The Summit Bitch Thread

We have corner workers of varying experience. The same core workers are there every weekend. Anyone listening on the radio can tell something is up just by hearing someones voice go up 2 octaves.

Some veteran workers will call control with "emergency! stop the session" and control usually complies. But every situation is different.

But, let me just say, MARRC doesn't take the red flag lightly. We know that calling for a race stoppage is serious and carries a lot of responsibility.

We as cornerworkers have rules and procedures. If you want to read up on them, check them out at www.marrc.org

Will Astle

 

EXAMPLE:

current race is in lap 3 (before half way) and a rider A is in the lead. Red flag comes out for an incident that really shouldn't have been cause for stoppage.

All riders go back for a complete restart and now rider A gets a bad hole shot and is now in last place.

Do you want to be the corner worker who called for the red that took away a 1st place from someone who should have won the race?

As a corner captain, you are put in situations where you want to make instantaneous decisions and make sure everyone stays safe. But we tell ourselves to wait that extra second or two to see what happens. A bike that goes down in the middle of the track could (in the time that the captain calls for a stoppage) slide off the track and be clear of the track.

I could sit here and site dozens and dozens of situations but we don't have that long.

Just remember that MARRC workers are volunteers. We volunteer our time and our experience to keep you all safe out there. And I feel just as bad as anyone else when someone gets hurt. The racers are our friends too.

 

I retired from racing 10 years ago. Ten years earlier during my third season of racing I was severly chastized for splurging on a motel on Saturday and spent all Sunday getting ribbed with "Real racers sleep at the track" and "Motel Wussy" etc
I can just imagine what those old farts would say about this whine

P.S. I'm an old fart, so I guess those guys that ribbed me would now be considered Senior Old Farts

 

Some of us old farts are still there sleeping in the same van we drove there 10 years ago. Same box fan, same extension cords.

 

That's fine and all, and I'm sure he was frustrated dealing with some people, but both times I saw him dealing with people "asshole" was the first thing that came to mind...

 

FWIW, I talked to the CW in that corner this afternoon(Monday), and she called in for a red asap as it was still happening. Everyone was doing their job correctly. Kinda agree with Sean tho that waving yellows should be used sparingly so they have more impact....

Thought the sign thing was pretty funny and so did George, apparently. Anybody know if he got the sign back?

 

[Rant On] Anybody ever thought of taking a can of cleaner and your own toilet paper before? I have. Be part of the solution, not part of the problem. If there is toilet paper on the floor, pick it up. Really, how long does that take? 2, maybe 3 seconds? If there is no toilet paper tell someone, don't just complain about the lack of toilet paper. It's just like being at work with the "grownups" who can't put their own dishes in the dishwasher or wipe up the water from the floor when their cup spills over at the water cooler or refill the ice cube trays so that the next person can have some ice. I've said it many times on here....it's a thing called common courtesy. Yes, the track should keep the facilities nice automatically so that people WANT to come back to the track. But that motivation goes both ways. You want them to keep it nice, don't trash the place when you go. It's that simple. [Rant Off]

As far as the flagging goes...I think the MARRC corner workers do an excellent job. I wish they would come to Ohio and work Nelson Ledges.

 

my take

I understand the whole clean up behind yourself Jess, but I'll be damned if i'm paying $80+ to put on a janitor hat. For premium fees, the very least I should rightfully expect is TP in the latrines. At Cycle Jam (One of the biggest events & higher slob to racer ratio) every morning the bathrooms were clean & TP restocked.

I'm sorry but if you guys think that expecting clean bathrooms and TP in the stalls is bitchy, then call me king b!tch.

on the flag situation:
I've corner worked for MARRC before I started racing and I happen to know Big Yogi personally so I don't dispute that these guys are kick ass and probably the best out there.

 

I agree that the MARRC folks are probably the best. The couple times I've crashed at Summit they were always there looking out for me right away, and usually with a nice cold bottle of water.

I just wish the corner workers had the latitude to call for the red immediately without asking Controls permission. Every second on a race track is critical. I just think if you have competent corner workers they can make that decision themselves. Of course they should still call in to Control to alert the other stations.

 

Re: my take

:up:

 

Don't know if they started locking it, but, there's a door on the front of the building where all of the supplies are kept. They used to keep it unlocked during the day. If you need TP, grab a roll (as long as you haven't assumed the position and completed the deed before you realize this).

 

That was the type of example I was thinking of when I said "err on the side of safety". I'd rather lose a club race because of an overcautious call than someone get hurt or killed any day. That being said, I think the CWs and MARRC in general do a great job. If the proper meaning/use of the waving yellow would just be reinforced consistently, I think that would go a long way.

 

MOngo... I can see how you easily get fruserated with the BBS..

 

I'm not saying that you shouldn't expect TP in the bathrooms, etc. What I'm saying is complaining on here AFTER the weekend is over does make you a whiny bitch. A big one if you're Buck. If you want the problem to be solved report the problem to the appropriate people AT the track when the issue arises. If you don't want to do it when you're at the track, make a phone call or send a letter. You're not accomplishing anything by complaining about no toilet paper in the bathroom on here.

I, just like everybody else, expect a certain level of service when I pay for it. I guess I've just gotten numb to certain conditions at certain tracks over the years because they haven't changed. It seems that the particular bathrooms people are complaining about is now the bastard stepchild and doesn't, obviously, get the same level of attention as the new facilities.

That's all...I'm done.

Buck, where were you this weekend? Looked for you but couldn't find you.

 

Myself and a bunch of other guys would have gone through 9 at school yard pace and came upon the accident slowly.

The way it happened we were going through there pretty fast and barely had any time to react, one guy had to go into the dirt to avoid the accident, I had about a foot of track that I snaked through to avoid the downed rider and his bike.

Yes, we saw the waving yellow, but as you mentioned, perhaps that is used too frequently. Usually when I see a waving yellow, it's not because there are bodies and parts in the middle of the track. It usually means there is a rider down off track, or at least off the race line.

 

So WERA should change their flag procedure because you can't remember what you learned in race school?

When you see a waving Yellow SLOW DOWN be prepared for a freaking mess!

Call this a LEARNING EXPERIENCE:up:

 

Please explain to me why a competent corner worker can not call for a red themselves without asking permission from Conrol first?

I understand that corner workers try to keep the race going, but in obvious situtations you're just wasting valuable time.

 

But someone is typically violantly waving a yellow flag durring this 2 second exchange!