I've been thinking about rain at Nats and would like to hear others' views.
First a couple of facts:
1) Most autocrossing done in this country happens in the dry. I'd venture
to guess that its around 80-90% (we can haggle over the exact number, but
its not really important.)
2) According to my memory, Kansas in early September seems to have rain much
more than 10-20% of the time (anyone got any stats on rain at Nats?).
So, in effect, by having Nats in Kansas, it is really not representative of
the "normal" case. I bring this up because rain is almost never consistent
during the heat, so the competition during its presence is typically unfair.
It adds an almost random element, elements which are specifically disallowed
in the rules. Sure, it is what it is, and there's not much we can do about
it... or can we?
A couple of solutions to consider:
1) Hold Nationals earlier (didn't we used to run the week prior?). The
later into September you go, the more likely is the rain. Anyone have rain
charts for Kansas?
2) Hold Nats somewhere else (yes, I know there's all kinds of other issues
with this) where it is drier in September (Texas?)
Thoughts? (this ought to chew up a week's worth of bandwidth =8-D
--Andy
PS: Yes, I was one of the ones at a disadvantage with an early number during
a drying heat this year, and in '95, and in '94, and in '89...You'd think
I'd learn...or get lucky enough for it not to rain for once... :-(
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