Helping Our Top Riders

[araf]

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<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Now you're talking.

Plenty to chew over there.

Not my party, but I'd fix the week-ends across the country, otherwise you'd have people doing a club championship trial instead, and any that supported the fund raiser could lose out, which wouldn't be fair.

My initial thought is that the running of the events should be voluntary. You've already mentioned about upsetting people, and volunteers don't want to be taken for granted.

Money. If there's one topic that will get people falling out, then that is it. Firstly, the land owner and expenses should be deducted. The organising club should receive some of the funds, as otherwise there's no incentive for putting a trial on. The centre should also have a group of riders in need of assistance, so should also get a share, and finally the ACU for additional distribution at the highest echelon. Maybe 25%, 50%, 25% ?

Money could then be distributed on a grant system. Anyone wishing for funds should approach their club. The club awards, and passes to centre, who also award on merit, then pass to ACU. Monies donated to the ACU would have to be kept separate from funds for other disciplines. If the ACU cannot guarantee that 100% of the fund goes back to Trials riders, then a committee should be made up from representatives from each combine. Meetings could be via e-mail/telephone, to keep costs, and time to a minimum.

Even one week-end is better than none, but if three week-ends are set aside, then maybe two trials and a training day? I like the idea of the top riders getting involved, so they have to put something back (as many already do).

I await a good flaming for being too naive.

[rabie]

I'm opposed

the majority of riders are club riders and while a lot of people here seams to support the idea of spending money on riders to get them to the world champs (ie youth riders)

this is not universally supported, IMHO why on earth should my money be spent on the brats. personally i don't like youth riders. if they want to succeed they can pay for. IMHO this ACU academy is all BS and a complete waste of my money. but you disagree.

now how on earth do you think Rugby (ie Trials and Enduro Committee - TEC) can impose this concept upon the centres - do all 20+ centres agree on this.

take remembrance Sunday for example, the ACU ban events but this hasn't stopped promoters going to ORPA and putting events on

we in the south east lost several trials club to the AMCA over the matter of enforcing the trials helmet rule - think realistically here lads, some people will take central dictates VERY badly and say f*** you'all and sod off and run their events elsewhere

thus the ACU needs to be the broadest possible "church" to incorporate all these different opinions to be the strongest unified "church" to fight the corner of trials as effectively as possible - you don't want to end up like MX or enduros with a plethora of governing bodies and independent clubs unable to take on the big external threats due to our ravenous internal differences

[atomant]

I'm opposed

the majority of riders are club riders and while a lot of people here seams to support the idea of spending money on riders to get them to the world champs (ie youth riders)

this is not universally supported, IMHO why on earth should my money be spent on the brats. personally i don't like youth riders. if they want to succeed they can pay for. IMHO this ACU academy is all BS and a complete waste of my money. but you disagree.

now how on earth do you think Rugby (ie Trials and Enduro Committee - TEC) can impose this concept upon the centres - do all 20+ centres agree on this.

take remembrance Sunday for example, the ACU ban events but this hasn't stopped promoters going to ORPA and putting events on

we in the south east lost several trials club to the AMCA over the matter of enforcing the trials helmet rule - think realistically here lads, some people will take central dictates VERY badly and say f*** you'all and sod off and run their events elsewhere

thus the ACU needs to be the broadest possible "church" to incorporate all these different opinions to be the strongest unified "church" to fight the corner of trials as effectively as possible - you don't want to end up like MX or enduros with a plethora of governing bodies and independent clubs unable to take on the big external threats due to our ravenous internal differences

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

You obviously have had some bad experiences with some youths somewhere along the line Rabie but why is there so much ill feeling towards youth trials as I know you're not the only one to feel like that?

[rabie]

my club and my experience is different from the majority of lads on here

I'm very involved in my local centre which puts on trials, MX, enduros and grass track (actively), and my club puts on three of the four

in MX and grass track, youth are pampered by their parents and if they are successful they do get sponsorship

in enduro we don't have youths full stop!

now i don't mind youths at trials, because for some magical reason you eliminate the schoolboy dad problem, which youth MX is plagued by.

of all the funding priorities that i and many other believes that the centre and the ACU should be spending money on supporting youths (and top adult riders) is often very low down

fundamentally what is the ACU there for ???

is it to further this minority to elite status so we can compete on a world stage ??? - and if it was so how do we benefit form this - we (ACU, grass routes, etc) don't benefit financially or otherwise from top riders

or is its job to help the grass routes, should the money not go on helping putting on clubmans rounds for the masses, investing in new technology, funding land purchases and paying lobbiest to fight the hippies and tree hugers ???

because, from my background anyway, i see youths progressing perfectly OK without the help form the ACU or centre i think this whole academy idea is a real load of BS and a real waste of my (levy, affiliation, etc) money

now i don't object to people running charity trials to aid this cause, or if they're centres feel this is a good idea, raising their centre levy (or whatever fund raising system you use) to pay for it - but you've got to get consensus first. i really don't think you'll carry the south east on this one ....

[no1]

last year there was a trial held on rememberance sunday in the south east not run under the acu and it raised

[rabie]

that not quiet what I'm getting at - last time i looked, the centre calender is packed, with at least one event every weekend, often there are two on the same day

to give up three dates would upset 3 clubs to some extent

i was merely using the remembrance Sunday and trials helmets issues as examples of ACU top down diktats that aren't universally liked by the grass routes ....

I'm not moaning at the idea of a charity trial or the cause in question here as such, but the act of forcing as suggested above will be interpreted poorly by some/many which is an undesirable goal