Actually, I rather like Charles' idea. Despite the misgivings of others, I
don't see why protests on numbers could not be restricted to tech and timing
officials -- the people whose job it is to verify such things as stickers
and numbers, and the people who are directly affected by bad numbers.
Your bad number is not the reason you beat me! But perhaps it should be the
reason T&S is not going to waste time on you. That's an official's function,
not a competitor's, and it would just take a line of type in the rule to say
"violations of this section are not protestable by competitors."
It is akin to the concept that a tire, once teched and approved, is not
protestable.
Along with that SHOULD be a greater emphasis on compliance, with stronger
enforcement by officials.
I'm never comfortable with "Oh, the PC would throw that one out" because PCs
vary in personnel and what one thinks is weenie another decides to hear.
BTDT. I was on a PC at Nationals once and we decided a certain driver's
modification was legal. He was protested again the following year and that
PC found a different way to look at it and bounced him. I disagree with
their rationale, but then again they disagreed with ours (each for arguably
equally valid reasons). Which primarily illustrates that a PC ruling is
itself no precedent and no indicator of what another PC will do. Only an
appeal (not filed in that case) would ultimately settle it.
If it is in the book, it can be protested -- unless the book specifically
says it cannot be.
--Rocky
----- Original Message -----
From: "Charles" <golden1@britsys.net>
To: "Rocky Entriken" <rocky@tri.net>; "Andy Hollis" <awhollis@swbell.net>;
"autox" <autox@autox.team.net>
Sent: Tuesday, April 29, 2003 3:10 PM
Subject: Re: Numbers
> Can we compromise on adding wording that markings are not competitor
> protestable then? If we need this specific a rule for a few, then we need
to
> prevent weenie protests of it from affecting finish order. I'd really hate
> to see people walking around impound with a ruler. That provides a defacto
> exemption for people like us, as long as timing doesn't have a problem
> reading our markings.
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Rocky Entriken <rocky@tri.net>
> To: Chuck <golden1@britsys.net>; Andy Hollis <awhollis@swbell.net>; autox
> <autox@autox.team.net>
> Sent: Tuesday, April 29, 2003 3:27 PM
> Subject: Re: Numbers
>
>
> > Comments in text below
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "Chuck" <golden1@britsys.net>
> > To: "Andy Hollis" <awhollis@swbell.net>; "autox" <autox@autox.team.net>
> > Sent: Monday, April 28, 2003 9:01 PM
> > Subject: Re: Numbers
> >
> >
> > > Andy, I understand the frustration, I've expressed it myself, BUT,
IMHO
> > > there still needs to be a "spirit of the rule" exemption available.
> >
> > No. There is another word for such "excemptions." It is "loophole."
> >
> > > I can
> > > say with certainty (I tested a number of single and multicolor
> > combinations
> > > before selecting the one we now use)
> >
> > Which makes YOU the commendable exception. Ah, that everyone created
their
> > numbers with such an intent to make it the best possible, then this
> > discussion would never be happening. Unfortunately, you are not the
> majority
> > example.
> >
> > > that there is no single vinyl color
> > > that is as visible as our multicolored ones (white with orange and
> yellow
> > > border) on our blue car, and even though our typeface is not a single
> > > uniform width stroke, there is no mistaking what they say from a
couple
> > > hundred yards away.
> >
> > Does not have to be uniform width as long as the narrowest part of the
> > stroke is at least 1.25". What you don't want, to offer an example. is a
> > zero that is 2" wide at the sides and a 1/4" pinstripe top and bottom.
At
> > speed 100 feet away it is not a zero, it is an 11.
> >
> > > The fact is that any graphic design book will tell you
> > > that non uniform width serif fonts are MUCH easier to read quickly
than
> a
> > > sans serif font like Helvetica. That's why you'll seldom see san serif
> > fonts
> > > used in publications save maybe the telephone book where it's used to
> save
> > > ink.
> >
> > This is true for large blocks of type, as pages in a book or the text
font
> > in a newspaper. It is not true for single or few letters. This is why
you
> do
> > not use Olde English for your text font in a book, but it is effective
> > perhaps for a title (and even then, you use the florid uppercase only
for
> a
> > first letter). Many newspapers use serif fonts for text, sans serif for
> > headlines. It's the difference between reading 1000 words and reading 10
> > words.
> >
> > Serif fonts do indeed read well, but so also do sans-serif in the right
> > place. Note that most "small print" or "agate" is sans serif, because
when
> > the letters get small, you remove all the excess frou-frou (serifs) to
> > improve legibility. Your 6" letters on the car may appear to be a
> > quarter-inch tall relatively when viewed from 100 feet away.
> >
> > Very big type works either way. Moderate size (9-14 point) works well
with
> > serif faces. Small size (8 pt and below) seems to work better with
> > sans-serif. From the point of view of timers, numbers are, or should be,
> > "very big" while class letters are more "moderate" but should not be
> > "small" -- speaking here not of actual size but how they are seen from a
> > distance. We read a book or newspaper 18-20" away and it stays still. We
> > read car numbers from many feet away and they move.
> >
> > > Don't "punish the masses for the sins of a few!"
> >
> > Unfortunately, it is the sins of a few that screw it up for the many.
Not
> > just in what needs to be applied in graphic design, but the often-true
> > situation that trying to read that bad number gets the timers behind and
> > they then mess up the car (with the good number) that follows. Can you
say
> > rerun? What seems a rule for the benefit of timers is ultimately a rule
> that
> > makes the event run smoother which is to the benefit of the competiors.
> >
> > --Rocky Entriken
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