Aussie Arena Trials

[Trango]

Hi Colin,
It is good to hear you would be keen to participate if an event could be organised. I was wondering if attaching a championship status would improve the chances of getting it off the ground. A series of three or more rounds would be the ultimate but even if it started out as one event per year for the australian indoor championship. This may inspire more interest from riders, organisers, sponsors & spectators. Last year the south aussie trials community held a trials week before the outdoor championship with the state titles on the weekend before the aussie titles. Maybe in the future the indoor championship could be held the weekend before the the outdoor championship This would create a lot more work for the clubs in the state where the championships are held but it would solve the problem of the extra travel for the riders. It may even be a good drawcard for the spectators to attend the outdoors.

[Col Zar]

Attaching a Championship status does make it a whole lot more inviting but I think this increases the cost for a permit from MA by thousands (Correct me if I'm wrong).
To run the indoor event so close to the Aust Outdoor Champs is a great idea as previously done by the NSW Inverell MCC in 1992. If this was our best option I would suggest the indoor be held after the outdoor events due to the increased risk of damage to both rider and machine from the nature of the indoor event.
Overall I would prefer that the two events were separate. This would enable an injured rider an opportunity to hopefully compete in at least one Championship event and it would place a lot less pressure on the one state and its event organisers.
I also believe it would be better to promote trials if we had various classes at such an event due to feedback that i have received from some of my demo's. People watch what i can do and believe that they could never do that. We need to keep it realistic and show other grades and skill levels to entice people to try trials.

[lukesta888]

What about putting some heat on the manufacturers of the bikes.

I undestand that we are a relatively small market on a global scale here however at the end of the day bike manufacturers make bikes to sell so tipping in money or having their sponsored riders visit Aus to not only promote their bikes but also the sport can only add to their sales figures I would imagine

[motostar99]

Hey guys,

I'm glad to see this thread, didn't notice it last night wen i posted mine regarding the popularity of trials. I agree 100% with what everyone is saying. The biggest problem is definitely marketing..

Any sport that does well in Australia is because of the marketing. Take for example basketball in Brisbane, when the Brisbane team was winning, there was heaps of marketing behind the games and the sport in Brisbane 10 years ago, and now it's died off. (an example)

Trials is a sport that ppl love wen they see it, and an indoor event is always popular when the crowds are there. The problem is getting them there, and then turning that into enough interest to want to participate, to increase the popularity of the sport.

While there's a lot to be done before it gets to the stage of happening, I'm actually in marketing, and if an event can actually be held by finding enough sponsors, etc. then I'd love to get on board and assist in managing the marketing side of things providing we can get a few dollars together to pay for any materials needed, etc. I'm sure there's a graphic designer somewhere that rides trials and would also love to help! To be honest, a lot of viral marketing in forums, etc. would be a great help to pushing an event and even the sport, and that costs nothing, just some time put into it.

Is there actually a trials australia committee or anything like that? or is it all just run by the individual clubs?

I think increasing the popularity of the sport within Australia is something that really needs to be done.. it's just a matter of time and money!! isnt that life!

Nic