MARK PLUMMER catches up with ambitious Leicester supremo DAVID HEMSLEY in his latest "˜Friday Feature' . . .
THIS time four years ago there was just a field in the north of Leicester. Now there's a reborn and thriving speedway club.
The sport has roared back into the East Midlands city after a 28-year absence and it has proved a major success for mastermind David Hemsley and his trusted team of lieutenants.
Leicester have followed up three seasons of Premier League racing with a rise into the Elite League and a historic occasion lies ahead next month as the Sky Sports cameras descend on the Jordan Road Surfacing Stadium.
The Lions' clash against Eastbourne on Monday, July 14 will be beamed to the nation - the first time a live meeting will ever have been broadcast from the city.
It marks another major milestone in the development of an ambitious club which has come a long way in a short space of time.
And there are already some grand plans for the future.
"It's an absolute first for Leicester speedway to have a meeting televised live and we can't wait to see the cameras rolling," said Hemsley, a childhood fan of the club in its initial form and driving force behind the club's return.
"It will be great to have Sky here and we also want to have as many people in the stadium as possible for such a unique occasion. We've slashed admission prices for £10 for adults and £5 for kids "“ and we're also offering a £20 family ticket.
"We want to attract past, present and future fans of the club and we're hoping for a bumper turnout after already having some very good crowds this season.
"There were around 2,500 present for our meeting with Coventry and slightly more than that when we faced Wolverhampton.
"Having the TV cameras here can't be any more daunting than running our first-ever meeting in front of 5,000 fans on our opening night in 2011.
"We managed to pull that off so hopefully the Sky TV meeting will also go smoothly and I won't have to go and hide in a corner!
"Running a speedway club is such a busy job that you don't really have time to stand back and take stock of things.
"We have obviously made pleasing progress since the club was reborn and the dream now is to have a successful team and robust business. We have to aspire to be like Poole who seem to have it right on and off the track.
"We have planning permission in place to build a grandstand and we're also an FIM-registered venue so we would love to be able to stage major events in the coming years."
It was back on April 2, 2011 that the curtain went up on a new era in Leicester. It has been a family affair for Hemsley whose wife Yulya is the licensee at the Jordan Road Surfacing Stadium while his daughters are also part of the meeting staff.
The presence of the television cameras will however mean a rare shift from the Lions' regular Saturday race-night.
Hemsley is adamant that laying on weekend action is crucial to attracting bumper attendances "“ a view which attracted criticism in some quarters last weekend when the Lions took on Swindon despite both sides missing riders due to the GP qualifiers.
"I'm quite stuck in my ways regarding racing on a Saturday," he added. "It is the traditional family night out and I don't think I would be attracting those sort of numbers on a Tuesday for example.
"We copped a bit of flak over going ahead with the meeting against Swindon, but I had to think of it from a business point of view.
"I felt we would have a bigger crowd on a Saturday than another night of the week and those that came along were treated to an exciting meeting full of excellent racing.
"The track has taken a couple of years to mature, but it is now smoother than a baby's bottom and it is no coincidence that the racing has improved this season with better riders in action in the Elite League."
Leicester can currently be found propping up the top-flight standings, but Hemsley has no regrets about their rise into the Elite League.
And he is confident a revamped team "“ bolstered by the arrivals of Polish crowd-pleaser Krzysztof Buczkowski and in-form Danish ace Nicolai Klindt, who is still to make his Lions debut "“ can climb the table during the second half of the campaign.
"Racing in the Elite League was always the long-term goal and it is the best commercial decision the club has made," continued Hemsley.
"I think we've now got a team that is capable of getting us out of the situation we currently find ourselves in.
"It hasn't all been plain sailing this season. The injury to Patrick Hougaard and the manner in which he decided he wouldn't continue racing in England were both a blow.
"We've made changes and in Krzysztof we have a rider who became a fans' favourite within the space of his first meeting for the club.
"He was terrific to watch, riding wide lines and pulling wheelies when out in front. The sport desperately needs entertainers like that.
"I think a lot of the personality has been taken out of the people who participate in motorsport and that's a shame because we need to be talked about."
