Four Tracks for 2018

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David Leikvold
Posts: 981
Joined: Mon Apr 16, 2007 11:57 pm
Location: Brisbane

Re: Four Tracks for 2018

Post by David Leikvold »

DP, thanks for the map. That really helps. If we had a timed mile on T2 would you use it more than T1?
I think if we started both tracks further south we could overcome most of T2's problems. With more surveyed points we could move the timing to suit the weather conditions and keep real timing happening. The return road problem could be easily fixed forever by using a car park setup when the return road got dodgy. Just find a spot at the start of the return road and past the All Clear Point for racers to pull up out of harm's way and when there are a worthwhile number of people waiting down there we get then to come back up the track or just near it to return to the start line. If vehicles like yours can't safely do that we would send the pickup vehicles down to get them. That sure beats closing a perfectly usable track for no good reason.

I'll leave the pay per mile idea to the accountants, it's way above my pay grade!

Cheers
Dave :mrgreen:
Good, Fast, Cheap, pick any two!
harky
Posts: 252
Joined: Fri Feb 09, 2007 9:03 am
Location: Adelaide

Re: Four Tracks for 2018

Post by harky »

bones ,reply makes good sense

i don't speak for my wife ( Barbara ) , she will nominate to be assistant starter ( track 2 ) as she has done for many years .
she has great respect for Chris , then David , but the whinging this year by people who should know better ( her comment is they have been coming for years ) means she will be wanting to know who she is working with and for .

my advice to her is , if you have people giving abuse or whinging, walk away !
the thing about volunteering is , ITS VOLUNTARY .
then our elected officials can truly address some of this stuff .
the fact that we have had people ,NOT get water and food , who are expected to preform in the heat , sometimes all day , goes against all duty of care by the DLRA

In SA volunteering is subject to Workplace OH&S rules which include working in hot conditions. Any serious incident resulting in injury would be investigated.

not sure if our " officials " read this - or take any notice of this forum , let's hope that they do.
harky
DLRA #643
so far 120mph for$2000---imagine how fast I can go for $20,000
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BONES
Posts: 371
Joined: Wed Mar 15, 2006 4:28 pm
Location: Killara Sydney

Re: Four Tracks for 2018

Post by BONES »

Harky

I was working the the start on the GPS a few years ago and some guy, on a bike, complained that the bike line was going slowly.
Mabe 10 bikes in one line and 3 cars with tender vehicles in the other-- about the same length.
He asked why has the car that just went,had gone before him when he was in line first.
I said you are in the long line
He said someone should be here to guide us
I suggested he could do that job. He disappeared

The two start lines together works.
The start for T1 stays where it is.
Bring the start for T2 closer to T1 and run the track off to it's original finish.
Racers and officials could easily get between the two tracks.
Put a big sign on the officials popup --- F--OFF unless the starter says On the esky as well

Taking pictures of numbers at the start line????
Every driver needs their own number. 5 drivers of 1 vehicle is 5 numbers on that vehicle.
We all know that we cannot jump on /in another vehicle and have a go.
Change of class-- change of number. For 5 people if necessary and the appropriate fees paid.
Now these new numbers are entered into the timing system and these riders/drivers are associated to a new entry.
The starter will call to timing the number and class and they will be able to check if thy are correct


We need to keep this as simple as we can --- we are racers--- some just need some training.

cheers Bones
David Leikvold
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Location: Brisbane

Re: Four Tracks for 2018

Post by David Leikvold »

Harky,
In the unlikely event that I weaken and come back in 2018 to run Track 2 again let it be known to one and all that I will not tolerate anybody, and I mean anybody, whinging, whining, complaining or worst of all, abusing, any of my volunteers. These pathetic ingrates will quickly find themselves yellow carded (your day is over) and if they really, really annoy me I will have Animal red card them (that's your week over, go home).

I would expect my successor to do the same.

I always run a single file system. That way when some idiot asks me "who's in front of me?" I can point straight to the person lined up in front of them.

Bones,
Greg Wapling introduced the photo with time and date idea this year so that the right competitor got the credit for a record in/on a shared vehicle. We returned the cameras to him every afternoon so he could download the photos and check them against the data he already had from the timers. Later in the week he said it was working well. I didn't use the camera because we were GPS only and those speeds don't count. I would strongly recommend for next year that the photo job goes to a volunteer who does nothing else, the starter is already too busy.
:mrgreen:
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GodSilla
Posts: 87
Joined: Sat Jan 05, 2008 5:54 pm
Location: Bega Valley NSW

Re: Four Tracks for 2018

Post by GodSilla »

I think moving the course back south a bit is a good idea. I went for a scoot down there while helping lay the course out in 2015 and it was hard and flat for miles eh. The other plus is that the canteen gets closer to the pits. :D
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Re: Four Tracks for 2018

Post by DLRA »

BONES wrote: Fri May 19, 2017 10:29 am Harky

Greg's comments in bold italic

I was working the the start on the GPS a few years ago and some guy, on a bike, complained that the bike line was going slowly.
Mabe 10 bikes in one line and 3 cars with tender vehicles in the other-- about the same length.
He asked why has the car that just went,had gone before him when he was in line first.
I said you are in the long line
He said someone should be here to guide us
I suggested he could do that job. He disappeared
That's exactly the response to give these people, they are only too happy to tell you how to do it and what to do, but they will never lift a finger to help

The two start lines together works.
The start for T1 stays where it is.
Bring the start for T2 closer to T1 and run the track off to it's original finish.
Racers and officials could easily get between the two tracks.
Put a big sign on the officials popup --- F--OFF unless the starter says On the esky as well
We cannot have the 2 track too close together as it reduces our options and safety. eg. if we want to flip the track. We still need enough of a run off between the 2 tracks.
There will be signs and ropes at the start lines to show where people are not allowed to go. Plus it will be emphasised at the Drivers Briefing, entrants do not talk to the starter..
Plus there will be a shade structure at each start line, the only person permitted under that structure is the starter and the next vehicle in line.
Along with the Pre-Stage and there only being 10 to 15 vehicles there at any one time it hopefully wont be as bad as last year.
The wrangler will be the one chasing people out of the immediate start area (where entrants are suiting up). No wristband? What the #### are you doing here!!


Taking pictures of numbers at the start line????
Every driver needs their own number. 5 drivers of 1 vehicle is 5 numbers on that vehicle.
We all know that we cannot jump on /in another vehicle and have a go.
Change of class-- change of number. For 5 people if necessary and the appropriate fees paid.
Now these new numbers are entered into the timing system and these riders/drivers are associated to a new entry.
The starter will call to timing the number and class and they will be able to check if thy are correct
The problem here is entrants presenting with the wrong inspection sticker and then disputing the fact with me after the event. If I have a photo with a date and time stamp of each vehicle as it presents at the start line there is no dispute. I have a permenent record of the sequence of runs. It worked very well for 2017 and was used more than once.
Yes it would be nice to have a volunteer dedicated to take these photos, but we can't get enough people to do the other jobs at the start line, so the starter is the best person at the moment.
At the request of the previous starter we have been asked to cut the chatter on the radio. The starter just needs to call the entry number.
The timing system does the rest.

I have already purchased 2 new cameras for this task for 2018


We need to keep this as simple as we can --- we are racers--- some just need some training.
The problem is (especially for the new ones) that there is so many new things to take in, there is only so much that gets processed, the rest just goes straight out the other ear. Plus they are too busy fussing over their vehicle or anything else to worry about some damn rules. This is why when entrants (especially rookies) come to registration they are given an orientation and why we have a drivers briefing and why entrants get to drive the track before the event.
I must say I fully understand and appreciate how and why this happens. But it's still frustrating when it happens.

How many entrants have download and read the Rookies Booklet or the current Rule Book?

cheers Bones
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Deni dave
Posts: 24
Joined: Sun Jan 15, 2017 4:44 pm

Re: Four Tracks for 2018

Post by Deni dave »

After reading all this as a newcomer it does sound good but as with everything good volunteers are hard to come by , hopefully whatever Happens it runs smoothly.
David Leikvold
Posts: 981
Joined: Mon Apr 16, 2007 11:57 pm
Location: Brisbane

Re: Four Tracks for 2018

Post by David Leikvold »

The ONLY way to solve this alleged "we can't get enough volunteers" problem is to make the position of Volunteer Coordinator more effective. The person with that job has to be all over it like a rash before Speedweek and be ready to hit the ground running when they get there. And have NO other responsibilities. Thorough policing of the compulsory volunteers needs to happen every day, making sure that people go where they're needed as situations change and keeping accurate records before during and after really matters too. Anything less will fail.

As Track 2 Starter I had a great crew of experienced volunteers and newbies turning up every day. Because of my unreliable radio I didn't know that Peter on Track 1 didn't have enough support. One day Pete called me on Channel 2 and even though I could see him just a couple of hundred yards away, my radio signal couldn't reach him. I could easily have shared my crew with him as demand required. There's no reason to believe that Track 2 will be any different in 2018, except of course that I won't ever be the starter again. I refuse to pay money to volunteer for people who provide my brother and I with absolutely nothing and then decide to abuse us at the end of the week for nothing. I am especially annoyed that neither of the officials concerned have any recent experience running a start line, if ever. They certainly haven't done anything since 2013 at least, and that was when we only had one track.

Perhaps they could run both tracks next year, they're obviously experts.

Ex starter Dave
Good, Fast, Cheap, pick any two!
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