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Raising The Profile Of Trials


spike123
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I'm not sure if I'm even on the right track with this topic

Is the issue not recognising rider achievement or not promoting a sport

Unfortunately some sports and top participants in said sports don't get airtime , coverage, or promotion that some participants think it should get

There's many sports in which we've had word champions in yet no one ever hears about it

Or really cares

You do your chosen sport for yourself and your own goals

Yes recognition for your efforts is always a bonus but unfortunately it's not always there

If it's about promotion of the sport I still stand by my comments you can put as much as you like on TV or in the press and it's still only gonna appeal to a limited amount

Go through a list of top riders in the UK or world and look how many come from families or friends that participated in trials beforehand

I think very few came into the sport through promotional means

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If its about raising the profile of the sport the best thing is attract high profile people

Most notable at the moment is guy martin , and foggy having a go

The fan base of riders like these are more likely to have a look at what trials is about than your average joe watching sunday night tv

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Well if  we're all willing to pay for it I'm sure  the SACU in my case would willingly employ someone to spread the word.

 

Fact it there's really only some much I can expect for my £12 reg/licence fee.

 

Make it £!00 and spend the £88 on promotion? Aye,right as we say, be real popular.

 

Even a miserable Fifer like myself can see  the value in the present system..

 

IMO best way to promote Trials is run plenty easy club trials and look after the new riders

 

 

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Promoting trials at the minute is potentially as useful as launching a half finished bike.

 

Trials needs a clean sheet of paper approach to its world championship and rules.

 

People don't want to hear it but watching trials is very dull, and I like trials !

 

Stop permitted and timed sections was reasonably exciting depending on the sections but this made the gap in ability enormous.

 

Observing under most current proposals is pretty subjective.

 

I'm all for getting more people to ride but if you took our sport as it is to the dragons den as an idea you wouldn't get very far....

 

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I've read all comments with great interest!

 

I do agree, the ACU need to make more effort in promoting the sport, however if the clubs can't be bothered to advertise and promote then whats the point of the ACU doing so!

 

Promote via Internet, local paper adverts, flyers, open days, local shows, etc, etc! 

All come at very little cost, if any, to the club! 

Its just your time you have to give!

 

How else do you promote?  

 

Easy! 

1.   Simply by organising excellent, well supported, well promoted trials for all levels that more riders want to attend and attempt!!!!  

2.   Make your trial spectator friendly.  (This requires some thought wrt venues and obviously Summer months work better than others!)

 

Last point - Kickstart no doubt increased the numbers of participants in the sport!  Did it have an immediate impact?  I doubt it as most 8 year olds couldnt go out and buy a bike if their families couldnt afford one!  However i bet theres a few who watched it in the day who have now purchased a bike and enjoy the sport they only dreamed of when they were kids!!

 

Next!!

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Firstly, we do not know that the ACU was not in contact with the BBC about motorcycling in relation to the programme.  If McGuinness and Co (in the audience) from a sport that the BBC does actually cover can't get a mention then trials has no chance.

 

Secondly, the last organisation (I can't remember the sport involved) that tried to influence the BBC over Sports Personality saw that sport's "candidate" publicly bumped as a result. 

 

I don't watch the programme these days as it is utter rubbish with virtually no sport, the emphasis being on so-called personality as opposed to sporting achievement.  At least when it was Sports Review of the Year you occasionally had motorcyclists involved and saw something of the previous year's activities.

 

I gave up on it when the public was no longer allowed to vote for their choice from the year; as I understand it they can now only vote from a list of ten candidates preselected by the BBC.  Given what now passes for "personality" in the media there will always be a lot more than ten numpties in line well before any genuinely worthy motorcyclists with a sporting achievement.

 

I'm also not convinced that we want to be raising the profile of the sport, for several reasons, but where is the land to come from to accommodate a vast increase in numbers?  Or do we all want to be spending ages queuing at every section.  We coped with higher numbers decades ago as we weren't squeezing everyone on to a small patch of land but generally spreading them round a lengthy route, which tends not to happen nowadays.

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On the topic of promoting trials:

My own experience of running trials is that the use of the land we depend on is largely negotiated with small-scale farm owners or tenant farmers. This relationship is always carefully nurtured, often over many years, eased by the handing over of a bottle of scotch or, quite rightly these days, a bit of cash. These people's livelihood depends on their land being left in an undamaged and unabused state after the event. They know this will happen with a limited number of riders who may bring along a few pals or family members. What they would not welcome would be an attempt to "promote" our sport by publicising it to an unlimited number of unknown spectators who may trample crops, leave litter or invite themselves to return to the land with their pit bikes or quad bikes. I've had to deal with all of that in the past. The farmers I've dealt with would have little interest in hosting some sort of mass participation event with its attendant risks. Dealing with the trials "family" who can be relied on to act responsibly and leave them to get on with their work when we clear off at 4 o'clock on a Sunday suits them fine.

Low key = win/win.

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