belle vue ACES
speedway
doom and gloom surrounding the sport,
which is slightly misleading given all of
the positive steps being made.
Just lately in particular, small pockets
of news have filtered through from other
parts of the country where similar efforts
to Belle Vue’s are being made to revive
the original extreme sport.
Said Morton: “The development of
the sport is not only on our agenda. In
Swindon they’re building a new stadium,
and in Glasgow and the Isle of Wight
there’s excellent restoration work going
on.
“It could well be the start of a new era,
where other councils are starting to look
at the value in having a good speedway
stadium in their borough; at least, that is
what we would like to see.
“The National Speedway Stadium
is a significant part of Manchester City
Council’s sport portfolio, and that’s
something they’ve kept a very strong
focus on over the last 20 years at least.
“This city has seen the growth of such
projects as Sport City and this new Belle
Vue Sports Village is not only the latest
addition to that portfolio, it’s also where
we as a club will be based.
“An on-going part of our vision is to
have speedway at the centre of a lot of
other sporting activities, and once this
complex is complete in Spring 2016 that’s
exactly what we’ll have.
“There’s still a lot of work still to be
done over the coming winter to ensure
we are well prepared for the challenges
that lie ahead. Our whole operation will
receive a complete overhaul next year.
“We’ve had to suppress a lot of ideas
over the years that we haven’t been able
to act on, simply because we haven’t had
the means or the ability to follow through
and make them happen.
“But the potential of the National
Speedway Stadium is limitless, not only
for Belle Vue Speedway but, we hope, for
British Speedway as a whole. It is, quite
simply, the people’s stadium.
Not since 1987, when their former
haunt - the legendary Hyde Road - was
brutally demolished along with the
mythical Zoological Gardens, has Belle
Vue had a place they can truly call home.
But with their name already
synonymous
with
The
National
Speedway Stadium, they are preparing
to mark the dawn of a new era for the
club, an era which will no doubt see
many changes afoot.
“The biggest and most crucial
challenge for us is going to be getting
through to a new audience. After all, this
stadium is creating a lot of interest from
old and new fans alike,” said Morton.
“In a nutshell, the key for us will be to
create brand new speedway fans as well
as keeping our current fans happy, and
hopefully even attract fans that used to
visit to come back to us.
“The crucial thing then is to retain
those people, and that’s not a statement
made lightly. We certainly don’t expect
to just open the doors next year and
people automatically flock in.
“There’s a lot of work ahead to ensure
these different groups of people have a
memorable experience, and that they
know there’s the opportunity to come
and be truly entertained.
“We cannot change the past, but we
can determine our future.”
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