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Re: More on Sequential classes

To: "Alan Dahl" <adahl@eskimo.com>, <autox@autox.team.net>
Subject: Re: More on Sequential classes
From: "Phil Ethier" <pethier@isd.net>
Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 01:40:32 -0500
From: Alan Dahl <adahl@eskimo.com>

>No, the flaw is that Shauna Marinus, Teresa Niedel, Lynn Rothney-Kozlak,
>Kay Bailey or any of the many, many fast ladies out there would just kick
>the rears of all of the guys in the lower class. Trust me, I have ran
>against and been beat by many of these ladies in the past straight-up. Give
>them a competitive advantage, especially one as great as a class-level one,
>and they would eat us all for lunch.


Yes.  We hear a lot about cars being compared at their most-developed level.

Same for people.  There is no reason that a highly-talented woman who takes
the sport seriously cannot be competitive with male drivers.

The factors that make women uncompetitive with men in sports such as
American football are absent in autocrossing.  The main requirements of
natural talent required for top-level competition in autocrossing are:  Good
manual/pedal dexterity, fast reflexes, excellent (corrected-by-lenses if
needed) vision, and a superior sense of balance.  If you have these, and
follow up by study and practice, you can be a top driver.  I don't believe
any of these things is physically-limited by sex.

The existence of "ladies" classes is a social/political decision to be made
by each autocrossing rules body.  Solo2 has elected to have them.  Many
local councils, mine included, have elected long ago to abolish them.  It's
not an ability-limit thing.  Club racing does well without them.  Their
continued existence in Solo2 is a social decision, largely because many
couples don't want to compete with each other formally.  This decision is
not wrong, it's just different, and the Solo Events Board is not going to
change it so that those of us on the outside think it's right.

Phil Ethier    Saint Paul  Minnesota  USA
1970 Lotus Europa, 1992 Saturn SL2, 1986 Chev Suburban
LOON, MAC   pethier@isd.net     http://www.mnautox.com/
"If I can do it, it's not art"  - Red Green







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