Future of Viper Racing, indeed all VMX racing. ie Venue/Club support

[Viper666]

I am wearing 2 hats in this spread. One as a round organizer, the other as a Viper member.

At this point in time I have only 27 entries for Monza. I have made it as easy as possible for people to send in their entry. Not that long ago if the cheque wasn't with the entry it wasn't accepted and there was no such thing as on the day entry but to help people as much as possible these rules have been bent, broken & virtually thrown out. Alright, I have said No on the day entry but I have also said even if you are only 10% sure of coming put your entry in so at least you can ride if things go your way and pay on the day.

Rovers is luckier than some clubs in that we have a strong membership, always looking for more, and we are reasonably financialy sound. It is to that end that our club runs events to the betterment of the sport, Viper is a point in example. My club is not looking to make money out of running a Viper event but it is not looking to run at a loss either. In years gone past I have paid clubs to flag for us ($500) but there's no way I can justify that this time so I'm asking for volunteers. Then you take St Johns, catering, preparation of the track, which I might add we have put in shitloads of time, effort & money to get it ready, and you start to get the picture. I myself put in heaps of time behind the scenes to get the event happening (No more than anyone else that has organised a Viper event) on top of all my other duties for the club. It also disheartens our members to volunteer for an event such as Viper only to have less riders turn up than we would get to a Club day. You're probably thinking I'm just having a whinge and you're damn right I am! What a lot of you dont understand is if these event aren't supported by the riders then I see a day when clubs will pull out at the last minute or refuse to run an event because it's just not worth the effort.

There has been quite a vocal group within Viper pushing for more rounds but it seems that towards the end of the year, as with Western Region etc, the numbers drop off if they are not in the points. Is this what Viper/VMX is all about, points & trophies? I would hope not. If riders dont support the clubs then the clubs are not going to put their hands up to run the rounds, then where will we be?

I know there are some of you out there that dont like Monza or are going to the GP and sure the PO Box might be full as we speak but I doubt it. Even if we get record entries this weekend I still see this trend happening more & more. If you dont want the sport to die, support it. The calendar is set, maybe not in concrete, at the start of the year, surely we can at least get our entries in the week preceeding so clubs have a better idea how many they are expecting, especially for thing like catering?

I may be off track here but I dont think so. Not pointing the finger at any club but the preparation that some clubs put into their tracks is less than desirable, they run out of food, drinks etc. Ever thought that like me leading up to the event they have no idea of how many to expect. The guy who prepares the track thinks what's the point for stuff all riders. Only buying enough for the day so as not to waste food & money. Again we are lucky that we have a huge canteen with fridges a freezers, others dont. So what I am saying is before whinging a track is shit or they ran out of everything before lunch think about the club.

I for one dont want this sport to die or become insignificant but that is my fear if we dont get more responsible. We have to support the clubs that support us. I have no idea how other states go, other parts of Victoria or even the classic boys but I would think it's along the same lines.

I have been on the look out for some natural terain tracks for Classic & Viper & have some promising prospects but the effort that goes into running one of those is 6 times that of one at Monza where there is an established track, ammenities, equipment etc. Question, why would we or any other club go to such an effort when we are not sure of what sort of numbers we will get? I dont know the answer, I'm not that intellegent enough but I do know something has to give. Hopefully not the sport.

Perhaps a notice of intention, ie email, txt, forum, phone call, whatever. Just saying, put me down, I'll send the entry soon. But really, is it that hard just to send the entry early and be done with it? I had a bloke ring me and say he now cant make it, no problems, I'll post his money order back. I am all for closing entries the week before and NO ON THE DAY ENTRIES giving clubs enough time firstly, to make a call whether to run it or not, but more importantly to have time to prepare and cater. With Viper you get a ticket which entitles you to lunch. At this stage that will be 27 hot dogs and cokes.

Come on people, be fair to the clubs, get your entries in early! It's not like it cost you anything bar maybe a stamp. It cost the club so much more if you dont!

Ooopppps, bang, thud! Just fell off me soapbox!

No matter the numbers Monza will go ahead this weekend but my patience & enthusiasm is waning. Prove me wrong, show me to be the pessimistic old fart that I am by getting heaps of entries in. Indeed, from now on get all your entries in as early as possible, you can always pull out later

OK, see most of you Viper riders Sunday

Viper666

[All Things 414]

Totally agree. I can't understand what all the trouble is with pre-entering? 

[Viper666]

Shit, I must be wrong if Rossco agrees! Damn.

[Stevo17]

I could possibly come out and flag if you are short of numbers. My bikes and gear are all in storage following my move from sydney, but I would hate to see racing racing suffer due to lack of support.

[VMX247]

I'm reading your plight Viper and I know a few others would be going out in vmx sympathy too.
If its any support ,,,the DT Nats entries where down and late as well as Conondale Nationals, all at the last minute entries started to lift.Would be interesting to know how many late ones came in 
Looking back in the Comp forum threads a few where cancelled also. 

It doesn't matter if you get 27 or 100 riders,same amount of work goes into the event as you say with track maintenance and volunteer flaggies,first aid etc...Yep I'm repeating basically what you have said,,,,but hey       same old dirt same old fun 
It's been a big year and only 10 weeks till Christmas. 
I know you'll have a hoot with low entries as this gives you extra time for bench racing.
chin up 
cheers

[firko]

So....it seems that the "we do it so much better down here" Viper suffers the same problems that we in the lesser states also experience  . The crux to many of the low entries is that there are just too many rounds. I don't know how many rounds VIPER has but if it's anything like the silly 9 round HEAVEN series you'll find that the interest drops off towards the end of the season. When these series things are being formulated in the off season everyone is hot to trot wanting as many rides as they can get but by seasons end that gung ho attitude has gone. The travel, wear and tear on bike and body and most of all, the 'same old same old' boredom kicks in.

I'm not a big fan of series' for many reasons but I realise that the majority do like them and that's fine. Now, I'm speaking generally here and not having a go at VIPER, HEAVEN or any other club, I'm merely stating an opinion based on my own experience. I reckon the dropping off of interest in the latter part of any season anywhere has a lot to do with rider boredom and the lack of enthusiasm put into promotion by clubs for each round. The slack entry level for the recent HEAVEN Clarence round was a classic example. The club tried to cock the event up as bit by naming it the Evo Challenge but their heart wasn't in it. In actuality the Clarence race was really ony 'Round 5, Clarence' with no hoo haa to drum up the importance of the Evo Challenge part of the program. The event tanked with thirty something entries, hardly covering costs I'd imagine.

By contrast, the next event, the HEAVEN 10th anniversary meeting at Canowindra was a success because the unique aspects of the event were spruiked up. The unique stadium track made the event something special and even though it followed the dull old Clarence event, its uniqueness and HEAVENS improved promotion attracted a good roll up. This event has the potential to become something really special if HEAVEN pull out the jams and promote, promote and promote.

When you look back at our sports short history and examine the succesful events and the failures, you'll just about always find that the succesful promotions had a unique flavour and were promoted through the roof. The 11 years of the Condo Greybeards attests to the success of blanket promotion and turning a meeting into a cult event with 200 entries every year. The big opening round at Amaroo Park always attracted a star studded field of up to 150 riders because it was HEAVILY promoted in ADB and it had that certain indefinable something. The Crawford River Classic is a current event that has all of the makings of being a must attend meeting but for a while HEAVEN management did everything it could to turn people off the event by being anal and petty. With new people at the helm the event will be at the top of the 'must do' list if they promote it properly.

The bottom line is, you have to make each even something unique and not 'just another club day'. It's better to have a quality five round series with each event having a unique aspect rather than 10 rounds of the 'same old same old'. In this day and age there are a lot of things to keep us away from the track. Clubs need to inject a bit of PT Barnum showbiz into their events and make the racers want to attend. Each event needs to be something unique and special. The continuing success of the Nats and Classic Dirt are prime examples of that philosophy.

crrrraaack, that's my soapbox breaking under the pressure. I'll hop off before it collapses. 

[Graeme M]

I'll add my weight to that soapbox. Now, I am not a serious racer and it looks like next year it's not likely I'll get to many vintage events at all. BUT.... I totally agree there are now too many events. If you can get along to all of them it's great, plenty of racing and socialising. But of the few I've gone to, I've seen smaller and smaller fields and surprisingly a different group of people (beyond the hardcore guys that do go to all).

I would much rather the clubs stick to just 4 events per year, but hype them up. Taking the HEAVEN example, we could have the Crawford River Classic, Evo Challenge, Canowindra Cup and one other. Call it something too, like the Pearly gates Pearler  .

Then, run them at regualr intervals - the Pearler in March, CRC in what, May? the Evo Challenge in September and the Canowindra Cup in October. Build them up with plenty of early marketing and so on. Riders would flock to those cos they are the only game in town, AND there's enough time between events to get keen. remember, there are also the MA thing at Broadford, Classic Dirt, the MX and DT Nats, plus a few other notable events away like the Conondale Classic and the Double the Dirt events.

That said, I realise Qld seem to do OK with their events, and they have one every month it seems. Or are they starting to suffer from sagging entries too? The DtD had troubles in 08 and wasn't as big in 09 as it had been...

My view - reduce the numbers of events in favour of fewer bigger and better events.

[All Things 414]

A lot of guys here are doing VCM and Viper. That equates to about ten races for the year plus other events. I must admit that I'm feeling pretty shagged with it all and will be sticking to just one series next year.
I think if people are serious about doing The Aussie Vintage Motocross Threesome (Tri series) then they're in for more than they bargained for (as well as running the whole thing).

Monza will go off on the weekend and it'll be grouse! Traction city + those big hills + 500 two strokes......

People just hate pre-entering for some bizaar reason.... 

[VMX247]

People just hate pre-entering for some bizaar reason....  [/color]

cause some have been getting away with it for so long--lazy tarts     
cheers

[mxmaniac]

The old saying goes something like.. "You dont realise what you have got untill its gone"
Hopefully this never eventuates...
Next year Shaun and myself will be back on the right track and be able to get to alot of meetings.. Its been 2 of them years with starting a family.. building houses etc that have put us on the bench for the best part of 2 years.
Look forward to the fun of vmx 2010... Injury free

[worms]

ok, as allways i cant help myself,

i think the idea is to run 1 or 2 major events each year, apply the kis factor, keep it simple.

and anybody running a club is charged with only providing events as per say, not to make a profit, we should all be not for profit organizations and the focus should allways remain with the sport, so if your memmbers choose not to attend, and dont want to pre -entre, that comes down to choice, did your club as a whole vote to have pre-entries, or was it a committee thing?

sometimes we make it harder for members to be active, but if you only have 1 or 2 events with pre entry it's not such a big deal.

a normal race dosnt have to be so formal and needs to be rather on the line of this is the event , come and ride if you want, yes it is more work on the day, but it is also less in the lead up.

i will get back in my box,

sweep rider Trev

[albrid-3]

l think its time their should be a very big meeting with all the clubs to discuss the amalgamation with all models and era. The Australia titles worked well, put your thinking caps on fellows, its going to happen, clubs can`t continue losing money all the time or breaking even, thats not busniess. Their is to any race meetings going on each year, pre 75, VCM, viper.
My son wants to race pre85, l am pre75, where do l go, l think vintage racing needs to come together and stay together and design the tracks better, 5 two days meetings per year plus Australia Titles as the last round for each state. Plus you also have Classic dirt, Bonanza Long weekend, THIS SPORT WILL DIE AND WE ARE THE PROBLEM AND WE NEED TO FIX IT.

[All Things 414]

design the tracks better

Clubs aren't going to change their tracks to cater for old bikes and why should they? As Neale says "We're the past. Not the future".
No matter how important we think we are to the sport, at the end of the day.....we really aren't. Sorry! 

[albrid-3]

SORRY TO HERE YOU SAY THAT, WE ARE IMPORTANT, VINTAGE HELPED TO PULL THE GEELONG SPORTING CLUB OUT OF THE SHIT HOLE THAT THEY WHERE IN YEARS AGO, THAN CAME THE THUMPER NATS, VINTAGE STARTED THAT INSIGHT, THE GEELONG SPORTING CLUB GROW FROM THEN ON. WITH NEGITIVE MINES AS YOURS IT WILL STAGNATE. When l was involve with VMX Mag, the grand prix wanted vintage race meeting on the same day as the moto GP. Yes Same weekend. This Sport will not Die while us positive mines are around. we need to look for the future.

[yzhilly]

Sorry Neale and all the Viper crew but i wont make it on the weekend ,still struggling with Knee problems from Barrabool ,have a good one .Hilly