Week 30 - Fim Get A Soaking Over Spa

[666wobbler]

WHAAAAAATTTTTTT!!!!!

The FIM has cancelled the final round of the World Trials Championship at Spa in Belgium. I don

[nigel dabster]

I'll have a think over it in Andorra Nigel but the issues in terms of getting more entries are around the number of people capable of riding current sections and the costs (I'm currently second in the stating the obvious world championship).

My issue with the sections is that the bigger man made stuff puts riders at 10 - 12th place out of the section. For example Michele Orizio, a very capable rider obviously who from memory finished 12th or 13th at Spa last year. He asked for a five at section one, section four and section 10, thats the sections I saw on the first lap. I'm not blaming him at all as the sections were very big but if people scoring points cant attempt the sections then what incentive is there to enter for those who would finish behind them ? We need a different style of section that the majority can get through rather than the top five only, and I dont think more man made sections are helping .

Would anybody in their right mind drive across europe or fly to Japan to ask for fives ??

Which is exactly why the lead in Youth and Junior is such a good thing for the series in general and this point in particular.

When wiggy won the youth in 2006 he had about 10 others who had done the euro series which led into the wtc so give it a bit of time, 3 years and Haslam Gratterola wigg sampson Challoner Gubiam Millan Gomez and Danby will hopefully be there or thereabouts.

Asking fo fives thats a bit different and perhaps there is a case for something in this area but thats what the juniors are for surely?

Orizio is in the same class as Sam Connor and Shaun Morris Lenzi and Bruand Bethune etc.imho

Edited August 28, 2007 by Nigel Dabster

[diggler]

Dont know who you are 666 Wobbler, but I only know of 2 Lancs county MCC

events being cancelled/postponed this year !

One was because the landowner is now being paid to keep his land free for

ground nesting birds (a problem we now have with 90% of our landowners)

and the 2nd was because the Northwest Centre decided to let the Jim sandiford

memorial Trial run the same day as us (even as we were a centre round)

We felt that both entries would suffer if both events were run.

I dont know why this matter has popped up on this thread ? unless SPA have

a problem with a clash of dates or ground nesting birds ? (Or maybe the real reason is

to give rappers a kick while he is not looking ?)

Edited August 29, 2007 by DIGGLER

[city trials]

Ironically, if its going to happen, it wont be in the UK. If anywhere its likely to happen in the US courtesy of Pat Smage. The Americans are notoriously noted to get interested in something they can win at. If Pat gives them a World Champion, and its marketed properly, it could have a BIG effect.

Gee, nothing like dumping a ton of pressure on us. Seriously, team Smage is up to the challenge. And our little kid is chomping at the bit for a full season at the WTC level.

[666wobbler]

Dont know who you are 666 Wobbler, but I only know of 2 Lancs county MCC

events being cancelled/postponed this year !

One was because the landowner is now being paid to keep his land free for

ground nesting birds (a problem we now have with 90% of our landowners)

and the 2nd was because the Northwest Centre decided to let the Jim sandiford

memorial Trial run the same day as us (even as we were a centre round)

We felt that both entries would suffer if both events were run.

I dont know why this matter has popped up on this thread ? unless SPA have

a problem with a clash of dates or ground nesting birds ? (Or maybe the real reason is

to give rappers a kick while he is not looking ?)

Diggler

Dont know who you are but I thinks you need to look at Lancs County Website, try the whats on page.

Good Friday Senior / Sunday trial turned into a Wednesday trial because of ground nesting birds? Venues available but not run as a Sunday Trial. No rides for the Experts.

July 1, HALF of the venue was not available but me thinks a good trial could have been run on half. Was anything else available? Who knows?

Sept 16. Can't comment about date clashes bu i'm sure other dates could have been found with no clash in the centre.

That adds up to 3 trials in my book.

Certainly not a dig at rappers personally, as im sure the committie and not Rappers cancelled the trials, just wondering how he can rap (excuse the pun) others when he knows what its like to have to cancel events due to circumstances out of his control. Double standards! Well maybe it is a little dig but partially deserved.

[hillary]

In reply to 666wobbler about Lancs County trials this year - at least the Sunday events.

The Good Friday trial could not be held at Brookhouse Brickworks for two reasons: 1, we had just run our national there and 2 the land is no longer available to us after March 31 until late July due to ground nesting birds, and of course that information was not available to us when the dates were applied for last October. However, we did run on Good Friday at Wrayton, making it a Birkett series trial as Wrayton could not hope to host the expected Friday entry of 125+ We hoped that by making it a Birkett round, we would reduce the entry, which in fact is what happened. However, 666wobbler could have ridden if he so wished (perhaps he did!)

Our July 1 Sunday trial could not be held at Barkingate due to a higher land management scheme on the regularly used side of the farm, which MAY lose us this land on a permanent basis, though we as yet do not know. We did request permission from several other landowners to run on that date elsewhere, but we were turned down by all of them, principally because of the wet conditions at that time. However Barkingate which we used for a Wednesday trial on the less used side of the farm is still available to us though hardly suitable for a Sunday trial.

And finally we have decided not to run on September 16 so that the Jim Sandiford Charity Trial gets the best possible entry. We could have run against them, but that would have split the entry, therefore hurting the charity effort. What was the point of that? Jim was a very good person and I personally wish to see his good name benefitted from.

666wobbler needs to know that land in Lancs County's area of the north west is increasingly difficult to obtain. Unless something happens and we get offered new land, Lancs County could well be without suitable land within a very short time. Simple as that.

And how all this connects to Spa? Goodness knows, except that surely an applicant for a WTC round must have the basic problems sorted in advance.

[christoff]

666 wobbler

As Diggler has pointed out we have only canceled 2 trials, The 1st of July and 16th of September.

When we (Lancs County) found out that we had lost our venue for the Good Friday trial, I personally put in many hours of work to find another venue and to make that trial happen. Because of the venue it was decided that we would not run an expert route and it would be better to start our Birkett series off early. If this caused you a problem think again. At least 100 other riders had a good days sport.

Other issues aside. IF we had run the 1st July trial the parking alone wold have been horrendous and the land damage caused by the parking alone may have lost this venue for good.

I assume from your comments that you do not currently help a club organise events. Perhaps you should offer your services to your local club. After a few trials you will soon see how much work there is for the few volunteers that make an event happen FOR YOU!

[frozen observer!]

I'm just going to add to that to say that all the committee at Lancs County work very hard to put on as many trials as we can during a year. We all hate it if we have to cancel a trial whatever the reason, and a lot of effort is put in to getting an alternative. If we have to cancel, it is always for a good reason as can be seen from the above responses, and if one of these reasons will also help to protect the availability of the land for future events, then we will of course take this action.

[slapshot 3]

Guys can this please get back On Topic. No further criticism of the Lancs County guys who like everyone else work very hard to keep the sport going.

Slapshot 3

Forum Moderator

[ishy]

I think world championship trials are run with Champaign taste, on a Tetley budget.

Yes it would be great if it could have all the whistles and bells of other motor sports, but the simple fact is! it can't, and at best an hard sell to sponsors and the general public.

It is time they stopped trying to polish the turd, take it for what it is, and run it accordingly.

So why not make it a true clubman's world championship, and level the playing field.

All riders must ride a stock production bike.

For fly away rounds, the stock bike would be provided by the importer in that country, this alone would save a fortune on shipping the Mega expensive factory bikes around.

Only one minder allowed per rider, no matter who you are, I personally wouldn't allow any.

The manufacturers, instead of funding a large team, truck and shipping the across the world, pay

a % to any rider who scored world championship points, the best riders would still earn the most, but it would give more incentive to young riders to have a shot at picking up some points.

Locations chosen more for a championship trial event, requirements are making it too hard for the club to host event's, adequate firm parking and toilets are a must, but some of the other requirements are over the top for the majority of clubs to meet.

[perce]

It is time they stopped trying to polish the turd, take it for what it is, and run it accordingly.

Does Solvol Autosol work well on turds? Or is it a job for Pledge?

[ishy]

So your thinking of pledging a turd purse

[baldilocks]

I said in an earlier post that I'd have a think about what to change to reduce costs and increase entries whilst watching in Andorra. Having just returned I stand corrected on the sections, Andorra certainly wasnt a succession of man made obstacles. The biggest issue for me is how the gulf in riders ability has got so great.

There has been much talk on this website about Dougie being over the hill but where I watched him at the weekend he is certainly a long way ahead of the majority on the hard course. I think he was one of only two double cleans on section 8. The top five in my view are still a long way ahead of the rest, too far really and whilst 19 marks(incl time) is not a lot over thirty sections for Bou within the top ten people were losing 100 and more. With the gulf in ability its very difficult to make the course easy enough to attract more riders and still take marks from Bou, Raga, Doug, Cabestany and Fuji.

Is this gulf in ability due to the time available to the top five for practice, are they the only genuine full timers ? or is this due to the machinery they have ? or are we still in some weird period where a group of riders with exceptional ability just happen to be riding at the same time?

The answers to getting more entries are open to debate but I think the factories need to spread things out a little in terms of supporting more riders and providing more riders with full spec kit or all riders with similar kit rather than focussing resources on the top five. This may enable more people to compete and level the playing field a little.

The WTC needs this approach more than the factories do but if the championship sells bikes then the factories NEED the championship. If the factories dont need the championship then why do they bother ? For now I cant see the point in any factory that doesnt have Bou focussing all of there effort on one rider, Bou was just awesome to watch.