interesting comparsion

[paulk]

i notice tonight at approx 10. 30pm 24 / 12 /09 there was a total of 16 users online at that time

yet the most users ever online was 10 .09pm on the 24 /12/ 07 total 314 online that time

that shows you how much the sport has dropped away in even past 2 years with people coming into the forum, i wonder what the figure would of been 4 years ago had the forum been running back in the pocket bike glory days when sales and exposure were at the maximum , i know 4 years ago on ebay there was well over 20 different sellers at that time selling pocket bikes on ebay and the names like viper performance , maylands, blata, z1, and banshee , were common place in the pocket bike community

[TheClaw70]

Well said. Pocketbikes have peaked and now its down to the die hards.

Don't give up!!! Any of you, tell your friends and maybe get new suckers...Err..i mean Racers involved in the sport.

[captin grumpy]

i think the story will likely be the same for next years oz titles i know next year our focus will be on our home club numbers and racing. last years titles was great fun and the racing was the best. but it did hurt our club so next year with our new committee .and i know some of the guys have some good ideas for promoting the sport and we will be putting them in to action to grow our club and home racing

[74]

i think you also need to look at the differences now & then, back then pocket bikes where new & very cheap now they have been around for some time & there is racing is most states, a lot of people bought these bike with the intention of just riding on the street or up the park a lot of them never intended to go racing, now we have racing & most people realise that if you are serious & want to race you need to have either a full euro or a chinese euro otherwise there is more work on the bike then actually ring of the bike.
also the price of the proper riding gear isn't cheap so again that reduces the numbers, then you have the people to have come & gone that tried to run everything with the intention of self glorification or whatever other self driven motives & as a result they o drove people away who either didn't like the direction they where heading or had personal differences conflicts.
i know that years ago minimoto in QLD was thriving & the racing intense but as previously mention there where certain individual who tried to take over the running of everything, again VIC was thriving a few years ago & they have also lost a few top level teams & suppliers who for there own reasons have left the sport.
NSW was one of the slowest to take off as racing was very difficult to get started due to numerous amounts of red tape , SA also has been a little slow to achieve there desired level of club racing .
Now i personally think we have a very good mix of people running the various states / clubs & i think that things will head in the right direction once again, also the Aussie Tittles have been a blessing where riders / teams from all over this great country have been able to meet & become good friends, friendships that will last a life time, then there are the rivalries that drive / motivate people (in the right way of course) these are the things that help a sport flourish.
i hope that 2010 is the year that numbers grow for all clubs & that the junior levers also grow to start to produce the future champions that Australia is know for.
VIC has been doing the free test days & they seem to be proving very popular, I know that we in NSW are also jumping on that band wagon & will be holding a few of these days in the new year.

anyway merry christmas & a happy & safe new year to all
regards the team at Bollins Racing

[captin grumpy]

hey 74 i think your right all states have had there share of numbers drop of for different reasons in 2008 we had a growing club with good numbers and good racing but when we lost are race venue we lost numbers so just like the guys from south west minimoto club we are going on a drive to recruit members this is a great family sport and for all ages we just have to get that out ther

[TyD]

Originally Posted by 74

i think you also need to look at the differences now & then, back then pocket bikes where new & very cheap now they have been around for some time & there is racing is most states, a lot of people bought these bike with the intention of just riding on the street or up the park a lot of them never intended to go racing, now we have racing & most people realise that if you are serious & want to race you need to have either a full euro or a chinese euro otherwise there is more work on the bike then actually ring of the bike.
also the price of the proper riding gear isn't cheap so again that reduces the numbers, then you have the people to have come & gone that tried to run everything with the intention of self glorification or whatever other self driven motives & as a result they o drove people away who either didn't like the direction they where heading or had personal differences conflicts.
i know that years ago minimoto in QLD was thriving & the racing intense but as previously mention there where certain individual who tried to take over the running of everything, again VIC was thriving a few years ago & they have also lost a few top level teams & suppliers who for there own reasons have left the sport.
NSW was one of the slowest to take off as racing was very difficult to get started due to numerous amounts of red tape , SA also has been a little slow to achieve there desired level of club racing .
Now i personally think we have a very good mix of people running the various states / clubs & i think that things will head in the right direction once again, also the Aussie Tittles have been a blessing where riders / teams from all over this great country have been able to meet & become good friends, friendships that will last a life time, then there are the rivalries that drive / motivate people (in the right way of course) these are the things that help a sport flourish.
i hope that 2010 is the year that numbers grow for all clubs & that the junior levers also grow to start to produce the future champions that Australia is know for.
VIC has been doing the free test days & they seem to be proving very popular, I know that we in NSW are also jumping on that band wagon & will be holding a few of these days in the new year.

anyway merry christmas & a happy & safe new year to all
regards the team at Bollins Racing

Sorry, but the prices in pocket bikes have dropped, I went to some persons house a little while ago (about 6 months) to pick up a cag for parts and they were telling me and my mate about how they paid 600 bucks for them? They weren't the only people that I have heard pay so much for cags in the last couple of years and things. Also, I don't know what kind of meet you run down there, but in qld you don't need an elite china or euro elite, that's probably one thing that might turn people away. But its not very hard to get a cag running good, the one I picked up off that chick started and ran after the replacement of petrol and to be reliable i just changed to a BM6A spark plug...

But yes, the pocket bike seen has died a lot, I've seen pics of archy years ago with like 50-100 juniors at a meet.. its crazy. Well WAS. lol.

Merry Xmas people from the people here at "Tys Motorcycle Fibreglassing and Painting"

[paulk]

yeah i never went to archerfield back in the boom days but i know jim waiker from jsw pocket bikes who use to import the SQ brand went to the first ever so called aust titles back in qld might be now 5 years ago and he showed me some video fotage of junior cag classes and there was 30 plus rider in a class and then ended up with 2 heats because they couldnt fit all the juniors in the 1 heat . he said there was well over 150 riders at that meeting which if i recall was regarded as the first so called aust titles and was run over one weekend

[74]

there was actually 2 rounds the 2nd was in VIC @ Sth Morang i was there the 3rd round in SA never happened

[rover]

The 3rd round never happened because there was no mention of it here.

[GLEN #159]

Originally Posted by captin grumpy

i think the story will likely be the same for next years oz titles i know next year our focus will be on our home club numbers and racing. last years titles was great fun and the racing was the best. but it did hurt our club so next year with our new committee .and i know some of the guys have some good ideas for promoting the sport and we will be putting them in to action to grow our club and home racing

On another note we put 110% into the club this year and saw it grow dramaticly, some may say it's dead and that it's struggling in Australia, but I disagree.. We have BIG club numbers and I'd say the biggest in Australia in '09'..
I guees it comes down to priorities, focus on an Aust Titles that really is not that big or focus on your own club and actually grow the sport from the grass roots level.. Hard decision?? I think not..