[Autox] Class Participation (Part 3)

Clemens Burger burgerc at iquest.net
Thu Nov 5 20:16:33 MST 2009


Rocky,

Great comments.  However, I hope you won't with your letter until next 
year.  In fact, send one before this "rule season" is over, and then 
another one once the next one starts.  I've never participated in the 
rule-making process before, because I never saw the need to do 
so.  Therefore, I am not very familiar with how this process works, but I 
am learning.  By talking to people, I have found out that a number of 
people had tried to fight Rule 4.9, but have given up, because they thought 
that nothing was happening.  On the other side, apparently, the SEB only 
reacts to letters, and I have heard that they never received enough letters 
to give them reason to address the concerns about Rule 4.9.

It looks like we have to reach a critical mass to get something 
done.  Therefore, please write your letter before the year is over.  If 
that does not accomplish anything, we need to continue with another round 
of letters once the next "rule season starts".


Clemens


At 07:22 AM 11/4/2009, you wrote:
>I'm planning a letter. I visited briefly with Tina Reeves a few weeks ago, 
>and she recommended I wait until around first of the year to send it, when 
>it would get into the next "rules season." Too late (even as of Nationals) 
>to do anything for 2010. We're looking at a 2011 change.
>
>Since then, some may have noticed, the BoD has passed rules in Club Racing 
>that almost exactly match what we want to do in Solo. Including:
>* All National classes (there are 29 now) will race in the Runoffs. Until 
>now only the top 24 or 25 got in.
>* The 2.5 rule which specifies Runoffs eligibility and whether a class 
>will even survive is eliminated -- this parallels Solo's Rule 4.9.
>* Instead of determining what constitutes a viable class, they will now 
>determine what constitutes a National Champion -- the class must have at 
>least 10 entries.
>* Classes that fall below 10 entries will be labeled "supplemental." They 
>still get to race, they still have a winner, but not a champion.
>
>My planned letter to the SEB -- and I had this plan before the BoD action 
>in Club Racing -- is that we quit trying to define what constitutes a 
>class and instead define what constitutes a champion. If a small class 
>shows up, so what? In Club Racing you can only do so many races in a day 
>(and now some of the small classes will be combined with others in a 
>single race). Solo's limiting factor is how many cars we can push through 
>a course in a day and we have yet to get within about 100 of that limit. 
>And now with the Lincoln site there is a new option -- a 3-course 
>Nationals (a given class runs two of the three), which raises the 
>potential entry limit from 1250 to something over 1800, and we may never 
>even get close to that one.
>
>My suggestion will be to eliminate Rule 4.9 and replace it with a 
>definition of a National Champion -- the winner of any class with at least 
>seven competitors. Seven, because that is the number at which we have a 
>full podium, three trophy winners.
>
>This puts it even within reach of Ladies classes, which should also go to 
>eliminating the perennial discussion of whether they should even exist 
>(let 'em run, but winners of 1-car classes are not champions). AND, any 
>class meeting that number, including "supplemental classes," would crown a 
>champion that year. It would also serve as incentive for competitors in 
>light classes to build their classes, without having to fear being 
>eliminated altogether.
>
>The change in Club Racing, and a similar change in Solo if enacted, 
>eliminates the "bubble" altogether. It eliminates the fear factor that 
>becomes a self-fulfilling prophesy and instead becomes a security blanket 
>that allows members to compete without paranoia and greater hope of 
>boosting their numbers -- to work toward positive goals rather than 
>working to ward off negative goals.
>
>The BoD's approval of the Club Racing change demonstrates they would 
>perhaps be of a mind to address the same issue in solo the same way. If 
>you write a letter to the SEB (seb at scca.com), copy it to bod at scca.com. 
>Don't expect the BoD to initiate action -- their action would be to refer 
>it to the SEB --
>but you copy them to let them know there is an issue pending and if at 
>such time as the item is sent up to them the BoD would already have some 
>idea of member sentiment.
>
>--Rocky Entriken


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