Rally spectating

[raybak]

If you could go rally spectating for free, would you be prepared to pay for conveniences such as parking or a bit extra for the convenience of hot food?

It seems a lot of rallies turn spectators away by charging too much and not offering the complete show that people are after.

We have to do something to bring the people back into our sport. There has to be some answers out there so let's discuss it here.

Ray

[alexlake]

I dont mind paying abit, a full pass for Wales is too much, in my view. Spain is free, and germany was only 60 euros ish, and they are both well organised.
I paid 1 euro to park in germany, and 2 euros at some places in spain, and I dont have a problem with that at all.

[AndyRAC]

Well on most events here in UK you don't pay to watch - you pay to park- something to do with when paying to watch additional insurance has to be paid by the Organisers. Most of the time it's between £5-£10 per car, apart from Rallye Sunseeker which is £20.
Therefore I don't know how organisers of Rally GB can charge £90 for a World Rally pass - how do they justify that? £30-£40 would be a fairer amount for what is a Minority sport. The sooner they realise this the better.
Not only that, there is the issue of 'Spectator pens/areas' - e;g Myherin is nearly 22 miles long - yet the spectator area is only 1 mile - what about the other 21 miles. While safety is a concern - they have gone too far making people stand miles back all in a 'area'.

[Andy Gregory]

I don't have a problem paying £5-10 to gain entrance to a Special Stage. Obviously the charge from the Forestry Comission needs paying so charges must be expected.

What I do have an issue with are the designated spectator points. I think the current safety measures are over the top. Part of the fun of the old RAC Rally was wandering off into a 25 mile Special Stage and finding a great vantage point.

The fact that you now just get maybe two or three spectator areas per Special Stage results in overcrowding and has a knock on effect of congestion in car parks.

I do not like the current format of WRC events and have been down to South Wales just twice. There's too little stage mileage, the events are too short, the WRC cars are boring to watch (and hear) but worst of all, in the case of Wales Rally GB, Cardiff is not the best location for the event. Perhaps if the rally was based around a more central location such as Cheltenham or the Midlands, more people would attend.

[noel157]

Ireland is good - no parking charges, no stage charges and great rallying and spectate anywhere on a stage. Not just national and local events but also Rally Ireland.

[Livewireshock]

It depends on the circumstances and the value for money. Certain places do it better than others.

Insurance has been the main reason for limiting spectating area in this country. Safety factors about not letting people wonder just anywhere. Also overseas images of rally spectating, including outdated ideas like Rally Portugal of old, these ideas prevail in the minds of non-rallying people. It is also a minority sport here, so there is not a large tradition of free rally spectating except in Tasmania.

It is also difficult to balance what is an easily accessed place and what makes for good spectating. Been to some places that offer a magical vantage point but others have been worst than ho-hum. It also can be affected by the friendly or not so friendly nature of the spectator marshals.

Some events really think about the spectator first and ensure they are treated well. Other events make them an afterthought or simply try to drain the pockets of those that do come.

Cutters Camp from Rally Queensland, Kowen from RoC and Forties/Ridgetops from RallySA in Australia are good. Allowing access to two or more stages from a single area. I think this is better than a Super Special any day. Some people like to tramp from one vantage point to the next, seeing as many stages as possible but for many others, it is too inconvenient.

[mjh]

How much for the Rally GB weekend pass :eek:

Rally NZ is $95, which is I guess equates to about 35pounds - less than 10quid a day, which I think is reasonable value. There are limited spectator access points, but a certain amount of freedom to roam - so long as the sweep cars and the FIA chopper are happy with where you are stood ;) Parking and the rush out to the next stage can be an issue, but this year I spent the 4 days in a Rallytours minibus which got round that!

As for APRC/ARC RoC / Kowen. I could see the benefits of having stages 'overlap' so you could spectate several stages in one spot. It was good they got decent jumps and water-splashes in there. But what was with the bl**dy great big concrete barriers between the spectators and the cars? Overall I found it sanitised and less enjoyable than the chase from stage to stage, and as a result only attended the first day. I didn't exactly see hordes of 'normal' people from Canberra turning out to take advantage of the single site convenience....

I had plane tickets booked to travel down to see RallySA this year. When spectator information was released it appeared the only spectator point was the super special for three hours on the friday and saturday night. If I wanted to see cars go round a circuit for three hours I'd go to V8. I enquired and was told they were 'thinking about' doing an enthusiasts minibus tour, which I was really keen on. However I heard nothing further. I stayed home and the SA tourist industry and RallySA got no $ from me.

I think we need a mix of both rally experiences. The single site, well thought out super special like RoC Kowen - but with less concrete barriers. And for the people who are spending their hard earned dollars / pounds traveling around the country / world to follow the rally a little more freedom to get close to the action on a number of stages without being penned in a constrained area by over restrictive safety.

If that could be provided then the Rally GB cost - less than 20quid a day - may not seem so bad.

[Livewireshock]

How much for the Rally GB weekend pass :eek:

Rally NZ is $95, which is I guess equates to about 35pounds - less than 10quid a day, which I think is reasonable value. There are limited spectator access points, but a certain amount of freedom to roam - so long as the sweep cars and the FIA chopper are happy with where you are stood ;) Parking and the rush out to the next stage can be an issue, but this year I spent the 4 days in a Rallytours minibus which got round that!

As for APRC/ARC RoC / Kowen. I could see the benefits of having stages 'overlap' so you could spectate several stages in one spot. It was good they got decent jumps and water-splashes in there. But what was with the bl**dy great big concrete barriers between the spectators and the cars? Overall I found it sanitised and less enjoyable than the chase from stage to stage, and as a result only attended the first day. I didn't exactly see hordes of 'normal' people from Canberra turning out to take advantage of the single site convenience....

I had plane tickets booked to travel down to see RallySA this year. When spectator information was released it appeared the only spectator point was the super special for three hours on the friday and saturday night. If I wanted to see cars go round a circuit for three hours I'd go to V8. I enquired and was told they were 'thinking about' doing an enthusiasts minibus tour, which I was really keen on. However I heard nothing further. I stayed home and the SA tourist industry and RallySA got no $ from me.

I think we need a mix of both rally experiences. The single site, well thought out super special like RoC Kowen - but with less concrete barriers. And for the people who are spending their hard earned dollars / pounds traveling around the country / world to follow the rally a little more freedom to get close to the action on a number of stages without being penned in a constrained area by over restrictive safety.

If that could be provided then the Rally GB cost - less than 20quid a day - may not seem so bad.

A big plus for RallyNZ is the day passes, for the casual visitor. Sold at the spectator point entrance $NZ20, the cost is split 50/50 with the community group associated with that particular site. It is hard to knock back, knowing that rallying is giving back to the local area.

The concrete barriers at Kowen are from the defunct Canberra V8 street race. There were hundreds of those barriers to be used up and you can see them in various places around the capital.

As for RallySA, it seems that the Forties/Ridgetops spectator area was not used this year. I am not sure if it was an issue with the forestry officials or not. Maybe it was just to give the area a break and use different stages.

Cutters Camp at Rally Queensland, it is constantly changing, never been the same route through there two years running. Always good to explore the changes year to year there.

[cosmicpanda]

Rally NZ is $95, which is I guess equates to about 35pounds - less than 10quid a day, which I think is reasonable value. There are limited spectator access points, but a certain amount of freedom to roam - so long as the sweep cars and the FIA chopper are happy with where you are stood ;) Parking and the rush out to the next stage can be an issue, but this year I spent the 4 days in a Rallytours minibus which got round that!

It depends on which stage you're at. I found the marshalls at Wairamarama/Franklin to be very kind, only kicking some people away from sitting outside corners (there was also a team's weatherman, looking disgruntled that we'd found him.) We got a nice spot in some scrub above and on the inside of a hairpin.

At Te Akau North we got told off by a marshal for wearing a jacket of the wrong colour, which was odd. No other marshals told us off. I managed to get on TV :)

At the Whaanga Coast we were told not to go through the paddocks, as they were private property, which was fair enough. Sadly, they didn't want us going down the road either as apparently you're not allowed to when it's closed - something that didn't seem to be an issue on the other stages.

[mjh]

At Te Akau North we got told off by a marshal for wearing a jacket of the wrong colour, which was odd. No other marshals told us off. I managed to get on TV :)

Citroen red? If so sounds fair enough to me :D

The thing with marshals is you always risk getting the odd one who doesn't actually know what they are doing and over compensates - I should know I remember being one such marshall on the RAC at Chatsworth nearly 20years ago!

[Livewireshock]

At the 2007 Rally NZ, at the final spectator point for the Waitomo stage. Absolutely brillant spot and the local farmer there is a legend, but I digress. Two of the spectator marshals were American ski instructors from Ruepehu Ski Resort, obviously with out a clue about rallying. They were being coached along by a 'professional' Czech spectator and a Pom on all the do's and don'ts and why they are so.

Was an amusing conversation.

[Mirek]

Here in Czech republic stage and service entry is usualy free. Rallypass for IRC Barum rally is some 7 Euro for whole weekend including service. Prague show costs 8 Eur but if You don't go to SSS, You needn't to pay as they don't wan You to pay everywhere around the stages. Sosnová SSS on Rally Bohemia cost some 6-12 Eur I think. I was on 10 Czech rallys this year and except Barum only once they wanted some entry fee on classic stages on one spot of rally Šumava.

[Daniel]

At the 2007 Rally NZ, at the final spectator point for the Waitomo stage. Absolutely brillant spot and the local farmer there is a legend, but I digress. Two of the spectator marshals were American ski instructors from Ruepehu Ski Resort, obviously with out a clue about rallying. They were being coached along by a 'professional' Czech spectator and a Pom on all the do's and don'ts and why they are so.

Was an amusing conversation.

That's one of the things I love about WRC events :) All the different people you meet and the funny little exchanges that go on :)