Over the weekend we bumped into a lovely couple with a pristine Holden HQ ute and started talking about the rally.
They raised some financial questions that we thought should be addressed here for everyone’s convenience.
The entry fees seem a bit high
$660 per car seems like a lot at first but if you break it down, you get much more than you pay for. A car includes a driver and a navigator so effectively the fee is $330 per person. You’d probably pay this much per head for any 2-day activity, especially if there are meals and gear included.
Friday’s and Sunday’s dinner at a 5-star venue in Cairns, plus Saturday’s and Sunday’s lunch en route are included. In addition everyone gets a branded polo shirt, a baseball cap, a lanyard and an ID tag, plus the car gets race number decals and a Roadbook. If you think of the 16-20 marshals assisting, the timekeeping equipment and awards and prizes… We are proud to say that the level of entertainment and the value for money provided has turned our past entrants into our best promoters.
How much of it is going to charity?
The primary purpose of this event is not to help a charitable cause but to entertain the participants. If you look at the quantum of the entry fees and consider all the invisible costs (insurance, car park hire, equipment hire, advertising etc) you can see that there is no profit to be shared with a charity.
While we did have charity involvement in past years, these were always separate efforts from the facilitation of the rally. We will continue with trying to assist any worthy cause by mobilising the audience we raise.
Places are filling up soon so don’t delay your entry to Australia Classic 2015 Cairns!
