Desertmartin Entries

[Chris Helm]

Here is the list of entries received for the opening round of the 2017 Maxxis British championships being held at Desertmartin, Ireland on 1st April:

1 Stuart BROWN / Joe MILLARD
2 Brett WILKINSON / Dan CHAMBERLAIN
4 Neil CAMPBELL / Craig PARMENTER
6 Tony GRAHAME / Harley LLOYD
7 Paul PELLING / Chris PANNELL
8 David KEANE / Paul HORTON
9 George KINGE / Ryan HUMPHREY
10 Dan FODEN / Scott GRAHAME
12 Gary MOULDS / Steve KIRWIN
13 Mike HODGES / Charlie IDE
14 Rob OLDFIELD / Faye BARNES
16 Emma MOULDS / Niki ADAIR
17 Stephen PARR / Matthew LAST
20 Daniel GRAY / Lewis GRAY
21 Jonnie WATERS / Ian SHEPPARD
24 Tilo MAGUIRE / Ben WHITE
25 David MILLARD / Stephen CONNOR
30 James GEORGES / Tom GLAZIER
32 Neil HISCOCK / Tom DICKSON
35 Benjamin PARR / Daniel LARKINS
36 Neil WARRINGTON / Brian PARR
37 Robert BARNES / Rosie JACKSON
38 Grant YOUNG / Mark NICHOLSON
44 James WHITT / Jamie GREENSILL
47 Ian GRAHAM / Andrew SHEPPARD
49 David INGRAM / Geoffrey INGRAM
52 Jake BROWN / Matthew CONNOR
69 Tony WILLIS / Ian GLENN
77 Dean FAULKNER / Gordon RINGLAND
128 David McCOURT / Andy McKIBBIN

[Taffy]

mouth watering!

I tried to get suvvern flights to this but the best i could do was Flybe out of Nottingham with an early start and a late home....just a lot of money and a big effort for the three races.

looks like we have lost Stickle, great shame....

so this winter we lost Etheridge and Jarvis
last winter we lost Millards, Jenkins and Bradford
the year before we lost France, Breacher.

the sooner we get a top, a really top national series going the better! if the ACU want to control Clubmans and the British fine.....let them. there's no rule against starting a COMPLETELY NEW SERIES that takes in the MCI, ORPI, AMCA and yes the SMCA to run a full blown national championship by andincluding all the above.

let's get it done.....NEXT YEAR!!!!

come on Mark, TWO Cahunas to you for Christmas.........

i know a man with a pair who will help you...

Taffy

[Doogle]

You only mention drivers that have stopped. What about the drivers that have started? It evens itself out. Like every form of sport, ever.
And you were obviously in a different room when we discussed Championships?
Maxxis 6 rounds, Clubmans 6 rounds, AMCA 6 rounds. That is 18 non clashing dates, did you not listen how much of a nightmare that was to achieve?

[Taffy]

You only mention drivers that have stopped. What about the drivers that have started? It evens itself out. Like every form of sport, ever.
And you were obviously in a different room when we discussed Championships?
Maxxis 6 rounds, Clubmans 6 rounds, AMCA 6 rounds. That is 18 non clashing dates, did you not listen how much of a nightmare that was to achieve?

I can't believe you wrote that Doug? if you think I put that little thought into it then you don't know me.
firstly, my comment was clearly. CLEARLY, about our sports high achievers and them packing up.
at the moment it is only 16 non-clashing dates and the SMCA isn't responsible for avoiding AMCA dates so let's not hand out medals just yet. there are 29 weekends to the season and the ACU are running Clubmans and British on just 12 of them. there's no Langrish on top this time - I heard you say this Doug, see, I was listening!

that is 12 weekends in 29 and no two day events. anyone just racing domestically can only really do the British and the AMCA plus IMBA. but the British clashes with the IMBA effectively on three of the six dates they both run and what with ACU rules, you can't run IMBA at all and get British points so IMBA is out. and one of those is the home round at Penkridge (British: Foxhill).

as IMBA is out that means that of the 4 AMCA rounds, we aren't going to see the ACU British boys backing it which now puts the AMCA in absolutely dire straits. I mean they are basically on their arse with their trouser pockets turned out. who is going to want to run AMCA rounds with all the ACU lads missing and nobody on the grid? who will put them on the programme?

so that leaves just 6, just 6 decent races for a high quality team running just behind the GP boys. 6! they spend thousands on the best outfits just like the GP boys and have nowhere to go? it's no good Doug, feeding in starter teams at the bottom knowing that you have an open wound in the system. what's the point in that?

it means that when you stop GPs - you stop racing! if you don't aspire to 'going broke' all over Europe - you stop racing! there are many reasons people pack up of course but most of these are young? very young and their time is NOT up.

we need to think about more British rounds because the GPs that have numbered as high as 17-18 rounds are now down to 12 last and 14 this year so surely we can put the British up a bit? 7 rounds? 8? to think about how we retain better teams in the UK who don't run GPs so that young lads like Dan Foden can get that sharp racing every week not just occasionally. something you can justify to your sponsors and not have to justify the outfit being on parade just 6 times in a season.

we need a National championship set up by the SMCA, outside the ACU this time and taking in the AMCA and others, get a 6-8 round series up on the very weekends the GPs are on, yes-a clash everytime which will keep the grids clear of the highest ranked teams and make it defo NOT 'just another British round'. This would boost the AMCA, be great for our strongest British domestic teams and intensify the quality at the top.

by retaining more elite outfits we may assume to have more outfits racing and that will help raise the quality and knock the pure club men off the back of the British grid.

Doug, PLEASE check the subject matter next time. I did mention this at the AGM as well. were YOU listening?

regards

Taffy

[Billyboy46]

Hi

I agree with you Taffy

Would it be possible to run a series like what we had a few years ago with the QMS Nationals

Yours in sport

Billy

[BANKSY]

Taffy,
I did try to explain at the AGM how and why we do what we do, The Acu DO NOT run the clubmans, we do, and as I said I spent hours sending emails, calling clubs and trying my best to get a six round series, I was told the dates that the AMCA were hoping to run, I did also manage to get one organiser to move a clubman round as it clashed with an AMCA round, so please don't say we didn't try our best!
I have managed to avoid clashes for the first time in many years by keeping in contact with people, so hopefully teams will race at both federations helping populate meetings and getting better entries for the Amca meetings too.
The main people you refer to could always go and do IMBA rounds as this is a very good step up into GP racing, as proved by the team competing last year?
You mentioned the national series for the people just outside the GPs and not clubman riders, we ran the SMCA series directly in response to these wishes, but again "Someone" had to step up and do this, which they did at the time and general feedback was there were too many "Championships" running at the same time.
Clubs just don't want to run a sidecar class at their meetings because they don't get entries in time, don't get a full line up(due to people not being able too), and mainly "most" people just simply cant afford to race every weekend in the year!

You have wonderful ideas, so put them into place, we will support you in your venture, so find 6/8 new venues, convince all the different federations to include the sidecars, find the dates that are available and run it, its quite simple mate, trust me!!!!!

We will never please everyone, and I strongly believe the reason entries are high, numbers are on the rise because of the things put in place, ie the Expert series within the main British events.(Smca idea by the way)
We also offered a discount on memberships if people joined their local club, got involved and asked them to run one event, day races that we all used to enjoy, but this didn't happen either, this would of filled a few more weekends of racing, but some teams actually do other things apart from race, so do want weekends off.
Also, we do not have the people to actually run the meetings, the SMCA were never set up to do that, we help promote the sport not run events as an organiser!

I for one cant do any more than I already do for the sport, including trying to actually race myself and try and bring my boys on too.
As you were at the AGM, and thanks for actually coming, I thought we had listened, and explained fully all your points?

You are speaking for the riders that have given up, they all have their own reasons for doing this, private ones I assume, just because they are young, doesn't mean they should carry on just for the rest of us?

I look forward to receiving your dates and venues early over next winter and helping push this idea of yours forward, good luck.

see you soon,

Mark.

[Taffy]

Hello Mark
first of all, a few pertinent notes regards your above post:
I know exactly where you are including the frustration you so clearly show.
I have been in your position many times.
I don't believe numbers are up.
if you say you liaised with the AMCA then I believe you, a first as you readily admit, a shame the IMBAs got hammered on 3/6 dates and nobody is going to do them over the British I suggest.
I don't believe the Expert championship is doing anything at all but if your info is better than mine and says it is then it must be true.

having a view when someone is doing their best is difficult, each volunteer is 'dragged in' and keeping and retaining them is difficult. this I appreciate. But I am tired of seeing this gaping wound in the ScX scene. with very careful maneuvring, I think something can be done but if the overall picture isn't right then a new idea will be stillborn and if all we ever do is go by a strawpoll in the moment we won't get anywhere.

so I was listening, I could even hear what you said over my tinitus!!!!!! you came over loud and clear Sir and you said that the Clubman and the British were run under strictly the ACU only. so that is why I suggested a NEW avenue. also, Ann announced the 2017 British dates: released by the ACU... not my words. just for the record, we are losing around 33% of teams per year which is an unnaturally high mortality rate. 20% of people pack up most things in a year.

Not that I don't trust you but, you'll need to get this ratified by the committee as i saw no appetite for it at the AGM. the ducks aren't born yet let alone lined up and quite frankly this messenger will get shot long before he gets to the grassy knoll so I don't see the point in ME trying to do anything in an official capacity unless it is clearly sanctioned and that requires getting a majority to believe it. I can hear the knives being sharpened as we speak!

The person doing this will need to, as you would surely mention, co-ordinate with the Clubman and British organiser and also have the parameters to stop waisted effort, have best guidance on what is attainable. if you want someone to help find dates and venues for the three championships and you can trust me to work with the official 'date-go-getter' then I will.

I have no relationship at all at present with Polly whom I don't know and out of fairness to her I shall not volunteer for anything until all these things are put in place, we have a pleasant working environment and the committee passes it. I won't wait for a charm offensive-I believe I'm safe..... but if you are who you sometimes seem to be then first of all what are you doing here and secondly, yeh, let's do it! Dummy run this year and see how close we can model it come next season, look into a few orgnising bodies on the way and sound them out.

i don't think you should challenge people as chickens either Mark, I sponsored a team last year for several thousand pounds, in the past i've sponsored the East Anglian ScX championship for two seasons and been detested for it and, in general, fleeced by many, many people on the way. I've put plenty into the sport, seen great racing on the track and the worst of human nature off it.

Taffy

[BANKSY]

last post from me Taffy,
The Clubmans is run under ACU rules, not BY the ACU, we can easily go to other organisations, but we will stay loyal to the ACU for the clubmans as they will back us regarding our rules.
The problem we had in the past was getting full line ups week after week as people just couldn't afford to ride all the time, this diluted the meetings as people picked and chose what ones they wanted to compete in fully.

Your comment about not thinking numbers are up, I find this astounding, a few years ago we were struggling to get more than 20 teams at a British round, now we have 34/38 at nearly all British rounds, 38 registered clubman teams(obviously some crossover into both) this year and full line ups??

I may come across as frustrated, that's because I am, as you know, the very small band of people actually stepping up and offering to help is getting smaller each year, but you want us to run and organise a totally new series, If you want to step up and do it, find the venues and organise it then please do it, like I said, we cant do it(its actually in our fundamental rules about running events? we don't and never will), but we will support it fully.
I am trying to just pass on the little knowledge I have regarding trying to run this through, speak to Eric as he organised the SMCA series for the time it was running, and why we dropped it.

please don't think I am p###ing on your fireworks, I am just being truthful on past experience's.
we have quite a lot of new teams coming into the sport this year, so things are looking good, full line ups at the meetings, in my opinion anyway.

cheers
Mark.

[Taffy]

I checked the numbers directly against last season and they are not up at present, however, they have the rest of the season to overtake present known teams.

if the ACU want to control Clubmans and the British fine.....let them.

I won't be small minded over the ACU thing if you promise to think through next time what i was TRYING to say..... controlled by the ACU/run under ACU regulations tomayto/tomato, shrewsbury/shrowsbury W.G.A.S.

OK,, please give me as much information as you can or put me on to Polly etc...you tell me and I will see what i can do. no set dates just find people interested and then see what happens over the winter yes? best to talk away from here. I trust that as the ACU won't play with all the smaller children in the park it is best to use the others and stay away from their influence to see what can be achieved? I'd like your phone book basically please....

so in principle, if you run a 6-date Clubman and a 6-date British next year and I find you 6 rounds of the SMCA (whatever) Nationals under other promoters ON the weekends of GPs....your happy with that principle then Mark? SMCA organised right? it will need the SMCA name on it Mark or I won't make it to the grassy knoll.

have you any other caveats?

Taffy

[paulhorton]

Do people ever get bored of coming up with ideas and moaning about how things are going, an then proceed to sod all about it.

lost all those top riders.... not sure it was lack of meetings that send them packing or, old age.... more important commitments..... lack of sponsorship or any of the millions of other reasons. I for one by the time September comes around have had enough of racing, so has my body and my bank balance. An I only do 18 a year. . But what do I know I'm just a passenger.