2009 US Rotax Kart Challenge Grand Nationals Notes

The 2009 USRMC Grand Nationals is coming very fast, for those who are new to the Grand Nationals don’t be afraid to ask questions and relax, the process is not as daunting as you may think. Don Moormeister, our US Rotax National Tech Director, will cover Parc Ferme procedures with his GN communication. It this document I will address the operational and race element portions of the event.

For the 3rd year the event will have live Internet coverage. Watch for details as they develop. A continuous communication feed will keep everyone informed of what is happening at the 2009 USRMC Grand Nationals.

Many of you are returning as veterans of several Grand Nationals and have a good understanding of how everything operates and what you can and cannot do. For those who will be experiencing this event for the first time you should read this document thoroughly and keep it handy for reference. Everyone needs to read the section on starting procedures and have a 100% understanding.

Important notes;
• Numbers are required on 4 sides and must be readable from a distance. Numbers have been assigned thru the registration process and changing numbers at the event is not permitted. No letters are permitted. If you have a letter on your number plate it needs to be removed..
• September 11-14 practice days are considered unofficial practice. Beginning with official practice on Wednesday September 10, all rules and regulations will be enforced.
• For official practice no driver will be allowed on the track for any element of the event without numbers and a working transponder. Transponders are the responsibility of the competitor.
• All safety equipment will be checked and marked at Scrutineering. If you plan to use more than 1 suit or helmet during the official portion of the event you will need to bring all equipment when you present your chassis and engine(s) for approval.
• When on the track competitors must understand the official track surface is considered to be the normal track configuration. Short cuts to connect different portions of the racing surface are not to be used except in 2 situations;
¨ If a racer encounters a problem and needs to get off the racing path. Upon correcting the problem the racer can reenter the racing path at the point they left the course.
¨ If directed by a race official.
¨ Using a shortcut portion of the track for any reason except those listed above will result in disqualification of the competitor for the element in which the infraction occurs.
• In Parc Ferme the driver and one mechanic will be allowed to work on the kart. Drivers will be given 2 IDs are registration for himself and his mechanic. These are to be worn at all times from Wednesday on. To get items from Parc Ferme this ID will have to be shown. To get into the Parc Ferme to take part in any official element the ID must be shown.
• For Parc Ferme fuel containers must have caps on all openings. Fuel tanks and jugs without caps will not be accepted. Each time you return your fuel container and tank these openings must be secure.
• Practice group assignments will be made during Scrutineering. If you miss your practice group you may not join another group. If you are found on the track out of your practice group you will be black flagged and may be assessed a penalty of time on your qualifying times at the discretion of race officials. Please understand this policy is black and white, there are no extenuating circumstances. If in doubt ask race officials.

We expect to produce a complete schedule for the Wed thru Sat event days approximately the first of September. We have some school age drivers who asked for and received special permissions for practice days. If your competitor needs to miss some of the official practice this needs to be communicated to me prior to the start of the event.

At the conclusion of the competition we will again present the US Rotax World Finals Team. Drivers advancing to the world finals will need to pick up a packet that will contain all of their instructions and documents needed to compete.

US Rotax Event Officials will begin arriving prior to the beginning of unofficial practice. The majority of the race officials will arrive on Monday and set up Parc Ferme on Tuesday. Scrutineering will open Tuesday morning and Parc Ferme will open Tuesday, late in the day as soon as the Parc Ferme staff is set up and ready.

Once Parc Ferme opens teams will be given the opportunity to start the tire mounting process and this will continue until 4:00PM Wednesday. When checking into Parc Ferme you will be required to sign for your tires, fuel and oil and present your fuel jug and competition fuel tank. Don’t miss the times to accomplish as doing so will result in severe penalties in qualifying. You will also need to bring your rain tires to Parc Ferme to be checked in. Mini Max and Micro Max drivers will need to bring one set of rain tires to be marked. We will make decisions, as circumstances dictate, about the introduction of additional rain tires.

One area of concern this year is the starts and turn 1. At the summer shootout we tried a couple of things, but the starts were still to fast and created turn 1 issues many times. Because of the design of the track drivers get very excited coming to the acceleration cones and this excitement is transmitted to the acceleration foot, this is a problem. While at the 2008 Rotax Grand Finals I watched the control of the starts very closely. With this knowledge and also referring to the CIK procedures the following starting procedure will be introduced;

The following starting procedure will be used for the 2009 USRMC Grand Nationals. This is a complete CIK procedure that places the responsibility for controlling the start on the racers and eliminates the need for aborted starts.

The track will be marked with 2 sets of 42” cones. The first set will be the acceleration cones and the second set, placed 25 meters after the acceleration cones, will be considered the start cones. The track will be divided into 2 starting lanes materialized by 5 cones placed in the center of the track, or a pair of lines on the track, from the acceleration cones to the start cones. The formation will do one hot lap and then begin the formation lap. Once the leaders pass turn 1 at the beginning of the formation lap they will slow down and allow the formation to line up behind the leaders. At a point approximately 75% of the formation lap an additional set of 42” cones will mark the end of formation line. At this point drivers who are not in their starting position can no longer advance in the formation. If they are not in line at this point they must move into line. If they are unable to get into line they must fall into the back of the starting formation.

*Note: Micro Max will leave the grid and once past turn 2 will begin to form up. Micro Max will not do a hot lap, just a formation lap.

The pole sitter will bring the formation to the acceleration cones at a speed between 18mph and 30mph (30kmh and 50kmh) using rpm values they have determined from their data acquisition systems. The Race Director, or an appointed person, will have a Radar Gun placed on the pole kart. If at the acceleration cones the pole kart is above or below this speed he will be assessed a penalty on the finish of the element. A second person will be stationed at the acceleration line. If the off pole, #2 kart, crosses the acceleration line before the pole kart a penalty will be assessed. If it is determined that the pole sitter is forced to exceed the speed by karts in the rows behind him or the #2 kart is forced to cross the acceleration line before the pole sitter by karts behind him penalties will be assessed to each offending driver in the rows behind the #1 and #2 drivers.

Penalties:
Ø Pole sitter above or below designated speeds or #2 crossing the acceleration line before the pole sitter penalty is 10 Seconds assessed at the conclusion of the element.
Ø Rows behind the pole sitter and/or #2 forcing the pole or #2 to violate their responsibilities the penalty is 15 Seconds, to each offending driver, assessed at the conclusion of the element.

Pole sitter will accelerate at the acceleration line #2 will accelerate with the pole position kart, all other drivers will accelerate when the driver in front of them does. Head Starter will display the green start flag at some point after the pole sitter has passed the acceleration line.
No driver may come out of their line until they have passed the start cones.
Ø Penalty for coming out of line before passing the start cones is 5 seconds.
Ø Penalty for changing lanes before the start cones have been passed is 15 seconds.

Note: If officials determine that “ANY” driver causes another to violate their responsibility in the starting procedure, appropriate penalties will be assessed.

We reserve the right to make last minute adjustments to the above procedure as needed.
Any changes will be posted as supplemental to the regulations on the official posting boards, location of the official posting board will be announced.

For those of you who are attending the Rotax Grand Nationals for the first time, please understand some very basic things;

Our responsibility is to plan and execute the event plan.

Each driver’s responsibility is to;
Ø Read all of the communications and information provided
Ø Watch the clock and show up at your designated time. If you are on time you will never miss your scheduled track or Parc Ferme time. If we get behind you should still show up at your scheduled time because we will soon get back on schedule. If you show up late We cannot wait for you.
Ø Don’t use the excuse you did not know because everything you need to know is presented in some form of communication.
Ø If you have a question, don’t hesitate to ask one of the officials, except for those in scoring.
Ø Do not go to the scoring house, this is off limits to all but officials. If you enter the scoring tower your name, class and number will be registered and a penalty will be accessed. This area is not where questions are answered.

The Grand Nationals National Team is experienced and has developed a very good process for the execution of the event plan. Every one is very willing to answer questions and help you thru the process. During the course of an event tensions run high and our emotions get the best of us. We all need to stop, take a deep breath, think and then act, and this includes me also. If we can do this the event will be as successful as past USRMC Grand Nationals.

The 2009 US Rotax Grand Nationals is going to be another successful event, thank you for being part of it and we look forward to see everyone in Oklahoma.

Marshall Martin

National Race Director
United States Rotax Kart Challenge
rmaxnrd@sbcglobal.net

Additional message:

A Message from Rotax Grand National Race Director

To all Grand National Competitors:
Subject; Grand National Competition Supplemental Regulation - Safety Issues

Over the course of the season concerns about certain practices by drivers during competition have raised some safety concerns. These concerns were brought to the forefront following the Rotax Summer Shoot out. Our communication with RMax Challenge Series Officials has brought the following supplemental regulations into place effective with the 2009 USRMC Grand Nationals.

Our purpose in announcing these new requirements now is to give drivers as much time as possible to adjust their driving styles.

For all classes; The practice of drivers ducking their heads to reduce wind resistance will require the drivers to do so in such a way as their eyes do not lose sight of the racing surface. Drivers lowering their head will be required to keep their face shield, and eyes, facing forward.

Micro Max and Mini Max; The practice of jumping up and down in the seat has gotten out of control. The possibility of drivers losing control of their karts while doing this is leading us to ban this practice. Drivers in these classes will no longer be allowed to move up and down in the seat during competition.

We are going to ask OMC officials to warn drivers, during the track’s unofficial practice days, who do not comply with these new requirements. Our hope is that by the time qualifying starts drivers have adjusted to these new requirements. Effective with the 2010 season these new requirements will be in place for all Official RMax Races. We encourage local and regional series to start enforcing these new regulations immediately to help drivers adapt.

We request the cooperation of all parents to insure this message and action on the track is passed on to your child as it is for his or her safety and track personnel that we are concerned for.

Marshall Martin

National Race Director
United States Rotax Max Challenge
rmaxnrd@gmail.com