No such thing as small fields in U2K Cup, BMW E30's and BMW Open, AES & Arrow Wheels, Alfa Trofeo. None of these could ever be considered a 'Premier Class'. Apart from the front runners in the BMW open, all would be in the 'affordable' category and are effectively road cars, not race cars.

A Premier class (as opposed to a Tier 1 meeting) should be for what most would consider race cars, be they race saloons, single seaters or exotics such as GT's.

A Tier 1 meeting need not be exclusive to premier classes, but they can represent the balance to make a programme varied and interesting. As a series, Tier 1 needs to differentiate between those top classes that appear at all or most events and other well supported classes at the whim of the local organisers.

Geographically, NZ is not ideal for more than a very small number of National Classes (cost and time prohibitive) therefore by default, we have Island based championships and further down the scale, regional.

Our own is Pukekohe and Hampton Downs based (regional), with just one Taupo event. Others are Manfeild and Taupo based (regional) but any NI series that includes all four tracks becomes Island based, but straightaway, the costs rise. No doubt the same applies in the South Island given the distances between the tracks.

We pulled out of Manfeild purely on the grounds of costs and time to our competitors.

I may be being very simplistic here but there are many factors to be taken into account when setting up any series, whether that be Tier 1 or at Club level. Get it right and it works. Get it wrong and it falls over (or needs putting to sleep...). That part isn't so very complicated but some seem to overlook the very basics.