Where does Flemish off-road motorsport stand?
On the eve of July 11, the Flemish holiday, we should give an overview of the state of affairs of off-road motorsport in Flanders. A state of affairs that unfortunately does not bring what we should actually expect. Admittedly, motocross is still strong in Flanders, despite opposition from outside and bickering among themselves.
But here too we have to conclude that the number of practitioners has not increased in recent years, but rather decreased. It would be naive to think that the Flemish federations are responsible for this. After all, there are many factors that they cannot control but still cause the system to fail. Pointing out all the causes and offering possible solutions is perhaps something for a next column.
Yet we must conclude that the circuits or rather the lack thereof are the major bottleneck in Flanders. Then we first think of the problems surrounding permanent practice circuits. The problems there have been going on for a few years. We can be happy that the Flemish federations unanimously supported the “Save Motocross” initiative last year, but this should actually have happened much earlier. Unfortunately, it has also become very quiet around this focal point in recent months. Although people who are actually working on the files involved may think differently because a large part of it happens behind the scenes. If we heard the voice of the federations clearly this time, we did not notice any signals from the industry. It seems as if a number of importers of (mainly) Japanese brands remain selectively deaf to the aspirations of some of their customers.
It was actually clear that we could expect ambiguous, let alone clear, signals from politicians. In a country where politicians face an election almost every year, people are of course anything but concerned with a problem that only affects a small minority. Moreover, in Flemish politics people generally want to be as colorless as possible so that they can then, if desired, cut themselves into as many corners as possible. The average Flemish politician accepts that something like this will eventually no longer enable people to dare to make decisions. Actually Green! the only party from which we know a clear vision on off-road motorsport. Although that is of course not a positive thing.
What should really worry us is the meagerness of the off-road motorsport offering. In Flanders, the enthusiast mainly has the choice between motocross, motocross and motocross... Fortunately, there are still two small regional trials championships and an enthusiastic young speedway club that keep their heads above water, otherwise we would no longer even use the general term "off-road motorsport". to use.
We therefore dare to ask ourselves what the situation is with disciplines such as supercross, supermoto, enduro, grass track racing, etc. Admittedly organizing competitions for these disciplines is anything but obvious, but we mainly notice a certain entrenchment among clubs. Apparently no one can or dares to innovate anymore, to come up with something new. No new formulas are invented. Yes, even the midweek crosses that spiced up many a competition calendar a few years ago have completely disappeared.
Doesn't the pursuit of profit play too big a role in some cases? Isn't it also the task of the federations to promote the sport, attract new members, and give young people a taste of a discipline? Most Flemish federations only focus on motocross, but we actually expect the VMBB to actually cover the bill. Admittedly, that is true to some extent. Trial West Flanders is a competition organized by (mostly tourist) BMB clubs. But with the exception of trials, most other off-road sports are left out in the cold. Strange because in the Netherlands the KNMV has a number of flourishing national championships, such as Enduro, Trial, Supermoto and grass track. And believe us, the clubs are not having an easy time there either and all kinds of restrictions are being imposed by the various governments.
Are the Dutch motorsport clubs more dynamic? Maybe. Do Dutch motor sports clubs care less about profiteering? Probably not, but they do think long term. Are Dutch clubs and federations more enterprising? That certainly is. We often have the idea that people in Flanders just want to watch from the sidelines and wait until someone else organizes it. Although we dare not claim that nothing is moving behind the scenes. Just look at the (unfortunately) failed attempt to organize a grass track competition in Egenhoven. More Info you can find out about that here.
Photos credit: Yamaha Racing, Ray Archer
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