It’s race day

Well, the day you’ve been working towards is on the horizon because you just got a mail from your Club that the next kart meet is due to be held in a few weeks’ time.  For those amongst you who are old hands at the game, it may well just be a case doing what you’ve always done in the past, but for others a bit newer to the game, you may not be all that familiar with the procedures, so let’s try and break it down into digestible chunks.

The paperwork

Along with the notification mail, you were provided with a blank entry form and also a copy of the SR’s (Supplementary Regulations) for the meeting.  By now you should be familiar with the GCR’s (General Competition Rules) and the National Karting Regulations a.k.a. the SSR’s (Standing Supplementary Regulations), as well as the Sporting and Technical Regulations applicable to the class you are competing in.  It’s important to read through the SR’s because although a lot of it may be ‘standard’, they also contain information which is specific to the upcoming event including a preliminary timetable for race day.

Examine the SR’s to see if there are other requirements from your side e.g. submitting a copy of your competition licence, etc.  Then you need to complete the entry form application and mail that back to the Race Secretary as soon as possible along with proof of payment.  Early submission of this paperwork enables the Organisers to determine how many Competitors will be partaking, if additional Officials need to be roped in, whether any classes need to be combined, and to re-arrange the timetable if required to accommodate for a few Competitors who may wish to compete in multiple classes.  Note that the Organisers are allowed to refuse any entry for acceptable reasons, and can also cancel a class if insufficient entries have been received.

By signing off on your entry form, you the Competitor/Parent or Guardian, have also implicitly confirmed the fitness of the Competitor, their competence to compete, and also that the kart complies with the relevant specifications.  Once submitted, the entry is binding and fees are liable unless the entry is formally withdrawn within 2 working days of the specified closure date for entries.

Arriving at the track on race day, the Competitor (and Parent or Guardian if under 18 years of age) must sign on at the Race Secretary’s office, and should collect any special decals the Promoter may require to have applied to the kart for TV and advertising purposes.  Don’t forget to collect the armbands for the mechanic and helper to allow them entry into the parc fermé area – this is usually limited to two persons per kart.

Prepping the kart for scrutinEERING

Prepping the kart properly long before the meet is pretty essential to ensure that all your kit is clean and in race ready condition.  It also gives you a chance to obtain any missing bits you may need to purchase for race day, and provides you the opportunity to self-scrutineer the kart and rectify any defects long before you arrive at scrutineering.

When presenting the kart for scrutiny (please take note of the time slot allocated in the SR’s), just a reminder that GCR 113 which lists responsibilities of an Entrant, inter-alia states that they must be present at scrutiny, that the kart must be clean and be presented on time.  Arriving late for this can incur a fine which is not the way you want your day to start off.  The Competitor must also be present at scrutiny (no excuses) and their overalls, helmet, boots and gloves together with the fire extinguisher must all be available for inspection.  Don’t forget to bring the log book (must have a stamp that the entry fee has been paid) along with the kart and ensure that the relevant scrutineering sticker has been provided and applied onto the kart’s chassis before leaving the parc fermé area.

Mixing up the fuel which has been bought from the correct pump and service station specified in the SR’s should be done as soon as possible after arriving at the track.  When mixing or disposing of any unused fuel, lubricants, or cleaning rags, etc., please consider the environment and avoid spills or other contamination of the area.  Once mixed, your fuel should be kept in a closed container in a cool place within you pit area.  Note that GCR 123 states that no smoking is allowed in the pits, pit lane, pit wall, or areas where fuel is kept.

Free practice and quali

It’s vital that you participate in all the free practice sessions available for your class - it’s the last chance you’ll get to tweak any small changes that may be required to the kart’s setup, jetting, gearing and tyre pressures before that all important quali session.  Be aware that those are not the last changes that you’ll be making as the day progresses because the track will probably be rubbering up nicely thus potentially requiring a change in the front or rear track settings and also tyre pressures.  Changes in the relative humidity as the day progresses may also dictate that you alter the jetting or carb needle clip position to get the best performance out of the engine.

Next on the list is the drivers briefing where it’s mandatory that all Competitors attend the session to receive any final instructions from the Clerk of the Course (a.k.a. the COC) before the day kicks off in earnest.  As an example, the COC may inform you that karts have to arrive at the form-up grid with the nosecones loosened off, or that the clutch drum be removed for inspection.  If the latter is the case, remember that there will be a queue and it’s not a 10-second job to refit the clutch either – so, arrive early.  Having a bit of time in hand to get to the form-up grid isn’t a bad thing either, because at a lot of tracks the Organisers will use this opportunity to check the fuel mixture in your tank.  If it doesn’t reach spec., you could well be sent back to empty the tank and replenish it with a fresh fuel mix, so ensure you leave yourself enough time for this possibility.

It’s not a bad idea to confirm if fuel testing is being done each and every time you are about to enter the form-up area, because it’s far easier for the Fuel Testing Official to check this whilst the kart is still on its stand rather than having to chase after you.  Remember that no liquids are allowed into the form-up area other than water.  Apart from a tyre pressure gauge, you are also not allowed any tools in that area for obvious reasons.

As the day progresses

Immediately after quali and weighing, certain parts on the kart may be marked by the Scrutineers to ensure that they are not swapped out during the day.  If you wish to change any of these components, it must be done in the presence of the Scrutineers, and the ‘old’ parts will be impounded for the rest of the day.  Don’t forget to sign the impound form when you hand them in, and also remember to collect them at the end of the day’s proceedings.

You should consult the notice board or the WhatsApp group for the meeting regularly throughout the day for any bulletins that may have been issued by the COC, changes to the timetable, etc.  Don’t expect the Organizers to be lenient on your behalf because you failed to keep up with the latest instructions.

Every time the kart exits from the track the nosecone will be checked for correct positioning.  Don’t be tempted to rectify it during the race or on the way back to the scales – just accept the non-protestable 5-second time penalty that will be imposed immaterial of whether it was your fault or not, because that’s a lot less severe than a mandatory exclusion for the day if you are caught tampering with the nosecone.

Weighing of the driver plus kart is next on the list after the kart has been pushed onto the scales.  If you are found to be under-weight at the first attempt, remember that you are only allowed one chance to re-weigh – also, the driver may not leave the scale area until this has been completed.  For the above reasons, you can thus appreciate that both the nosecone and scale areas are out of bounds for mechanics and other assistants.  This may well be an exception for certain classes such as Bambino.

After exiting this area, you may well be asked to have a technical check done on the kart to ensure compliance with the regulations.  In order not to hold up your prep work for the next race, these checks are usually fairly quick and won’t involve any major strip of components.  After the last heat of the day, all karts are impounded in parc fermé for at least 30-minutes to allow for any protests that may have been lodged.  All race results are deemed to be accepted and correct 30-minutes after posting, but should you be thinking of lodging a protest for any other reason, this must be done within 30-minutes of the end of the race in question.  For this reason, karts my NOT be removed from parc fermé prior to the end of this period, may not be worked on, or have the tyres deflated.  You are however allowed to remove your Mychron, transponder, and also cover the kart should you wish to do so.

Note that there is also an Observation Form mentioned in the karting SSR’s.  Completion of this form within 30-minutes of observing an incident serves to bring an issue to the attention of the senior race officials at an event, but it does NOT replace a formal protest.  Also, the race officials are not obliged to act on its contents and these forms will not be accepted later than 30-minutes after the incident took place.  Because of this, any Competitor who considers themself sufficiently aggrieved and requires an issue to be formally investigated, should rather lodge a formal protest as per the relevant GCR’s within the stipulated time limits.

Potential strips

Any protests that have been lodged or lap records that have been broken, may well result in a kart or some of its major components being stripped.  If it potentially affects you, be prepared for this eventuality.  In all cases the Entrant must be present, and he is allowed to bring his mechanic or engine builder along to conduct the dismantling with your own tools under the direction of the Scrutineer or Technical Consultant who will do the necessary checks and measurements – no other parties are allowed to be present.  This strip will usually take place at the track, but may be postponed to a later date at another venue.  If this is the case, ensure that the parts to be inspected later are properly boxed up, sealed and identified.

Lastly, after having enjoyed the day, please stay and relax for a while.  Because the competition is now officially over, you’re only at this point allowed to consume alcohol if that is your preference.  Also please make an effort to attend the prize giving so you can lend support to those who did well.

Emile McGregor - MSA Technical Consultant