Quote:But how many cases have there been where somebody has won because somebody else made a math mistake, and took a time penalty?
Think of it this way: time penalties and broken suspension are analogous in the same way as helping your competitor calculate their time-in and a broken alternator.
There's nothing a healthy car can do in the former cases - the broken car can't be towed (easily) and the crew cannot have their opponent's time penalties removed once they are incurred. The outcome is decided and it's tough luck for the unfortunate team.
However, in the latter cases, the healthy car can tow the competitor's car to the next service, and the crew can help their competitor calculate their time-in to avoid incurring penalties. Something can be done to avoid the DNF/time penalty. The effect is that the playing field is levelled in the competitive sections of the rally.
I guess I see transits differently - I see them as merely a means of getting from one stage to another. Strictly my opinion, though.
Quote:That's why rally cars, and rally people are greater than any other motorsport. 8)
Rally people also have a reputation for helping their fellow participants. Should we start abandoning other competitors when something can be done to keep them in the rally?
I'm not suggesting that teams should tow cars through several stages to get them to the next service, or that they should give up spare tires/parts that may be needed later.
But I think that teams should try to help each other when there is minimal cost to a healthy team, even if the "weaker" team is a direct competitor. Keeping them in the event makes it more interesting at the end. Having more people in your class is fun! It's always been way more enjoyable for me when I've had good battles in my class - P3 with Dmitri, and P4 and Group N this year.