12/19 FAST Relay Autocross @ Brooksville

[Loren]

Can't take credit for the idea. This was originally one of Howard Sharf's ideas. He ran the last one that we did a few years ago. (probably more than a few, actually) And Steve is responsible for reviving the idea. I'm just trying to help implement it as best I can!

BTW, you're a team captain, Chris.

[Loren]

Okay, for a variety of reasons, I've decided to not release the complete team list. (could be an unfair advantage for teams who have members that are "connected" or have time available to collaborate, or whatever... and, honestly, I just don't want to hear any of the "why am I on this team", "why is he on that team" crap... teams are randomized and equalized, deal with it)

But, what I do have for you is a little more information on how things will work, along with some rules.

We've got 8 teams of 6 drivers. 5 are pre-assigned. How were they assigned? Each driver was ranked based on prior event results. Mostly just looking at the overall time results of our last two events. For those who weren't there, we either went back further into FAST results, or looked at other club results and compared to other "known" people. Not an exact science, but everyone was ranked from 1-10... the ranks should be accurate pretty close to +/-1... good enough. (Top 10 drivers are 8-10, mid-pack drivers are 5-6, etc) As it stands, each teams total rank adds up to an even 25, meaning that teams should be relatively equal with an even distribution of "fast" and "slow" drivers.

There are 8 "ringers". Those are the drivers who were ranked as 10. (yeah, maybe some of them are 9's and Elliot is probably an 11... whatever, they're the fastest drivers) Each team will select their "ringer" at random by drawing numbers. That's the fairest way for us to distribute the "fast guys" without any bias. Of course, having "the" fastest driver doesn't guarantee a win for your team, anyway!

Co-drivers are all split up. They are not on the same team, and not even in the same run group. Three teams on grid is chaotic enough, we don't need to be dealing with co-drivers in the same run group.

Each team will have a team captain. He'll be responsible for keeping the team somewhat organized and motivated. He's also responsible for ensuring that each of the team's cars are teched in grid. And, he is the "grid worker" for his team, responsible for deciding run order, and making sure the next driver is always ready to go.

The run format will be pretty much a FAST Classic. Three run groups. Group 1 will have 3 teams, Group 2 will have 2 teams, then lunch, then Group 3 will have the final 3 teams. That should get us through 6 runs per team without rushing, and still get us done by 2pm.

We've got a spreadsheet set up to handle calculating team total run times, run averages, and best total run times. This will also help us keep track of the teams that are running to be sure each team runs each driver appropriately for each team run. It will be displayed on the big screen.

Da Rulez:

1. If a team is down a driver, the average time of the remaining drivers will be filled in for the missing driver. (Steve & Loren are "spares", so this will only happen if there are more than two no-shows)
2. Cone penalties will be the standard 2 seconds.
3. If a driver scores a DNF, the time of the slowest time for that run on that team will be filled in for that driver. The DNF driver's cone penalties on the DNF run will be applied to that default time!
4. More than one DNF on a single run for a team will score a DNF for the team. (Team captains should work to prevent DNF's!)
5. No more than two drivers may compete in the same car on a team. (so a team can't just dump all of their fastest drivers into their fastest car)
6. Teams are set up based on the car each driver registered in. Changing cars should only be done in the event of a mechanical problem. Changing cars for competitive advantage is bad form! (Note that "should" doesn't mean "must"... but, be reasonable.)
7. Teams may send a coach out with any driver on their team. (Make your team better!)

[ImpostorDan]

This looks exciting, looking forward to.

[chaso]

Have fun guys. Looks like it will be a blast.

[friskyflea]

This is one I wish I could have attended... gotta work 2morrow, all the way in Lakeland. My new clutch will have to wait until mi-January... I may start having AX withdrawal signs.

[twistedwankel]

This is one I wish I could have attended... gotta work 2morrow, all the way in Lakeland. My new clutch will have to wait until mi-January... I may start having AX withdrawal signs.

CO-Drive......it's the "norm".

Doug

[Loren]

Relay post-event discussion