The "development" of WRC in recent years - from the perspective of Rally GB

garcon · 12 Nov 2003, 12:03 (Ref:780917)

The debate about the "police regime" (perfect phrase) in South Wales, road safety concerns, and the plain fact that Wales can't cope with the traffic a WRC event generates, prompted me to expand the argument a little. Particularly, Mark_l's question as to why we can't move the rally elsewhere...

Warning, what follows is a rant and does not necessarily represent the opinions of Ten-Tenths.
(To be honest, it probably doesn't even represent the opinions of the poster when they aren't ranting.)

Unfortunately, World Rally has "developed" to the point where they want to run the same rallies on the same stages every year. Before long, each rally will consist of no more than 5 different stages, run 3 times each over the 3 days.

It seems we're no longer allowed to use the hundreds of miles of superb forest tracks around the rest of the UK, because something like 80% of a WRC rally must be the same as the previous year.

Probably some of the very best rallying country in the world and it only ever gets used in the national series. Unless there are major changes in the direction of WRC, Hafren, Grizedale and Kielder will never again be allowed to see world class rallying.

Well, they're cutting their own throats. Expanding the rally to cover the kind of area it did back in the early nineties is surely the best possible way of solving the traffic problems that have been encountered in Wales more recently. Even moving it around a bit would help. But no. It doesn't suit the needs of the commercial arm of the FIA. Rallying must be made simpler where it can, to get more tv coverage and more commercial gain.

One of the final blows for me was the coverage at Margham Park on Sunday. They've destroyed the stage. "Specially built tracks", and to top it all, a "man made jump". Doesn't this sound like nails screeching down a blackboard to die-hard rally fans? Cos it does to me. I could barely believe what I was seeing.

The future of WRC - each event will consist of three runs over five (at most) purpose built "super special stages" built be Tilke or whatever he's called. Great television folks! But you know what, this new format WRC is beginning to sound familiar... Tell you what, scrap the whole damn thing and plough your commercial finances and demands into rallycross instead!

We now return you to our normal ramblings.

Phew. That's better. Sorry to go on folks...

Liz · 12 Nov 2003, 12:23 (Ref:780935)

It's another in the continuing effort to make the entire world safe and sanitary for unsupervised toddlers. If we can only herd everyone into an enclosed cage and keep them there (I look for the elaborate fencing to be joined by a lid any day now), preferably taking them to their cage in an armor-plated bus and feeding them low-fat, non-alcoholic (and way overpriced) snacks that we control), within a generation or two they will have forgotten that life was any different (see Formula One, where the majority of fans think it didn't exist before Senna's death) and everything will be lovely.

We need to bring back danger, inconvenience, speed and the battle of man against nature that was World Rally before it got captured by the Marching Mommies and the lawyers. But how can this be done?

**Adam43** · 12 Nov 2003, 15:24 (Ref:781093)

I had no problem with the old RAC being difficult, i.e. Challenging.

Surely that was the point.

avsfan733 · 12 Nov 2003, 16:22 (Ref:781152)

sadly, i can only think of one possibility of curing all the 'problems' that are created by the idiots who are litigating our socities to death...

ban fans [/sarcasm]

on another note, maybe this would be a reason to run a rally in the US, or in canada where rallying isn't as popular, and we have thousands o miles of desert and backcountry tha don't have nearly as many locals

RTH · 12 Nov 2003, 17:11 (Ref:781200)

All of you are absolutely right - so what can we do about it ?

garcon · 12 Nov 2003, 17:52 (Ref:781239)

Get back to basics and support our national rally series? I think I've only ever been to one national event...

rdjones · 12 Nov 2003, 19:20 (Ref:781315)

I'm 100% behind those comments. It something I have myself been thinking about over the last few days and was going to post a rant along the samelines myself.

At the end of the day these rallies on the WRC are now made for TV, which in IMO is wrong and I thought rallying was about endurance etc.

**Adam43** · 12 Nov 2003, 20:16 (Ref:781365)

It would be great if a Rally of GB started up that was similar ot the old event. Get loads of British rally drivers, allow anyone else to come, and just have an event. It wouldn't be part of a championship, world or otherwise, but that wouldn't matter. Winning it would be reward enough. In fact finishing it would be!

Never happen, but...

rdjones · 12 Nov 2003, 20:25 (Ref:781373)

Quote:

Originally posted by AdamAshmore
It would be great if a Rally of GB started up that was similar ot the old event. Get loads of British rally drivers, allow anyone else to come, and just have an event. It wouldn't be part of a championship, world or otherwise, but that wouldn't matter. Winning it would be reward enough. In fact finishing it would be!

Never happen, but...

Well it's sort of happening next year, there is going to be something called the Roger Clark Rally, it's next November starting in Sheffield. Now its not going to be for modern cars it's going to be for car from before 1984. I started a thread about it with more details in here

I for one will not be missing it Rally GB, who needs it when u have got this

**Woolley** · 12 Nov 2003, 22:43 (Ref:781485)

That sounds more like it. Reckon I might be out for that one.

Can't work out why the traffic/spectator problems comes as a surprise to anyone. It used to be spread all across Wales from Clocaenog in the north to Trawscoed in the south, with 10-12 stages 20-25 miles in length over the day. So the traffic was split up, and the spectators spread over 300 miles of stage. Now it's all crammed in one little corner with 3 stages duplicated - maybe 70 miles worth of road. The phrase is 'putting all your eggs in one basket".

Now I do more hours and miles to marshal the event than the drivers do to compete on it, I really can't be bothered.

**Adam43** · 12 Nov 2003, 22:52 (Ref:781499)

thanks rdjones, that is spot on. That one is a must. How on earth did I miss that, under my nose

DavidStHubbins · 13 Nov 2003, 06:45 (Ref:781695)

Quote:

Originally posted by Liz
We need to bring back danger, inconvenience, speed and the battle of man against nature that was World Rally before it got captured by the Marching Mommies and the lawyers. But how can this be done?

You sound like that lovely but fascist Italian F.T.Marinetti !

"We want to sing the love of danger, the habit of danger and of temerity... We declare that the world's wonder has been enriched by a fresh beauty: the beauty of speed. A racing car with its trunk adorned by great exhaust pipes like snakes with an explosive breath ... a roaring car that seems to be driving under shrapnel, is more beautiful than the Victory of Samothrace."

Bob Irvine.. · 14 Nov 2003, 07:40 (Ref:782885)

David,i think i feel a tear in my eye.That was just.....beautiful

DavidStHubbins · 14 Nov 2003, 11:43 (Ref:783077)

Thanks Bob.

Hey, GO THE DANGEROUS LOUD CAR!

Liz · 14 Nov 2003, 12:41 (Ref:783130)

Exactly what I was thinking. Ice hockey is suffering the same difficulties -- by making it "safe" they have quintupled the number of serious injuries and turned the game into a boring overpriced snoozefest that nobody really cares about anymore. Ditto baseball.

The only answer appears to be the minor leagues, where people still believe in the love of the game.

And if anyone believes that we could have Rally in North America where Jackpot Juries are the rule, not the exception -- well, we had a case filed yesterday by a man who had hot soup spilled on his hand and demands $1 million in compensation for everything from post traumatic stress to loss of income (and he is not a concert pianist or surgeon either.) All we have to do is have somebody's toddler frightened by a Rally car and the whole series will be bankrupt tomorrow.

Cryos · 14 Nov 2003, 20:44 (Ref:783613)

I would disagree about making the WRC less safer, i think it would have an adverse effect on the wrc less drivers would participate...

However i can see where the argurment is comming from, just look at finland and corsica Big jumps and massive drops is eye candy to whomeever is spectating.. I personaly think the rally GB is a load of you know what.

DavidStHubbins · 15 Nov 2003, 08:12 (Ref:784067)

How about a rally of Ireland - on the tarmac (cobbled) roads? On the WRC.

Bob Irvine.. · 15 Nov 2003, 09:37 (Ref:784139)

Sounds good to me David,never happen though!

**Woolley** · 15 Nov 2003, 10:35 (Ref:784166)

It seems more dangerous these days anyway. With just 18 stages, everyone's right on the edge the whole time making big accidents an inevitability. On top of that with all the spectators crammed into a smaller area, the two are going to meet eventually.

Liz · 16 Nov 2003, 02:33 (Ref:784744)

I look for all the rallies to be "Special Stages" with the spectators crammed into grandstands well away from the action.

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