Quote:
Originally Posted by bella
really? making *some* profit is fine. after all, we all have to pay the bills. but things like entry fees, especially for national big stuff like f3 and fr2.0 are nuts in this country. i know it costs a fair bit to put on an event but...
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As I have now pointed out several times on several threads, entry fees have risen an unproportional amount compared to both inflation and other commodities in motorsport (such as the cars). If entry fees for the 1970s, 80s and even 90s were in 'today's money' it would work out at between £75-£100 for a single header. At a club level, it is the circuits making a hell of a lot of profit. They are no longer relying on entry and gate money, choosing not to advertise (even locally) meaning that the competitors have to foot the entire bill.
At a national/international level, as well as the circuits making a killing, there is the organiser/promotor who wants to take a cut. I can imagine SRO charge pretty large fees.
Cars, at the lower level (say FF1600) haven't gone up too much above inflation. There was a bit of a boom through the 1970s thanks to the massive inflation under Labour but in relative terms, a new Kent car isn't massively more than it was when it was £1200 ready to race. Once inflation-corrected a FF1600 car is 'only' £6000 than £1200 is worth today (if you get me). The problem with Formula Ford is that the British Championship doesn't operate to these regulations. Instead, the engines are massively more expensive than they used to be and the a new car is over twice the cost of an inflation-corrected Formula Ford 1600 car. Ford has lost the plot by moving away from what made FF1600 such a good starter formula; you can argue for and against technological change but having 7-8 new Ecoboosts this year is poor.
With regards to F3, a new F312 costs around £80,000 as a rolling chassis without engine and electronics. This adds a heft amount if you chose to lease from a top manufacturer. In comparison, the 1000cc F3 cars of the late 1960s and early 1970s cost, in today's money, around £40000-50000 ready to race. Now, that means that and F3 car was around half the cost however, as John Miller has pointed out to me, a new F3 Dallara is competitive for 4 years as opposed to a maximum of two thanks to current FIA regs. This means that actually, for a team a modern car presents better value for money. The problem is, that in 1970 you could run an F3 competitively off the back of a trailer, whereas now you need to pay a team (and all its associated staff).
I know you can't unlearn technology however, with motor racing it has to be said. Is it all about how good the driver is? Or, is it about how good the machinery is? Because, if it is the former, I would argue (and I'm sure many of you will disagree) that it is about providing the drivers with the most 'pure' vehicles in which to prove themselves. This means, no downforce-creating devices, three pedals in the footbox, H-pattern gearshift, no datalogging. However, motorsport is also about showcasing technology (much of which IS NOT road relevant), in which case there is bound to be technological advancement.
Another major problem is sponsorship/prize money. Championships used to offer really, really good prize money. As in, if you were succesful you could actually nearly pay for your racing without having to spend a penny of your own (or a sponsors). Later, as corporate sponsorship entered the sport, it was the job of teams to find a sponsor, enabling them to hire the best drivers (drivers, even at F3, used to be paid a retainer!) Now, it is down to the driver to provide the money. Companies are becoming more savvy and will only get involved if there is a personal connection, real marketing benefit or are interested in motorsport. In the current climate, this severely diminishes the number of potential sponsors.
However, if circuits were willing to advertise their race meetings and reduce ticket prices, they could not only reduce track hire fees but also the spectator numbers would rise, giving a better marketing benefit to sell to sponsors (think of the amount sponsors are paying to appear on the shirt of a League One/Championship football club).
Yes, times have changed and certain aspects of the 1970s will not be recoverable, but that does not mean that the sport should blindly keep digging itself into this financial crisis. Because, although it is pretty good on main land Europe at the moment, if the Eurozone crisis continues to stumble along, the continent will be next in line to follow the UK series.
Right, a lot of what I have said, I'm sure will be flamed. Right, come on then, come and pick some holes in it.