prmoore wrote on 03/19/7 at 10:09:20:<<Proper safety equipment is needed to run at those speeds. >>
"At those speeds"???? The maximum CAS we were given in the TSD division was 76.2km/hr. We got greater penalties for averaging above CAS than for below CAS. Most of us had to slow way down to avoid these penalties, meaning that we were not driving "all out" to meet CAS.
Well 76.2 is an interesting number, but what does it tell us:
1) 76.2km/h has you finishing 11/21 finishers (6m39s) on SS1 of the performance event - you know, the event with the cages etc.
2) One competitor scored a couple of 3E - that puts him 8/21 finishers - the meat in an Open class sandwich
3) you scored 10 points - all early, no late (to be fair, you zeroed a lot - obviously making an attempt to do so), another competitor scored 15 points (14 of them early), another scored 28 (14 early) and the last competitor scored 34 points - all early.
All this, as you say, with you guys having to "slow way down to avoid these penalties" (how fast were you going?)
I recall from the second growth meeting that the goal of including the TSD competitors was so that they could see "a real rally road" and be involved in a performance event -- general acclimatization if you will.
I made my observation - not of some number (76.2) but from the side of the stage after rolling on SS1 (there are witnesses to my comments at that time) - and before that being involved in perf. rally competition for quite a while - a while that, much to my chagrin, is characterized by a few offs - some of them pretty big.
No offense, but relying on the impressions of the people behind the wheel might not be the best way to go - things have a way of slowing down when you start to go fast.
As I said, in my opinion it was dangerous.
prmoore wrote on 03/19/7 at 10:09:20:As to the "intolerable delay" that having a TSD division caused to those poor performance people: there were 4 cars. At two minutes apart that would be 8 extra minutes delay. As someone else here said, if the goal to get more performance entrants were ever achieved, there would be more cars there too. darn, more delay. Don't you just hate growth.
--Rita
As I said, I wasn't one of those people - apparently Jaak wasn't either (in fact I heard no complaints at the SS1/SS2 turn-around). I don't hate growth - I love it. But watch what happens to growth if something happens when we're pushing the safety envelope or when someone who isn't a stakeholder in 'this thing of ours' comes along and says "screw the TSD points - I wanna go fast!"
Robin
(sorry to be throwing your thread so far into space Fred)