"But the low entries are worrying, is this just a Dunks issue or is at all tracks? "
Blues have been hit by a series of circumstances.
There was a very public clash of personalities a while ago which made racing at Dunks uncomfortable for a while. It is a situation which really hasn't been satisfactorily resolved (and I think both sides were/are at fault).
At the same time a number of drivers were persuaded to go into Rotax, many of whom seem to have given up karting. One of the grumbles was that the standard Lynx didn't give enough opportunity to the heavier driver, while the Maxi was having a few bugs worked out of its system. There also seems to be an attraction at Dunks into racing 177, with even lightweights desperate to get into the class!
Recently a number of the younger drivers have headed off to University and there hasn't been the replacements coming up through the Junior Grids in the South. Some ex-young drivers are coming back once they have got through Uni.
At the same time the Blues have always been a 'budget' class and the number of drivers tailed off dramatically this year after the end of the National Championship in August.
Having said that, Dunks appear to have been making an effort to attract a Blue Grid, but the current Autumn Extravaganza, an end of year series, means that somehow people would have to be able to race three times a month. (Forest Edge, Clay and Dunkeswell).
Prior to the NKRA Grande Final, the series races in the south averaged 20 to 25 on the grid, after the GF, southern Grids fell to 6 but have recovered to about 10.
Next year (credit crunch permitting) I would expect the same 20 to 25 up to the GF (Hooton Park at the end of August). What happens after that depends on budgets and the number of novices who convert eagerness now into bums on the grid then.
When you come to Clay, visit Tabor's pit down at Billy's. It's a great place to view the action if nothing else.
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