Poor crowds could mean end for the Summernats

Negative media coverage will be partly to blame if Australia’s largest car festival doesn’t live on next year, its founder says.Summernats wound up on the weekend in Canberra with overall crowd numbers down 20 per cent.Just 80,000 people checked out the hotted-up cars and scantily-clad girls during the four days of the festival this year.Founder Chick Henry – who was embarrassingly caught speeding on day one – says the drop in revenue means the event’s future is in doubt.”The reality is with the significant reduction in crowd numbers I can’t, at this point, 100 per cent confirm that Summernats 23 will go ahead,” Mr Henry said in a statement.

“The drop in revenue will have a very serious impact on our bottom line.”

Mr Henry blamed the poor attendance on a number of factors, including negative media coverage.

“It’s probably a multitude of reasons,” he said.

“The dates (closer to New Year’s Eve than usual), the economic climate and all the negative media reporting that seems to consistently surround Summernats.”

Summernats received national coverage for all the wrong reasons in 2008.

After a number of visitors were kicked out for misbehaving, a 300-strong mob marched around the venue – Canberra’s Exhibition Park – yelling “Angry mob” and Summernats’ infamous catch-cry “Show us your tits”.

On Saturday, Mr Henry said the smaller crowds were due to the global economic crisis.

“There’s no doubt about it, right across the board there’s an effect because of the downturn,” Mr Henry told reporters.

While the crowds were down, they were relatively well-behaved this year.

Police say there were no major incidents despite one alleged assault on a patron who was taken to hospital on Saturday afternoon.

“ACT Policing are happy with the crowd behaviour and our security managers have applauded the general attitude of our patrons,” Mr Henry said.

“It was simply the best Summernats crowd we’ve ever had, by way of behaviour.”

The event organiser says he’ll make sure he can pay all his bills before determining if there’s enough money left in the kitty to stage the event next year.

Mr Henry dropped a claim for government assistance last year when a treasury document left on a lectern by ACT Chief Minister Jon Stanhope revealed his wage for running the event was more than $200,000.