Words I would use to describe my day at Rockingham for the latest round of the British Touring Cars...
Shocking, distant, disappointed, lacking, cold, windy.
Let me try this again.
In 2012, can families be expected to pay £30 per adult (children were free) just to watch cars race round a track. You may think that a strange question, after all I was at a race meeting where the focal point tends to be cars racing round a track... But hear me out.
I was brought up going with my Dad to watch BTCC meetings at various tracks, DTM at Donington, and Eurocar meetings at Mallory Park among others, along with other race meetings.
Back then BTCC was in its hey day, the height of the 2.0 litre era with Cleland, battling Hoy, Menu, Tarquini among many others. Vauxhall, Ford, Renault BMW, Audi, Alfa Romeo etc, back then the list was long. I saw Nigel Mansell stuff his Mondeo in the wall at the Old Hairpin at Donington. You get the idea.
That was then, and this is now. Now I am the Dad taking my girls to see racing live... And I question whether it is enough for an events organiser in 2012 to simply say here is some racing, come see?
At a club level this is fine. The focus is more on the drivers than the spectators. However BTCC is supposed to be the top National racing series, and therefore the event should be the best day out in the Country as well.
Unfortunately I was disappointed. If the BTCC is to attract sponsors the show must not only look good on TV but also at the track, and to me families are the key. Gone are the days of a Dad taking his son to a cold, muddy circuit with smelly toilets and bad food. In 2012 families have many options and little money so a day out must be complete. The Mom must be entertained, the children must have fun and the Dad must enjoy himself as well. Smelly toilets and a muddy bank don't cut it anymore.
Now Rockingham has never had old school facilities and does not do muddy banks and I was glad to see that the place looked as good as ever!
However one thing Rockingham used to understand was how to put on a show for a family. How to get the fans and the families involved in the day, how to bring the business of "show" to the races.
A BTCC meeting could do with a bit more "show" and a bit more family. It could also do a lot more to take the racing and the cars to the paying public. We wanted to walk round the support paddock before the first touring car race only to find the paddock appeared to be closed to spectators! We found a gap in the fence and went in anyway but we were the only people there. Since when did stopping the fans going into a paddock become the norm, I was appalled. Even the BTCC pit road walkabout at lunch time was not good enough. The teams could at least push one of their cars out of the garage so the fans can actually get close to a real race car, er no.
Maybe my day was blighted by the bitterly cold weather. Maybe returning to Rockingham is harder for me than I expected because of my history with the place. Maybe I am a bit out of touch with live motorsport in this country, or maybe just maybe putting some cars on a track and saying there you go is not good enough anymore.
When I was at Rockingham we did everything we could to firstly take the racing, the cars and the drivers out of the garages and up to the fans, and secondly make the events a full family day out. I had hoped British motorsport had learnt something from that... Apparently not.
My daughter is now an MG fan with a picture of Platos MG6 on her wall so it wasn't all bad, but as a family day out it could have been so much more.
Come on Mr Gow, you are getting the Championship right, now concentrate on the events.
In 2012 a family day out at the touring cars should be so much better.
Good days racing... S'pose...
Good family day out... No...
Shame...
PS Thank you to Colin and Sue White of CWS for your hospitality. It was good to catch up!
