improvements” have been well covered in the speedway press and the various internet forums but reading the 2009 Speedway Regulations a couple of changes seemed worthy of further discussion.

Rule 9.2.1.1 now states that “An approval inflatable fence which is mandatory for Elite League racing and all tracks constructed after 1st January 2009 which may be placed on or against any type of fence.....” One assumes that extending this regulation to cover new tracks is part of an ongoing programme to increase rider safety. The question must therefore be asked when will it be extended to cover all tracks or is the safety of riders in the lower leagues not as important. In my very short career as an honorary speedway rider, until I was banned by a former chairman of the BSPA for being unacceptable, I attended an AGM of the Speedway Riders Association where it was stated that the committee had met with the BSPA and discussed why “air fence” were only mandatory in the Elite League. The response from the BSPA was that their insurers had seen nothing wrong with this policy of having differing levels of safety measures depending on the standard of riders. It would be interesting to hear what other experts in field of health and safety would have to say on this and would they judge it legal or defensible. For examples do two factories making the same product have to satisfy two differing sets of Health and Safety Regulations depending on the size of the factory or the experience of the workers.

The second rule change that appears to have been slipped in the regulations unannounced is 18.B.3 which governs the Elite League Play offs. 18. B.3.2 now extends the playoffs to the top 6 teams in the final Elite League table and according to 18.B.3.4 all meetings in the playoffs are now two legged. The format of the playoffs is given in 18.B.3.5. The top two teams miss the quarter finals and the 3rd placed team has first choice of opponent and leg and the next highest remaining team has the next choice. This method, of the highest placed team have choice of opponent and leg, continues in both the semi finals and final. Rule 18.b.3.3 is the really “interesting” one. Apart from the final all aggregate scores in playoff meetings will be on a handicap system. The top four teams will have race points added 10 for first, 6 for second, 4 for third and 2 for fourth. The term Mickey Mouse sport springs to mind regarding this handicapping. Can you imagine the same scheme operating in either the Rugby League or Football playoffs where teams started off with points or goal advantage before a ball was kicked or maybe they are living in the dark ages and the Elite League playoff system is the way of the future and if so why hasn’t this rule been extended into the Premier League play offs or is planned for 2010?

M.C.M.