Press and Practice – club update

Interest and excitement for the new speedway season among fans of Oxford Speedway is on a scale which any promoter would strive to achieve – so thank you to our supporters.

Season Pass holders have trebled year-on-year, and we have dozens of key partners and sponsors onboard who all play a significant role in the club’s regeneration which should not be underestimated.

Press and practice represents the first opportunity for fans to be trackside following the long winter months.

As a club, press day is primarily an opportunity to engage local and national newspaper, radio and television outlets who indirectly support our ambition to establish Oxford Speedway as a successful and financially viable operation by engaging new audiences.

With March 13 being our only viable press date for Oxford Spires, we have decided to operate the squad’s first practice session during the daytime between 1pm and 3pm – with media responsibilities held much earlier behind closed doors.

This decision guarantees the time required for our routine track preparation to take place ahead of tapes-up the following day and allows our riders the time needed to prepare their bikes for Birmingham’s visit.

Operating a daytime press and practice session has its restrictions with only a limited number of people allowed onsite for the number of support staff we can allocate to a day which ultimately brings in little to no revenue.

With Season Pass holders trebling, plus all sponsors invited to our press launch as a thanks for their pre-existing commitment to the club, we already are running close to our allocated capacity for the day.

However, we have taken onboard comments from our supporters and decided to extend the press and practice invitation to the general public.

We must stress to the general public that our capacity remains unaffected despite this decision – and therefore Season Pass holders and sponsors will take admission priority on the day.

There is also no onsite car parking available for non Season Pass holders (race night parking arrangements at Unipart remain unaffected). Planning for a capacity turnout for our Press and Practice session demonstrates to me how fortunate we are to have such backing from our fantastic supporters.

And while we understand frustration voiced by a small number of supporters, we have to stick to our allocated budgets to make our new operation work both practically and financially – we’re a business in addition to a sports club.

We must reiterate to those attending that our doors will only be open between 1pm-3pm and should we reach capacity during these hours we will operate a one in, one out, policy. We ask supporters to be mindful of roadworks local to the stadium which may delay journeys too.

In the meantime, thank you to everyone for their support and positive messages through the winter. It does not go unnoticed and we’re looking forward to getting started with the new season next week!

Jamie Courtney, Oxford Speedway promoter.