Posts
602
Joined
10/19/2008
Location
AU
Edited Date/Time
9/1/2017 10:39am
Troy Carroll onward of Carrol motorsports who runs the Mega Bulk fuels Fatory Kawasaki team in Australia is winding up the team after the Supercross season finishes, no word from Kawasaki yet as to weather there will be a new team or just fade away, but this will be the 2nd or 3rd team that is finishing up this year.
The rare times I go to a 'big' event, I wonder how they can justify the set ups, and / or how they score the money from major sponsors, who I'm sure end up feeling unsatisfied by the lack of general exposure they get for their Dollars.
Pull back a bit from the glitter and BS, and I think things would be healthier, for more Teams and Riders.
The Shop
Also the grids were full in the MX1, MX2 and women's class. Maybe other rounds had less turn out but coolum had a good rider turn out.
I do agree though, teams could save a fortune if they pulled back a bit and just focused on the riding.
I remember in the late 90's, we were on a family holiday to watch a stadium motocross event. We were staying in a cabin at a caravan park and Craig Anderson, who was the sx champ at the time, pulls up to the cabin next to us in a box van with his mechanic. They pulled the bike out of the van, put it in the cabin and that was their accommodation. No planes, no flash motels but moto was going strong. When Jeff Leisk turned up with a Team KTM semi at the first round of the MX nationals, can't remember which year, that was the end of the box van for the pro's. I thought at the time it would step up moto in Australia but all it seemed to do was step up costs
Getting priced out of the sport.
$11000 bike...good for 2 to 4 seasons depending on usage.
Parts are expensive so cost of ownership is high.
Tires $125 say you need 12 rears and 6 fronts a year...if you race and practice once a week each.
Boots $500
Helmet $500
Gear $200
Knee braces $300
$13 to $14k and you haven't even ridden yet.
Fewer and fewer places to ride.
For most longer travel time to get there.
Add in $50 to $100 for experience on ride day.
$50 for race entry.
Let's face the sport has been on the decline for many years and starting to see the effects at the races.
I have been riding and racing for many years and finally gave it up.
And right at the start of it is participation. Fast as all fuck bikes that are more expensive now than ever. Barriers to entry are super high and only going to climb.
That is a dwindling pool of people buying parts, tyres, gear etc.
125s are the answer!
Pit Row
It is not simply a matter of scaling back operations. It is a matter of whether they are getting the advertising exposure per dollar they hoped for out of a team. Spending fewer dollars on the truck doesn't necessarily fix that equation; it could make it worse.
The truck with the 40 foot logo driving around might be the only part of the whole team operation the corporate brass actually loves. Hell, they might prefer driving a truck around without a team more than a team without a truck.
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