Dry Lakes Racers Australia

Well by now you should all know that Speed Week 2020 and the World Speed Trials Australia #2 have been postponed.
Given that this decision by the committee took place last Sunday night there has been a lot of water gone under the bridge since then and it looks like there will be additional challenges before this is over or we return to some sort of normality, when who knows.
On the Sunday teleconference we decided to call a postponement instead of a cancellation only because of when we had called cancellations in the past some entrants were still keen to run later that year and we wanted time to evaluate that option.
I have asked the committee for it's feedback on running another event in 2020, but I also want you, the members to see and be a part of the dilemma that we are faced with.

Here are some of the facts as we see them.
Not even considering the availability of medical fire, timing and other officials.

• When looking at the availability of the lake there is really only May or November / December.

• With May not really being an option as it's too close and the virus has still not reached it's peak yet.
  Which leaves November / December. We may be out of the influence by then, but we don't know. There may be other forces at play, we may still be dealing with the pandemic. There may be other forces at play, already this morning some of the so called experts are saying we are heading into a recession.

• Some will argue that November / December is too close to our normal Speed Week, which for 2021 is currently scheduled for March 8-12 and that it will pull entrants from that event. There is the option to pull forward that date to 15th February

• There will be those entrants who wont be able to attend an event in November / December for a host of reasons (no leave, spent their bikkies, other commitments that time of the year)

• A November / December event may get rained out, or even the March event in that matter.

Financially as a club we are trying to limit our losses, there is a certain amount that is spent on an event whether it runs or not and we cannot recover that. Their is also a certain amount that we have spent on equipment for our future, this is not lost and will make our next event even better. Entrants will have the option to roll-over their entry to the next event or claim a refund. Plus there is all those spectators who have paid for camping and lake entry that are now looking for refunds (which is their right). Then there is the merchandise and we are making a concerted effort to sell as much of that as we can. And I urge all members and supporters to buy some merch (http://www.dlra.org.au/merchandise.htm)

I would be interested in knowing who would commit to an event in November / December and who would prefer us to run in February / March 2021.

PS I'm deliberately not putting this up on Facebook as we don't need every armchair expert offering their 2 cents.

I support cancelling for this year, as you state, the future at this point is uncertain, cancellation gives certainty and direction,, also, moneys going to be tight for quiet a few family's,,

Should the committee decide to have a 2020 event my bike and I will be there as well as for 2021,,

I note this is for Speedweek, what is the go concerning WSTA ?

I also agree with Ronnie, although, as a spectator (at this stage) November /December sounds ok
As for 2021,,15th February would result in a no show for me, due to the potential heat related health concerns, the last thing we as a club need, is a crook onlooker tying up the medics,,,

Ronnie, couple of big if's,
if the numbers were low, we would have to charge extra. we still have to pay the DEW, GRAC, Mt. I've, medical and firies.
depending on numbers, we maybe could do say 3 days of Speed Week and 2 days of WSTA.
We could also do WSTA next year, we couldn't afford to do it on its own.

Appricate the "Big Ifs" Greg,,

I like the sound of maybe a 3 day SpeedWeek then a 2 day WSTA held in this current 2020 year, due to the fact all our FIM accreditation will be current, however that accreditation would have to be renewed for 2021 and my bank balance is saying "no",, (the FIM deal is becoming just to expensive for us general punters)

We could run both events 2020 & 2021. However I would not be keen on only 3 days as it leaves little time for any issues to be sorted. As we are not interested in the FIM event due to cost and there small cc records are not up to the current levels of DLRA or SCTA.

Hi Greg,
A tough call and I guess it will come down to practicalities in the end.
Running two events close together will require a lot of coordination and logistical challenges
I hear what Ronnie says about the FIM costs but at the end of the day we should try to hold the event when the conditions are optimised at the back end of summer
I reckon if the bulk of our entry fees are transferred to next years event with a WSTA tagged onto the end of Speedweek it may be the best compromise.
Personally I would struggle to do two events within a few months of each other - I'm sure many others would be in the same boat

I can’t commit to a nov/dec meeting, as
with most it depends on work & holidays. I am definitely interested however.
Danny.

I'm in for a run later in the year as I intended having next year off to concentrate on building a dedicated race bike.
At this stage I'm trying to work towards options that would allow me to run at both.

Thanks again Greg, Carol and all of the DLRA committee. A very tough decision but history will show it was the correct one. For myself I could and would race anywhere anytime. Paul Macleod 1283 AAA Racing.

Thanks for putting it out there Greg, however I feel the decision to run an event later this year could possibly be taken out of the committees hands once again.
That said, should an event go ahead in November/December I'd committ to competing as well as the 2021 event.

We would be up for both.

If numbers are down just running 1 track might be a consideration?

I support cancellation and waiting till 2021

Is there a proposed date for November?

Due process.
I have received 61 responses to the question including committee members to date.
There will be a committee meeting on the 6th April where the dates will be discussed and a consensus of opinion reached.
Then it will be announced. IF it is November, a date will also be announced at that time.