Establishing a formal alliance of local clubs, Council and other key stakeholders to drive growth in motorsport is among early actions identified as work continues on Sunraysia's first ever Regional Motorsport Strategy.
Mildura Mayor Liam Wood said local motorsport club representatives have been working closely with Mildura Rural City Council and project lead McLaughlin Sports Consultancy since the strategy was announced in March this year.
This work has included close to 40 one-on-one interviews with local motorsport club representatives, competitors and national motorsport bodies.
There have also been site visits to all local motorsport venues, attendance at a host of major events, post-event participant experience e-surveys, club facility audits and a number of community focus sessions.
"This is very much a collaborative approach to growing motorsport in our region, as no-one knows motorsport in our municipality better than our local clubs and competitors," Cr Wood said.
"It's also a first for our region in terms of taking this collaborative approach to growing motorsport, and potentially the first strategy of its kind in the country.
"Work so far has focussed on an exhaustive information-gathering exercise in recent months to gain an understanding of local clubs' strengths as well as where improvements can be made.
"This large pool of information has been used to shape the strategy, which is now close to being ready to release in draft form."
Local club representatives were provided with an early indication of the strategy's direction at a workshop this month, as well as providing further valuable feedback on the strategy.
While work is still underway to finalise the draft strategy, several early key opportunities have already been identified, including establishment of a Mildura Regional Motorsport Alliance.
"This will be a formal steering committee with representatives from local motorsport clubs, Council, state and national motorsport governing bodies and other key partners," Cr Wood said.
"This alliance will be formed in coming months and help shape the final strategy, as well as well continuing to lead coordinated growth of motorsport in our region once the strategy is in place.
"It will for the first time unite our numerous motorsport clubs under the one banner, which provides opportunities for shared resources, a stronger collective voice and a more coordinated approach to growing the sport in our region."
A series of 'quick wins' have also been identified, including support to develop club-level strategic and/or facility enhancement plans, support to apply for grant funding to help with venue upkeep, events promotion and participation, and appointment of a Council-funded Motorsports and Gender Equity in Sport Project Officer.
The final draft of the Regional Motorsport Strategy, which is largely funded by Sport and Recreation Victoria, is expected to be presented to Council in November this year.
QUOTES FROM MOTORSPORT CLUB REPRESENTATIVES
"It's been great the way the Council engaged with us very early in this process and then bringing everyone together once the consultant was appointed.
"The one-on-one interviews with each club have been really good – both the Council and the consultant listened closely and really seemed to understand and take on board what we were saying.
"We're happy with the direction of the strategy so far. From what we've seen and were presented with this month, it shows a good understanding of what is realistically achievable, and for us, is heading in the right direction.
"From our perspective, we're in a position where our club is looking to grow and I think more people have an understanding of what is required to achieve this as the strategy is developed.
"The idea of forming an alliance of local clubs is another positive, including the opportunities for shared resources."
- Rob Sinclair, President of North West Victorian Motorcycle Club
"The process so far has been very engaging, they've asked for our opinion on a whole range of areas along the way and it's been good to see the way Council have been able to pull together all the different local motorsport groups.
"For me this new approach is something that has been needed for some time.
"I've been around drag racing for a lot of years and the best times we had were when Council was more heavily involved back in the early years of the Easter Powersports initiative, serving as the central point funnelling information for all the different groups.
"It's refreshing to see this direction being taken again in terms of an all-encompassing approach.
"I think the concept of forming an alliance is a fantastic idea, getting the right mix of people with the right skill sets together. If you look around the room at this month's workshop, there are some very clever people who can contribute a lot to growing motorsport in our region.
"This strategy is certainly something that is needed, as if we don't grow our clubs, we won't have them in the future."
- Dave Thornton, President of Sunraysia Drag Racing Association.
