Urgent - Vintage Class at The Sydney Dirt Bike Spectacular September 10th

[number 87]

Afternoon all, a bit of urgent news if anyone is interested i have had a conversation with the organisers and they mentioned that they would be happy to run a vintage bike class to replace one of the current classes that is extremely short on entries if we can get enough entries together.
We would need as close to 12 entries as possible (more would be better).

Count me as 1.

Officially the entries close last mail on the 1st of September (tomorrow) but obviously if there is enough intrest from us old bike people this wont matter.

The meeting is a day/night, gates open at 1.30pm with racing to start just after practice which is scheduled for 4pm. The track is the Tyre Power Sydney Speedway at Granville and is a "short track", about 440 metres long and all lefts.

Interested riders should contact the Race Secretary David Smith on 0412 506 503

I reckon the night will be a hoot and i can leave the modern bike a home.
Cheers all

[Curly3]

I'm keen, how much and how many rides would we get?
Count me as number 2.

[number 87]

Sorry people (i am dumb, should have done this earlier)

Following is a link to the entry form

http://www.motorcycling.com.au/PDF_Files/Competitor_Info/ci_sr_2011dirtbikespectacular2_100911.pdf

Cheers

[Shaun G]

I'm in as number 3 if it is run as a pre '90 class.
Cheers
Shaun

[VMX247]

About Tyrepower Parramatta City Raceway:
Track: 460m clay/dirt oval
21 Wentworth St, Granville
(Just off Parramatta Rd near the corner of James Ruse Drive)
www.parramattacityraceway.com.au
E-mail: [email protected]

How did the entries go last year matcho mick,Get a good turn out ? Good to see the entry price has gone down on the seniors by $30..extra pit pass is still same..enjoy.

Sounds like these will be great events. I remember riding at a very early Supercross event in 1978 at the Granville Speedway is this what is now the Parramatta Speedway?

This was the Granville Speedway when we raced there in 78.

[Curly3]

I'll be in need of a one day license, no indication on the entry if they're avaliable?
Without being a doom sayer, $170.00 for me might be a bit much.
Over the years I've seen plenty of these "exhibition" events turn pear shape and I'd be royaly peeeed off if I only had 2 rides.
Anyone out there went last year and how did it go?

[number 87]

Hey SlideRulz, there has not been a vintage class at the previous meetings and i didn't ride the modern last year, by all accounts it was a good meeting, well run and everyone got their rides. i only saw the the idiotbox package televised some time after the meeting and the whole shooting match looked like a pretty well run affair with the only negatives comments being the cost of entry (some people will whinge no matter how cheap entries are!!!)

From what i can gather the promoters dont regard these race meetings as exhibitions, obviously any promoter (be it a club or a private entity) needs to either make some money out of race meetings or at least not go broke! and as racers, we need somewhere to play and the more places to play the better. The last thing that motorcycle racing needs is less promoters and less tracks (look at roadracing in NSW).

Personally i will ride at ANY promoters meeting at least once, if its a cluster i dont go back, but i think that the sport needs to support anyone that supports the sport . . . . . say that 10 times quickly when your full of "round brown sandwiches"!

I think if the old bike brigade turn up , we might actually be invited from the get go next meeting they run . . . . . racing vintage bikes on Saturday night at a track smack in the middle of Sydney on a regular basis would be just sensational . . . . me thinks.

Cheers all

[firko]

The whole problem with this and many other promotions is that there just plain isn't enough lead up time for entries. With the vintage class inclusion was announced yesterday and the deadline being today I reckon it's a bit much to expect racers to drop to their knees in thanks for the opportunity and rush the promoter with their entries, even if they extend the deadline a few days. These 'last minute inclusion' situations have appeared in the past and like Slidey says, they usually end up going pear shape, causing the promoter to get the shits and opt not to include vintage classes in future promotions because "they didn't support us last time".

It's a great idea and I hope as many as possible support it but in reality the lead up is way too short.

[vmxrider]

I'll be in need of a one day license, no indication on the entry if they're avaliable?

Just off the phone to Dave Smith (race sec) and no one day licenses for this event.  :'(

[Curly3]

Well that's me out.
I'll be there to look and I'd love to see it become a regular inclusion.
I hope you can muster up the numbers required and safe racing to all who ride.
Steve

[vmxrider]

One day license no go as its an open meeting. As sup regs show must have national license.
Spoke to MNSW there may be just enough time to apply for and receive a national license before the meeting ($275) if really keen and cashed up.
Not sure about cost/time to upgrade from club license.

[number 87]

Firko, hope you are well, i kind of agree however the inclusion of vintage bike was more my idea and the attitude from the organisers is certainly not "kiss our bums and thanks us".
I put a call into David Smith to confirm my entry for the moderns and in conversation asked the question "how are the entries going" to which the response was "Sh#t . . . . as this is on and that event is 2 weekends later etc etc" . . . . . . . . . . .To which i said . . "Should have asked the old bike people" . . . . . David then said "put the word out and if you can put a field together we will run a vintage class and drop the sidecars" (apparently as of yesterday there were NO sidecar entries).

Firko, it is a chicken and egg thing . . . . if these promoters dont know that we (old bike people) exist they will never invite us. . . . and if we sit back and wait for an invite or not enter because we want to wait and see if the show is a good one. . . well . . .  it all amounts to the same big bucket of nothing.

Firko, you probably have the phone number of more vintage people than anybody so put the word out and if people want to have a ride well good, if not for this meeting then for the next lets get some communication going amongst ourselves AND the promoters of such events and get vintage on the programme. As i said elsewhere, racing vintage bikes on sat arvo/night in the middle of Sydney on a regular basis, how cool.

Racing speedway years ago in the days of travel, start, and point money we got ripped of by some promoters but not by others, there will always be good and bad but in my mind the ultimate bad is not have any opportunity to race my old bike anywhere. . .

Cheers

[firko]

I'm not blaming you #87..you've done a good thing. My concern is that the promoters have known of the classic classes all along...if they aren't aware of the classic classes they haven't been paying much attention. Just about every long track meeting in the last 20 years has had some sort of classic class in the mix. By not including them in the first place and then only including them as an afterthought is a bit rude in my mind.

Now to the task at hand...what vintage class are they wanting? Sliders and/or speedway bikes would seem to be the logical inclusion, as would the classic flat trackers that were so spectacular on long track.
If it's for motocross type bikes are there to be capacity splits or is it all in? How many races would a rider get for his $170? Another thing to consider is that many vintage racers ride on restricted or day licences because they never feel the need to ride open meetings.

Firko, you probably have the phone number of more vintage people than anybody so put the word out and if people want to have a ride well good, if not for this meeting then for the next lets get some communication going amongst ourselves AND the promoters of such events and get vintage on the programme. As i said elsewhere, racing vintage bikes on sat arvo/night in the middle of Sydney on a regular basis, how cool.

I doubt I've got as many contacts as you'd think but I've rang a mate who has more contact with the dirt track population than I and he asked me the same questions I've asked...."What vintage bikes are we dealing with here"? 

[number 87]

Firko again you are correct the promoter should be aware but i get the imppression that the organisers in this case are either speedway car heads or people from central coast motorcycle club wich is highly jnr focused . . . so vintage bikes are not "top of mind" for these clandestine (joking) types....

You are absolutely right with the licence thing i know that many of the guys i race with at nepean dont have a Snr National . . . cant do much about that.

To answer your question - dont really care - i thought along the lines of the EVO rules (Air cooled, no discs, no links) but again at short notice  - dont care -  the task in my mind was to try and find a dozen like minded nutters with old bikes that wanted to turn up and have a ride . . . . my plan from that point was to loby hard and make absolutely sure a proper vintage presence catered for in future meetings.

Cheers

[firko]

There ya go boys....Evo action on the clay mix at Granville. I realise it's short notice but surely there must be a dozen or so guys ready for some quarter mile action. If it falls through this time 87, it would be a good idea to inform the promoters that there might be a better chance to drum up some vintage bikes for their next Granville meeting, laterin the year.