Welcome home, winners.
After last week’s decisive victory – and bonus point – over the Brummies, the Mighty Cheetahs sit atop the league, at least at time of writing. I wasn’t here last week (it was daddy and daughter night at Guides, so I was learning how to make stretchers out of duct tape. No, really), but it seems the trackstaff performed a minor miracle saving the track, which had been prepped for more sun than we had and was not particularly conducive to good racing at the start of the meeting. However, some diligent tractoring meant that the track bedded in, and the racing improved as the night wore on. It also says much that six out of seven riders in our “top heavy” team scored at least eight points on the night. No wonder a couple of the riders have been spotted smiling in the pits recently.
We had yet more great support for the Raceday Jackpot last week, which allowed us to give out £200 in prizes, instead of the usual £175. We always try and bump the prizes up if we can, and if we get the same level of support this week we’ll be offering up the same bumper prizes. Don’t forget, as well as cash, we also offer the centregreen experience trip as a prize, and this week we’ll be giving away another ticket to this weekend’s Speedway Grand Prix at the Ampleforth in Risinghurst. This is the same day as the Chargers trip to Workington, and I saw online this week that Workington are going to be showing the SGP after their meeting. On big screens. With barbecues. They do say imitation is highest form of flattery. Seriously, though, it looks like any of you taking the trip to Cumbria will be well catered for, but for anyone south of Stoke, the Ampleforth is probably more convenient for Grands Prix in the future.
OSSC members get a discount at the (Oxford) SGP BBQs, as well as the coach to Cardiff. If you haven’t already joined up, we still have some OSSC membership packs available. Membership this year is £10, and your pack includes a membership card and ballpoint pen, plus an OSSC tote bag and the exclusive for 2023 engraved steel travel mug. You also get a £5 discount on the coach to Cardiff, and a £1 discount on the five remaining SGP BBQs this year. If you’re good at maths (and you should be, you’re a speedway fan), you’ll notice that the discounts we’re offering neatly offset the price of the membership, so if you join up tonight, then sign up for the coach and come to the remaining barbecues of the season, you effectively get your membership pack for free…
So onto tonight, and our visitors. I must admit I was excited when I looked at the fixture list and saw who was coming to town tonight, not least because I made so many new friends online the last time we were down on the coast. I will say this here, before the meeting starts, Poole are without doubt a quality side, that we’ll have a tough time tonight, and there’s every chance that when the dust settles (ahem) at the end of the year one leg of the playoff finals this year will be at Wimbourne Road. Tonight, though, we’re at Sandy Lane, and it’s a very different type of track. Sometimes here in Oxford the riders change order as the race goes on, and often one rider who was in front on the first lap will be behind when the race finishes. This might be confusing for the travelling fans, but I can assure you, it’s all perfectly legal. You never know, you might even enjoy it.
Go Cheetahs