Keep the Kink!

[openwheel]

There are oblivids (two sacks of s… in one sack) who pass through whatever sieve SCCA uses (Can you fog a mirror?) to award National licenses. Joe Schifini is one – DFL in pre RA races. They should be extruded and excluded.

”

I was hoping this would start to surface within SCCA. I did instruction for one SCCA school and will not instruct another until something is done about the skill level that is accepted to grant a license. The reason I won't instruct until this is fixed, is that I don't want to be part of granting a license to someone that has no business being on the race track with others and they end up killing someone.

Here are some thoughts about SCCA licensing.

-Right now anyone can complete the required SCCA schools regardless of knowledge and skill. Atleast the couple of schools I have been involved with, it is scary to see the level of skill that is allowed a license.

-A couple of regional races is not enough to qualify for a national license IMHO.

-Anyone can go through their schools and that same weekend even be in a GT1 or Formula Atlantic car. It is scary how many people start out in a Prod car, GT car, Formula Contininetal or Formula Mazda or SCCA car. There should be license levels requiring people to start out in Formula V or Formula Ford, Spec Racer, Spec Miata or Showroom stock etc....

-15 years old is too young for car racing, especially at the national level in classes like Formula C, Formula B, etc... where they are all going to start out. Not in club racing any way. Pro racing is another story maybe....... Yes, some 15 year old kids will make the leap safely and successfully, but some will not and will maybe cost someone their life. What is the rush????? They should start out in a more controlled Skip Barber program or race karts until they become legally responsible adults.

-I know where this age thing is going to go down the road (Seen it happen in other forms of racing/sports). We are going to end up with age brackets and that is a joke. The sport is already too segmented already to start splitting into age brackets is just weak. I want to race against the best racers in large competitive classes and I don't want to deal with less track time to accomodate addtional age bracket classes.

[JRMarchand]

It took me a few sittings to catch up, many great suggestions. I want to thank the Chicago Region for providing us with the best corner workers and safety crew at RA.
I want to add the following, clean the kink more often, thats right. Sometimes there is a full lane, other times the kink feels much smaller and not as easy to go through. Is this a fair claim? is the rubber accumulating on the carousel and kink making things unpredictable.
I've seen corner workers grab a broom between sessions and clean up some, not enough on my clock. The kink gets stupid dirty fast, the surface should be blown clean after every session for the kink and carousel. This should not take more than 5 minutes when it is done periodically, then it doesn't build. There is time between sessions to accomplish this. Short of having an on-board yellow lamp "a-la future of racing" i would rather keep the kink the way it is, clean it after every session. Why do we race on dirty surface all the time? seriously, let me know if it makes a difference on your experience behind the wheel. Clean the carousel and the kink after every session, much better/safer racing guaranteed, lets use the zamboni between sessions just like hockey eh, it should help. regards

juan marchand

[tav]

As I have indicated in a previous post, this is the first time I have used this type of form. I am doing so becauce I feel passionate about our sport and RA. To me safety issues have always been the big gorilla in the room that nobody wants to talk about. I am encouraged to see thoughtful posts from guys that make up the front of the grid. I fullly agree about the clean track issue. I had a snap spin at the carousel the last time I raced. I wrote this off to driver error until a crew chief from another team informed me about an oil line at the location I spun. The problem with using corners workers to clean up the track is that they have very little time for necessity breaks such as eating and using the blue room. Also some of the stations are a significant distance from the track surface. This might not be a problem at the Runoffs because there appears to be an abundance of workers. Other events are not as fortunate. The track does have blowers that do a good job of cleaning up solid debris. To better determine the need for janitorall assistance, I recommend a track inspection before every race by a person in a vehicle who knows what to look for. I belive this is standard practice for pro events.

[Peter Olivola]

It's also standard daily practice for every SCCA event not to mention the RA safety crew daily pre-activity inspection. Perhaps a conversation with the RA Safety Chief would yield some additional enlightenment.

As for an inspection before each race, that would add approximately one hour to the schedule. Have a look at the 2009 June Sprints schedule and see what you can do to fit that in.

To better determine the need for janitorall assistance, I recommend a track inspection before every race by a person in a vehicle who knows what to look for. I belive this is standard practice for pro events.

[Marshall Mauney]

Letter sent!

Peter, you probably have as solid a knowledge of operations at this track as we have on this board. Why would you surmise that this suddenly became an issue in 2009?

While we saw the one FC incident at the 2008 Cat National, it was somewhat of a freak accident (front wing detaching). I don't recall hearing about this many incidents at RA in prior seasons - what changed?

I would also ask if there is a general focus on safety improvements at RA, or if this is just a "Kinky" discussion. Off the top of my head, I can think of Marklein's FE that went into the tire wall at Canada resulting in injury, Mr. Greist's crash mentioned above, the Spec Miata multi-car schlmozzle at the Carousel, the FC incident at the Kink, the FC that broke in half at the inside of T5, the F500 that hit the wall at T5, etc. There are more; my point is that there were incidents all around the track - not just at the Kink. Racing happens. I think we all know that every time we put the car on track, it may come back as scrap - that's part of the game. Yes, we had a tough year, but I'm concerned that we aren't focusing on the root cause; the track didn't suddenly change in January.

[Peter Olivola]

I'd like to see the Safety Steward statistics before I'd agree that there have been more incidents. One obvious thing is that attention is focused on Road America to an increased degree due to the Runoffs.

There are always a lot of incidents at Road America. It's a very popular track and has always had relatively large entries in regionals, nationals and pro races. It's a very, very fast track and when something happens it tends to be magnified by the speeds involved and the higher statistical chance that other cars will be involved (in the words of one of the Runoffs Operating Stewards who worked the June Sprints, "the number of on-track incidents is exponentially related to the number of cars on track.)

I hope this isn't considered too mystical/spiritual, but my own view is that Road America, more so than any other track in SCCA use, rewards patience and punishes anything less.

Letter sent!

Peter, you probably have as solid a knowledge of operations at this track as we have on this board. Why would you surmise that this suddenly became an issue in 2009?

While we saw the one FC incident at the 2008 Cat National, it was somewhat of a freak accident (front wing detaching). I don't recall hearing about this many incidents at RA in prior seasons - what changed?

I would also ask if there is a general focus on safety improvements at RA, or if this is just a "Kinky" discussion. Off the top of my head, I can think of Marklein's FE that went into the tire wall at Canada resulting in injury, Mr. Greist's crash mentioned above, the Spec Miata multi-car schlmozzle at the Carousel, the FC incident at the Kink, the FC that broke in half at the inside of T5, the F500 that hit the wall at T5, etc. There are more; my point is that there were incidents all around the track - not just at the Kink. Racing happens. I think we all know that every time we put the car on track, it may come back as scrap - that's part of the game. Yes, we had a tough year, but I'm concerned that we aren't focusing on the root cause; the track didn't suddenly change in January.

[rgreist]

I hope this isn't considered too mystical/spiritual, but my own view is that Road America, more so than any other track in SCCA use, rewards patience and punishes anything less.

Here, here! I can't comment on the "more so than any other track in SCCA use" part, but I certainly agree with the notion that RA "rewards patience and punishes anything less."

[Raceworks]

If the over-riding emphasis is on safety and if low speed first-gear corners are an equal measure of driving ability than high-speed sweepers, why should we have any high speed turns at all?

The safest track is one where all the corners are around 50mph and the straightaways are short enough that even high horsepower cars can't rise above the 150mph mark. In essence, a street course with more runoff room.

While we're at it, let's slow down turns 1 & 2, Hurry Downs, and that whole complex between Canada Corner & the front straight. These all have dangerously high speeds as well. A chicane in the front straight and the straight leading to turn 5 are also in order. Long term, we can ban high horsepower to weight classes like GT-1, FA, and C/DSR (possibly FB as well), since they are dangerously fast in a straight line.

Eventually we can just go with electric golf carts that can only go 25mph along with mandated Nerf bodysuits, and be totally safe AND "green" as well.

Or we can just go racing.

When they re-vamped PBIR (formerly Moroso), this is more or less the philosophy they embraced. The majority of turns are low to medium speed, and the one big straight has huge runoff at the end, and has the option for a chicane to drop the top speeds. Overall, the place is pretty safe (or will be if they fix the worker access issues). It's much safer than the old track, it's also boring as hell. I won't go there again, because for me it's an awful long drive to go run a glorified autocross.

I was one of those who did go to Topeka all three times, mostly because I had never been to the Runoffs before. The first year, it was a pretty boring track because it had only a couple of decently fast turns, and one section with far too many slow turns on top of each other. It was better after the changes, but they created a huge safety problem with the exit of Turn 2 (WAY more dangerous than the kink, and almost as fast).

The Runoffs as a novelty has worn off for me, and I have no interest in driving 14 hours one way to run an emasculated track. I've got Road Atlanta less than an hour away for that.

If SCCA would grow a collective pair of balls and start disciplining drivers for being stupid it would go a long way towards improving safety everywhere. Far too often incidents are just passed off as "just racing" because they seem to be terrified of making anyone upset. Or they fixate on things that don't really matter, like the constant warnings for "bump drafting" in Spec Miata (I'd argue the technique of "bump cornering" used there is of far greater concern).

At the national at PBIR, I did something very stupid in the last lap. I tried to pull a low-percentage move, and ended up clobbering the leader in class badly enough he pulled off before start finish. I managed to limp across start finish in first. Did I mention there was a yellow flag in that corner?

In spite of the fact this incident was in full view of the stewards, the other driver had to file a protest to get anything done. My penalty? I don't remember the specifics, but it basically resulted in our positions being switched, so that Dale got his well-deserved win & I came in second. That was it.

I even told the chief steward I thought the penalty was to light, that a disqualification should have been the bare mimimum. Had he done that, kicked me out of the weekend (it was the first race of a double-national weekend), AND put me on probation for the rest of the year I wouldn't have appealed it because I thought that would have been a fair penalty for that.

But hey, let's just focus on changing the tracks, because sitting on some problem drivers or (gasp) maybe throwing out some of the people we KNOW are consistently dangerous won't make things any safer right? Nope, all we can do is just slow things down enough so that when the "inevitable" bumper car match starts they at least won't be going as fast when it happens.

[tav]

High speed turns are not the problem. The problem is what happens when you go off regardless of why. If A J Foyt would go off of turn 1 today rather than a few years ago at a CART race which he did, he would be walking a lot bettter. The turn was not changed but the runoff area was. Keep high speed turns but make them safer. Remember RA moved a whole bridge.

[SOseth]

Remember RA moved a whole bridge.

And ruined one of the all time neat corners in the process.

SteveO

[tav]

And ruined one of the all time neat corners in the process.

SteveO

You must have really liked the view of the bridge because the track did not change.

[SOseth]

You must have really liked the view of the bridge because the track did not change.

Sorry, I was in a bit of a time warp and thinking of the Bridge turn at Road Atlanta. I know, I know...don't ask.

SteveO

[tav]

Sorry, I was in a bit of a time warp and thinking of the Bridge turn at Road Atlanta. I know, I know...don't ask.

SteveO

Understand. I have my share of senior moments

[drdestructo]

Speaking of senior moments, I believe AJ picked up the limp at Canada Corner.

[TimW]

Speaking of senior moments, I believe AJ picked up the limp at Canada Corner.

Nope. Turn 1. Was there in 1990. Long red flag during the race due to his off I recall. There is a lot more runoff room in 1 now likely because of that brake failure.

[Jim Gustafson]

Speaking of senior moments, I believe AJ picked up the limp at Canada Corner.

TURN ONE AND BEYOND!! I guess we can all thank AJ for the generous runoff area we all take for granted there now.

Jim Gustafson
Visual Communications

[tav]

As I have indicated previously, this thread is useful in that it has resulted in identifying alternatives for the kink an issue that I feel must be addressed. The alternatives can be summarized as follows:

• Do Nothing
• Modify the behavour of the drivers
• Change the track configuration
• Make the run off areas safer

In my opinion do nothing is not acceptable. The headline in the Milwaukee Journal will not be what great racing took place at the Sprints or Runoffs but about another fatality that took place at RA if God forbid we have another bad accident. Yes, I know this could happen anywhere on the track but the Kink is recognized as an issue

Drivers encounter red mist or brain fade. Nothing will change this. As Tiger said we are all human and make mistakes or use bad judgement

Changing the track will nolify old records and take away a challenging part of the track

I recommend the run off areas be modified. Every time I have brought this up. I hear it cannot be done. I spent a good part of my professional life finding ways of doing things people said could not be done. Yes it will be costly, but anybody that buys RA stock as an investment should get a different financial advisor. Action should be taken now before the start of the season or the excuse will be we don't have time.

[Tifosi]

Has anyone considered the possibility that making the Kink "safer" will result in more people making banzai passing attempts there?

[Jim Garry]

Has anyone considered the possibility that making the Kink "safer" will result in more people making banzai passing attempts there?

That's what this guy reports:

Traffic
Why We Drive the Way We Do (And What It Says About Us). By Tom Vanderbilt.

Of course, he's talking about non-racing driving. But his studies and research show that a more obviously dangerous section of road leads drivers to be more careful and safer.

[dc]

Drivers will always make mistakes, but there is no reason to ignore the problems with people doing things because they know they can get away with it. Make the drivers have to be responsible for their actions (with their ability to continue to race) and watch to stupid crap get reduced. The school issue is another discussion for later in the winter. Don't get me started...

MLB hasn't cured the PED issue completely (head in the sand), but a 50-game sit down has done a lot to curb a good chunk of the stupidity.



Address the driver's decision making. Address the run-off area in the Kink. Don't change the track. Everyone wins.

[LLoshak]

Absolutely, positively, without a doubt, the kink should stay. It’s a ridiculous suggestion.

How is heading straight for an armco and standing on the brakes at about the same speed you would take the kink be any safer? BS

Respect the kink.

Simple suggestions to follow and you won’t have a problem. Take it for what its worth, been racing there since 96 and I’ve won a couple races there.

Wait for more than one lap before you go flat.

If it doesn’t feel right, don’t force yourself to do it flat.

If you have to lift don’t do it at the last second. Your car must be completely done with transferring any weight when you run through it. A lift or brake right before turn in will scare the sheeet out of you if not put you in the wall. In the Lude, I would half lift (50% throttle) right before the curbing on drivers left, run over the outside curbing, slowly get back on the gas and turn in.

The other big no-no, don’t turn in early.

I’ve crashed there before. I don’t want it moved.

Again, Im not sure how anything will be "safer" if we add the chicane. It won’t be safer, just different. The chicane will not be any safer at all, it will only reduce the speeds going down into 12. Entrance into the chicane will be at the same speed as entering the kink, just now one would have to use the brakes hard again and RA is already VERY hard on brakes. Could you imagine, 8 then the chicane and then 12? Then 14, then 1, then 5.... Geesh. Glad Im not in my Prod car anymore, scary for you guys who cant run brake ducts. We already saw what can happen regarding that issue in a T1 vette. Things that make you go hmmmmm.

Plus, everyone will now say you have to stay flat until you enter the left than stand on the brakes for a fast lap. Do it wrong, and hello armco, possibly head on. There’s NO runoff room.

Its just a VERY bad idea.

As for home field advantage, well, make it to the Sprints. I use Forza 3 or Iracing for practice and laps, don’t laugh, try it. Plus it was just the first year. And I always thought what was done at M-O was pointless. Still the same track, just now you couldn’t compare times and testing was a guessing game and you could never be sure. Throwing one corner or section in doesn’t take away any home field advantage, you never will.

Ok, back to work for me.

[tav]

The operative word here is Armco. Should there be an Armco catch fence at this location regardless of track configuration? Armco, when dislodged, rips people and race cars up.

[fubar]

Since all the concrete has been installed at Road America, the whole four miles feels more like a city street course than what used to be a drive through the Wisconsin countryside. Sure the kink has its' problems with barriers plus the blind turn in, but the concrete in the braking areas for turns one, five, bottom of hurry downs, Canada and turn 14 pose problems as well and have caused driver injury and much damage in past years. I found out the hard way when a rear suspension glitch put me off drivers left braking for one to the tune of several contusions, many bruises and a severely damaged DB-1. Are we going to add safer barriers or chicanes to all these areas? Every time I strap in I remind myself that racing can be hazardous to health and wallet.

[TrackBrat]

Fubar you are right. Racing is hazardous and we go in accepting the risks. Hell I have to do the same thing and when responding to an incident I am reminded even more of them and why I am at the track.

As for barrier the best bet would to run a small amount of Tecpro barrier at the locations where impacts are most likely to occur. It is what is used for F1 now and karting. A few weeks ago I remembered how well they work with karts. Yes different speeds but concept works. The only other real alternative i can see is safer barrier, which I don't see working to well due to design and cost. Or tires, which I am afraid would launch a car back on track, making things far worse.

If you don't know what I am talking about for Tecpro barriers here is the link.
http://www.tecpro.us/f1/english/advantages.php

[dalz]

Is this Tecpro stuff smooth and will a car glance off it like a wall or Armco? If not it is not an option along with tires. You don't want cars being "snagged" and sent pinwheeling back onto the track.

All I want right now is a date from the SCCA for a definitive decision on this whole cocked-up idea, so an "out" clause for the Runoffs can be committed to in my deal with my team owner.

Dale V.

[tav]

There is a path about 6-10 feet on the outside of the Armco at the impact areas. If zoning issues do not preclude moving the barrier, additonal wiggle room could be created and a alternative barrier could be considered

[TrackBrat]

In previous posts I have described the tecpro barrier, it moves with the car in order to absorb the impact and yes it is a flat surface. I am not sure how it would be done at RA since most tracks it is used have pavement under them/runoff.

If you do not know what they are, Kimi crashed into them at Singapore last year, not the best example of crash but it might spark your memory. here is an image i found of where he hit. http://www.flickr.com/photos/teemus/2903076860/sizes/l/
actually I realised the first hit was from the Force India car.

if you look at the bottom of the barrier you notice the contrast of the pavement color. The light area is where the wall used to be, and as you can see the barrier moved like its supposed to, absorbing the impacting instead of transfering the force like concrete. Cars are not bounced back because the barrier contours and hugs the car, keeping it against the barrier.

GP2 race at Monaco, Tecpro barrier is grey barrier in front of camera.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vp8RHwAlnrA

http://www.tecpro.us/f1/english/tracks.php

I think it is a better alternative to the deep tirewalls that F1 has been using since the car and driver becomes barried and there is risk of injury to the drivers head.

As for moving the wall back and the trail; that trail is used by workers and staff to get to the other stations. It also used to run TV lines and the like. If we are working back there and there is no lunch run someone has to go back there to attempt to deliever the lunches.

[tav]

Thanks for the education on the system. Hopefully this and the other ideas shared on this post will be looked into by the folks that can make things happen.

[TrackBrat]

I don't see it as being a practical option at RA just because of the nature of the track. FIA tracks are all paved monstroities now and that is where they are used. But they be hell of a lot better option then tires right at the kink, since tires would launch cars back like a spring.

resetting the barriers might be hard and time consuming also. Not sure how they do all that. I honestly wish we had the guardrail in the back still. The concrete with the fencing creates a canyon of destruction, and it severly hampers F&C and E&S. I know E&S guys wish they had a palace to bail, and I know I hate sitting at a station not able to do squat.

time for a crazy suggestion. Could we paint the walls SeaFoam green like the guard rail? Sebring and other tracks they paint the barrier in the pattern/color of the track and it looks really nice. Think It would give the track a nice feel again.

[Evl]

Sebring and other tracks they paint the barrier in the pattern/color of the track and it looks really nice.

That's because the color of Sebring is concrete.

[Rick Iverson]

Fellas;

From what I gather, the preponderance want to keep the Runoff track layout as it is. As I am not on the RA BoD, my surmise is they are not inclined to fix what is not broken.

This monkey business is the SCCA (read: us). If we want to keep the Kink, then keep it. And how can I say this with a degree of certainty? It would not be much of a 'Showcase Event" with only eight competitors. Lest we forget, we pay their salaries.

Iverson

[dalz]

Fellas;

From what I gather, the preponderance want to keep the Runoff track layout as it is. As I am not on the RA BoD, my surmise is they are not inclined to fix what is not broken.

This monkey business is the SCCA (read: us). If we want to keep the Kink, then keep it. And how can I say this with a degree of certainty? It would not be much of a 'Showcase Event" with only eight competitors. Lest we forget, we pay their salaries.

Iverson

So...the impetus for this movement started with a suggestion from a certain faction within the club. I'm assuming it must be more than a person or two. Will those involved have the balls to step foward and ID themselves, and perhaps reveal the more rational reason (than any of us can fathom) it came about?

Dale V.

[dalz]

Third hand information, from another board: At a very recent meeting, the CRB has offically s--tcanned the Runoffs chicane idea. Not 100% dead for sure until the next BoD meeting. Our long national nightmare is nearly over....

Dale V.

[Raceworks]

Has anyone considered the possibility that making the Kink "safer" will result in more people making banzai passing attempts there?

In a way, safety improvements have had some unintended consequences. I can't remember who, but one of the 1960's generation of F1 drivers (maybe Stirling Moss?) made the comment that in some ways the bad driving these days is in part due to safety improvements. The fact of the matter is that for the last 15 years or so, we regard racing as relatively safe. Deaths in racing are now regarded as freak accidents or the result of mistakes in car construction.

This was not always the case.

Up until the 1980's, deaths were much more common even in amatuer motorsports, and ridiculously so through the 1960's & 70's as well. We sometimes forget that in the "golden age of motorsports" a lot of people died or were horribly injured. In amatuer motorsports it used to be a big deal if you punted somebody. In professional sports, there were many tracks that had areas where if you made contact with another car, it was quite likely somebody would die.

These days this rarely happens. If you shunt someone, or try a low-percentage pass, the overwhelmingly likely outcome even at "dangerous" turns like the Kink is that you'll have an expensive repair bill. I think this is why the drivers and even many officials take a lax attitude towards the shoving matches and stupid moves that go on not only at the Runoffs, but even happens on test days.

Add to this the odd reluctance of officials to slap significant penalties on people for anyting, even blatant rules violations. I'm not saying we ban someone for every time they rub fenders, but I think that the following conduct rules should be put in place:

1) If you attempt a pass and it results in contact that causes the other car to spin out on track, go 4 wheels off, or being so badly damaged that it can't finish the race. This should be an automatic stop & go penalty, or (if the incident happened on the last lap) an equivalent time penalty (probably 30-45 seconds at most track). No exceptions, no analysis of intent, no "it's just racing." If the contact was deemed intentional or the incident was particularly egregious, then we can have the lovely little hearings & figure out even worse penalties.

2) By the same token, people shouldn't be allowed to block like complete idiots either. You are only allowed to turn in once. If there's another car alongside you (and by that I mean the front wheels of the overtaking car are next to the driver of the overtaken car) you aren't allowed to drive all the way to the apex curbing. If you do that sort of thing, you automatically get the penalty described in #1, because you're just as dangerous as the idiot who decides to dive bomb you from 10 car-lengths back.

3) You should never be allowed to turn where there are no turns. The only acceptable reasons for chainging course on a straightaway are in preparaton to pulling off the track or to perform a drafting pass. Weaving around because you botched your exit on the turn should never be acceptible, and the guy behind you should be legally allowed to kick you in the nuts after the race.

I'm all for competetive, close racing. What I'm not for is the hockey-game-like antics that go on at most club races these days. I can train a chimpanzee to play bumper-cars. It takes true skill to pull off a clean, competetive pass. If I want to race somewhere the "chrome horn" is considered standard practice, I'll go back to short track racing and spend far less money doing so.

[Raceworks]

Sorry, I was in a bit of a time warp and thinking of the Bridge turn at Road Atlanta. I know, I know...don't ask.

SteveO

They actually didnt' move the bridge at Turn 11, it's where it always has been. They filled the dip in (and added a drive-under bridge they really didn't need in the proces) and put a chicane just before the bridge. And yeah, it's pretty lame.

The reasoning was, depending on who you asked at the track, that they either did it for the bikes (the superbikes were doing wheelies heading in to Turn 11, which wasn't conducive to them being able to turn), or that they were trying to get Champcar there (and they'd be doing in excess of 220mph coming into the bridge).

The unintended consequence is that the high-horspower cars and bikes actually go faster through turn 12 (a corner arguably as dangerous as the kink at Road Amercia, except for the visibility), since they now are coming down the hill faster then when they had to brake for the old T11.

To be clear, I don't have any problem with reasonable safety improvemements. A better sight-line through the kink would be awesome. If we could put an energy-absorbing barrier there as well that would be good, provided it doesn't reduce run-off room (since there's so little there in the first place).

Of the two, I'd much rather have the visibility. Improved runoff & a better barrier won't matter much if there's a car stalled at the apex when I'm moving 1/2 a foot ball field every second.

[tav]

As I have indicated before, I am encouraged that this thread has opened up a discussion about not only the kink but safety issues in general. The fact is that many safety improvements in pro racing has been driiven by the drivers not the officials. Since it is our necks on the line and, forgetting there is an element out there who still think this is a blood sport, I believe drivers should pressure officals when they identify a safety issue whether the track or another driver. I spent one June Sprints advocating to the officials not to mix a Pro Shelby race with the sports racer race. I was not successful and about mid race I saw a junk yard at Canada. Rumor was that SCCA bought a car. Whether this rumor is true or not, I think as drivers we have a responsibility to lobby for safe conditons.

[EYERACE]

Speaking of Sebring......my favorite commercial goof these days is the BMW commercial where, early on, they show their car going down the Sebring backstretch after exiting 16 and as it goes along the barrier....the car goes by a bright blue port-a-potty that is right up against the barrier in the background! I've seen it probably over a dozen times and it still makes me laugh.

[jgreist]

1) If you attempt a pass and it results in contact that causes the other car to spin out on track, go 4 wheels off, or being so badly damaged that it can't finish the race. This should be an automatic stop & go penalty, or (if the incident happened on the last lap) an equivalent time penalty (probably 30-45 seconds at most track). No exceptions, no analysis of intent, no "it's just racing." If the contact was deemed intentional or the incident was particularly egregious, then we can have the lovely little hearings & figure out even worse penalties.

2) By the same token, people shouldn't be allowed to block like complete idiots either. You are only allowed to turn in once. If there's another car alongside you (and by that I mean the front wheels of the overtaking car are next to the driver of the overtaken car) you aren't allowed to drive all the way to the apex curbing. If you do that sort of thing, you automatically get the penalty described in #1, because you're just as dangerous as the idiot who decides to dive bomb you from 10 car-lengths back.

3) You should never be allowed to turn where there are no turns. The only acceptable reasons for chainging course on a straightaway are in preparaton to pulling off the track or to perform a drafting pass. Weaving around because you botched your exit on the turn should never be acceptible, and the guy behind you should be legally allowed to kick you in the nuts after the race.

I'm all for competetive, close racing. What I'm not for is the hockey-game-like antics that go on at most club races these days. I can train a chimpanzee to play bumper-cars. It takes true skill to pull off a clean, competetive pass. If I want to race somewhere the "chrome horn" is considered standard practice, I'll go back to short track racing and spend far less money doing so.

Sam, having grown up in Skip Barber Racing, I'm impressed that you're describing the SBR M.O.. SCCA has been a continuing education - many fine people but officials have difficulty setting limits on untoward and unsafe track behaviors. SBR brought people along slowly when they needed it, and told the uneducable that "other sports beckon." The comparative safety of modern racing has moved safety from the competitors to officials who are often remote from the ultimate issues.

[dalz]

SBR brought people along slowly when they needed it, and told the uneducable that "other sports beckon."

Actually I've occasionally heard them tell incorrigibles that they have a great career waiting in the SCCA. Now don't come back.

Dale V.

[Phil Creighton]

As a BOD member we were told that the track brought up the kink in the post race debrief.
It got no traction with us at all at the BOD meeting.
Phil