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Midland Red

Value for money

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1 hour ago, Skidder1 said:

Am I right in recalling that if you sat in the grandstand at Exeter - other than in the front row - you couldn't see the start line or home straight?

Yes, and if you sat on the front row you still had to lean forward a bit which didn't go down well with those behind you. Only went once, paid to go in the stand but after one race went out and spent the evening on the terraces watching each race from a different point around the track. There was enough dirt to allow a leg trailer on a Rudge to go well! 

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The lower the crowds are, the more expensive admission will be and the more it'll alienate hard up supporters. Much of the admission money, I may be wrong, will be paid by the promoter to the rider, who then pay a fair amount of what he has just earned to keep his engines in pristine  shape. It is money going out of the sport and league speedway will not be able to withstand it for much longer.   

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26 minutes ago, moxey63 said:

The lower the crowds are, the more expensive admission will be and the more it'll alienate hard up supporters. Much of the admission money, I may be wrong, will be paid by the promoter to the rider, who then pay a fair amount of what he has just earned to keep his engines in pristine  shape. It is money going out of the sport and league speedway will not be able to withstand it for much longer.   

A truly ludicrous race to the bottom isn't it?

Promoters demanding riders have the best kit to win competitions that by the way they run them have absolutely zero worth..

Meaning. Riders spending fortunes on gaining the best kit they can find and paying for expensive tuning, just to remain at the same level as their rivals because they are all doing exactly the same thing..

Meaning. Promoters paying out unaffordable and unsustainable levels to riders to pay for the best kit and tuning they demand of them...

Meaning. Fans having to pay admission costs far in excess of what the Sports standing actually is, and far in excess of what actual entertainment value is put on offer to them..

Meaning. A reduction year on year of fans due to the higher admission costs needed to fund the racing..

All to compete in, try to win, and watch competitions that Mickey Mouse would be embarrassed to have organised...

If you tried to put together this as a business or operating model to launch a new venture you would be laughed at out loud by any potential investors wouldn't you? 

Yet this is the model British Speedway uses year in year out...

Amazing really...

Edited by mikebv
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6 hours ago, Skidder1 said:

Am I right in recalling that if you sat in the grandstand at Exeter - other than in the front row - you couldn't see the start line or home straight?

Remember it well on my first visit to the County Ground!

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18 minutes ago, steve roberts said:

Remember it well on my first visit to the County Ground!

Yes, I recall that, too!

Edited by Midland Red

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8 hours ago, Skidder1 said:

Am I right in recalling that if you sat in the grandstand at Exeter - other than in the front row - you couldn't see the start line or home straight?

You had to stand up to see.

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17 hours ago, mikebv said:

A truly ludicrous race to the bottom isn't it?

Promoters demanding riders have the best kit to win competitions that by the way they run them have absolutely zero worth..

Meaning. Riders spending fortunes on gaining the best kit they can find and paying for expensive tuning, just to remain at the same level as their rivals because they are all doing exactly the same thing..

Meaning. Promoters paying out unaffordable and unsustainable levels to riders to pay for the best kit and tuning they demand of them...

Meaning. Fans having to pay admission costs far in excess of what the Sports standing actually is, and far in excess of what actual entertainment value is put on offer to them..

Meaning. A reduction year on year of fans due to the higher admission costs needed to fund the racing..

All to compete in, try to win, and watch competitions that Mickey Mouse would be embarrassed to have organised...

If you tried to put together this as a business or operating model to launch a new venture you would be laughed at out loud by any potential investors wouldn't you? 

Yet this is the model British Speedway uses year in year out...

Amazing really...

I don't think speedway's competitions are Mickey Mouse at all but otherwise you are pretty much spot on.

The other thing is that in those days speedway was very much a part time occupation for the overwhelming majority of riders even during the season -  Mick Bell (a three time British League championship winner and decent second string/reserve in the 1970's) once said that for him it was 'a good paying hobby'. 

Nowadays, it seems to me that - NL riders excepted - they regard it as a full time job (which is why we have the blight of uncontrolled doubling up) and require payment to that level. Costs have definitely risen, but so have expectations.

That simply has to change.

 

Edited by Halifaxtiger
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On 7/21/2019 at 10:46 AM, Skidder1 said:

Am I right in recalling that if you sat in the grandstand at Exeter - other than in the front row - you couldn't see the start line or home straight?

That's certainly my recollection of watching speedway at the County Ground, while working in Exeter (1997-98). The grandstand was the last vantage point you'd pick. Did the OP refer to a "thrilling" evening? Wow. Can' recall too many of those at Exeter. It was mostly follow-the-leader, everybody-strung-out-after-one-lap stuff on a gaters' track where passing was virtually impossible (as poor Joe Screen discovered during Pete Jeffrey's testimonial meeting). Most of the opposition riders seemed beaten before they started. I remember one National League/Division Two stalwart telling me: "Exeter? That's not speedway."

Edited by Piotr Pyszny

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2 hours ago, Piotr Pyszny said:

That's certainly my recollection of watching speedway at the County Ground, while working in Exeter (1997-98). The grandstand was the last vantage point you'd pick. Did the OP refer to a "thrilling" evening? Wow. Can' recall too many of those at Exeter. It was mostly follow-the-leader, everybody-strung-out-after-one-lap stuff on a gaters' track where passing was virtually impossible (as poor Joe Screen discovered during Pete Jeffrey's testimonial meeting). Most of the opposition riders seemed beaten before they started. I remember one National League/Division Two stalwart telling me: "Exeter? That's not speedway."

I was talking of 1970 and it certainly was thrilling seeing the racers around the County Ground

Times had obviously changed by 1997/98

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On 7/21/2019 at 10:31 AM, auntie doris said:

The recent Kings Lynn matches at Swindon was 18 quid entry attracting a 1000 or so for both meetings. In 2017 over 3000 turned up for a fiver.

So does that mean the recent meetings took in £18,000 and in 2017 £15,000.....? If so,which would you rather bank ?

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On the subject of value for money, it should be noted that years ago, with the old second halves,you would get mores races per meeting.

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On ‎7‎/‎23‎/‎2019 at 6:03 PM, woofers said:

So does that mean the recent meetings took in £18,000 and in 2017 £15,000.....? If so,which would you rather bank ?

Gate money isn't everything though,    if   3000 people buy a burger/cup of tea / programme etc.  you might well end up with more money to bank   than if 1000 people did the same.

Also how many of the 1000 people paying £18  would pick and choose meetings due to the price, but would attend more at £5 admission ?

At £18 how many people with a family would go on there own,  but would take the family with them if it was £5 admission ?

its not easy getting the right balance on admission prices

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3000 buying progs, merchandise, parking, etc., much better atmosphere it were. 12 quid is about right.

Edited by auntie doris
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18 hours ago, djr said:

Gate money isn't everything though,    if   3000 people buy a burger/cup of tea / programme etc.  you might well end up with more money to bank   than if 1000 people did the same.

Also how many of the 1000 people paying £18  would pick and choose meetings due to the price, but would attend more at £5 admission ?

At £18 how many people with a family would go on there own,  but would take the family with them if it was £5 admission ?

its not easy getting the right balance on admission prices

The problem with cost reduction is it is a huge financial gamble. You are relying on substantial additional numbers turning up and there's absolutely no guarantee that they will. In addition, they also have to like what they see enough to come back again and again and again.............

I have never seen an advocate of price reductions who is so confident that it will work that they will put their own money up to back it, and its very easy to gamble with another persons bank account.

I can recall a post some years ago referring to Belle Vue dropping the price to £10 and getting a much increased attendance. They did the same the next week and the crowd figure dropped. By the third week they were back to usual crowd numbers and over the three weeks they lost money when compared to charging full price.  

The Lakeside free meeting held a few years ago (when thousands turned up) shows that there could well be a market for speedway, but I understand why no promoter is willing to cut prices in the hope of attracting it.

Edited by Halifaxtiger
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On 25 July 2019 at 12:51 PM, Halifaxtiger said:

The problem with cost reduction is it is a huge financial gamble. You are relying on substantial additional numbers turning up and there's absolutely no guarantee that they will. In addition, they also have to like what they see enough to come back again and again and again.............

I have never seen an advocate of price reductions who is so confident that it will work that they will put their own money up to back it, and its very easy to gamble with another persons bank account.

I can recall a post some years ago referring to Belle Vue dropping the price to £10 and getting a much increased attendance. They did the same the next week and the crowd figure dropped. By the third week they were back to usual crowd numbers and over the three weeks they lost money when compared to charging full price.  

The Lakeside free meeting held a few years ago (when thousands turned up) shows that there could well be a market for speedway, but I understand why no promoter is willing to cut prices in the hope of attracting it.

Sheffield ran a ' free entry' meeting and over 2 thousand turned up, the very next meeting back to normal 6-700 level. 

Big ' free ' crowd does not mean more income in anything especially if the club does not run the food franchise ( as many don't)  .

 

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