Revamp - Less Polish Contol Over The Sport

[dirt]

That's what most of the other GP promoters have to do Burt. It's up to the promoter to make sure his income from whatever means is larger than the outgoings.

No wie wee its not you maniac. As for Australia to host a round there is a significant shipment cost to bring the bikes over. Can you not see that - open up your brain for work.

 

Do each other round or GP have this cost to pay?????

 

please answer that!

 

and whats MOST of the other GP promoters mean? some dont pay anything?? or all expenses?

 

as I say joke.

Edited December 18, 2010 by dirt

[HenryW]

No wie wee its not you maniac. As for Australia to host a round there is a significant shipment cost to bring the bikes over. Can you not see that - open up your brain for work.

 

Do each other round or GP have this cost to pay?????

 

please answer that!

 

and whats MOST of the other GP promoters mean? some dont pay anything?? or all expenses?

 

as I say joke.

I presume that by "most", he actually means "none", because no other SGP promoter is asked to pay travelling expenses for the riders. The travelling expenses are "included" in the prize money for the riders at current SGP events. I doubt that could ever be the case for an Australian GP so someone other than the riders would have to pay for the travelling.

 

Having said that, the money has to come from somewhere. Either the European promoters have to front up the cash for an Aussie GP, or the Aussie promoters do. Ultimately, there is nothing to be gained by Euro promoters paying for a round at the other side of the World unless they believe that they are going to get a financial return from it.

 

The fact that there are no Aussie promoters willing to front that cash suggests that no-one over there believes that there is a good guaranteed return on the investment, so it's not surprising that the Euro based promoters aren't rushing to get in on the action.

 

I am sure that eventually SGP will return to the Southern hemisphere, it just waits to be seen when and who will be the one with the guts to actually stump up the cash before the event...It could be IMG themselves or it could be a local promoter.

 

If it's IMG and they make a success of it, look forward to howls of protest from Aussie speedway about how they are just taking money out of the sport in Australia and giving nothing back, a bit like some do over here when they run their GPs at Cardiff and get great crowds. Anyone could have done that before they came along, but instead the British promoters were running the SGP in front of 8 or 10 thousand at Coventry, Bradford, etc.

[dirt]

I believe it would be fair for the Promoter with the guts in Australia to pay say 1/2 (half) of this travel expenses,

and IMG the main beneficiery of the business and runner of the 'sport' to put in about 1/2 (half) also.

 

If it works it works if not move on!

[stevehone]

If it works it works if not move on!

 

the reason no GP in Oz since Sydney?

[WIE-JA]

No wie wee its not you maniac. As for Australia to host a round there is a significant shipment cost to bring the bikes over. Can you not see that - open up your brain for work.

 

Do each other round or GP have this cost to pay?????

 

please answer that!

 

and whats MOST of the other GP promoters mean? some dont pay anything?? or all expenses?

 

as I say joke.

Promoters have to pay for the rights to stage the GP at their stadium. BSI/IMG organize Cardiff themselves so are responsible for all the costs their. Maybe the cost of shipping bikes out to Australia could be split between the promoter and BSI/IMG.

[BigFatDave]

the reason no GP in Oz since Sydney?

Dave Lander was badly let down in Sydney by a couple of factors; the weather didn't help during the get-out resulting in penalty payments to the owners of the stadium and the number of freeloading FIM representatives who had to be flown out, wined & dined and accommodated etc was amazing. That said, both NZ and Australia hosted IMG officials this year with the view that it's gonna happen sooner or later so let's have a look, but as with most GPs and SWC the need for outside i.e. government funding is paramount. Contingency plans were drawn up; stadiums were inspected and plans for their temporary modification were drawn up. Neither the Australian State Gov'ts nor the NZ Federal Gov't were willing to chip in so that's where it rests at the moment.

Edited December 18, 2010 by BigFatDave

[WIE-JA]

Dave Lander was badly let down in Sydney by a couple of factors; the weather didn't help during the get-out resulting in penalty payments to the owners of the stadium and the number of freeloading FIM representatives who had to be flown out, wined & dined and accommodated etc was amazing. That said, both NZ and Australia hosted IMG officials this year with the view that it's gonna happen sooner or later so let's have a look, but as with most GPs and SWC the need for outside i.e. government funding is paramount. Contingency plans were drawn up; stadiums were inspected and plans for their temporary modification were drawn up. Neither the Australian State Gov'ts nor the NZ Federal Gov't were willing to chip in so that's where it rests at the moment.

Lets hope that something positive comes out of those recent meetings then BFD.

[BigFatDave]

Lets hope that something positive comes out of those recent meetings then BFD.

In the meantime we're working on improving facilities - the news today that Gillman is investing in an Air Fence can only be good in the long run.

[Humphrey Appleby]

If it's IMG and they make a success of it, look forward to howls of protest from Aussie speedway about how they are just taking money out of the sport in Australia and giving nothing back, a bit like some do over here when they run their GPs at Cardiff and get great crowds.

 

Whilst I do think BSI were/are overrated, I certainly have no objection to them (as an enterprise) making as much money as they can, nor going to where they can make that money. Good luck to them for taking the opportunities afforded them.

 

Looking at the bigger picture though, the setup does little for the rest of the sport. Okay, it provides an annual get together for the 40,000 or so remaining British fans, and having the SGP on television might keep the sport in the public consciousness more than otherwise. Equally though, approximately GBP 3 million quid per year is disappearing into the ether, both to the FIM and the IMG shareholders (even if the parent company then contrive to lose it on other ventures).

 

Yes, why didn't the existing promoters do what BSI have done? Indeed we may ask, but if you look at the way the domestic media rights have been sold to a company who don't appear to be able to design even a rudimentary website properly, then the words 'clueless' and 'amateurs' comes to mind...

 

Other sports grasped the opportunities offered by satellite/cable television and leveraging corporate sponsorship, and with the odd exception made sure the benefits accrued to themselves (although they were often then wasted). Unfortunately though, speedway seems to have never moved beyond its used-car salesman mentality and allowed its premier product to be virtually given away.

Edited December 18, 2010 by Humphrey Appleby

[dirt]

the reason no GP in Oz since Sydney?

Probably the same reason it failed to make money....? you figure it out its not hard.

 

IMO it is that the travel costs and shipment of machines all is expected and charged to the promoter, so it makes his job of breaking even at least impossible?!

Edited December 18, 2010 by dirt

[Humphrey Appleby]

IMO it is that the travel costs and shipment of machines all is expected and charged to the promoter, so it makes his job of breaking even at least impossible?!

 

It was probably not just the travel costs. Stadium Australia is unlikely to have come cheap and was always going to be vastly too big for the GP, plus there was the track construction for a one-off event, and so on and so forth...

 

What would be interesting to know though, is whether the World Pairs Final at Liverpool back in 1982 made money. The track is now long gone of course, but I've never seen any discussion about the costs of staging the event there.

 

That was an ambitious year for speedway, what with the World Individual Final being held outside of Europe as well.

Edited December 18, 2010 by Humphrey Appleby

[dirt]

1982 seems like another life! It must be said non European countries were given a go.

 

That is correct IMO - Stadium Australia was a bit of an over exuberance or too big and expensive - and if a free venue like a speedway track had the next Aussie GP money could be made.

 

Gillman would be first in the running atm, with an airfence perhaps mandatory in this era, so that box will be ticked.

 

Just increase the capacity, and bobs your mothers brother in law.

 

Double 'Kurri in a hurry' - will host some big meetings no doubt and we'll wait and see.

[Humphrey Appleby]

That is correct IMO - Stadium Australia was a bit of an over exuberance or too big and expensive - and if a free venue like a speedway track had the next Aussie GP money could be made.

 

I suspect another problem at the time, was the declared intention to take GPs to major venues. Of course, there's since been a bit of a backtracking on that score, but Gillman would be a bit of a struggle under any circumstances.

[BigFatDave]

I suspect another problem at the time, was the declared intention to take GPs to major venues. Of course, there's since been a bit of a backtracking on that score, but Gillman would be a bit of a struggle under any circumstances.

Gillman is a work in progress, Humphrey, but it is improving in

and it's got the best Hot Dogs & Pasties of any Speedway track in Oz. Oh, and also the best management at the moment in Dave Parker, but who's to say that Kurri squared with Boydie or Parramatta with Tappy wouldn't be up to the job in the future?

[Bavarian]

It was probably not just the travel costs. Stadium Australia is unlikely to have come cheap and was always going to be vastly too big for the GP, plus there was the track construction for a one-off event, and so on and so forth...

 

What would be interesting to know though, is whether the World Pairs Final at Liverpool back in 1982 made money. The track is now long gone of course, but I've never seen any discussion about the costs of staging the event there.

 

That was an ambitious year for speedway, what with the World Individual Final being held outside of Europe as well.

 

Here is a heat race (Denmark vs USA) of that 1982 world pairs final at Liverpool, NSW. AS You can see the bike track at Liverpool Raceway was situated on the infield of the car oval. Don't know how well attended this meeting was, but on the video You don't see much of a crowd!

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nKugLRft8jY&NR=1

[Dexter]

I would say that claiming that Poles control speedway is exaggeration. They can hardly control their own league. Every year half of Polish clubs struggle with fulfilling their financial commitments to the riders and half of the rules are changed. Obviously, they try to have that all, mainly because of lack of successes for many years. This is why we have three GP-s in Poland. They are now on fire (as long as Gollob is in form and Scandinavians together with Brits struggle to provide strong resistance).

 

On the other hand - which stadiums outside Europe could run GP? Australia, New Zealand - they are approached almost every year but there is never enough sponsors to allow to run the event. We've heard about returning GP to Australia since many years and nothing ever happened. Surely, there are many venues where it could be done. The problem is obviously on financial site. It is simply not profitable.

[Bavarian]

I know where in Australia and New zealand I would stage a SGP

 

Up in Queensland and still standing since nearly a hundred years is that holy shrine of speedway racing called the EKKA, the Bribane Exhibition Ground.

 

Here is footage of an early 1990's international meeting at the Ekka.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TfvsTCq4YtA

 

And down in New Zealand the most famous of all speedway venues is the Westen Springs track in Auckland!

 

Here is some interesting footage from Western Springs of an NZ vs Aussie solo test match of early 1980!

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWcsun1FH08&feature=related

[dirt]

That race was great, but ive never seen a thinner track than that, with not hitting the fence half the battle id imagine.

 

The EKKA could be widened id think from the inside, with the removal of the fence needed and an airfence put in.

 

and the stands wouldnt be too stable with them falling to bits a bit of a problem.