First of all, I don't see what is so bad about being on the site for 12
hours to get 3 runs. For those of us who have no realistic chance of
being a contender (which I will hazard to guess is more than half), we
have a chance to see the "real" atmosphere of competition rarely offered
in our more relaxed regional events. Even though I know I can't win, or
even trophy, I still want to experience the heightenned level of
competition because I believe that is a part of preparing myself as a
competitor for the time when I will be a contender.
I think entry limitations should be set only in the interest of available
time. Crunch everyone possible into those 12 hours and let us all
experience the thrill of competition. Stresses are a part of these
events and the people who want these national level events to be some
type of elitist gathering of the creme' de la creme' should consider
moving up to (Solo 1 ?). Besides, who will be the first to cry,"I didn't
win because there were too many people?"
If the club were to raise the cost of entry, especially since the recent
Tirerack.com debate, especially if it was widely known that the only
reason was to exclude those of us not capable of coming up with more than
we are spending already, we would see a full-scale mutiny, with me in the
lead. That would be the most absurd thing to do. Autocross is enjoying
a rennaissance right now, with more and more people joining as _serious_,
long-term competitors, partly because it is affordable, and that is a
_good_ thing for all of us. Trying to exclude some of us by making it
more expensive would be foolish.
In short, National level events are growing because the national base of
serious competitors is growing. That is a good thing. I can think of 10
guys in our region with less than 2 years' experience who expect to be at
a nationally competitive level within 5-10 years, not including myself.
I know of the same number who have less than 10 events under their belts
who expect to be serious about it within a year. Our regional events are
seeing growth almost on a monthly basis. Some of us are becoming active
in administration, course design, promotion, etc.
Please don't try to turn the Club's back on us. We deserve to be here
too.
Jon FP 73
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