Rally Queensland Gains Asia Pacific Status

[tortfeaser]

I don't mind that its gone, TBH it was a PITA and there was (at least in the last 5 yrs) rarely anyone worth watching. I'm guessing at the finances, but I reckon the APRC entry fees would have subsidised the ARC a bit. No helicopter, roof plates and a few less hotel rooms isn't a whole heap of saving.

[sheps]

Originally Posted by rallyfiend

Is the WRC event going to be in Queensland?

The ads for the positions just talks about it being within 150kms of Brisbane. How far is it from Brissy to the border?

There have been some great hotels built over the border that would be within 150klm of Brisbane that would be a great place for a WRC.

Oh and the shire roads down that way are great. And there is the gold coast car club down there that Michelle Gatton (FIA WRC Smoozer) is part of who runs a shire road rally down that way.....

While having a drink at the bar in NZ saw her talking to many people wearing Repco WRC jackets.

BRING IT ON..

[Ausrally]

The decision to award APRC status was based upon the organization that could show it could be supported. With an event the size of ROC without local Government support it was not going to happen.

The ACT does not really have any potential sponsor that could cover the event given the ACT Government's unwillingness to provide any funding.

Its easy for us to say "why don't they support the rally" its simple really. They could not see the value to the ACT.

The organizing team since the last event put forward what was thought to be a compelling case for continued support for the event. We had great support from Mick Gentleman but we needed more than he could give.

As the person who wrote the plan for APRC to come to Canberra all those years ago and as the last Media Manager for the ROC, I would like to sincerely thank all those who have worked so hard to make the rally as good as it could be. Your efforts are not wasted.

So many worked bloody hard for it to be retained as an APRC event as they believed that the APRC was worth fighting for.

We can all go over and over it all but suffice it to say Canberra has had a good run with the APRC and we had some great events and IMV Generally Canberra rallying was better for it. We saw Possum and Dunko and plenty more etc on Canberra turf plenty of times and that would not have happened without the rally. We saw stages on tar we saw angle crossing we had it all.

Lots of local businesses also benefited over the years. From motels to restaurants to pubs, clubs and so forth.

More importantly, the ROC was great training ground for key officials some of which are openly critical of the event. Without events like this officials never can get the grounding on higher status events.

So thanks again to all those that made the ROC as great as it was. and you know who you are so take a bow.

I also hope the competitors over all of those years had a great time!

After all it was always for you.

Dallas

[Adrian]

Originally Posted by Ausrally

So thanks again to all those that made the ROC as great as it was. and you know who you are so take a bow.

Dallas

Thanks Dallas, I for one had a ball for all those years.

We now need to focus on making the Canberra ARC the best round on the calendar

Adrian

[smee]

The ACT government is now linked with a world championship event in the form of XC MTB and DH MTB.
It brings with it a number of sponsors and the outlay for the government is minimal, but they will hang their hat off it.
Needless to say, that they have shuffled millions of dollars into the event site and infrastructure which they seemed unwilling to do for the rally.

Still, will wait and see what they come up with.

Sad to see it pass, and I for one enjoyed the times had producing the event. Right from the early stages where you could rub shoulders with Possum and Roger to Neal and others whilst putting together a road book. Through to the placement in Government offices to help run the event.

[Factor]

Originally Posted by Adrian

Thanks Dallas, I for one had a ball for all those years.

We now need to focus on making the Canberra ARC the best round on the calendar

Adrian

Agreed, and even though I am strongly involved with Rally Q, I still think Canberra has the ideal base/location for an event like this. Certainly the organising team/teams over the years have been first rate and my larger contribution (late 80s and early ninties and more recently my smaller contribution has always been enjoyable.

[Ausrally]

Bob.

1. The rally didn't ask for 300k.
2. The ACT Government supposedly have a fund for "motorsport" reported at 8M. Cn you see them spending ANY of it?
3. The ROC organizers presented what they thought was a strong case for funding which was 4 TIMES less than what they claimed it cost them in their final year of running the rally.
4. There are ACT Government people that are anti cars and anti rallying and convincing them of the merit of an event that has cars in it has now proven to be impossible
5. I can't think of any other event that the ACT could bring to Canberra that brings 45 International journalists who provided several thousand column inches of coverage for the small amount the rally would have cost.

The rally community in Canberra shoud get used to the fact that there is not a lot of support for rallying in the Government. Micky G excluded!

[bob moore]

Originally Posted by Ausrally

Bob.

1. The rally didn't ask for 300k.
2. blah
3. blah
4. blah
5. blah
More blah!

Dallas, what on earth are you going on about?

I didn't say the rally asked for $300K. I merely quoted the figure mentioned in the illiterate repetition of a statement allegedly published in the Canberra Times.

The precise wording in the Canberra Times was "ACT Rally organiser Mike Bell said Canberra had withdrawn its nomination to host the International round last week after a request for $300,000 in funding over three years from the ACT Government was denied."

If this statement is incorrect, don't take it up with me; take it up with the Canberra Times.

The point I was trying to make - clearly unsuccessfully - was that emotive, mis-spelt statements from a member of the rally community threatening vandalism against ACT residents' community assets will not endear us to the community. Or the government.

It's a simple as that.

As you have pointed out:

Originally Posted by Ausrally

4. There are ACT Government people that are anti cars and anti rallying and convincing them of the merit of an event that has cars in it has now proven to be impossible.

I guess we shouldn't be surprised.

[Shannon]

Its easy there's an election coming up, vote that usless prick out and his gay mate Andrew, OUT OUT OUT they must GO.

[Haggers]

Here is the CAMS news:

http://www.cams.com.au/content.asp?P...&ObjectID=1253

Haggers

PS what are the roads they would be using??

[Linda Walker]

Originally Posted by bob moore

Dallas, what on earth are you going on about?

I didn't say the rally asked for $300K. I merely quoted the figure mentioned in the illiterate repetition of a statement allegedly published in the Canberra Times.

The precise wording in the Canberra Times was "ACT Rally organiser Mike Bell said Canberra had withdrawn its nomination to host the International round last week after a request for $300,000 in funding over three years from the ACT Government was denied."

If this statement is incorrect, don't take it up with me; take it up with the Canberra Times.

The point I was trying to make - clearly unsuccessfully - was that emotive, mis-spelt statements from a member of the rally community threatening vandalism against ACT residents' community assets will not endear us to the community. Or the government.

It's a simple as that.

As you have pointed out:I guess we shouldn't be surprised.

I agree with you Bob,

We can have a joke among friends, but the thing that should be considered is that once you go to print on a public forum, where anyone in the world can have access to your comments, sometimes comments can be taken out of context.

We are all aware that there are people from all corners of the globe using this forum; which is fantastic ; we also don't know who else is........ And we should use proper judgement accordingly

Yeah, maybe I am getting old and conservitive; but we do need to consider who can read our thoughts these days.

[ropie]

Consolation prize for QLD not actually getting the WRC round, after all the hype about the facility to be built on the gold coast for the wrc, NSW gets to have it out of Kingscliff.

[Thirsty]

Ahhh. Been on the phone to Kev {Queenslander} and he has agreed to move the Qld/NSW border to 5klms South of Kingscliff .
Cheers
Ross
Brisbane

[sheps]

Originally Posted by ropie

Consolation prize for QLD not actually getting the WRC round, after all the hype about the facility to be built on the gold coast for the wrc, NSW gets to have it out of Kingscliff.

Yea we feel ripped off I live 15 klm away from Brisbane and its going to take me 50min to drive to Kingscliff from home..

My mate lives Just out of Sydney yet he was not as excited about it as me..

Yea it sucks that NSW got it

[tortfeaser]

Originally Posted by tortfeaser

I don't mind that its gone, TBH it was a PITA and there was (at least in the last 5 yrs) rarely anyone worth watching.

Sorry for the self quote. I was a bit harsh here. I do appreciate the benefits an APRC RoC provided me personally and to the local rallying community, it certainly exposed me to a higher standard event than I'd otherwise get the chance to make a contribution to. But those standards had dropped over the last 5 years and the rally was a shadow of its former self. The roads were shocking, the route just too compromised, the entry list pretty poor. Sometimes event euthenasia isn't such a bad idea.