Next Season....

[Sweeps]

Originally Posted by cptsideways

As for tagging alongwith other shows.... yes I agree if it helps pay the bills, provide a venue & gets the sponsosrs but only at real venues please, tag along with some proper shows like Japfest, Trax etc. The questions I received whilst parked in the pits from the Chavs over the weekend almost had me & the rest of pits in tears with laughter - they obviously were not into cars per-se but the crooozin scene, plastic padding & stereos. I'm not sure we'll be winning many long term fans from the weekend.

The series needs some lifestyle marketing, make it an extreme sport (as thats what it is) needs much more info on individual drivers, let people get to know the drivers better. I bet not one chav from the weekend could name more than 2 drivers if that.

Demo events, bar the motorsport show not a single official EDC demo anywhere in the UK (that I know of) but a good few drivers would have been up for it. Plenty of potential there, though I did my bit to promote EDC on the Demo's I was involved in off my own back & for my sponsors, the turnout at Knockhill IMHO was largely down to myself & Mr Luney putting on several shows throughout the year & doing the PR thing, I spent much time on the mike at the events letting the punters know what was on & when & it showed, Knockhill gave us flyers to hand out too & we gave tons out. The number of them who came up to me & knew my name, knew the car, where I was from, asked if I'd driven up again! & I'm probably the farthest you can get from knockhill of all the drivers, just goes to show.


Please don't take this as a rant, but it's got me thinking so I thought I'd say what needs to be said. The guys do a tremendous job on the day, the organisation is great but the PR/Marketing/promotion side needs a damn good kicking up the backside if its to be where we all want it to be in the future. PR does'nt need to cost lots if anything to get results. I'm sure we'd all like to go to an MSC event why thats then? cos you saw it on youtube - A lot to be said for viral type marketing especially the business were in, nuff said

What he said.

The last round of the Eurodrift series was a huge success and that was down to foot work, myself and a few others took the time to give flyers out, dropped them where ever we could. Radio promotion, going into town centers giving out flyers, it goes on, the result was out standing.

As for working the crowd issue, most of you know i try everything to get the crowd involved and don't mind making a tit of myself doing it But i don't care because if it raises the profile of drifting then so be it!

As Maz commented on Sunday, i wondered if the punters had any hands, It seemed the group of us stood to the right of the judges were the only ones bothering to clap..

Than again i mentioned the same after the EDC round at Silverstone, a grandstand full of so called "drift fans" and one or two of us "shouting one more time" WTF is that all about.... Its the people on here that are supposed to be into drifting then complain when there's no atmosphere. Who's fault is that ? Your own...!

If you (not talking to any one inparticular here) and a group of your mates can't have a laugh shouting at Maz or Sleepy and get the crowd going at the same time you can't complain

I went to watch the D1 demo back in 05 as a spectator and with my mate made as much noise as possible, we ended up having a right laugh with a load of people around us... You should try it It works

Back to next year.. If the drifting scene is to progress, ALL the event organisers need to be pissing in the same pot !

Have an entry level, mid level and a top level.
(Think about that comment for a minute).

All promoted at EVERY EVENT .

[BRADs14]

Originally Posted by Danny

A round at Lydd

i'm with danny on that one

[BRADs14]

Only just catched up with this thread, i agree with the fact of the events being held at show that are chav fests. get annoyed with hear kids saying "i can do that in my saxo!"

maybe at shows like donny south we should have a Drift arena aswell! so people can have passenger rides to get a better insight to the drift culture??

[MC2]

I see what you mean about the chavs..

At round 1 Donny show, after the EDC finished I could see all the chavs trying to drift on the grass, one was in a Vauxhall estate!! ahahaha!

So really, would be nice to have jap events only..


And about the tracks, have Rockingham!!!!


EDIT:

Originally Posted by Sweeps

As for working the crowd issue, most of you know i try everything to get the crowd involved and don't mind making a tit of myself doing it But i don't care because if it raises the profile of drifting then so be it!

As Maz commented on Sunday, i wondered if the punters had any hands, It seemed the group of us stood to the right of the judges were the only ones bothering to clap..

Than again i mentioned the same after the EDC round at Silverstone, a grandstand full of so called "drift fans" and one or two of us "shouting one more time" WTF is that all about.... Its the people on here that are supposed to be into drifting then complain when there's no atmosphere. Who's fault is that ? Your own...!

If you (not talking to any one inparticular here) and a group of your mates can't have a laugh shouting at Maz or Sleepy and get the crowd going at the same time you can't complain

I think one of the main issues for that was the weather. :shrug:

[hashiriya]

I don't think the "chav shows" as you guys have called it is a particular problem. Many of the guys in he drift scene have evolved from that and the crowd will also evolve from what they are currently into to (hopefully) what we like at the moment.

I personally think Japanese cars show tie ups should not really be encouraged due to the fact that I personally would like to see a bigger proportion of non japanese cars getting involved also.

Bladey makes a good point about the supposed hardcore drift fans not really getting involved as well. all members of DW as drift fans, should be doing their bit to help the growth of the sport rather than relying on someone else to do it for them. It's as simple as comming to the events and cheering your favorite driver. It's 100x more fun than watching low quality movies on you tube and 200x more fun if you are screeming and shouting along with 10,000 other people.

But on topic... for next year I would like to see that amazing commentator getting paid twice what he was paid in 2007

[SteveC200]

Originally Posted by hashiriya

But on topic... for next year I would like to see that amazing commentator getting paid twice what he was paid in 2007

Twice nothing is still nothing isnt it though.

Maybe you should get paid in alcohol.

[sidewaysmatt]

Fair point on chavs evolving. I'll be honest i used to be found croozin round in a nova (a long time ago don't mock me) and i've grown up so theres hope for them yet. Oh and the commentary was good, keep it up in 2008

[Jeek™]

I agree with sweeps i think all of the championships need to have a clearly defined "place" in the scene! Just now we know what the order of skill levels is in each championship. but the general public dont.

When they see EDC they will probably be thinking i want to try that but not realise there are lower levels to get started in!

Aslo having ED and EDC on the same day at the same location would be amazing. if a suitable location could be found that is.

[Mattyboi]

Originally Posted by Sweeps

Than again i mentioned the same after the EDC round at Silverstone, a grandstand full of so called "drift fans" and one or two of us "shouting one more time" WTF is that all about.... Its the people on here that are supposed to be into drifting then complain when there's no atmosphere. Who's fault is that ? Your own...!

I disagree with that alot. At both of the donnys the group of people i was with were shouting loads, "one more time" "bon bon for the win" whatever it was. When we were shouting one mroe time people just looked at us like we were mad, they had no idea what was going on.

At the other donney i took a load of party blowers, party hats and poppers (party ones not man party ones ). There must have been about 15-20 of us making loads of noise and again we were looked at like we were mad.

I think it just comes down to the simple fact that we know the drivers, so we care who wins. The average man has no idea who`s who so just wants the s-body to win because its the same colour as his etc. I think thats why drivers should have abit more introduction and abit more personality shown. That way the average show watcher will cheer for their favourite driver, an i won`t feel like a twat everytime i`m shouting on my own

[fieldy]

I've never been to an EDC round but ive been reading this and have a suggestion. Please dont bite my head off

The way i see it is that the EDC drivers are all confirmed before the season starts? i.e. registered to compete? The events calendar is also 99% complete before the season starts too i would have thought?

So... in answer to the issue on people no knowing the drivers etc, why not draw up a series programme? This could include a "fill it in yourself" section on who wins at each event and the scores etc, and also driver profiles, sponsor details and all that kind of palarva.

You could sell them at each event for like a quid or something and they're valid for the entire season? This could be a cost effective way of getting the crowd involved. A short pen picture of each driver could make the spectators their best friends

If this is already in place then i'll hide behind my keyboard in shame.

Cheers

Chris.

[Mattyboi]

Thats a good idea!

[lil ben]

How about some rodeo action from non edc drivers to fill in the gaps between qualifying ?
Big screens or a scoreboard for all round would be helpful too, as mentioned, it's hard to hear the scores.
Promotion - there was a load of D1 cars at Trax one year on display with a couple of people (don't think it was drivers) hanging around chatting to people. I was looking round the cars showing interest and one of the guys was straight out to chat to me......not saying you guys are unaccessible but it was a more relaxed way to chat about it then when you're in the middle of a comp and worrying about your runs/fixing your car etc

[Baba]

Disagree with the "chav" statement.

We need the so called "chavs" to pay the costs. We cant be selective about the crowd however we can be selective of the venues.

This season went quite well for EDC and hopefully next year more people will know what it is.

Another thing I would like to say.

Eurodrift needs to be part of EDC. Like Sweeps said Eurodrift is the Amateur/Mid level drifters and EDC is Pro. If we combine the championship and split it into 3 categories that would work quite well.

Lets work together people!

[SteveC200]

As I see it, its a catch 22 situation with the 'chav shows'. EDC needs to be part of them to reduce running costs and to get a decent crowd watching. Unfortunately that means that the majority of the crowd dont give a stuff about the championship or, as said, know the drivers so they are there just to watch some skidding and arent enthusiastic about drifting, hence the poor crowd reaction.

Until drifting becomes popular enough to make it financially viable to hold stand alone EDC events I cant see anyway around it.

[docwra]

Originally Posted by SteveC200

Unfortunately that means that the majority of the crowd dont give a stuff about the championship or, as said, know the drivers so they are there just to watch some skidding and arent enthusiastic about drifting, hence the poor crowd reaction.

Until drifting becomes popular enough to make it financially viable to hold stand alone EDC events I cant see anyway around it.

And this comes back to my original point - the events have to be made more attractive for Norman Normal to rock up to. Im always going to have a good time, knowing drivers, liking a bit of dori in my own car and having a laugh with my mates but its when you start attracting the 98% of people that know what drifting is but only watch videos on the internet that the the money to start making the bigger changes arrives.

Ive been watching drifting in the UK since 2001, and I find the major problem is still the amount of track action through the course of a day. As someone else has said as well, maybe if the competitors got more track time there would be more of them, which would go some way to achieving the above

[MC2]

The more track action is a good idea, like with Formula 1, you see F1, F3, Porsche cup and a couple more.. So the track is always full.

Maybe you could let people pay a certain amount of money to pratice drift. Like at D1GB at Rockingham.. There was Drift UK that allowed drift rides so you could maybe see if drifting is for you etc..

[harrietxxx]

what i want to know is how the feck did all these randomers get into the paddock area screaming "that man can drive init , hes got skillz , wonder if he can do that in me metro........" or "yeah man thats FWD init"

tagging along to events is a good idea , i notice at every rotorstock they put the drifting well out of the way "erghhh get back! dirty drifters! get back!" which is gay but every year ive seen drifting at donny it allways brings in a massive crowd with the audience loving all the sideways action , cheering , booooing ..........wait that was us lot with our party gear but my point is at donny it attracts massive crowds every year!

[mazdachris]

There’s one thing, above all else, that makes a sport, regardless of its form, worth watching. That’s having someone to cheer on. To John Layman, drifting is little more than a bunch of guys he’s never heard of, competing in an event he doesn’t really understand, in cars which all look more or less the same. Even the most intense battles are going to see, at best, mildly entertaining, but John Layman can’t get excited if he doesn’t give a crap who wins.

I think EDC would benefit from actually living up to its name – being properly European, with a spread of drivers from over Europe. Rather than a handful of British drivers competing on British tracks. If you had more Europeans, then the British crowd would have someone to cheer on. In a battle between a Brit and a foreigner, the crowd can get much more involved in the action, even if they don’t know much about who it is they’re cheering on.

I think the venues don’t really help that much either. When I’ve watched D1 on DVD etc, the crowd are right on top of the action. The most exciting automotive shows I’ve been to are ones where you can smell the smoke, you can feel the flecks of rubber falling on your face, and the pops and bangs from the exhausts resonate through your chest. Look at Silverstone for instance, and the crowd are miles from the action. The cars are off in the distance, they sound quiet and it’s just not that involving. The best venues would place the crowd as close to the action as possible. Anyone catch, I think, the WRC Super Special Stage coverage from Portugal, where the cars ran in an enclosed arena which ran right past the crowd? That’s the kind of venue would work best for drifting. The trouble at the moment is trying to fit drifting around tracks which are designed for other forms of motorsport, rather than looking at what drifting really needs and, if necessary, simply constructing a makeshift track for it. Look at the D1 rounds in Ebisu, where the venue itself is nothing more than a car park, with a track marked out and a grandstand to sit in. That’s perfect. That’s what EDC needs.

Going onto another note, regarding aligning EDC/drifting in general with other forms of motorsport, and car shows etc. While I agree that the more coverage drifting can get, the better, I’ve always held the opinion that it would be better to have people see drifting alongside other extreme judged events, in an X-Games style. The fans of skateboarding, BMX, etc, are more familiar with the quickfire judging format, compared to proper motorsports fans who refuse to accept any motorsport which requires judges. But perhaps you could turn the thinking on its head – rather than trying to host drift demos etc at shows, why not invite other sports to demo at drifting events? This kind of thing would surely help bring aboard fresh new sponsors who are eager for a new market, and would help draw new fans into a sport they probably don’t know much about, but would easily pick up on. It’s just a thought anyway, but something I think would be mutually beneficial. Rather than just going to people and saying “hey, can we do some skidding at your show” go to different people and say “hey, we’ve got this skidding competition which is getting popular, why not bring along some of your guys and show our crowds what your sport is all about”

[retrodan]

i just want to see the track layouts have more corners, not jus couple of bends, yeah hi speed is all well and good but keeping it going for more than two long bends is more interesting and challenging from drivers point of view and spectators view!!! some people seem to have a bit of an ego as they seem to think that using tracks lke lydd at 40mph is gay and that the people doing it think they rocking it!!! im sure they would rather do that then 2 corners with 80mph entry speed then into 30mph for the rest of the corner!!

[Username]

Originally Posted by Jeek™

I agree with sweeps i think all of the championships need to have a clearly defined "place" in the scene! Just now we know what the order of skill levels is in each championship. but the general public dont.

When they see EDC they will probably be thinking i want to try that but not realise there are lower levels to get started in!

Aslo having ED and EDC on the same day at the same location would be amazing. if a suitable location could be found that is.

Thruxton - EDC on main circuit, ED on cart track On main circuit perhaps chicane then allard then campbell or maybe reverse it?