Don't we normally meet at like 6:30?? What time does registration open for SCCA??Quote:
Originally Posted by Kestrel
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Don't we normally meet at like 6:30?? What time does registration open for SCCA??Quote:
Originally Posted by Kestrel
Pretty sure we met at 7 last time.... I'm changing tires at the house and rolling from there... I'll probably be up for meeting you guys at McDs...
Also, FWIW my friend (fwMiata, you knwo him... ;) ) Chris is going to be out there in teh morning with toys to show off..
Just look for the big red Dually Dodge with the spec Miata in tow....Quote:
Originally Posted by Thorage327
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kestrel
I have to miss out on this weekend's festivities... I've already email JStankus to let him know I'm out... :cry:
I'm not happy about it...
I think you are correct Sir!Quote:
Originally Posted by rx7gslse
7am it is! :cheers:
Dang 3Bean that stinks! :cry:
Does anyone want to use my canopy? I figure standing around all day out there might not be so bad under some shade.Quote:
Originally Posted by POS Racing
Bummer 3Bean...we're gonna miss ya'! :(Quote:
Originally Posted by Treibenschnell
Can any of you kids in Oklahoma go grab that Canopy? It would be nice to have some shelter tomorrow since there isn't much available on the infield.Quote:
Originally Posted by Treibenschnell
Still sucks he can't go......
Would you like to meet somewhere? Actually, is Kestrel going? Perhaps anyone else in southern OK?
you guys live in OK?
car washed, race tires on, aired up etc... Now just to wake up and go racin'!
My buddy and I will see you guys at McD's....
ill be there... :D
I had a great time on the road course. It was fun and it was fast! Thanks to Thorage327 for cooking up some burgers and pooches for all of us! Thanks again and nice to meet you. It was good to see the ATS Racing crew out there as well. :D
I don't know how many Miatae were there in total, but we had a very nice turnout!
<rant mode=on>
We only got 3 runs again! :? What happened to overtime be damned? The event ran smooth for the most part, and I think the run reduction was an unnecessary knee-jerk reaction! We probably could have had time for 4, but it seems we spent over 30 minutes or so waiting for a few of the 'mod' boys to get in their last few runs at the end of the day. Total bullsh*t that we all had to wait while they were adjusting air pressures, watering down their tires and who knows what else. If they want to have hot runs, then they should suffer the consequences of having no time in between. PERIOD! If it had been anyone else, do you think they would have received the same consideration? The answer to that question is a no-brainer.
<rant mode=off>
<rant mode = on>Quote:
Originally Posted by sammm
I'm in full agreement with ya Sammm! Hey Ramey & Kids of the SCCA next time why don't you just say we are going to do three runs then kick the bonus run! Makes you look a lot better than saying four than mid way thought the first heat pulling the 4th run. Try to under promise and over deliver It make ya look better! :roll:
Also what was up with the bonehead in the Mustang doing donuts in the parking lot! I thought that was grounds for immediate dismissal from the event, and all this tool got was a warning. :shock:
I didn’t see any of the stuff with the “mod” boys, but maybe we should just ban all non fendered cars from future events, except for SpinOutF500 :wink: . <Rant mode = turned down>
The event seemed to go pretty good, did we have the newer computers in the trailer Kestrel? Seemed as if the only issues were with the new timing light and those delays weren’t all that bad. It also appeared as if we had enough time for the magical fourth run, which I would have greatly appreciated yesterday.
I really did aprecciate the grub from thorage327, also liked the Spec Miata he brought out for his shop (Track Ready Performance) for us to look at! Bling, Bling! 8)
First off... Whee!!! That was one speedy course! All attempts at slowing people down succeeded only in creating 1.4 million DNF's and some busy corner workers catching cones. Not to mention a hectic job for the trailer workers getting all those cones and DNF's punched in to the computer.
Secondly, my apologies to anyone that came within 10 feet of me during 4th heat. My fuse was a bit sparky, Sparky. It would probably be best if the induhvidual that checked in for his trailer work assignment in heat 4 and then left never get within 10 feet of me since I did his job for him...
It was certainly great having all the visitors - even those members of Team Lucky Charm like Chris that managed to win CS while sliding backwards through the lights into a pile of pointer cones...
I didn't notice new computers, but everything in the trailer seemed to go smoothly -- at least during the third (my) heat. Control was... in control, the scribe was on top of things, the Starter was paying attention to both the Trailer and the course, and the computer guy managed to keep up with all the cone calls and DNFs. It was coming fast and furious at times, as we had four cars on course most of the time (as opposed to the usual 3).
We had the usual poor numbering (in particular, a co-driven Merlot NB Miata, that was allowed to run with it's numbers turned upside-down -- and no other markings -- as FM199 :x , and couple of Novices who were allowed to run with very small "N"s in front of their normal class numbers :roll: ) and the usual non-registered cars, but nothing too terrible.
I thought everything went a lot better this time. At least they are trying to improve the operation. The 3 run limit was a definite bummer, especially after announcing that we would get 4! Oh well. I left during the 4th heat, so I didn't get to experience any of the Mod car misbehavior.
Overall, I'd say there were tons of improvement over the last road course event and significant improvement over the last bus lot event. :)
Hey did I mention I finished second in ES yesterday ahead of my hero and mentor! :shock:
Sadly I wasn't even in the same area code as the winner of ES but I'm thinking he must have cut across the infield to post the time he got! :lol: :wink:
So how did the rest of you kids do??
That's Greg Ward's car. I saw the upside-down numbers as he pulled to the line at one point, and wondered what the hell was going on. I don't know who told him he could do that, but I can make some guesses.Quote:
Originally Posted by Kestrel
Don't blame Tech for that - Spokes annual Tech stickers (Greg is the VP of Spokes) are honored at our events, so that car never came through Tech.
Speaking of Mod cars - one Mod car in particular - I've just about had it. John Garcia went absolutely apeshit on some poor Novice at some point during the 4th heat for getting out of his car while he was waiting in the staging line. At the time the course was not hot (I don't remember why), and the guy jumped out of his car for a second, causing no harm to anyone and not holding up the event in the slightest... unlike JG and his finicky, overheating Ralt that had to be rolled to the starting line by a crew of three with a crash cart. :x
The course was fun, but yet again the event was - imho - plagued by minor problems. POS put it well above - I'd rather be told three runs and be suprised with a bonus fourth then told four runs and be disappointed when one is pulled. Add the little delays, our resident Mod car prima donna's behavior (both in Tech and during the 4th heat), the plague of reruns, and it was another typical Texas Region event.
C Stock got schooled by the out-of-towners. Chris Williams up from Austin ended up winning the class with a 56.495. Of course, he did get three extra looks at the course, which probably helped a bit. miata_racer came up from Houston to take second place in a borrowed NA Miata on old tires. :shock:
lunutjon squeaked by me on his fourth run (I think I'm the only guy in C Stock who didn't get one or more reruns :? ) to take 3rd place, and I ended up in 4th after picking up a cone on my best run.
That was Tom Holt. His car broke the transmission after 1 or 2 runs. So he and his co-driver were looking for rides. And since there were not a heck of a lot of FP cars around, he ended up borrowing Greg Wards car to make his runs. His co-driver, Vitek (the creator of AxWare) ended up in the SM2 corvette that took out 10 or so cones on his first run in it.Quote:
Originally Posted by Kestrel
John
Overall I think most of the points have been covered....
I was the lucky corner worker in teh 2nd heat who got to actually call all of those DNF's... I'd say fully 30% of that heat missed the last gate before the finish (that jog to the left you had to make) I know some of the miata guys did it as well..... That and nearly getting run over by a coupel outta control cars as they spun off course *trying* to make the gate....
All in all though, the event was run pretty smoothly.. One minor delay for some issues with the timing lights at the finish (aslo as I was standing tehre) We came up to teh conculsion that next time when the wind picks up we need to use bigger rocks :)D
But yeah, what teh heck was up with 3 runs?!? Last time we got cut to 3 after a car went off course and they had to re-do the course etc... I understand that... This time we were all but done at like 3:30?? I dunno whose decision taht was, but I disagree with it... We had plenty of time for another run.. {/rant]
Oh, and be sure to thank thorage for the burgers... He somehow managed to sacrifice the grill to the highway gawds on the way back to my house... Apparantly wind will actually pick up a gas grill, lift it OVER a spec miata behind the truck and send it sailing into the ditch with a scrapnel explosion. :eek:
I dunno how I ended up in class... I think 2nd to one of the M3s? BSP started out with 2 people pre-registered, but at teh event I know there were at least 4 cars I saw running around he paddock in BSP... Just wiatin for teh results I guess....
And the point is what? Who's driving this bus? Here's what it seems like to the majority of us. :?Quote:
Originally Posted by JStankus
http://www.circusmalabaristas.co.uk/.../Clown-Car.jpg
So if I break my car I don't have to use legible numbers on the loaner?? That's good to know! :roll: What SCCA rule number covers that one or is that a Spokes deal? :PQuote:
Originally Posted by JStankus
So where were general default & SOLO2M3 both were M.I.A. Sunday?? Anyone know where Mike W gone he has missed quite a few events recently... :(
Well if you have moveable magnetics, you would need to move them. If you have a mod or prepared car with painted on numbers, what do you do? Do you want to DQ the kids Karters who have a mechanical, and run in someone elses Kart. Where the trailer gets informed that FJ XX is running in FJYY car for this run. If everyone is miss marked, we would have mayhem, but accomodating problems as they come up will help things run smoothly.Quote:
Originally Posted by POS Racing
Yes there are problems, but come on man, if someone breaks their car, cut them some slack.
John
How about Tape?? Saw a bunch of it being used on on cars yesterday to signify number and class! :wink: Actually this wasn't really a case of miss marked it was a case of no mark.Quote:
Originally Posted by JStankus
Let's Review :
I'd bet cash $$$ my good friend Kestrel would have sent the POS Racer back to the pits if it showed up to the line with the numbers turn upside down and no other visible markings running as FM199. So why was this car allowed to pass? Also how would course workers know what car to post penalties on if any were incurred during the run?Quote:
Originally Posted by Kestrel
I worked in the trailer for the first time yesterday during second heat. The trailer is able to accomodate this, as long as they are notified ahead of time (when the car is still several places back from the start). It does cause a little confusion, but this was actually handled fairly well in the trailer yesterday during the end of the first head and during the second heat. The only thing that I could see that may have helped out would be for the person running the mismarked car to have the starter verify with the trailer that they are aware of the incorrect number/class.Quote:
Originally Posted by POS Racing
***EDIT*** I won't fault someone for their car breaking. I will fault someone, however, for not notifying someone of a number / class change.
I gotta agree with POS on this one. There is simply no excuse -- other than blatant favoritism and inconsistent enforcement of the rules -- for having anyone run without numbers. This one is cut and dry. It wasn't a case of poorly done numbers. It wasn't the wrong size letters or bad contrast between the number color and the car's paint (we had several of those little gems too, but that happens everywhere). In this case, the car simply had no numbers at all (or more confusingly, the upside-down numbers of another driver) :? . That is not expectable. Not by a Novice showing up for the first time. Not by the VP of Spokes. Not by Michael Schumacher if he showed up at our next SCCA event.
The favoritism that is shown some people is just not right, and it is noticed by us grunts. Garcia's bad manners, bullying style, and hypocrisy is overlooked (unfortunately, that’s not just an SCCA failing). "People in high places" can run without numbers.
What ever happened to leading by example?
Which brings up this little gem again.
We have been told time after time in drivers meetings across many clubs that if you do this kind of stuff we could lose the venue we are at, and it will get you booted from the event. This kid gets a warning? :?Quote:
Also what was up with the bonehead in the Mustang doing donuts in the parking lot! I thought that was grounds for immediate dismissal from the event, and all this tool got was a warning.
And what rocket scientist issued the warning and left it at that? :evil:Quote:
Originally Posted by POS Racing
Looked like Mr. Ramey to me...... Saw him booking thought grid and thought “oh yea here we go” and next thing I hear is just gave the kid a warning. Isn’t he the one during the drives meeting telling us we will get booted if we pull this kind of ship?Quote:
Originally Posted by sammm
Must have been "cut them some slack" day at TMS yesterday! :lol:
I was not exactly at teh mustang, but I was close by... Apparantly by the time he'd done his littel stunt he was already supposedly done with his runs and about out for the day...
OF course.. I had better *NOT* see that guy at teh next event if he didn't get removed form this event because he "was already done"
i managed to put the rear end off track at teh 3rd cone, and had to retech, and the guy was a jerk to me about my numbers not being visible, and they were definatly visible. and was like who teched you? tell me! next time i wont tell anyone i went off a little... if there is a next scca event i run. i got last in my class of 4, i was the only car on street tires, and mine are good for smoking, thats about it.
Being able to accomodate this in the Trailer is not the point. What if everyone just decided not to put on numbers... could we accomodate that? Sure, we could, but why should we have to? There are strict rules in the SCCA (in particular) about car numbering -- so-and-so tall, by so-and-so wide. These rules are there to reduce the effort that everyone has to make in order to properly identify cars.Quote:
Originally Posted by brock
And it's not just the Trailer... what about the course workers? This unmarked car hits two cones. How does corner 4 call this in? "uh... the uh... purdy little convertible just hit two cones...". Sorry, but my computer screen didn't have "Purdy Little Convertible" listed on it anywhere. :roll:
Don't excuse poor management/execution just because you and the Trailer can "accomodate this". The point is, you shouldn't have too... :x
I saw them they were not 100% compliant, but you could see them and you actually had them on the car! Plus you had already passed tech with those numbers on the car and then they want you to redo the numbers to meet that particular inspectors requirement.Quote:
Originally Posted by fwMiata
As far a skipping tech after leaving course that is done for your safety as well as everyone else at the event, I'd greatly appreciate it if you would comply with that rule. :wink:
I agree! Didn't Garcia make a point of mentioning the rules in regard to numbering and lettering of cars running in the event during the drivers meeting? If no exceptions were allowed, maybe things would run even smoother and we'd all get our full number of runs! Is this more of "do as I say, not as I do" ?Quote:
Originally Posted by Kestrel
Again, I have to call :bs:
Quote:
Originally Posted by sammm
Well, that gives you two choices.
1) Quit running with SCCA, or
2) or grab a Red Clown nose, and some big floppy shoes and help us try to fix the problems
If you see a problem, and don't try to help fix the problem, you are part of the problem. Even just telling someone that there is a problem when we can still do someting to fix it is a help.
John
I have to agree with this philosophy. There were plenty enough people with racer's tape that there is no excuse that the car wasn't taped with the appropriate class numbers and letters. It takes less time to tape a car than it does to swap tires, and I've done that plenty of times between runs... without holding up the event or needing "accomodations" from anyone.Quote:
Originally Posted by Kestrel
Sorry, but I agree that there is a double standard. Come spend an hour in Tech listening to JG lambasting Novices because their taped on numbers are only 1.25" wide instead of the regulation 1.5" (even when the letters, although not technically "legal", are 100% legible and easy to read from a distance - which is my main concern regarding lettering in Tech) and then explain to me why it's OK for "CSP whetever" upside-down to mean FM199.
Still, that's just an isolated incident that hints at a larger problem - inconsistent enforcement of the rules. JG can throw tantrums and scream at people who aren't doing any harm (getting out of a car four spots back in the staging line while the start is held), but we all have to look the other way while his tempramental yellow Mod car can have the radiator watered down while he holds up a hot start? Screw that.
As for trying to be part of the solution instead of part of the problem... more often than not, when I've opened my mouth, I've been lambasted myself, almost always by the same vocal minority (no pun intended :wink: ) on the board. When Tom asked me if I'd come back again next year, I agreed grudgingly, but after Sunday I'm having serious second thoughts about that decision, mostly due to the actions of (and being forced to interact with) one particular member.
Isn't it obvious we all saw problems of some sort yesterday? Aren't we are telling you the problems we saw yesterday? What am I missing?Quote:
Originally Posted by JStankus
You're missing the part where JStankus is asking you/us to get in there and help... meaning get on the Board and yell and scream with the rest of them. :wink:Quote:
Originally Posted by sammm
Hey John, what do you think we are doing today? Folks outside the Miata comunity lurk here to see what we are saying, just like you John.Quote:
Originally Posted by JStankus
Plus we are not standing the sidelines bitching. We are at these events, we are participating, and we are shagging cones, and working in the trailer, and investing our time, and paying our fees!
Also a side note, don't discount the efforts of several folks here for all the work they do for the SCCA. We have at least 3 guys who are in the trenches with you.
Yes, having the feedback is a very good thing.Quote:
Originally Posted by sammm
But getting the feedback in time to effect some changes
Did anyone complaining about the lettering go up and offer some tape to Tom to make letters on the car? It didn't occur to the folks around him. Tom was busy trying to find another ride mid-heat. Folks with prepared cars generally don't have the masking tape on them for making numbers.
I'm just asking folks to step up and help out.
John