Motorsport needs boost
RECENTLY an item appeared in the Lakes Mail hoping for the resurrection of the Morisset speedway at the showground ('The need for speed', Lakes Mail, April 4).
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It's a great idea, but with local consequences. This article highlights the lack of motorsport facilities within the Hunter/Central Coast area.
Yes, we have the Supercars once a year, and that is a stand-alone event with no spin-off to the local motorsport community. As the second biggest city in NSW, we get football funding, arts funding, basketball funding, but no funding for a motorsport facility anywhere in our wider area.
Road racing, motorcycle racing, drag racing and speedway are non-existent in our area. We have a great history of racing. We had arguably the first speedway motorcycle race at West Maitland Showground in 1923. We had Casey Stoner, Allan Grice, Ken Warby and the Pyne brothers. It's time the Hunter area got its share for a designated multi-faceted motorsport facility.
With the new state government entrenched for another four years, surely we can obtain some commitment to motorsport. As a seven-day-a-week facility, this would create jobs not only in the building stages but also at the track and the spin-off to all arms of the motor and accommodation trades, similar to what is happening at Goulburn's Wakefield Park and Sydney's Eastern Creek.
Driver training, pushbike racing, running marathons, concerts and product launches could all be held at the facility. Now is the time, as we have needed it for decades. Grassroots motorsport in all facets deserves a boost like that given to ball sports.
- Chris Markham, Wallsend
Speedway madness
SERIOUSLY? I cannot find anyone who thinks this speedway idea ('The need for speed', Lakes Mail, April 4) is anything more than an opportunity for the local hoons to further terrorise the community. Why not throw in a ute muster, and a B and S ball as well, then we can join the other desperate councils seeking the bogan economy dollar. Let's not encourage this madness.
- G Davis, Windermere Park
What a waste
WHAT a waste of money ('The need for speed', Lakes Mail, April 4). The money would be better spent on a medical facility which provides chemo and radiation treatment for cancer patients in the area who currently have to travel long distances for their treatments.
- Bronwyn McCarthy, Morisset
Myuna Bay closure
WITHOUT consultation Premier Gladys Berejiklian and her team have pulled a swifty on the local community in closing down Myuna Bay Sport and Recreation Centre. I am a member of an organisation that books this excellent Myuna Bay facility each year for a weekend of training. This involves men from NSW and the ACT.
I applaud our local member, Greg Piper, for taking a stance and organising a community petition to submit to parliament on behalf of the public who use this facility.
There is no mention of other areas nearby that may require compensation if there is an earthquake and the ash dam bursts. It looks to me like a set up to eventually sell another state asset. I would request that all members of the public sign Greg Piper's petition. Several of my friends and I have signed the petition at Morisset Country Club. Let's not allow our state government to take away this wonderful facility.
- Stuart Adey, Morisset
What would you do?
MYUNA Bay's closure is a knee-jerk reaction, maybe, but can someone tell me when a one-in-5000 year event will happen? It may be in the next five minutes. It's all about risk management. What would you do if you were the responsible person?
- Ken Thornton, Rathmines
