Determined to avoid any traffic jams or major hold ups, Dave and I set off from deepest, darkest Wiltshire at just before 7am. Once again our journey down the M4, over the bridge and into Wales went smoothly but whilst the day before we had been held up by major road works in the centre of Cardiff, this time we simply breezed through, found ourselves an excellent parking space beneath the stands of the Arms Park Stadium that is dwarfed by the Millennium Stadium, put up our Team Holta GB posters on the windows and set off for the Stadium.
The temperature was already rising and it looked as if once again we were in for a real hot day, but we weren't bothered. We would be inside for nearly all of the day and, let's face it, for a speedway fan, this is the best day of the year.
Even at this early time there were fans milling around Gate 4 as we made our way past Security, not only having to show our passes but also the all important wrist band, used to identify which areas of the stadium the wearer could visit.
All was quiet in the pit area, sepulchrally quiet. All of the bikes had been removed and all that were the sponsorship boards and the occasional tool box.
The stadium itself was in complete darkness - no one was about; it was an eerie sensation.
The Speedway GP Team and BSI had kindly arranged a staff room for track staff during the event. Tea and coffee making facilities were on hand and sandwiches, fruit and other food stuffs had been set aside for - a great improvement on the tea urn and table we've had in previous years.
Paul Applin, Clerk of the Course, had issued us all with a Health and Safety statement and had organised a staff meeting to be held in the Track Staff room at 2.30pm. With time on your hands and an inquisitive aspect, Dave and I set off to track down the Staff room.
On our way we stopped off at the Draw area where the boards showed the riding order. This is a mini TV studio linked to the interview area.
After a brief halt at the interview studio area we made our way through a series of doorways and into the area below the main stand on the home straight.
Outside the changing rooms there is an enormous silver plated Welsh dragon on one wall and a series of display cases showing rugby balls used in 1908 and Gareth Edwards' signed shirt from a triple crown winning year. There are also the shoes the Lyn Davies used when he won the Long Jump competition at the Tokyo Olympics back in the 1960's and various other pieces of memorabilia from Welsh sporting successes over the last century.
We did get a glimpse inside the wooden clad changing rooms, but just as I was about to snap a shot some official looking people appeared and we scuttled away.
Up a floor and we found the Riders' Briefing Room and the Press Conference rooms, both sadly locked at this ungodly hour.
The next two floors contained offices and the entrances to the boxes so we made our way back downstairs to the area set aside for fueling and scrutineering.
Back in the pits the only people around were Keith Johnson, John Nobbs and Rex Woodruffe, some of the other Swindon lads. They had all stayed up in Cardiff. Rex had been given the onerous task of looking after the four red flags from Swindon for the night.
The others had all breakfasted at their hotels so Dave and I thought we'd go and find our traditional Cardiff eatery, but not before calling in at the truck park beneath the concourse entry to the stadium.
The first van in is a white van with Ole Olsen's name on the label. This is the camper van that has been used as home by some of the Danish track staff crew.
The head of the crew is sitting at a table enjoying a cup of coffee and a cigarette. He's taken the sensible option of staying at a local hotel. "There's 7 of them in there," he says pointing at the camper van. "Can you imagine the smell?"
We talk about the track and practice. he's delighted with the way that the track has held up. It's still beautifully smooth and a new delivery of shale will be arriving soon that they'll use to top dress the surface. The moisture content has been monitored throughout the night and has stayed at a constant 7%, the target level.
After we had departed last night the big blade, brought over for the second year for a GP from Denmark, has been used on the track to skim the surface. The loose material has been watered and then packed down with the heavy roller. This morning they will use a fine grader to disturb the surface a little so that the new top dressing can bind in properly. They'll water sparingly and then pack it down with a roller.
"And who do you think will win?" He has no doubts - Tomasz Gollob. "I've seen so much of him over the years but I've never seen him ride as well as this year and he really seems to be focused and ready for it." he notes the Holta hats and T shirt. "Your man is doing well too but I think the track is too small for him; he needs long straights and sweeping corners to build up speed because his gating is not that good. But I tell you, he's one of the most entertaining riders on the circuit."
Breakfast beckons.
It has become something of a tradition for the Swindon track staff at Cardiff to take breakfast in the covered Victorian market near to the stadium. Upstairs and to the right is a small cafe which serves the most stupendous breakfast for just £3.50. For your money you get a large cup of tea and then an enormous plate filled with bacon, eggs, baked beans, hash browns, fried bread, sausages, black pudding etc etc. It's a challenge to eat it all, but since this is probably the last chance we'll get to have something to eat until after the GP, we rise to the challenge.
You know you're in town with a speedway GP. The fans are everywhere even at this early stage of the day and there's no sign of tribalism or trouble, so sadly associated with other sports. Hats, T shirts and flags represent just about every club in the country and every speedway nation in the world. Honestly, if you've never been to Cardiff for a GP, do so. Next year, 2011, it's on 25th June, so time to book up that hotel and have a wonderful two days in a brilliant city with brilliant fans and a stunning stadium.
Part of the main street has been cordoned off for the Fans' Zone.
There is a fine selection of vintage speedway bikes on show, contrasting with the 2010 Leigh Adams machine which is on view outside his large motor home. The Adams' crew are getting ready for the arrival of Leigh and the book signing that will ensue.
A bouncy castle waits inflation on one side while a giant fairground ride is being prepared alongside.
There will be a stage where Leigh, barry and some other luminaries from the sport will talk to and entertain the crowd and provide a real carnival atmosphere up until 3.30pm when all eyes, and feet, will turn to the Millennium Stadium and the prospect of the 5pm start time.
We'd like to stay but time is pressing on and it's time to get back to our positions track side.
As we arrive back the giant laser controlled motorway blade is making its slow way out of the stadium. It has a double length blade that means that it can almost stretch the entire width of the track in one passing. I spoke with its driver last year. he explained that the blade is monitored by a series of laser beams and that he can set it to a tolerance from one end of the extended blade to the other of less than a millimetre - that is impressive. Indeed, it's one of the reasons why the track is so smooth and so even in its cambre on the corners.
The shale lorry has arrived with the top dressing material. Last year this was deposited in the pit gate area and then taken out onto the track. This year it appears to have simply been dumped on the track right on the entry to turn 1. Apparently the lorry was too heavy to venture further out onto the track - there is still a little give in the surface and they didn't want gigantic ruts forming.
As one of the Danish crew scoops up some material and takes it out to the rest of the Danish crew on the track we are aware of four very large inflatable helmets that are dangling in mid space. Filled with helium, three behave themselves - the white one has to be re-filled three times during the day as it drunkenly sags from its mooring.
The roof has been opened and there is a freshness within the stadium. It is getting very hot, and quite humid outside. Inside it is cool and humid.
The start line girls make their appearance to the inevitable volley of wolf whistles. Someone on another forum thought they were Polish girls who had appeared at another GP; I'm not so sure because I'm certain that at least two spoke with decidedly Welsh lilts.
They trot back and forth across the start line, twirling their umbrellas and rehearsing their moves.
The two minute warning clock has appeared and is connected up and the referee tries out the exclusion lights and buzzer.
Even though time is pressing on, and we are nearing mid morning, there is still a very relaxed atmosphere about the place. The pit lane is still deserted and there's not a rider in sight.
The referee, this year Swedish Krister Gardell, will be seated at a small podium in front of box 30 on the main straight directly overlooking the start and finish line.
And still the girls practice as the Danish guys track dress around the,
One major area of improvement this year is the siting of the tractors in their own separate compound on turn 4, complete with a gate there. This means that, other than bikes, the only vehicles that will use the main tunnel by the pit gate will be the trikes that will bring the riders out on parade and the water cart, if it is needed. In the past everyone and his proverbial wife has used the tunnel and near misses have been plentiful.
The two medium sized tractors have a wonder wheel and a small grader attached to them. the wonder wheel is quite a lightweight affair, smaller than the one that we use at Blunsdon, with small, quite sharp spikes. This will be used to flick the material back from the boards and also ruffle up the surface of the track to provide a little more dirt and grip.
The small grader is made of aluminum and is controlled by a series of hydraulic pumps. These can adjust the heights and levels of the two blades at the front and rear of the grader and also raise or lower a series of small spikes which can grove the track and make dirt. The whole grader can also swivel from side to side so that material from the blades can either be pushed out to the boards or in to the white line. Clever stuff.
I'm not sure that it would be heavy enough to deal with the type of shale that we use at Swindon, which is much heavier than the fine material used on the track here.
From the open gate on turn 4 you get a great view of the main straight. The track is still very moist but is not overly wet. The surface shines a little when it has been compressed and gives the shale a wetter look than it actually is.
While the helmets float around in the stadium, the roof stays open and we get our first glimpse of a rider at the pit gate. Ben Barker may only be one of the meeting reserves but he is determined to make the most of the experience. He tells us that he just loved practice but realises that he might not get a ride (in fact, he doesn't) but that just being here is such a brilliant experience for him and his whole team.
It's sad - I know it, but the Blog has always been more about what goes on in the background and how it happens rather than the racing itself. I dare say that the forthcoming version of Speedway Star will deal with who beat who and how in enormous detail but our attention is temporarily on a humble shovel. Digging out shale from kickboards is a major job for us as Swindon. We have rakes, long handled and short handled shovels and other bits of equipment to help us but I have never used a better shovel than the one that the Danish guys have brought over with them.
Edwin "models" the Danish shovel above. With a wooden handle and a lightweight metal shovel piece, it has a curiously curved handle that makes it just beautifully easy to use. This is bourne out when other members of the track staff comment upon its ease of use and how little their backs ache.
Steve Gobey and Richie Leniec appear at the top of the tunnel to finish the installation of the pit gates and get them connected up to the referee's box.
Every element of the day is timed and checked, right down to the smallest detail. The actual time taken racing during a GP is probably about 27 minutes yet the broadcast can go on for over three hours. This year it is the aim of both the promoters and the broadcasters (predominantly Sky) to hasten the meeting along with shorter breaks between the track action. To this end, every element of the production is timed. This includes the time that it will take the Navy teams to march on and off the centre green for the pre meeting entertainment, how long it will take the abseiliers to come down from the roof, the time taken by the wailers from the X factor to get to and from the plinth for their session and the time it will take to get the parade underway, with each rider entering the arena on a trike.
We had passed a couple of these bizarre machines on the way down on the motorway. Apparently each driver is being paid £50 and being given two complimentary tickets. These machine are a weird selection. A couple are simply super bikes with two wheels at the back - others are custom built with all manner of gizmos and flashing lights attached.
They line up at the bottom of the tunnel. We close the pit gates. At a signal they start their way up, we open the gates and they make their way out onto track, forming up in two lines, organised by Sky Director Steve Brandon with his stop watch and clipboard.
They trundle round a complete lap and then carry on to the start line where they stop. The riders will dismount and the pit gates will need to be opened again sharpishly to get the trikes off. Last year at least one broke down while another dumped oil; this year all goes well. Certainly they are not aero dynamic - the blast of cool air that follows as they thunder by is refreshing and welcome.
All is not right so the rehearsal is repeated. They form up quicker, maintain an even pace and leave in a more orderly manner.
But the Danish guys are still top dressing and the pile of loose shale is still evident on the entry to turn 1, much to the consternation of some mechanics and team managers who have ventured out from the pits.
The outside half of the track is dressed first, then they start on the white line.
While they work a rather curious contraption is brought out onto the track.
It is a small Kawasaki van with two wooden pallets attached to the back of it via a piece of nylon rope. Crude and Heath Robinson like, we joke that it may be a new hi tech grading device. Little did we appreciate how right we were. Someone makes a comment that our old friend Punch from the Swindon track would come up with something like that.
The balloon helmets are a pain. White and blue both need re-filling with helium as the Navy gun crews come out to carry out their rehearsals for their element of the pre meeting entertainment. The Navy teams will compete in a Field Gun competition and line up at the pit gate before marching out to the centre green where they begin the races, which involve dragging the guns across the centre green, removing wheels, changing wheels, firing a gun then dismantling it and running back with it. All of this is also timed very carefully.
The Danish crew have very nearly completed the top dressing. Tai and his friends have been up to look at the track as has reserve Danny King. Everyone who arrives at pit gate is amazed at the pile of shale still sitting there.
A technician arrives to test out lighting conditions for the miniature helmet cam that is to be employed as part of the broadcasts. It's very small and the composite parts are held together with electrical tape, but it's working and, judging by the results we see on the big screens, it's working well.
At last the top dressing is finished and a digger is brought up from below to scrape away the excess shale.
As the team comes round our sense are assaulted by sound checks for the X factor singers and then the giant flame throwers are tested. Two years ago the hair on the back of my head was singed by one of these positioned a bit too close to the pit gate. This year they are further away but you can still feel the blast of hot air as they go off from quite a distance.
Perhaps we were simply too busy with getting the digger off the track and down the ramp, but we missed the little Kawasaki van starting of around the track, still dragging the wooden pallets behind it. But now, one of the larger Danish track crew is standing on it. It's a bit like surfing. It looks dreadful but actually does a brilliant job of grading and smoothing out the surface.
We cheer each time he goes past. He waves back - all is going well. And then suddenly the pallets bite in bit too much and he is turfed off onto the track right in front of us. It is a painful landing. His leg is scratched and bloodied and his pride is dented, not helped by the chorus of cheers from the Navy teams who are waiting to leave the centre green. He curses loudly in Danish (I think it was cursing - his face was filled with fury) and then stomped off through he pit gate area, hurling his shovel to one side.
My friend on the air pumps, the Arsene Wenger look alike, smiles and says "Oh dear!"
