xxblackheartxx2

iTrader: (8)

when is Racing lines going to have a write up on Qld onroad titles. i have flicked through the last 4 ISSUES AND HAVE FOUND NOTHING!!!!! what is going on????

Slide-o-rama

no NSW Offroad EP Titles either after they were run in September.

no Interstate Challenge round up from Wadonga....

maybe they should change the name of the mag to just "Lines" as there isn't much racing in it.

vazzo

iTrader: (101)

I stopped buying that mag a long time ago. Way too much Nitro Off-Road lol

Cheers
Adrian

Slo-MTX4

iTrader: (1)

There has been no IC or EP Qlds, No IC Nationals either. You frequently see the comment made that there will be a full report next month, but that doesnt seem to come.

TomB

iTrader: (10)

i don't think David Smith is really interested in the onroad nitro side of things. Peter (contact) i believe does alot of the Offroad stuff, and Dave does some of the coverage of the bigger electric/nitro events like summernats etc but after that they don't cover much on onroad nitro at all.

i mean, if it's a magazine covering the hobby, Dave Smith's Job, as the owner of the magazine is to provide decent news right? the excuses that it's a magazine predominantly for beginners to novices really doesn't hold true, because the ones who buy the mag are racers, and enthusiasts, people who, in all likelyness would be interested in the racing side of things. If the reader is not involved in it, then they are probably keen to try it anyway, why else would they buy the magazine?

Maybe Dave Smith would answer these comments and say that he does not have the time to cover the events...well this might be true, and very understandable, but no magazine that is distributed nationally, and also in New Zealand and the Asia pacific reigon (like Racing LInes is currently) can operate with just one guy doing all the editing, copy, and a few dudes doing photography here and there!

i've worked in a magazine, so i know a thing or two about how they operate, and here are a few things:

1)if you do not have a good editor and at least a talented supporting copy writer/story writer then your mag will be shyt, no quality content = no good mag
2) you need a good graphic designer to brand a certain "look" to your publication, otherwise it looks amateur and cheap
3) YOU, THE EDITOR/OWNER NEEDS TO HUNT FOR STORIES!! if you don't you miss all the big stories, people buy mags to read the big stories, and readers enjoy reading your take on the events they participated in...SO DO IT!

why does Dave Smith miss the big events in nitro onroad? i can't say for certain, but what i would guess would be some of the main reasons is because;
1) he isn't willing to pay for articles handed in by racers, or freelance writers.
or
2)he is cost cutting, trying to get people to help him for free, when infact he should be PAYING

don't be mistaken. each Full page advert gets dave probably $500 to $600, with a two page spread mabye charged around $1000. These are very cheap prices, but i have not outlined the costs for half pages and quarter page adverts along with others either....

also, If you count the ads, it adds up. The ticket price of the mag ($12, or whatever it may be) probably gets eaten up by printing and delivery costs to outlets, yet the advert dollars are pure profit...And if Dave is Smart, he'd develop special editions of the mag, and allow importers to sponsor sections etc etc...but i haven't really seen him do this. There is money to be made, but you need to do it properly. I get the impression Dave is content with the income the mag provides, and is not too fussed on developing and evolving the content too much...this takes work anyway, and maybe he is not prepared to put in this amount of effort.

He would make more than enough to pay for freelance regular writers to do good quality reviews for his mag...Online news Journals pay about $300 to $500 per article you write. I'm certain Dave Smith could afford $100 to $200 (depending on length, quality, and if pictures are included, and the quality of these) per article with pictures included supplied by the writer. If it is used, he pays them, otherwise he doesn't have to, it's simple.

so no excuse Racing Lines, you need to invest in the talent that might be out there to make your magazine better.

Heck i'd Love to write for Racing Lines, and would jump at the oportunity, but heck, i wouldn't do it for free! I interviewed Wayne Walker once during the Tourer worlds in QLD, i don't think it was used, but i asked just for a free mag, i didn't even get this as a token of gratitude. I mean, if someone is willing to spend their time, write up questions, and interview someone for your publication, the least you can do is send a free mag to them for the effort.

Slo-MTX4

iTrader: (1)

Holy crap Thomas....Me thinks there will be some fiesty words coming your way.

Anyway Snowy was covering the nats, cause he was looking for some juicy information when i called 10 mins in the semi, pity i had none for him, although if i had of found the correct problem instead of what we thought then we might have had something for him.....but oh well

xxblackheartxx2

iTrader: (8)

well thats just slack isnt, it isnt just me waiting for the full report on a major event, its other people as well who are waiting.

TomB

iTrader: (10)

well if fiesty words do come they aren't justified because it's 100% true. only little mum and pop publications rely on voluntary writers. Racing Lines is not one of them, there is a massive amount of advertising revenue, so people SHOULD be paid a small amount for their effort. It's only fair.

websites like http://www.eurekastreet.com.au/ pay about $200 to $300 per article, i have a mate who does alot of journalism for these online publications. Do you see as many adverts on this website as you do in racing Lines?

Check out eureka street’s pay rates here;
http://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=670

Rody

LOL, I have not posted on here for a while, but as per usual, Tom can bring people out of retirement with his jibberish! I must admit though, there is a lot of merit to what he is saying, but it's just plain funny! I hope Dolly takes the bait, and begins the GLOVE OF LOVE BATTLE, Mk 2.

Besercoe

iTrader: (9)

You all seem to think Dolly actually gives a shit what a racer thinks? Thats the funniest part

How many editions of the catalogue are sold to racers compared to little johnny looking at buying a monster truck or a wheelie king, SFA

bigtez

iTrader: (6)

For once I agree with the dribble that comes out of TomB's Keyboard. The amount of mistakes and missing paragraphs stopped me buying that mag a long time ago. Having to wait months for event coverage is just another area it would need to improve before I buy it again.

vazzo

iTrader: (101)

Well said Tom. I am really dissapointed with the MAG. The points you make are very valid and if anyone fires up at you they outta buy the mag themselves and read it to get an idea. I do however enjoy reading Scotty G's column

Cheers
Adrian

cannon

iTrader: (35)

I always liked the "mystery" articles that said "continued on page 25" and you turn to page 25 and there is no more story. These are the same problems that were in the magazine way back when it was a black and white photocopied rag.

Free contributors = crap articles

TomB

iTrader: (10)

a 100 and something page mag usually has about 20 full page adverts in it. Racing lines has more, plus half pagers etc.

so lets do the math;
at $500 per full page advert (which is too cheap, it's probably $800 to $1000 i'm guessing, but lets just say $500 for arguments sake)

= $500 X 20 full page adverts = $10,000
if Racing Lines had 12 issues per year = $120,000

print costs and delivery would be covered by the cover price...so now you know why he doesn't try to hard to please the very small hobby market in OZ. if he earns less than this, it's because he's bad at what he does, it's that simple, because a full page advert at $500 is a steal, and hence would be piss easy to sell to clients.

geez not bad ay (you should expect that in 1 month if your mag is mainstream content orientated, with maybe 15,000 to 20,000 CAB audited print run)

he definately can afford to pay the contributors I'm positive of it.

Ashley Cobb

iTrader: (28)

I too was disappointed to find no coverage in the last magazine from the QLD titles, since they had a write up based at the titles in the previous issue.

I also submitted a number of high quality photos from the Titles, Sunshine Coast Interclub and Gold Coast Challenge/Interclub.

I guess they weren't wanted :P

Scott G's column is always enjoyable though.