Ducati Sporting Club UK > DesmoDue Race Series > DesmoDue - General Questions and Chat > Not in top 5.?

[Mark]

Originally posted by dickieducati

get involved! no matter what anyone else says this series IS different to most others, not everyone is in it for the winning. if you told any of the last 5 from the first races that they wouldnt get in the top 5 all season i dont think any of them would be disconsolate and want to chuck the towel in they would still be out there trying their best ans enjoying themselves.

Indeed mate, TP has offered me a ride on his DD bike at a track day at brands. Whilst I was at CC, and Cadwell I've helped out (had fuel speayed over me ). But at the time the series came to light, it was a matter of £££££. Plus I had a health scare in January, which side tracked me a little. But, if the finances are there for me next year, I'll be on the grid. I have told 1 of you, if I do, I will have you're bike if you move on.

The series is one of the best things to happen in ages, and you don't have to be a racer to be involved. I can say I have learnt more about bike set up, riding styles etc than I have done in 15 years of riding.

[Edited on 24-5-2005 by Flanks]

[fil2]

Originally posted by phoenix n max
I don't care - I'm doing it for my kids, my mates, myself and cos I can.
I'm a 42 yr old mum of 3. It doesn't matter to them where I come so long as we all have a bloody good time doing it and myself and my bike come home in one piece.
It's something I wanted to do. I asked them first and they were all for it, they know the risks involved but were way more worried about me denting Max
Besides - they get a kick out of telling their mates that their mum races a Ducati
As for me - I ran in my first ever race and got 5 points in the Championship Table. Not much but i'm happy.

And I'm happy for you as well...its a great achievement.. ..

[Rattler]

Originally posted by Jools
Actually Phil, I think that it's the other way around with DD.

It seems that, for the most part, it's going to be the dealer entries that are squabbling for the top three slots. I talked about DD with a lot of ordinary DSC members at the BMF over the weekend and without any exception whatsoever they couldn't give a stuff about the dealer entries. Even after the first round they almost seem like an irrelevance having their own championship within a championship.

What the ordinary grass roots DSC members seem to care about is the scrap that's going on between the guys that this series is supposed to be about - namely, other grass roots DSC members who are competing in this series in the spirit that it was intended. People like you, TP, Skildlids, Ali, NB, Psychlist, Rattler, Dickie, Antonye, CK & AK, (to name but a few). In other words the people you will also meet on rideouts, down at Popham, helping out at the BMF, even working as regional organisers, people who have been a part of the club for a while and make a contribution and commitment back into the club...and that includes people like Domski who's making a big contribution to the life on this board.

The people who nobody cares about and who are instantly forgotten are the people that are only in this club for the race series. People who have no passion or commitment to Ducatis, never post anything, never take part in anything else, never put anything back, just turn up, race, go home

And before anybody starts wittering on about how much such and such a dealer does for the club you have to ask yourself what sensible dealer wouldn't see the DD series as a huge amount of very cheap publicity or treat a large customer base like the DSC with some sort of respect and a few favours now and then. It's intheir commercial interests to do so.

And there endeth the lesson for the day - wise words Jools.

Tim

[the old man]

Originally posted by Jools
Actually Phil, I think that it's the other way around with DD.

It seems that, for the most part, it's going to be the dealer entries that are squabbling for the top three slots. I talked about DD with a lot of ordinary DSC members at the BMF over the weekend and without any exception whatsoever they couldn't give a stuff about the dealer entries. Even after the first round they almost seem like an irrelevance having their own championship within a championship.

What the ordinary grass roots DSC members seem to care about is the scrap that's going on between the guys that this series is supposed to be about - namely, other grass roots DSC members who are competing in this series in the spirit that it was intended. People like you, TP, Skildlids, Ali, NB, Psychlist, Rattler, Dickie, Antonye, CK & AK, (to name but a few). In other words the people you will also meet on rideouts, down at Popham, helping out at the BMF, even working as regional organisers, people who have been a part of the club for a while and make a contribution and commitment back into the club...and that includes people like Domski who's making a big contribution to the life on this board.

The people who nobody cares about and who are instantly forgotten are the people that are only in this club for the race series. People who have no passion or commitment to Ducatis, never post anything, never take part in anything else, never put anything back, just turn up, race, go home

And before anybody starts wittering on about how much such and such a dealer does for the club you have to ask yourself what sensible dealer wouldn't see the DD series as a huge amount of very cheap publicity or treat a large customer base like the DSC with some sort of respect and a few favours now and then. It's intheir commercial interests to do so.

At the risk of making myself unpopular; this sounds more like a clique than a club!

Provided an individual abides by the rules of the club their motivation for joining and the contribution they choose to make is entirely their own business.

[ericthered40]

At the risk of making myself unpopular; this sounds more like a clique than a club!

Yep that should do it

[Monty]

I think the one thing that most people are missing is that the guy who won both races IS an ordinary DSC member, and has been for a couple of years. The fact that most don't know him has more to do with where he lives and the fact that he's not an avid poster on the board-he was at the Cadwell trackday last year. The fact that Geofs bike was built for him by Baines racing makes it no different than most entrants-Domski for instance has had his bike built by Louigi-but no-one seems to mind. There does seem to be a lot of double standards going on here, support your mate by all means, but don't dump on others just because their mates happen to build/maintain/sell Ducati's.
The main thing about this series is that you are all out there going for it, the guys leading have previous race experience, fine, but every time you lot get out there you are getting that experience and getting faster. It's going to be very interesting to see how the results change as riders get more used to racing and get into it.

Here endeth the lesson-think I'll go and have a quiet lie down............

John

[Jools]

Originally posted by Monty
I think the one thing that most people are missing is that the guy who won both races IS an ordinary DSC member, and has been for a couple of years. The fact that most don't know him has more to do with where he lives and the fact that he's not an avid poster on the board-he was at the Cadwell trackday last year. The fact that Geofs bike was built for him by Baines racing makes it no different than most entrants-Domski for instance has had his bike built by Louigi-but no-one seems to mind. There does seem to be a lot of double standards going on here, support your mate by all means, but don't dump on others just because their mates happen to build/maintain/sell Ducati's.
The main thing about this series is that you are all out there going for it, the guys leading have previous race experience, fine, but every time you lot get out there you are getting that experience and getting faster. It's going to be very interesting to see how the results change as riders get more used to racing and get into it.

Here endeth the lesson-think I'll go and have a quiet lie down............

John

Desmo due does seem to be an incredibly touchy subject that sparks of a great deal of defensiveness whenever the views of ordinary DSC members are voiced.

I'm not dumping on anybody. Did I single out Geoff or anybody in particular? No! I'm just pointing out where the sympathies of the majority of people I talk to seem to lie. It shouldn't really come as any surprise that the more popular racers amongst the 'rank and file' are those people who are regularly found at other DSC events, who are known by many of the non-racing DSC community and are the people who put as much back into the club as they take from it. The majority of them also seem to be the sort of people for whom, I believe, the series was originally intended.

As far as the old 'clique' chestnut goes, my dictionary describes a clique as "a narrow, exclusive circle or group of persons" the key word being "exclusive", the sort of circle you can't join even if you wanted to.

That's not the DSC that I know. I ride and get involved with the BHC region and there are a core of about 10 of us that are lucky enough to be able to get out quite often and do quite a bit. Several of the guys put quite a bit of effort into organising rideouts and other social events and we've got a strong region going. We're very active locally and also get involved with other regions and support their efforts at Popham, Congleton and up in Yorkshire. We also have other folks along from Norfolk and Suffolk, Oxfordshire and other surrounding regions. Of course not everybody who turns up at BHC events has the time or the inclination to turn up to everything and we have many people who only come along to a small number of activities. And we've been called a clique, mostly by ill-informed people who've never troubled themselves to make the effort and join in, the truth is that whoever you are and wherever you come from you will always be welcome.

You wanna know how "exclusive" we are - just come along any time and join in, we don't exclude anybody - we don't even care if you're not on a Duke, how cliquey is that?

I've found people in this club to be incredibly friendly and helpful, even to the point of offering me a bike while mine was off the road and several offers to test bikes at trackdays. I believe that this is the true spirit of the DSC and I have found it everywhere

If you consider that as long as you abide by the rules of the club that it's up to you how much you choose to contribute that's fine, it's a perfectly valid point. However, human nature dictates that if you keep yourself to yourself, nobody will know who you are and you won't have the same level of interaction as people who see each other regularly. Another point to remember is that if this was everybodies attitude the club wouldn't exist as it does today and there would BE no DD series.

You get back what you put in, that's not cliqueyness or a special characteristic of the DSC...that's life!

[Edited on 28-5-2005 by Jools]

[Fordie]

Well said Jools. This "kleek" thing pi88es me of more than anything. Its a word thats only used by the few about the few that few people recognise in the first place. 4D

[Monty]

Originally posted by Fordie
Well said Jools. This "kleek" thing pi88es me of more than anything. Its a word thats only used by the few about the few that few people recognise in the first place. 4D

Exactly Fordie-I think???

John