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I don't doubt the passion of the racers one bit. I personally hope that the TT carries on for some time to come as I hold out hope that I'll be able to take it all in myself one day. Not just to experience watching the race, but to take in the island itself. In my case, Capos articles only serve to increase that desire.
However, as with most any other notable sporting event in the world, I'm sure that ultimately money is a factor. This makes people like me that want to go just to hang out and take it all in very important to the TT.
To put it differently: even if there remained plenty of individuals that wished to compete, if people basically stopped showing up to watch the TT it seems impossible to imagine that the Isle of Man would still support the race to the extent it does now, if at all.
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Television money drives sports, not attendance. Ask me how I know! But of course, for a unique event like the TT, and considering the degree of difficulty getting and staying there, it would have an impact. But remember, viewing the TT is free. Except for a handful of grandstands, at nominal prices, it is absolutely free to watch from around the 37 mile course. Speaks to the soul of the event.
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So you are saying the hotels, pubs and restaurants aren't full, and that bike rentals are low during the TT? The ferrys are running empty? Like any big event I'll bet the vendors make most of their money for the year from this one event. I believe that's the money Guth is speaking of. Like sturgis, I imagine it's a ghost town for about 51 weeks a year then for about 3 weeks the vendors are gorging themselves on the incoming cash flow.
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Ferret, I don't think Capo's saying the local businesses don't derive huge benefit from the TT. Almost certainly they do. But, unless they're paying an enormous amount of that benefit to the event in the way of sponsorship—which, if your thesis about its being a ghost town is correct, you an bet they aren't—the event won't be making enough to sustain itself.
What I think he is saying is that television will be paying a small fortune to the TT organizers for the rights and it is that income that keeps the organizers afloat.
I'm game, Capo, how and what do you know about television money and sport? On the basis of one brief experience, I suspect the influence of television can be profound.
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I've been In The TV advertising and sponsorship business for 35 years. From the Super Bowl to the Olympics and all points in between. Ferret, I don't get your point. What sporting event doesn't benefit the local economy anywhere? A why is that a bad thing? The IOM government owns the TT, Money is a motivator for everything, but it is far less a factor with the TT than any other event of it's type. For an island of 88,000 people, it certainly has an impact. But the internet gaming and trusts and estates sectors that are cores of the IOM economy are hundreds of times greater.
I live in a beach community where the local businesses make 90% of their money in 13 weekends each year. I'm trying to see where this is relevant, so I don't get the clucking. Maybe the Indy 500 and Pikes Peak should go away too, seem pretty dangerous to me.
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Forget I said anything Capo, you don't get my point, even though I said I hoped it wasn't banned, and that it continues due to the will of the residents of the isle, and yours all appear to be all defensive no matter the point raised, so I see no point in continuing.
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Nor do I, this thread was about my visit and writings about the TT. It devolved into something else, not by me.
Back on point, for those so inclined, here's my final wrap up and the video I produced, scroll down the page, on TT 2016. Parental advisory: it includes scenes of motorcycles exceeding the speed limit on public roads ridden by the bravest and most proficient motorcycle riders on Earth!
http://www.motorcycle.com/features/weeke...ap-up.html
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Quote:Like any big event I'll bet the vendors make most of their money for the year from this one event. I believe that's the money Guth is speaking of. Like sturgis, I imagine it's a ghost town for about 51 weeks a year then for about 3 weeks the vendors are gorging themselves on the incoming cash flow.
Far from it. The IOM has a thriving year-round non-motorcyclist tourist trade. It is, politically and economically, independent from the UK. The U.K. takes care of defence and external relations. Offshore banking (I once had an IOM account), manufacturing and tourism make up the major part of its economy. It is not a ghost town outside of the TT. Interesting article from the Economist [url=http://www.economist.com/news/britain/21670042-reformed-tax-haven-looks-online-economy-cleaning-up]here. Comparison of IOM GDP growth with that of the U.K. says a lot.
Cheers
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Honestly, I was thinking of things simply from the standpoint of the disruption caused to the local businesses during the course of the TT (no pun intended) and whether or not they would be willing to accept putting their daily routines on pause to such an extent if the only people that showed up for the TT were the race teams themselves. I have no idea how much much money the TV contracts would bring in in the case of the TT — honestly I had not even considered that part of the equation. That too would be interesting to know more about as I'd be curious what kind of viewing audience the event draws world wide. But that might be best left to another conversation, lol.
At any rate, while this thread did get a bit off track, it made me think about things I might not otherwise consider and it certainly doesn't change my desire to make my way to the Isle of Man at some point. If anything, it has served to increase my desire to visit. Thanks for sharing Capo.
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Interesting discussion we're having here. I was thinking about something that runs parallel to the subject matter yesterday during the RAGNAR as I was trying to navigate the streets around Park City. Here in Utah we have a large number of FOR PROFIT events put on by outside organizers that utilize, and disrupt the usage of public roads for the locals...Tour of Utah Bike Race, RAGNAR, Marathons, LOTJA etc. Twice last year I had to change weekend motorcycle travel plans due to these. They seem to be becoming more frequent over the past 10 years. My personal opinion is that no FOR PROFIT events should be allowed on public roads as the PROFIT aspect only encourages more of these.
As for the IOM TT. This year was the first time I really watched extensive coverage on TV...prob watched 5+ hours. Superbikes sidecars etc. Very cool! Whole time I watched the Superbikes I was thinking that these guys would make great fighter pilots. For myself and a couple of other buddies the TT is a bucket-lister. Sure hope it happens.
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