Loeb against endurance rallies

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Originally Posted by AndyRAC

I’ve predicted a ‘war’ since Jean Todt was elected and made it clear he wanted the WRC back on track. What is best for the WRC isn’t always the best for the Manufacturers. They’ve ruled the roost for the past 10+ years, and look were that has taken us. Their moaning over last years RallyGB route shows how out of touch & clueless they are about were the sport is.

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The question is, what is different about the reasons for the attitude of today's WRC manufacturers compared with those of, say, the mid-1980s? Have they simply come to the view that they, rather than the sport's own authorities, know best?

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Originally Posted by janvanvurpa

Now most events are forgotten pretty quickly.

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How sadly true that is.

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Originally Posted by BDunnell

The question is, what is different about the reasons for the attitude of today's WRC manufacturers compared with those of, say, the mid-1980s? Have they simply come to the view that they, rather than the sport's own authorities, know best?

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It's a good question. Personally, I'd say it was that they think they know best. The last 10 years disprove their theory. The sport will only be going places if everybody pulls in the same direction. The FiA/ Jean Todt want one thing, the Manufacturers another....and as MJW has said, Todt seems determined to get his way, whatever the cost.

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Originally Posted by AndyRAC

It's a good question. Personally, I'd say it was that they think they know best. The last 10 years disprove their theory. The sport will only be going places if everybody pulls in the same direction. The FiA/ Jean Todt want one thing, the Manufacturers another....and as MJW has said, Todt seems determined to get his way, whatever the cost.

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I don't understand what the manufacturers do want, to be honest.

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Originally Posted by BDunnell

I don't understand what the manufacturers do want, to be honest.

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I can hazard a guess. To keep the status quo, so they can wine and dine their guests/VIPs in the Paddock, I mean Service Park. And there will be hell to pay if any of these guests get mud on their shoes, as was one complaint about Builth Wells in November.
Look, the Manufacturers are in it to sell more cars. However, using UK as an extreme example, RallyGB gets very little mainstream coverage....how is that helping them? Whereas the old RAC received huge newspaper, radio & TV coverage - just what Manufacturers want.
Am I missing something?

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Originally Posted by AndyRAC

Look, the Manufacturers are in it to sell more cars. However, using UK as an extreme example, RallyGB gets very little mainstream coverage....how is that helping them? Whereas the old RAC received huge newspaper, radio & TV coverage - just what Manufacturers want.
Am I missing something?

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My point exactly. And why was that? In large part, surely, because it was much more of a national event, geographically and figuratively.

I also like to see fastest man winning. But I wouldn't mind a couple of longer rallyes in the calendar, fitting the characteristic, like Safari was. In such rallyes it would be interesting to see who can hurry slowly and drive smart to the end.

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Originally Posted by ste898

I have an idea for this let the 'whinger' retire

He has never driven a proper event in his career and yet people bleet on about him being the best ever....what utter crap!!!

Let him pee off to his roundy roundy racing with the other pre madonnas

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All that could have been written in a civilized way. Sadly it didn't happen. Is it so difficult to express Your opinion like a an adult person?

Maybe I'm too old to read that but... I'm not even thirty. Something is wrong, huh...

[Brother John (who is from same Vlaandern as me ancestors and living as a furriner in the same country I lived in)(and my bloody name is John and I am brother to every man) VOICE ON]

Harumph, smells like pub talk in here..Rum, entirely too rum, Pub talk the lot a ya!

[/Brother John (who is from same Vlaandern as me ancestors and living as a furriner in the same country I lived in)(and my bloody name is John and I am brother to every man) VOICE OFF]

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Originally Posted by BDunnell

My point exactly. And why was that? In large part, surely, because it was much more of a national event, geographically and figuratively.

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Now you guys are onto something right there. You know that even in the "generation of Block-heads" here in Fortress Amerika that really what rally is only VERY DIMLY grasped by the masses. And that's with Blogs and Youtube and relentless TV hype.....

But! Even 45 years ago EVEN HERE people had heard of and some of us knew of Monte carlo and RAC..
Por que you say?
because they were big capital A Adventures...
RAC all round the whole isle. Monte starting from pointes around the whole Continent, even the East Block!

What an adventure just to think about doing..
in deed, the sparseness of the reports made us imagine a lot more..

But even over here in a culturally insular, virtual monolinguistic isolated land, some us us had heard of rally because of the hugeness of the adventure.

And some of us thought...Hmmmmmmm, it might be fun to do that ....one day....