Raceline Radio's Tomas Tales... By Erik Tomas
Rules. Can't race with 'em…can't race without 'em.
Most of the awkward moments in this sport are rooted in rule enforcement failure and/or inaccurate rule interpretation.
The baseline method around rules is universal.
All you need to do is make your rule book thorough and easy to understand, trying very hard to remove all grey areas. It's not easy, but you need to make certain rules can only be read one way. Black and white, eliminating all "ya but… what if's"
Are you going to hit all areas and all circumstances perfectly right off the bat? Of course not. But if you listen and watch, those adjustments can be made quickly and effectively as required.
If your rules are fair, the fuse you must not ever light is relaxing the rules because drivers badger track management after getting caught violating them. This happens all the time, especially at the local and regional track levels. Johnny Rapid in the # 35 threatens never to come back if his penalty for an illegal carburetor is enforced.
The second you relax the rules and start altering penalties for certain drivers because their violation was unintentional, or you think your entire program hinges on one self-centered driver, it's seen as playing favourites and you've lost all authority and credibility. It's a very slippery slope.
Couple of examples lately at both ends of the sport illustrate what I'm talking about.
Forget all the political crap around "Stepney Gate" in Formula One. Why was McLaren removed from the critical Constructors Championship for allegedly using stolen Ferrari tech secrets on their cars, but were allowed to continue fighting for the Driver's Championship? If McLaren used illegal cars to win races and collect points, why weren't their points wiped out and why weren't Alonso and Hamilton disqualified for the balance of the season?
At Super DIRT Week at Syracuse a few days ago, Brett Hearn was first across the finish line in the 358 modified championship race, but a doctored fuel cell and a strange size fuel log, or fuel connection to the carburetor were discovered in post race tech.
Ready? The rule enforcers decided the rules were broken, but did not give Hearn a performance advantage, so he kept the win, kept the purse money and was fined a laughable one thousand dollars. I would say removing baffling from a fuel cell to up the capacity IS a performance advantage, considering Pete Bicknell and Pat Ward ran out of gas in the end, handing the win to Hearn. Many a race at Syracuse has been won or lost on fuel mileage. That's why teams try to find ways to carry more gas!
DIRT, the sanctioning body, is now guilty of playing in that grey area. They are not enforcing the rules. If you win using an illegal car: NO points, NO money, NO win! Like the Formula One example. So what's to stop other drivers now from altering their fuel cells to carry more gas? It tells other teams you can cheat your brains out in F-1, and you will still be allowed to win a driver's championship. See what I mean by a slippery slope?
NASCAR, though FAR from perfect, did it right in the Carl Edwards case at Dover. One rear corner of his car was too low. Didn't matter HOW, or WHY, or whether not it was intentional, accidental or performance enhancing. NASCAR tech'd the car, and it flunked! They published the rule that was violated, and despite an appeal, stuck to their rule book. Edwards lost 25 driver points, the team lost owner points, and the crew chief was fined. No grey area, no inconsistencies, thereby reducing the temptation to cheat.
No, you will never take that element out of the sport completely, but from Formula One, to NASCAR, to DIRT to the local tracks, proper and unwavering rule enforcement isn't only the RIGHT thing to do, it's the FAIR thing to do.
What do YOU think?
Any suggestions? Opinions? Comments on the show? Better ideas? Keep the E-Mails rolling in for The Raceline E-Mail Bag! The address: erik@raceline.ca We always invite your feedback!
Miss a show? Go to The TEAM 1040's Vancouver's website www.team1040.ca and click on their pod cast icon and it's all there!
Until next time, talk to ya'll on Raceline Radio! ET
No comments:
Post a Comment