Stroud makes a stand!

[Kickaha]

How many guys go get Kickaha autograph in previous seasons [I say pervious because they 4th in champs sofar this year]

3-4 a year

[cowpoos]

3-4 a year

Not including the gay parade signatures....

[Number One]

Craig Shirrifs doesn't like racing the streets either...he has said it publically a few times on teli.

AND yet he continues to do so without an appearance fee...why do it then?

[cowpoos]

AND yet he continues to do so without an appearance fee...why do it then?

Sponsers require the exposure.

[Number One]

Sponsers require the exposure.

SPONSORS...evil people them! Them and their damn wads of cash

OK now I'm just being a bit contrary Happy to agree to disagree with you.

[Kickaha]

Not including the gay parade signatures....

you didn't specify motorcycle events

[Tony.OK]

Well after reading all this and having just done my 1st Paeroa, I'm wondering why I had so much fun
I knew I'd get no money, I knew I'd not win.........but fuck I had a ball out there, some great battles with other like minded riders.

No one has mentioned the fact that the NATIONALS pay ZERO dollars compared to $500 for a win at Paeroa...................so why do the Nationals at all?

Also...............where else can you pay $25 for an entire day of entertainment these days? People spend more than that on takeaways

[Billy]

No one has mentioned the fact that the NATIONALS pay ZERO dollars compared to $500 for a win at Paeroa...................so why do the Nationals at all?

Actually,There might not be a choice with that.One of the officials I spoke too at Paeroa yesterday suggested they were questioning the viability of running the Nationals as the turn out has been so disappointing

[driftn]

No one has mentioned the fact that the NATIONALS pay ZERO dollars compared to $500 for a win at Paeroa...................:

Dont forget the $100 for each lap led in the king of the streets race, I say to stroud grow a pair and race for your winnings makes for some good racing. As for the streets are dangerous, Yeah they are but alot of us ride on the road and we dont get paid for it and we have to contend with cars and shit. If he is truely NZ's number 1 then come and bloody well prove it.

[HenryDorsetCase]

I've read an article last year in Classic Racer* about guys racing in the '60's. I think this was Bill Ivy or Phil Read, before they got their works rides. This guy was a toolmaker at an engineering works and was giving his resignation to his boss. "But son, if you stay on, in a few years you could earn 20 quid a week". "Er, yes, but I earned 200 quid this weekend from bike racing."

Doug Polen in the '80s was the "Man in a van with a plan": he raced two classes in the Suzuki GSXR series and made a living at it. Eventually picked up a factory seat.

I for one would pay higher entry if it guaranteed the top guys some reward. I agree with Stroud about street racing being insanely dangerous. Thats part of the attraction of course, but to do it for nothing?! Not on.

[Quasievil]

I dunno about it all really, I think if the top riders want appearance fees thats fine, wanting and getting are kinda different things in my learnings

Anyway if its about drawing a crowd and the entertainment I think alot of people go to see action, that means crashes, that means as I crashed twice on the day that means I provided entertainment , that means (in my little world) I should get paid for each crowd pleasing crash ????

[Shaun]

Congratulations on your desision making Andrew! Andrew races as his job, it is how he pays his bills.

His contract is obviously only for the NZ Championships, with the street racing being his own choice to do or not to do.

15-000 x $25-00 paying people is a huge bank roll for the day, it is always WELL DOCUMENTED how much money was givin back to the community for the event, f the community, they make there money from the shops being open and all the people in thre town spending money whilst at the races

The races would NOT happen with out the riders

Paeroa does NOT even pay the same level of prize money as the Wanganui club pays out why??????

any one who can get on here and bad mouth Andrew for making his decision to not race, has NO real idea how Andrew;s life works for him!

It is hs choice, and good on him for trying to help set an example for the future stars

[svr]

People are forgetting that street race meetings are `owned' by the organisers, who take a big financial risk. 20 yrs ago every second town had a street race but they haven't lasted - Riders & spectators have voted with their feet.
If there really is `more in the pot' potentially available for riders then it should be prize money for top 3 placings in the premier classes to attract and reward proffessional level riders or anyone good enough to beat them. Put it up for grabs!
Also, if people think its easier to win $500 in an aussie road race maybe they should talk to kiwis that have tried...

[gav]

Good on Stroudy, I don't think its just for his own cause, I'm sure he's hoping that more can benefit than just him. Anyway, heard a rumour we might yet see Stroudy punting a V8 in NZ Supercars .
While I'm sure not many made the decision to not attend due to Strouds absence, I'm betting alot would've been disappointed that he wasn't there?

[scrivy]

Interesting problem.

I fully support Andrew in his decision.
Yes he is a professional racer, and no he is not contracted to race at the streets.
We all know that racers of his calibre do indeed bring greater spectator audiences to these types of events – you cannot argue with that, period.
How do we fund them for their extra risks that they take over club level racers?
I can’t believe people say they wouldn’t pay more to watch the event over the $25 currently charged, rather staying at home in protest.
What if petrol went to $3.00/litre? People would still ride for hours to watch these races, and spend another $5 in doing so for higher fuel prices! You cannot do anything these days without paying a fortune for a whole days amusement!
I believe that spectators should pay an extra $2-5 each for entry. This could rake in an extra $24,000 to $60,000 based on only 12,000 spectators.
At 200 competitors, each one could either receive a free entry, or maybe the top 10 finishers could get an extra $300 on top of their prizemoney pool. Or use a sliding scale with a higher rate for first place. Also, why not ask for a higher level of sponsorship for each race to pay higher prizemoney?

Yes, I know we all do it for love, and any financial reward is a bonus. But when a sideshow rolls into town, do the performers do it for free?
Yes money goes back into the community, as a heck of a lot of community clubs etc work damn hard to bring us this event. There would be thousands of man hours used to get this event to run as it does. I don’t begrudge them for making a profit. Where are all the hands up from other towns prepared to take a punt and a huge risk at running one of these events?
I organise my Taupo Road Race Spectacular event in a totally different way. I don’t run it for a profit. I give it all back to the competitors. But I can do that, as I don’t have a huge committee or organisation to consider.
Having Stroudy at my meeting does bring in more spectators, which I use to offset the racers entry fees. It was fantastic to also get the likes of Gareth and other International riders at my event also.
So, would I pay appearance money? If I had racers of an international standard at my event racing hard out and having the spectators on the edges of their seats, then I would have to say YES.
Andrew is not just a NZ icon, he’s also a US AMA Formula Extreme Champion, World BEARS Champion, competed in 41 World Superbike races and even 20 GP races. His continual talent commands respect!
He does bring spectators, it’s as simple as that. Should he and other top level racers be financially rewarded for ensuring more spectators turn up and maintain the security of the events itself? YES.

But this is just my opinion.