I'm generally in favor of a set of rules that are well thought out, published,
and uniformly enforced.
That said, and rules temporarily aside, I have directed several people at
times after 12:00 (Oakland) or 1:00 (GGF) to where there was an event chair so
that _they_ could make the determination. If it was another hour later and
Tech was closed, I generally told them they were Sorry, Out of Luck, and
encouraged them to come to the next event. Then watched whether they left or
hung around looking for wheels to abscond with!
Tough call. If it's someone who is an experienced hand, has a car that's
already committed to annual tech, is knowledgeable about events and safety,
maybe even has been an event Chair... and the competitor didn't hold things
up by having a card purchased already, and makes Grid on time.... Not much
chance of harm. If the event is running on time, that would be a factor too.
But a committed, paid up Member, low risk. Now, if he/she does it three
events in a row, discretion should be revoked, which perhaps brings the value
to the point that Bryan named him while giving him a hard time. :=)
OTOH, it's a total newbie who saw the race from I-880 and drove over, will
need lots of handholding at every point, and will probably screw things up
being late on Grid then skip out without working, and who missed the driver's
meeting, then you've got a safety and behavior liability, it's pretty tough to
say that is a good bet.
We're never going to be 100.00% on every single rule. I worked setup last
week and though I signed a waiver sheet, never got a wristband because there
weren't any at Reg. Nobody asked me all morning where it was. And for that
matter, we're a little loose on the actual waiver sheets too. (Date? Venue?
Witnessed by, signed on every sheet?) So I'm gonna lean a little the other
way and suggest that rules are rules except when the Chair exercises
discretion, prerogative, whatever. And I suggest that every late entry should
be required to ask, rather than just snaking it by. This decision point is
probably at the Reg table when someone asks for two cards! Finally, if the
Chair turns you down, there is ZERO appeal, get back in your car and leave.
Or just work a shift anyway since you're here, figure on some good kar-ma down
the road! PT
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