[GTO]

So I guess most of us hint toward:

1. Better TV coverage. Better presentation, commentators and prime time slots.

2. More racing circuits around the country. Presently, there is a southern bias toward most available.

3. Have street circuits? No better way to enthusiasts to get closer to the action.

Once the exposure and following increases, manufacturers will automatically line up.

[mclaren1885]

Rush, as I have pointed out the most important factor would be us TBHPians attending these events & spreading the word. Unless we do it ourselves, there is no point in asking what the rest can/must do.

[chetan]

like rahul said everything is there, but what i feel is the organization should be world class and we should have government support

[Rehaan]

I love the idea of street circuits!

No better way to spread the word than to block off roads in a busy city and send cars screaming around at ~100 decibels!
Also it makes the sport so much more accessible. Not many people want to drive an hour or more to get to an event, unless they are REALLY into it, but city circuits will meet them half way.

cya
R

[aZa]

True that Rehaan!

But "RACING" is some what an unacceptable word with the authorities here! We are trying to get permission for RACING / DRAGS type events here in NCR. But the kind of questions we get from the authorities is make u wanna

1. Car race karoge ?

2. Kitne Speed par daudaoge?

3. Park chalega ? (instead of road)

4. Ek full day road bandh rakhoge?

there are lot more questions which i can't write here!

[v1p3r]

What you need is for people to stop giving out gyaan and put their money where their mouth is. I see some 25 people voted on that track day thread, and like 5 showed up. I hear ridiculous excuses like 'I don't want to spoil my car'.

If we get more people driving, we will get sponsors. I've seen the CBE guys drive. Some of them are still in their teens, first time on track, in heavy, pimped out cars, keeping up with rally MPFI Esteems. We have the talent, believe you me.

[paharino1]

Unlike a cricket..or for that matter any sport....who would like to take up motorsport in India...
In cricket u can practice on dusty grounds...small towns..villages...all you need is a bat..a ball & couple of friends to build your basics..
Investments needed are minimal...

2/4 wheelers are the 2nd most expensive investment made..after a house...no one's got the time or no one is idotic enough to waste money on such stuff..

A car itself is considered to be luxury item..motorsports probably a "filthy rich kid" hobby !!!

Unless there's a HUGE HUGE top down flow of money from F1/Moto GP folks on building up the motorsports infrastructure...sponsorship money flowing in by the tons.... i dont think there's much which can be done...

to be fair..if car/bike manufacturers in India had seen the interest/money/ future in motorsports in India..they would have put in the money..

Best case scenario i can think of is - F1 coming to India in 2010...couple of training schools/tracks opening up with sponsors money in 2012... guys rise up ranks at domestic & int'l level in 2014 or so..& probably consistent performers/ winners by 2015...

till then I am happy following the colonialists with their superior cars, technologies & drivers..

needless to say...i'll be happy to see a performer from India..next month types..

[v1p3r]

Originally Posted by paharino1

till then I am happy following the colonialists with their superior cars, technologies & drivers..

This is why we have 2 NKs for 1 billion people.

[paharino1]

Originally Posted by v1p3r

This is why we have 2 NKs for 1 billion people.

no....because we have 2NKs from just a few hundred of people who can afford motorsports... & from a couple of lakhs of people who can drive 4 wheelers in India..

[v1p3r]

We have 61,000 millionaires, as of 2004. And I mean in US dollars, not INR. Indian rentaracers are the cheapest in the world, but no one wants to race.

Why talk about the poor? I'm assuming that the people on TBHP are not struggling for 2 square meals a day. I see a lot of cars over 10 lakhs here, and some audio setups worth a coupla lakhs. Yet, the same people who fly across the country for meets, or concerts, will not make it to a race or a track day.

Maybe people are just not interested...

[tsk1979]

Originally Posted by v1p3r

This is why we have 2 NKs for 1 billion people.

Huh?
Lets put things in a little perspective here.
How much does a upper middle class gent earn in the US or A
80000$/year pre-tax?
how much does he/she need to spend to have a decent car which does 0-60mph in 9 seconds?
20000$ ?
Go second hand, mod that car(old civic) you get a nice car for 15000, good for a few races.
Now thats less than 1/5th of a salary.

Now lets come to bangalore.
How much does an upper middle car gent earn
10L/year.
So when you can provide this guy with an opportunity to have a decent car for races for 2L rs then you speak.
Motorsports are unaffordable to vast majority of people. Just a car costs as much as your yearly salary.
to prepare a car costs around 1/3 of your yearly salary.

now lets say you win. Can you recover the cost of the car and the mods if you get first prize in a major national event such as the Raid?
Well the answer is "No".

[v1p3r]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

So when you can provide this guy with an opportunity to have a decent car for races for 2L rs then you speak.

Please check the current cost of a FISSME. I believe the Indian open-wheel racers are among the cheapest in the world.

This is what Wikipedia says about the Rolons.

[tsk1979]

Originally Posted by v1p3r

We have 61,000 millionaires, as of 2004. And I mean in US dollars, not INR. Indian rentaracers are the cheapest in the world, but no one wants to race.

Anyone who owns an apartment in a city and has some family history has a millionaire. Millionaire means that your net worth is 1 million, not that you earn 1 million dollars a year.
If you look at the percentage of millionaires in the US who are into motorsports, you will see its very very low.
Most professional racers have opportunity of recovering their cost. Love of the game is there, but if there was no monetary benefit, they would not get into it.

Why talk about the poor? I'm assuming that the people on TBHP are not struggling for 2 square meals a day. I see a lot of cars over 10 lakhs here, and some audio setups worth a coupla lakhs. Yet, the same people who fly across the country for meets, or concerts, will not make it to a race or a track day.

Maybe people are just not interested...

you need to commit atleast 15 lakh initially to get into motor sports.
the car is your race car, not your daily drive.
you also have to be content with half of your investment down the drain, as endorsements will get you maybe 10L at the most(if you are a winner).

Passion/love of the game etc., etc., are all hollow words, and everywhere in the world where motorsports is popular racers can make living from the sport.
Untill you make car racing so lucrative that an above average racer(not the number 1,2,3) can make out a living just racing and having no real job, you won't get much interest.

[tsk1979]

Originally Posted by v1p3r

Please check the current cost of a FISSME. I believe the Indian open-wheel racers are among the cheapest in the world.

This is what Wikipedia says about the Rolons.

See my comment above.
If I stop working my job and become a fulltime FISSME racer, will it give me enough money to sustain a lifestyle which a It job gives?
If you look at western countries racers can feed their families by just racing.

[v1p3r]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

Anyone who owns an apartment in a city and has some family history has a millionaire. Millionaire means that your net worth is 1 million, not that you earn 1 million dollars a year.

Actually, I've seen this figure touted for people whose worth is over 1 million USD, not including their primary residence. Also known as high net worth individuals.

Look, fact is, manufacturers are doing their bit. Maruti, Hyundai, Chevy are all giving free engines. Costs are being kept as low as possible. Things haven't been this active in years. Hopefully, it's getting better.

I'm not denying motorsport is a rich man's sport. I mean, even karting isn't cheap, compared to galli cricket. What I'm saying is, there are a lot of rich people in India, and if there were more Mallyas and Vijaykumars among them, we'd be going further and faster.

@tsk: No, it will not. But you also have the option of letting your (hypothetical) child drive in the FISSME series. Assuming you could afford to invest 1 lakh a year, and not be guaranteed any returns, would you do it? If enough people say yes, we will be somewhere. That's what happened with cricket.