Dan,
Well said! We all welcome fresh faces to help out with the thousands of
jobs, the rule book is just one, that it takes to run an organization like
the SCTA/BNI.
I am truly amazed at how well this organization runs with ALL VOLUNTEER help
and has done so for 60 years! I just drove 75 miles yesterday afternoon to
meet with the BNI board for Bonneville 2000 preparation. Oh, did I mention
that I took off work at noon and did not get home until 7:00pm that evening.
Of course the other 7 at the table did the same thing. No one would believe
the hours of preparation, phone calls, copies, meetings, gas and mileage on
our cars that it takes to put on an event like Bonneville, Muroc or El
Mirage. On my way back home I picked up the SCTA registration trailer,
which is full of wire for the timing lights at Bonneville. We have two
weekends planned already for rewinding and repairing the 15 spools of wire.
If it is like 2 years ago I will spend 5 of my weekends with at least 6
other folks getting the wire ready for use. This sure cuts into my race car
prep time!
Well my train of thought was just derailed. I just spent 45 minutes on the
other phone with the chief motorcycle tech guy, Dale Martin. Is anyone
interested in running on FIM records at World Finals??? Please contact
Dale.
I guess the interruption was a good thing, I was beginning to ramble. All I
wanted to say is how well these organizations run with just a bunch of
volunteers! My hat is off to all those in the past and those that will step
up in the future. Thank you for a job well done, sustaining the last
amateur form of motorsport racing.
Let me tell you why I joined this list and then just sat back and listened
to what was going on. My first intention was to find out what we could do
better, for you the racer, at Bonneville, Muroc and El Mirage. After
joining I found the technical banter worth staying on the list. Believe it
or not, all of the SCTA/BNI board wants to put on a meet that is enjoyable
for everyone. To this end we welcome ALL CONSTRUCTIVE criticism on how
things are done. We are striving to make the events easier for us to put on
and more enjoyable for you to race at each year. At the same time we want
to ensure the associations are around in another 60 years for our children
to enjoy amateur motorsports!
Mike Manghelli
SCTA President
Lancaster, CA.
-----Original Message-----
From: Dan Warner <dwarner@electrorent.com>
To: Skip Higginbotham <saltrat@pro-blend.com>
Cc: land-speed@autox.team.net <land-speed@autox.team.net>
Date: Thursday, January 20, 2000 6:06 AM
Subject: Re: Rules
>Sure - Mike Manghelli, SCTA president for 2000 is a member of this list.
I'm
>certain that he will welcome any constructive input from the participants.
>Steve Batchelor is again the head of car tech, number in 1999 rulebook.
>Give Steve a shout - fix the rulebook, come on out and attend the rules
>meetings, attend the board meetings, help in the proof reading process all
>it takes is hunderds of unpaid hours. Hey - reformat the book to look like
>NHRA's. How's that for an idea? Remember all suggestions for changes can be
>put onto the form available at every SCTA meet, I recieved only two for
>1999, and the cutoff date is Nov 1st.
>
>Dan
>----- Original Message -----
>From: Skip Higginbotham <saltrat@pro-blend.com>
>To: <land-speed@autox.team.net>
>Sent: Wednesday, January 19, 2000 8:32 PM
>Subject: Rules
>
>
>> Hi Team,
>> Well, I have read all the rulebook comments and I'm really going to put
my
>> foot in it now.
>> I have a basic problem with the rule book.
>>
>> The problem that I have is that it is designed to give the inspector too
>> much latitude in interpretation. Further, changes that are made to it do
>> not tend to clarify or definitize areas that cause problems during
>inspection.
>>
>> As a result (I think), for three inspections in a row, I get complained
to
>> about things that aren't even in the rule book and on top of that some
>> inspectors who wouldn't design a streamliner that way I did try to
>> influence future changes or additions to be made the way they currently
do
>> things in another association (type of racing). Interpretations include
>> disapproval (verbally) of: Halon in the cockpit; steel rings around lug
>> bolts for steel wheels; warning about my helmet which is much stronger
>than
>> many that are allowed to run, etc. In most of this, no notes were placed
>in
>> the log book! And no changes were made to the "book". The exception was
>> Oxygen breathing systems. That was put in the book. Never mind that
>> addition of oxygen to the drivers body at a density altitude of 6 to 8
>> thousand feet makes perfect medical sense.
>>
>> I do not want to complain and complain and not do something....so.....
>>
>> I would like to join in the rules making process and participate in
>> clarifying every section of the "book" to make it easier for the
inspector
>> to do his/her job. And somewhere along the way make it possible for a car
>> owner/builder to have a fighting chance of making it through inspection
at
>> a Bonneville meet without unnecessary heartburn. Necessary heartburn
>caused
>> by not meeting the rules, as written (not just as interpreted) is just
>fine.
>>
>> I guess that the door panel discussion just made me flip!
>>
>> Dan, can I help somehow?
>>
>> Skip in central Texas, (where the heat may have finally gotten to me).
>> I'm trying to be productive here!
>>
>
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