Rallycross promotion. Who's responsability? (split from Superprix thread)

[Mad Mark Watson]

Its been eating me for two days now.
I, like many others who i have spoken with are very annoyed with the press coverage the Super prix has got. This is our sports biggest Uk event and and an excellent meeting that show cases our sport and shows all other competitors, spectators and the governing body what we are capable of.

Not withstanding i sponsored the meeting and raced as well. There were many other drivers who attended the meeting and raced and were never mentioned in the reports as well as all that happened through two days of top class racing. I looked forward to a comprehensive report on the meeting that frankly did nothing to reflect the event.

And as for saturday i raced all year in the open championship which is a recognised championship. To over come all sorts of problems to lift my first title in 10 years just to get one line of text. This is not a selfish rant because persons who know me will know it isnt about me its about raising the profile and moving forward the best spectator sport in the UK. Something must be done to market our sport better than it is at the moment. Rallycross has to move forward and raise its profile and will not happen if those who dont know of the sport are not told!

[bardy]

Originally Posted by CS1

I cant believe how Tim has the audicity to air his personal vendetta against the Rallycross Open Series so publicly. If he is so passionate about rallycross why was there no preview in Motorpsort News to the best event in the UK which is on his own doorstep and then produce a report of the weekend which is dreadful at best. A one line statement on the Open championship - I ask you!!

Come on Tim isnt it time to swallow your pride?

totally agree .

[BertMk2]

The trouble is that rallycross is still seen as a minority interest area - and therefore gets a limited amount of space within MN, Autosport etc. If the ROC round and the super prix had been held in different weeks then they would each have received a full report. As it was they're back to back and the amount of space available was the same - so something had to give and in this instance they chose to cover the GP in more depth than the ROC round. We've seen it already throughout the year that the rallycross reports generally are made up of the supercar/div1 report in detail with a single line for the other categories.

If the profile of rallycross increases then it'll get more space in MN and Autosport (bit of a catch 22 really - how do you raise the profile if you can't get the coverage?). Maybe you should write to MN and Autosport to express your disappointment - if everyone does it then maybe rallycross will get more coverage next year? Who knows. Certainly drivers can help by sending in updates and details of plans or new cars etc etc - just keeping regular rallycross news items trickling in between events may help.

(and I'm not suggesting that holding the ROC meeting and superprix back to back is a bad thing by the way )

[Mad Mark Watson]

If the profile of rallycross increases then it'll get more space in MN and Autosport (bit of a catch 22 really - how do you raise the profile if you can't get the coverage?). Maybe you should write to MN and Autosport to express your disappointment - if everyone does it then maybe rallycross will get more coverage next year? Who knows. Certainly drivers can help by sending in updates and details of plans or new cars etc etc - just keeping regular rallycross news items trickling in between events may help.

i have emailed editor of motroing news and autosport today (no reply)
and i know of several other drivers and officials have done same and quite voiciferous as well.

I cant see why we cant have more space when the F1 season is finished so has touring cars no major rally so we must appear quite high up on the pecking order by now. if not!
why is there £1million worth of racing car sat on our final grid!

[BertMk2]

I totally agree with you Mark, good to hear that you and others are on the case and harrassing MN and Autosport. Maybe you could get a profile done of your car? I know they've done whole page profiles of drivers + cars before for circuit racers so why not rallycrossers? Maybe they could do a feature on GT and his vast array of hardware? The F1 off season is the ideal time to hit them with this stuff - there's only so many times I can read about who's going to McLaren before I zzzzzzzzzzzz

[madcowie2007]

I for one want to see this sport grow back to what it was in the 80s and 90s. God do I remember as a kid watching the Brands Hatch rallycross gp. Back then I was a kid and I would tape grandstands coverage and watch it over and over again. Infact almost to the point where I knew each line of the commentary. Yes these days dont exsist anymore and maybe thats related to the costs envolved in running a supercar. Back then we had Mk2 escorts which in todays terms cant of cost alot of money to run.

But lets go back 10 years or more. Rallying was pretty much unheard of and the world rally championship didnt get a look in on terrestial television. And then Colin McRae came along. Now this wasnt the start of rallying becoming more popular. Colin McRae became a legend all over the world due to his computer games. Not too long ago Nicky Grist said that most people in america didnt even know who Colin McRae was. Most americans thought he was some fictional character made up for a computer game. But the facts are that Colin McRae and Richard Burns made rallying big in this country for a while just a few years ago.

So not trying to send crazy here or anything but hopefully our new rallycross game could introduce a new crowd to rallycross. My previous game ORR 2 has converted many fans across the world to watch Championship Off Road Racing (CORR). Alot of these guys including myself hadnt even heard of CORR a couple of years ago.

So heres my previous game
http://www.rfactorcentral.com/detail.cfm?ID=ORR%202

and heres the link to my WIP on Group B rallycross.
http://www.rfactorcentral.com/detail...ss%20Group%20B

Yes I know its group B at the moment but I do intend to do other classes after we have finished with this part. Last count I had 9 tracks made for rallycross and these include Croft, Brands Hatch, Lydden, Blyton and more real tracks. Im also aiming to introduce the american crowd to our sport and have made a rallycross track in Mid Ohio.

For those that dont know Group B Rallycross can support up to 43 cars online in the same race. LOL Can you imagine that? But taking this into account I do intend to run a Superprix at Croft online in the near future using a similar format to the real event.

So who knows maybe we might get a few newcomers heading over here and also to some real action next year. Would love to make the track for the London show, cant afford to get there myself but hopefully you guys will be able to provide me with lots of photos and details of the track.

Thanks
Madcowie

[Mad Mark Watson]

Originally Posted by BertMk2

I totally agree with you Mark, good to hear that you and others are on the case and harrassing MN and Autosport. Maybe you could get a profile done of your car? I know they've done whole page profiles of drivers + cars before for circuit racers so why not rallycrossers? Maybe they could do a feature on GT and his vast array of hardware? The F1 off season is the ideal time to hit them with this stuff - there's only so many times I can read about who's going to McLaren before I zzzzzzzzzzzz

I WILL
i will bombard them with stuff power of email.
But i shouldnt have to everything myself thats why we have press officers etc.

[BertMk2]

Press officers should be doing event previews, championship updates etc etc. But drivers must play their part too and send in informtaion - press officers aren't going to know the ins and out of every drivers plans. If drivers are heading over to do European rounds then send something in about that - which drivers are going etc etc and then follow it up with sending results in (and photos if possible).

Originally Posted by madcowie2007

Back then we had Mk2 escorts which in todays terms cant of cost alot of money to run.

I disagree (having just been involved in building one) - just getting a shell can cost you an arm and a leg.

[leonidas]

A decent press officer is priceless. You also need someone who can write. If reports read poorly the editor will just relegate them to the back pages. Bottom line is that if you don't make an event sound exciting and high profile you aren't going to get the front page.

Do results even get sent in to the mainstream press?

And where are all the great photos that we see on this board? Why aren't they finding their way into the specialist press? There are dozens of motoring magazines - most of which repeat the same tired stories. There must be an opportunity here.

Interesting that rallycross is gradually getting into gaming. Microsoft ran a game with a rallycross feature and there's also rallycross in CM Dirt. So there is hope.

The 'holy grail' is a terrestrial tv deal. I still think this could be possible if you targeted the right people. A first step might be to try to get a feature on Top Gear or something. Last night BBC2 had indoor bowls on - how does that sport get a terrestrial deal???

[Chessmsport]

Originally Posted by leonidas

Last night BBC2 had indoor bowls on - how does that sport get a terrestrial deal???

Because the sponsers pay for it.

[leonidas]

Originally Posted by Chessmsport

Because the sponsers pay for it.

I don't know what the sponsorship market is like for bowls (??) but it is difficult to see why their sport is in an instrinsically stronger position than ours. Rallycross has a broad appeal across the age ranges and involves a highly visible product (cars!) that everyone has to buy. We have a fast-moving, colourful, media-friendly sport. But if its not marketed effectively we are lost...

[silver bullet]

This seems to developing into a separate discussion, so I have split it out of the Superprix thread

Rallycross promotion. Who's responsibility?
OK, some blame for the lack of coverage of the Superprix weekend had been laid at the door of the journalists and some at the press.
I also think we the competitors should do our bit. Mark has explained what he has done to get some coverage for our sport, but how many other drivers make the effort to do a bit of promotion. People have leveled accusations at Tim saying he has his favorites, but could it be the reason that certain drivers get more column inches is, these drivers give him more information about their plans than others.
If we all improve our self promotion a bit, and send titbit's of news to the press and the journalists then perhaps Rallycross will get the extra media slots it deserves.
It doesn't take a lot of doing. I myself, phoned the motorsport reporter who writes for a number of local newspapers prior to the Superprix weekend. He gave the meeting a mention the week before, came along to the event and did a small review in this weekends paper. He has also mentioned an interest in going down to the London Motorsport Show in December. All this for the price of a local call.

I agree with leonidas about the TV thing. There are loads of motoring magazine shows now, Top Gear, 5th Gear and Vroom Vroom. I know PSM got VBH involved at Lydden last year. How about getting the Hamster in a car next year

[SRH]

Certainly not national press or indeed a specialist motoring / motorsport related publication, but the rallycross at Croft has received good coverage (within available space constraints) in the Teesside local press - I have provided pictures for all of the rallycross events held at Croft this year, including the Superprix. The Superprix for example was previewed and then had over half a page write up given to it. The sports editor even made space for the write up as the press releases were not issued in time for the normal Tuesday night motorsport slot.

We in Teesside are fortunate in that there were a number of drivers local to the greater Teesside area who were competing (Bellerby, Proctor, Martin Peters, the Maynards, Ian Horn etc) and that generates a lot of local interest. The drivers themselves as well as the press officer can help with this by contacting the local sport desk with information about themselves and events.

I was also talking to another photographer and journalist on Sunday who was covering the event for an article called "the most exciting motorsport you've never heard of" or something similar. He wouldn't tell me which magazine, but does anyone know anything about this?

Cheers,

Simon.

[zac510]

One thing for sure is that there are a LOT of racing series on in the country. A LOT, and almost all of them want to be big. This is even excluding all of the international series that capture the public attention too (A1GP, DTM, WTCC, etc), there are 3 historic/vintage series, hilllclimb, sprints, every dinky little spec open wheeler series full of pimply 16 year olds with a press officer too, etc etc. Arguably, even british rally struggles against this too and that's bigger than BRX.

[BertMk2]

Originally Posted by SRH

I was also talking to another photographer and journalist on Sunday who was covering the event for an article called "the most exciting motorsport you've never heard of" or something similar.

There was an article in the Telegraph by that title a while back, I believe Channel 4 also had something similar on their website for a while (and it wasn't that long ago that Channel 4 aired the rallycross grand prix).

Specialist magazines such as "Performance Ford" are another possible source of exposure - get the car featured (assuming you've got a Ford ) and send regular updates.

[B Friendly]

Originally Posted by silver bullet

How about getting the Hamster in a car next year

A couple of years ago i made a feeble attempt to contact Top Gear to get Clarkson/Hamster/May in stock hatch's as part of one of there challenges!

I'm still awaiting their reply!

[zac510]

They've gotta be in a flame throwing anti-lagging Supercar if you want rallycross virgins to pay attention!

[BertMk2]

Supercar driven by "The Stig" around the Top Gear track

[B Friendly]

Originally Posted by BertMk2

Supercar driven by "The Stig" around the Top Gear track

I'd thought of that one too!

[B Friendly]

Originally Posted by zac510

They've gotta be in a flame throwing anti-lagging Supercar if you want rallycross virgins to pay attention!

But they could do a feature on rallycross, then watch them having a go in stock hatch / procar's. Possibly one of them having a passenger ride in one!

[Martin C]

Maybe one way forward would be to sponser a report? Thus guaranteing a report and pics from an event. Basically then MN would give a page or two to rallycross all under a title sponser. I know a report writer for MN and he once had 700 word for a clubman rally, last time I spoke to him he was down to 300. Having also myself done rallying write ups and photography for four differnet mag/papers its not plain sailing.
The reporter wants paying by the paper/mag for the work thats used but when the report isnt guarenteed to be printed why would they bother sending one in, thus the paper saves money by simply having a one line report of Fred Blokes won the bla bla bla at such and such at the weekend, add in a picture sent in by a speccy thats not asked for any payment and hey presto easy cheap report.
But then who actually buys MN anymore?
I stopped years ago as most Motorsport news is freely available on the Net daily. Rallycross being the exception.
There is one certain web site that covers everything and quite well but the one thing that is missing is errr rallycross! Perhaps its time a foot in the door there was made.
Just a quick search of the word "Rallycross" and 8 years of web site that dedicated motorsport produced the following

Brit GT » Eurotech GT racers set for rallycross debut. 02/08/05 WRC » Rally reactions: Rally Italia Sardinia - Leg 1. 01/10/04 Rally UK » BRC build-up starts with new track opening. 09/03/04 F1 » Carnegie gets win as rallycross hits halfway. 27/05/03 BTCC » Points for Leslie, podium for Bennett. 22/04/03 MOTOGP » McWilliams 'excited' about rallycross debut. 06/02/03 WRC » Tyres to the fore. 09/03/01

So the last rallycross report was in 04!

As for TV well you would of though at this time of year when most championships have finished the terestial TV companys would be happy to fill a hour slot on a saturday or sunday, after all we get superbikes and BTCC every other weekend and LIVE at times. The superprix would make a good program for that hour surely.

[chunder]

Very well said Martin C, I used to contribute to MN aswell and the stuff I wrote about was chopped to the point that it wasnt worthy writing anymore.

The problem was that I expected at least to be able to break even with my costs of getting to a venue. There are often squabbles about getting in for free and when you think of it its just not worth the hassle for a few words that hardly explain what happened let alone anything else.

Im afraid being bought by Hayshed has been their downfall, Im not saying that staying indie would help but at least you could maybe be a little more expansive, right now accountants run every paper in the world and ads mean more than editorial.

Thats why no one buys it anymore, and Autosport for that matter whose circulation has dropped recently.

[Ian Sowman]

In a decade of writing regularly for MN I've never had anything substantially cut. The only way I can see it happening is due to something happening very late on that impacts the pages (this hasn't happened to me yet) or if you exceed the word count you're given. I can't speak for rallycross, but word counts for racing are as high (on average) now as they have been at any time in the last ten years.

[Mad Mark Watson]

Specialist magazines such as "Performance Ford" are another possible source of exposure - get the car featured (assuming you've got a Ford ) and send regular updates.[/QUOTE]

I have written to all performance magazines especially french orientated car magazines and not received any replies back so not as easy as you think.
It is very difficult as a one man team i do all my own press and entries and organise car etc as well as running my own business no time to .........

What i would like to see is a neutral person employed by the drivers (BRDA) to act on our behalf promoting events and the sport in press before meetings and after. Organising posters and promotion of events trying tirelessly to get into magazines and on tv. This person wouldnt have any affliation with any team so no bias. As for the moneyto pay for such person the added sponsorship of the championship as thye profile rises will pay for this.

Finally I have made it my goal to get Rallycross on Top Gear very nearly was there in 2007 but will continually strive to get it in 2008

[bucko]

the rallycross world mag was a good mag just a pity you get it only on line , as of now i do not get a copy of it any more .it was far better in a magazine i would pass it around friends and family and then take it too work you be surprised how many people picked it up and read it ! why oh why did it had to go on line it made it very selective !
i would pay for it ,if it was printed then you get advertising and then the p/r would come from that start from there ,if you attached it to some other motor sport magazine or even m/n