Speedway is not traditionally a sport that has done anything on a national level to attract and retain competitors. That could be about to change with the development of training and coaching materials for the Motorcycle Speedway classes, but in the interim there isn’t a lot of effort put into this area. What is noticeable about this table when compared to the total competitor numbers on page 156, is how some tracks outperform in this area. For instance Ruapuna, Western Springs, Wellington, Oreti and Riverside have all punched above their weight in this regard. And despite the fact that the number of new competitors is down overall, half the tracks managed to record an increase in new competitors when compared to 2010/11.
Western Springs Stratford Kihikihi Cromwell Riverside Wanganui Rotorua Blenheim Wellington Westport Oreti Moore Park Huntly Baypark Meeanee Greymouth Nelson Waikaraka Ruapuna Woodford Glen Dunedin Gisborne Rosebank Palmerston North
Track
2009/10 Rookies Palmerston North 42 Stratford 42 Woodford Glen 23 Ruapuna 18 Western Springs 25 Wellington 16 Oreti 14 Riverside 15 Gisborne 25 Nelson 27 Baypark 16 Rotorua 17 Huntly 22 Waikaraka 29 Rosebank 9 Meeanee 25 Dunedin 10 Cromwell 10 Westport 8 Wanganui 16 Kihikihi 14 Moore Park 10 Greymouth 12 Blenheim 8 Total 467
Net Net Gained Lost Net 2010/11 2009/10 2011/12 2011/12 2011/12 8 -3 12 4 8 -1 2 7 2 5 -6 2 11 6 5 3 -4 5 1 4 -3 -1 4 1 3 -7 2 6 3 3 0 7 13 11 2 -5 0 3 1 2 1 0 5 4 1 2 -2 4 3 1 1 -3 1 0 1 2 13 1 1 0 -1 -1 21 21 0 -4 -3 7 7 0 6 0 5 6 -1 1 1 4 5 -1 -6 3 5 6 -1 -1 -2 7 9 -2 -7 -8 2 4 -2 14 2 5 8 -3 -1 -1 0 3 -3 -8 -1 1 4 -3 3 2 3 7 -4 9 -5 6 21 -15
2010/11 Rookies 40 30 24 28 21 19 15 13 16 27 22 21 28 23 12 22 16 17 6 5 22 3 1 10 443
2011/12 Rookies 34 33 30 28 27 20 20 20 19 17 17 17 16 16 16 15 15 12 11 9 8 8 7 4 419
A total of 138 competitors shifted their allegiance from one track to another in 2011/12, which equates to 5.4%. This is similar to the last two seasons, where the figures were 142 and 148 respectively. The net migration figures for the last three seasons are on the table to the left, along with the gains and losses for the current season. Western Springs has the net highest gain this season, and Palmerston North the biggest loss. The track with the highest churn rate continues to be Huntly, with 21 competitors in and another 21 out.