2013 Kerrick National Series - How Do We Make It Bigger And Better?

[Nadz44]

I'm all for the McM meet being a part of the series, great exposure for the class....

[toranaracer]

As MrBoost mentioned over on another thread, have we had any other ideas on how to make the State/National rounds work for 2013, or what needs to be improved on from 2012?

The Dunlop tyre issue was raised which must and will stand due to the long term financial agreement/tender that is in place. This is no different to nearly all the other categories in the Nationals who run a controlled tyre (V8 Touring Cars, Commodore Cup, Swifts, Radicals, Porsches, Saloon Car, F3). It is just unfortunate that it affects those who want to do both series when in town.

OK anything else racers?

toranaracer.

[drewowner13]

what about some more exposure?? i havent seen a sports sedan poster/sign since the nsw obrien series, the facebook pages are great, alot of people have become fans just by the pictures that are posted..

[2002 turbo]

Some of my thoughts and input for what it is worth


1. The way the Kerrick series is promoted still has a way to go to for existing competitors to attract
sponsors or for the class to gain new competitors.

This is not to say nothing has been done as it clearly has by the following actions:

- The series has a very professional looking website and it is a real credit to the organisers. I just wonder how many people know about it and are looking at it? What amount of hits does it get? Do the organisers get many enquires from potential new competitors through the website?

I also mentioned this years ago on the forum, that the series website should be mentioned on the TV coverage and all the cars should have the stickers of the web address. Simple things that could make the website a much more effective promotional tool.

- The ITV live feed over the internet on race weekends is a fantastic initiative for people to actually see the racing live (when was the last time a Sports Sedan race was televised live on TV?). Only thing I ask are enough people even aware this coverage exists? Granted it is advertised on the series website but they need to know that exists before they become aware that they can get live coverage.

- The continuation of TV coverage on Speedweek & Inside Speed is obviously a good thing but unfortunately an expensive form of promotion. More coverage would be good but that of course comes back to more $$$

- The establishment of a Facebook page is another great idea. The only thing that would need to be done to get more followers would be to link it to the existing category website, it currently isn't.

- There has been a bit of coverage on www.speedcafe.com.au which is encouraging

- Possibly the series should get in touch with a local blog style website such as http://www.performancegarage.com.au/ to do a feature on the class and expose it to new people.



2. The Kerrick series does not get any "physical" exposure, by that I mean it never races in front of a big crowd. Some argue it is not important, some argue it is but I think TV coverage and commentators rambling on will only entice a small minority to get enthusiastic about the series. You need to see Sport Sedans live to really appreciate them!

As we are all aware Sport Sedans are a very in your face kind of class. The configuration of the cars, the different noises they make, having lots of power, very simple aero and tyres that aren't grippy enough makes for an exciting spectacle live. They're very visual and this isn't always conveyed very effectively with the TV coverage.

In years gone by when the class ran with the Super Trucks or the Touring cars the class always gained the crowd's attention. This kind of attention can lead to newly interested people who can offer possible sponsorship opportunities and even a chance of gaining new competitors. Fact is with the Shannon's nationals the series is very limited in this regard and as far as I can see it the class will never race in front of a decent sized crowd with the Shannon's nationals .

Just for comparison (and I am not stirring the pot here) when ASSA NSW ran at the Muscle cars the reception the class received was pretty amazing. Spectators made remarks like:
- "Haven't seen this class race in years"
- "I didn't even know this class existed!"
There was huge amount of interest in the paddock area and trust me the crowd wasn't at the pie stand when the Sports Sedans were on track racing.

What I ask and I know it has been talked about before is there any chance for one big exposure event as part of the series, it is really crying out for it. I know the GT Championship was able to juggle being on the Shannon's series along with some events run at V8 Supercar rounds. Would this ever be a possibility for the Kerrick series?


3. The franchise system has been a new initiative and that has helped and hindered the series in my opinion. One problem I already see is that there is not much public information about how it all works. Is it even mentioned or posted on the website? How does a new competitor find about it?

Anyway from a professionalism point of view it is probably a step in the right direction as people are held to a financial commitment to compete at all the rounds. So one would think a decent sized field should be a regular thing if enough people sign up. Although as we have seen this year not all signed up competitors have showed up at all rounds for various reasons so it has not worked 100% as planned.

I can understand the series organisers using this system and trying to get a guaranteed number of cars at each event. It makes going to a tyre company with a sponsorship proposal much easier as they can say there a 5 series rounds with "X" amount of cars competing so you will sell at least "Y" amount of tyres.

Which sort of gets me to my next point with the tyres. I understand commercial implications and the contract issue with having Dunlop a partner of the series but I question is it really worth marginalising a pretty small competitor base with this? Is it really worth having a ten car field all on Dunlops or a 25 car field on all types of tyres? Or could it be arranged you have to be on Dunlops to be eligible for points? For the record the car I race runs on Dunlops!

Its not like the series is spoilt for choice with cars and people with the budget to run them at all rounds. As we have seen without local state competitors topping up the fields they can look pretty slim. Mallala yet again this year highlighted that because there is no local support in South Australia, that is not my opinion either, it is fact!


Anyway I am keen to hear what other people have to say and what ideas they can put forward.

[Phast Phil]

Thank you 2002 turbo for your input. You have put a lot of constructive thought into this and it is appreciated. The management and the series competitors will consider your input as it is worth considering some of your points.
There is a few stakeholders in the series and some changes that may seem simple enough are not always that simple but we are always willing to listen and implement positive changes where possible.

Thanks again for making a great effort as it is obvious you are in favour of the whole category and National series progressing.

The Shannons nationals is the second largest circuit racing show in the country behind the V8's so it SHOULD be the best place to showcase our racing but for some reason it is not pulling big enough crowds at the gate. Does this mean that other than the V8's and historic cars there is not enough interest in circuit racing for anything else.......... or is the reason because the promotion is minimal and if this is the case where is the money to be found to risk on the promo? A conundrum to say the least!

The other thing to note is when the entry price was halved in 2009 is resulted in no more entries than normal. When we had no control tyres it resulted in no more entries than normal. We do get opinions from some car owners saying if they (the series) did this then it would be better however this does not normally result in the same car owner fronting for a race. As a result we have to (and want to) listen to our regular customers. Don't think this is elietist as many of our regulars would love to see a bigger field. Bigger does not alway mean better, even Bathurst yesterday ONLY had 29 cars. I was at Bathurst in 1984 and there was over 50 cars and they were lined up around the corner. Many failed to finish and few were on the same lap as the winner so one could argue 29 good ones are better than 50 varied ones???

I do like the idea of having a round at a high crowd drawing event, we just have to work out how to do that without upsetting the momentum and stakeholders that we presently have. The last thing we need is for motorsport fans to forget that sports sedans exist due to a well kept secret.

[loser]

I think the biggest drama circuit racing in general has is promotion of our sport at both Nationals and State level. We all know it's great entertainment and value for money but we need to get the message out. It used to be that a circuit would invite the competitors then advertise the event and make their money on the gate. Now they just hire the track, the race organizing committee divides the costs by the number of competitors and that's what we pay. They have the money so what's the point promoting it?
That mentality needs to be changed but I don't have the answer. Believe me, I've been searching long and hard but I haven't found it......yet.
We need someone willing to risk money over a long term promoting heavily our race meetings. Not just one or two then walk away. I mean two or three years of major advertising.
When we went to Baskerville, the HSCC ran ads on tv, the papers, it was on the nightly news. The Sunday crowd was massive. You could hardly move in the pits for spectators. It sure wasn't cheap but they made there money back on the gate.
I spoke to the owner of Avalon raceway who advertise their meetings in Melbourne regularly. He said the amount they spend on promotion is directly proportional to the amount of bums on seats.
So, where do we find the person or persons willing to take the financial risk?
Any ideas?
Anyone?

[toranaracer]

Any updates on the Sports Sedan round dates for 2013 yet?

toranaracer.

[Toymax]

Check Bulletin 13 in the Competitor section for 2013 dates Damo

[Tassie RS]

Was reading Fast Fours magazine the other day. It had a feature on Monterosso's old Escort that has had an engine swap to SR20 instead of the Chev. They had a little side piece to describe the Sport Sedan class:

"The Sport Sedan racing category is a bit of a free-for-all. The rules for building one of these cars are fairly open, and that makes for a very diverse and interesting feild of cars.

But nonetheless, the majority of these lightweight weapons are Chevy V8-powered somethings. There are a few small displacement cars plodding around the track, but they don't give the big eight-bangers too much trouble.

The only problem is that these setups cost a hell of a lot to run, and that makes it somewhat out of reach for anyone who isn't a wealthy tycoon of some fashion, or sponsored."

This description does not really put our class in the best light and makes it sound WAY out of reach for 'normal' people, which as we all know is false. Aswell as the fact that we have a vast array of engine combinations that have at some stage been very competetive.

I think a good idea may be to contact some of the more prominent car magazines and get either an advertisement (with a short description and links to our website etc), or maybe even get a full feature explaining some of the rules of building a car and showing the affordability to get into the sport, a great example being Torana Racer and his magnificent Folden. These magazines (Fast Fours, Hot 4s, Street Machine, Zoom and the like) are read by people interested in building performance cars and most of these people have no idea about sport sedans or any category of racing really. Look at the rise of the drifting and time attack classes, alot due to the coverage the cars get in these magazines. I realise this costs money but it is a great way of advertising something like our class.

Just an idea that may be valid??


Cheers,

TassieRS