How Do We Attract A New Young Audience?

[Little Thumper 528]

Before attempting to attract any audience perhaps you should think about how you retain an audience. One way is to apply my wife's barometer of acceptability of a venue i.e. will we eat there/go there again/use it for functions?

 

She applies a simple approach:

 

"What are the condition/standard of the toilets?"

 

If they pass this acceptability test they are in;if not they are out. This approach is based on the view that if an organisation keeps their toilets in order everything else is probably in order.

 

Now apply that approach to the speedway stadiums of the UK and ask yourself a simple question would you use their lavs or would you do your best to hang on until you get home?

 

Today, people young or old, will not put up with lousy facilities! Fix the fundamentals first.

 

This is absolutely and totally correct!

 

If a venue cannot even provide decent toilets, floodlights that don't pack up after 30 minutes, facilities that aren't ramshackle and on the point of collapse and make an attempt to generate some kind of atmosphere of excitement and fun, then it might as well give it up as a bad job.

 

I occasionally consider asking friends to come along to the speedway but then I think about the non-functioning toilets, the dreadful food and the loudspeakers that don't work, and decide that it would be far too embarrassing!

 

And as for making provision for disabled customers, when I raised this with the governing bodies, they said it wasn't their problem and gave me the home addresses of the promoters and told me to write to them about it!

[Kay Marie Dunn 0]

I totally have the same approach about lavs, great minds think alike

[Tigerblade 221]

The cleanliness of the loos have never bothered me particularly. Always about supporting my team, the quality of racing and crowd interaction ..... ok so I like a half decent cuppa but that's it lol

 

Tell ya wife to hover or line the seat, get out as quickly as possible and enjoy the racing

It's OK for the likes of you and me to say about the quality of the racing etc being important, but we are the converted - we're talking about getting folk into the place in the first instance. At Sheffield we are quite lucky with facilities, but some of the terracing is 85 years old now and in some places it shows. As has been pointed out already, I know how many Clubs are at the mercy of landlords and can't really do anything, it's a bit of a vicious circle.

 

One thing I would think of is stop marketing it as a "family sport". Many young people don't think somewhere their grandparents go is "cool".

[Guest]

 

This is absolutely and totally correct!

 

If a venue cannot even provide decent toilets, floodlights that don't pack up after 30 minutes, facilities that aren't ramshackle and on the point of collapse and make an attempt to generate some kind of atmosphere of excitement and fun, then it might as well give it up as a bad job.

 

I occasionally consider asking friends to come along to the speedway but then I think about the non-functioning toilets, the dreadful food and the loudspeakers that don't work, and decide that it would be far too embarrassing!

 

And as for making provision for disabled customers, when I raised this with the governing bodies, they said it wasn't their problem and gave me the home addresses of the promoters and told me to write to them about it!

 

I fully understand the point you are making, but some of them - all of them? - are outside the jurisdiction of a speedway promoter. At many stadiums they are only tenants who have booked the venue to stage their events. The upkeep of many stadiums is down to its owners - and while complaints about facilities may well be made to them, if the owners choose to ignore what can the promoters do? They cannot say we will leave the stadium if facilities are not improved because, at the end of the day, there probably is not a suitable stadium they can relocate to.

[Little Thumper 528]

 

I fully understand the point you are making, but some of them - all of them? - are outside the jurisdiction of a speedway promoter. At many stadiums they are only tenants who have booked the venue to stage their events. The upkeep of many stadiums is down to its owners - and while complaints about facilities may well be made to them, if the owners choose to ignore what can the promoters do? They cannot say we will leave the stadium if facilities are not improved because, at the end of the day, there probably is not a suitable stadium they can relocate to.

 

gustix, my knowledgeable friend, what you say is without reproach.

 

And as you quite correctly point out, I make my comments based on the observations that I have made at some but not all venues.

I apologize for my lack of clarity.

 

But at the end of the day, the customer who has just handed over several fine British pounds doesn't care a jot whether the venue that has relieved them of their money is owned by Acme Enterprises or Larry the Lamb.

 

What they do know is that at a venue that is charging money to attend their event then the facilities must be of reasonable quality and therefore providing dirty or inoperative toilets, PA systems that do not work and an environment that is unsuitable or unsafe for the physically challenged is not acceptable in any circumstances.

 

Surely, that is not too much to ask in this day and age?

 

So as Local Boy said, "Fix the fundamentals first".

 

Or as Alan Bennett wrote in History Boys, " You can't polish a turd".

 

Just my opinion, obviously.

[Trees 2,814]

It's OK for the likes of you and me to say about the quality of the racing etc being important, but we are the converted - we're talking about getting folk into the place in the first instance. At Sheffield we are quite lucky with facilities, but some of the terracing is 85 years old now and in some places it shows. As has been pointed out already, I know how many Clubs are at the mercy of landlords and can't really do anything, it's a bit of a vicious circle.

 

One thing I would think of is stop marketing it as a "family sport". Many young people don't think somewhere their grandparents go is "cool".

 

But people don't go to speedway to go to the loo they go to be entertained and that is THE most important ingredient to the night. Of course I am joshing about the loos but honestly bad loos never put me off and we had some awful loos at Lynn, mind you I do come from the era of outside loos at school with daddy longlegs all over the door arghhhhh lol

 

The men on the mic are worth their weight in gold at a meeting, if every club had a good one it would help immensely. If every rider got it into their head that they are racing for their fans and the refs allowed the riders plenty of time to interact with the fans after each race, we'd be getting somewhere!

[Shale Searcher 1,264]

 

This is absolutely and totally correct!

 

If a venue cannot even provide decent toilets, floodlights that don't pack up after 30 minutes, facilities that aren't ramshackle and on the point of collapse and make an attempt to generate some kind of atmosphere of excitement and fun, then it might as well give it up as a bad job.

 

I occasionally consider asking friends to come along to the speedway but then I think about the non-functioning toilets, the dreadful food and the loudspeakers that don't work, and decide that it would be far too embarrassing!

 

And as for making provision for disabled customers, when I raised this with the governing bodies, they said it wasn't their problem and gave me the home addresses of the promoters and told me to write to them about it!

 

Ahh, we're talking about grass track, not speedway then?

[Little Thumper 528]

Ahh, we're talking about grass track, not speedway then?

 

I have been to a couple of grass track meetings this year and the facilities were extremely good!

[Tigerblade 221]

But people don't go to speedway to go to the loo they go to be entertained and that is THE most important ingredient to the night. Of course I am joshing about the loos but honestly bad loos never put me off and we had some awful loos at Lynn, mind you I do come from the era of outside loos at school with daddy longlegs all over the door arghhhhh lol

 

The men on the mic are worth their weight in gold at a meeting, if every club had a good one it would help immensely. If every rider got it into their head that they are racing for their fans and the refs allowed the riders plenty of time to interact with the fans after each race, we'd be getting somewhere!

I agree entirely that people go to be entertained first and foremost. The thing is, in this day and age, they also want to be entertained in a venue that's somewhere towards half decent.

[Sings4Speedway 3,247]

 

This is absolutely and totally correct!

 

If a venue cannot even provide decent toilets, floodlights that don't pack up after 30 minutes, facilities that aren't ramshackle and on the point of collapse and make an attempt to generate some kind of atmosphere of excitement and fun, then it might as well give it up as a bad job.

 

I occasionally consider asking friends to come along to the speedway but then I think about the non-functioning toilets, the dreadful food and the loudspeakers that don't work, and decide that it would be far too embarrassing!

 

And as for making provision for disabled customers, when I raised this with the governing bodies, they said it wasn't their problem and gave me the home addresses of the promoters and told me to write to them about it!

 

 

Ahh, we're talking about grass track, not speedway then?

 

I believe he is talking about Stoke which is somewhere in between grasstrack & speedway/

 

 

I have been to a couple of grass track meetings this year and the facilities were extremely good!

Agreed. Im not sure i have been to a grasstrack this season that hasn't had better facilities than many clubs including reasonable toliets, a working PA system and food that you would want to eat.

 

As some may state it might no bother them individually if the sport is to continue the families, wives, partners etc need to buy into the idea and let it become a way of life. Much in the same way that i wouldn't attend drag racing regularly for example if they only served quorn salad, insisted you sit on small wooden stools and had to listen to nordic death metal between each race.

[Woz01 3,589]

Speedway isn't the only sport where stadiums toilets are questionable. I've been to several football league grounds where the toilet facilities are shall we say, rank.

[Sings4Speedway 3,247]

Speedway isn't the only sport where stadiums toilets are questionable. I've been to several football league grounds where the toilet facilities are shall we say, rank.

Very true however unlike football speedway is on its knees and has to consider any option to retain visitors be they first timers or regular.

What was your opinion regarding the likelihood of returning to said football grounds with the rank facilities?

[Skid Sprocket 243]

I have an idea that might encourage the younger generation to take an interest in the sport through a project in schools, colleges etc. To see if it would work within a school timetable/curiculum I am looking for a school teacher, lecturer etc who can advise on the inner workings of education today and so if you are that person or know of one please p.m. me.

[robert72 845]

Going on the title of the thread, it's clear most parents won't take there kids on school nights to watch speedway, also meetings drawn out is hard to take for the older fan but young newbies would soon be bored.

 

I don't hear anything that will bring young fans to speedway in large numbers.

[Skid Sprocket 243]

Going on the title of the thread, it's clear most parents won't take there kids on school nights to watch speedway, also meetings drawn out is hard to take for the older fan but young newbies would soon be bored.

 

I don't hear anything that will bring young fans to speedway in large numbers.

I understand what you are saying but if we don't try we will never know.