Has the Taupo Race Circuit been sold?

[smokin'joe]

Originally Posted by Mark Petch

True Carl, but maybe Joe might change his opinion when the dust finally settles in Taupo,

so, are you saying the stakeholders are holding out for an offer that will more than likely be not much more than the Quinn offer ?

[socram]

Originally Posted by Racetroll

That's it. I'm moving to the South Island.

Oh no you are not!!!

[harcey]

Originally Posted by Racetroll

Define too expensive?

...... having an involvement in the sport in diferent parts of the world are you guys aware that we are just about the cheapest place on the planet to race ....licenses/club memberships/entries/track hireages etc etc ....we are on the pigs back even with MNZ increases in levies and general fees ..... the losers are the facilities we use that are struggling to get people through the gates and names on the hoardings for reasons that are well documented in many threads, i am not talking v8 squabbles and other political issues, just purely the cost's for the average joe to do some racing,its always been a kiwi thing to try and race for as little dollars as possible, .... so we are all happy to keep status quo and pushing for it but i am sure many of us know that it cant really last .... if we dont all get on the same page the general hurt will just keep on keeping on ...outside of the v8/mnz battles the rest of the sport still exists and in various areas actually thrives but the overall BALANCE isnt quite right in my opinion.

[DX20VT]

Originally Posted by The Realist

Is it only the money, or have category co-ordinators had unpleasant experiences with the staff? Word is that only Central Muscle Cars have a good working relationship with them.
Other promoters and Category's run a mile.

Is that because they are paid to be there,
and all the other classes fee's are increased to cover it?

[Mark Petch]

Originally Posted by DX20VT

Is that because they are paid to be there,
and all the other classes fee's are increased to cover it?

Your statement in bold above is in fact correct.

[mikuni]

Originally Posted by harcey

...... having an involvement in the sport in diferent parts of the world are you guys aware that we are just about the cheapest place on the planet to race ....licenses/club memberships/entries/track hireages etc etc ....we are on the pigs back even with MNZ increases in levies and general fees ..... the losers are the facilities we use that are struggling to get people through the gates and names on the hoardings for reasons that are well documented in many threads, i am not talking v8 squabbles and other political issues, just purely the cost's for the average joe to do some racing,its always been a kiwi thing to try and race for as little dollars as possible, .... so we are all happy to keep status quo and pushing for it but i am sure many of us know that it cant really last .... if we dont all get on the same page the general hurt will just keep on keeping on ...outside of the v8/mnz battles the rest of the sport still exists and in various areas actually thrives but the overall BALANCE isnt quite right in my opinion.

You're post is quite difficult to read, so I may have the wrong end of the stick, but...

I think most of us are aware that we are lucky in NZ to have a large number of established tracks. We are also lucky that these tracks are largely able to be hired or run for a reasonable price.

But, I believe the price commanded is the going rate. You say yourself that the circuits are struggle to get people through the gate - will raising the price help that!?

I would love to be able to race every weekend and pay huge sums to the circuits to let me do so, but the simple fact is I can't afford it. If the circuit cost is low, it is cheap to get your car and safety gear to a standard able to be raced, more people will do it. I suppose 2k cup is an example of this, and i actually believe it could go even further. But as you say, the solutions are well documented around the place. Just the right people aren't listening.

[mikuni]

Personally I think Taupo will fold and be sold to Tony Quinn in two years for $2.2M. I shouldn't be negative, but the first offer is often the best, and Tony has been scorned now, so will not be making the same offer again. Who else will buy it? I mean seriously, they can't even sell Hampton Downs which is at least in a better location if nothing else.

[harcey]

Originally Posted by mikuni

You're post is quite difficult to read, so I may have the wrong end of the stick, but...

I think most of us are aware that we are lucky in NZ to have a large number of established tracks. We are also lucky that these tracks are largely able to be hired or run for a reasonable price.

But, I believe the price commanded is the going rate. You say yourself that the circuits are struggle to get people through the gate - will raising the price help that!?

I would love to be able to race every weekend and pay huge sums to the circuits to let me do so, but the simple fact is I can't afford it. If the circuit cost is low, it is cheap to get your car and safety gear to a standard able to be raced, more people will do it. I suppose 2k cup is an example of this, and i actually believe it could go even further. But as you say, the solutions are well documented around the place. Just the right people aren't listening.

crikey mate, thats an interesting interpretation of my post , let me re summarise ......'motorsport in NZ is too cheap for the competitor compared to the rest of the world ....because of that facilities and services suffer" ...thats all .....we have had it too easy for far too long and that is the root of the problem ...(which will of course be argued by all and sundry)

[mikuni]

Nah, I think we are on the same page.

I'm saying: If it's too cheap, that means the price must rise. If the price rises, who will race? Surely even less people, as they will no longer be able to afford it..

[Mark Petch]

Originally Posted by mikuni

Personally I think Taupo will fold and be sold to Tony Quinn in two years for $2.2M. I shouldn't be negative, but the first offer is often the best, and Tony has been scorned now, so will not be making the same offer again. Who else will buy it? I mean seriously, they can't even sell Hampton Downs which is at least in a better location if nothing else.

I don't know what kind of 'crystal' ball you have been looking into but I'll take a bet with you that you wrong A. about the price, and B. who will own it in two years time.

You up for the wager? Then if you are, how about $100 on the nose, lets agree who will hold the money and we will talk in two years time.

[harcey]

Originally Posted by mikuni

Nah, I think we are on the same page.

I'm saying: If it's too cheap, that means the price must rise. If the price rises, who will race? Surely even less people, as they will no longer be able to afford it..

sorry but we are far from the same page ....costs do need to rise .... and people will still race because they will make it happen as it is a passion and desirable hobby ....you adjust your lifestyle to suit , same as when petrol went nuts...we didnt all go out and buy pushbikes

[mikuni]

Originally Posted by Mark Petch

I don't know what kind of 'crystal' ball you have been looking into but I'll take a bet with you that you wrong A. about the price, and B. who will own it in two years time.

You up for the wager? Then if you are, how about $100 on the nose, lets agree who will hold the money and we will talk in two years time.

I'm not a betting man. I'm merely sharing a thought, and seeing where it will end up. I'm in no position to tell the Taupo Shareholders what to do, I just find it interesting watching from afar.

[smokin'joe]

Originally Posted by Mark Petch

I don't know what kind of 'crystal' ball you have been looking into but I'll take a bet with you that you wrong A. about the price, and B. who will own it in two years time.

so it's gonna become MPMP then ??
Mark Petch Motorsport Park !!!

was thinking about the offer price today, and if SCCC can raise the money to re-seal Levels, why can't local clubs raise the cash to retian NZ ownership ??
i know it sounds simplistic , but unless kiwis get on board to retain it, less people will get to use it at a much higher cost.

[Mark Petch]

Originally Posted by smokin'joe

so it's gonna become MPMP then ??
Mark Petch Motorsport Park !!!

was thinking about the offer price today, and if SCCC can raise the money to re-seal Levels, why can't local clubs raise the cash to retian NZ ownership ??
i know it sounds simplistic , but unless kiwis get on board to retain it, less people will get to use it at a much higher cost.

Ha Ha, but no, well wide of the mark! like the pun, it was intended.

If the circuit does not sell for a least 6 million with gauranteed access for the TCC, then a number of people will assist the club to regain the ownership of the circuit.

[smokin'joe]

Originally Posted by Mark Petch

If the circuit does not sell for a least 6 million with gauranteed access for the TCC, then a number of people will assist the club to regain the ownership of the circuit.

confused...... why don't these people help TCC regain ownership anyway ?

[Southern Man]

Originally Posted by smokin'joe

confused...... why don't these people help TCC regain ownership anyway ?

From what I can gather they are attempting to do so but first they have to rally the troops and source sufficient funding and second they have to set up a plan that does not see them go down the gurgler too.

[socram]

Originally Posted by harcey

....'motorsport in NZ is too cheap for the competitor compared to the rest of the world ....because of that facilities and services suffer" ...thats all .....we have had it too easy for far too long and that is the root of the problem ...(which will of course be argued by all and sundry)

Totally disagree. Hampton Downs has been running at a profit for the last three years. Hiring out the track to promoters, clubs, car companies, driver training and even multisport events often enough, means that the spectator income is totally irrelevant unless the track promotes the event itself - which of course it does in some cases.

With the off road facility running and many plans for the future, the complex is doing OK, just that the amount of money is not there right now to get everything done quickly. Turning down TQ's fire sale price offer was the right thing to do.

Pukekohe is still a horse facility first and foremost and therefore there will never ever be any broad development, such as a second/third track configuration, nor an on site car museum, kart tracks, off roading facilities, skid pan and so on.

The cost of racing in NZ is certainly cheaper than some countries, but so are our wages and daily car running costs. There are still costs that could be trimmed out of NZ Motorsport at an administrative level but we all know that increasing race entry fees, particularly at club level, merely makes it more difficult for some to race - especially the aged ones and the youngsters, who currently form the real backbone of the sport.

Thirty to fifty somethings with pots of money or big spending profitable businesses are fewer in NZ than overseas, so there will never be the same emphasis as in richer countries. NZ has to rely on the less well off.

I'd venture to suggest that one of the reasons overall costs are cheaper here is that there has been a strong shift towards road cars (U2K Cup, Alfa Trofeo, Arrow Wheels, AES, MG Series, Japanese Classics, BMW E30s and several others), rather than out and out race cars.

Many are trailered, as for most people, the car isn't really a daily driver, so it is still cheaper to pay the rego on a trailer rather than keeping the car on the road with the extra costs that involves.

The $64,000 question that none of us can answer is that apart from one or two meetings a year at each track, spectators are now largely irrelevant, whether we like it or not, but what, if anything, can and will be done about it?

Putting up race entry fees will achieve absolutely nothing.

[Mark Petch]

Originally Posted by Southern Man

From what I can gather they are attempting to do so but first they have to rally the troops and source sufficient funding and second they have to set up a plan that does not see them go down the gurgler too.

Correct Carl, whilst I am not involved in anyway, it wont have escaped most of those people with their ear to the ground, that my close friend Chris Abbott is spearheading the re-organization of the Taupo Motorsport Park Company in the best interest's of the shareholders, which also include TCC.

Obviously if the racetrack and facilities, can be sold for around 8 million dollars or more, no body will lose a cent and that includes the bank and the Taupo City Council.

However ever if the International Tender does not succeed in bringing in a buyer any better than Mr Quinn's offer, "friend's" of the Taupo Car Club will enable the Club to take ownership of the circuit and facilities without the club being mired in debt.

[RogerH]

Originally Posted by socram

…..Hampton Downs has been running at a profit for the last three years…….

I have heard this comment a number of times but I wonder if it is totally accurate. Hampton Downs is a business and therefore to be running at a real profit it needs to cover interest costs if it was funded by borrowings or provide a return on investment if it was funded by equity.
I may well be wrong but I suspect Hampton Downs may be generating an operating profit but only before interest costs or return on investment. This is probably indicative of the problem facing commercially based tracks - it may well be possible to break even operationally but what return is produced on the capital invested, or if there are borrowings can these also be serviced.

[socram]

Correct Roger. Servicing the existing debt first, I presume, is the number 1 priority. Pity the Government who cost the developers so much money fighting the complex and lost, couldn't compensate them for the delays and costs, instead of worrying about further lining the pockets the America's Cup's millionaires.

Two or three million cash would go a long way towards getting the second track built - which is permanent, not just an event - and would provide an extra income stream.

[socram]

Todays (Saturday) Herald property section has a front page blurb about the sale of Taupo, written in true Real Estate sales speak.

No mention at all on the cat lady type restrictions, effectively ruling out twilight events of course.

[Just Do It!]

A deal seems close here. Apparently discussions have now moved directly to the Taupo District Council and the bank - both are seemingly welcoming

[pukekoheracer]

Originally Posted by Just Do It!

A deal seems close here. Apparently discussions have now moved directly to the Taupo District Council and the bank - both are seemingly welcoming

Tenders close Today at 4pm, you must have inside Knowledge From Bayleys of any signed Tenders, that would be a breach of the REAA if any have been opened prior to Tenders closing.

[Just Do It!]

No inside information from Bayleys whatsoever - They're one of the most ethical around.

For tenders to be relevant, firstly a tender must be received. Whether that has happened or not, who knows.

[CDM]

Originally Posted by Just Do It!

A deal seems close here. Apparently discussions have now moved directly to the Taupo District Council and the bank - both are seemingly welcoming

Originally Posted by Just Do It!

For tenders to be relevant, firstly a tender must be received. Whether that has happened or not, who knows.

wtf??

So you have gone from actually stating that "a deal seems close" to "who knows" within 12 hours...

Facts are normally thin on the ground on these forums but as far as bs & contradictory statements go, that really takes the cake