AX courses, The good, the bad... Options

[J P Stein]

and that lash-up I ran today.

Having laid out a bad course myself, I recognize one when I see it. Folks miss gates or just get lost....and I'm talkin' guys with experience. If I had done my first AX on this mess (there were some of these unfortunate souls out there today), I prolly wouldn't ever come back. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sad.gif)

The fast guys were still fast, but many never got a time without a missed gate. I got one ....my last chance... 3rd run. It wuz good enuff to beat Chuck, but nuthin' to write home about.....top door slammer time was bout 45 flat (that freakin' Miata), I was at 47.7.

Oh well, some days you eat the bear & somedays the bear eats you. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/confused24.gif)

[Randal]

I want to yell OUT.. STOP lining the courses...when I see them doing it.

I personally think that SCCA is substantially more serious about courses than any Porsche Club I've seen. As evidence check out the work here:

My Webpage

The point is that SCCA courses are very carefully laid out and can (usually) be followed by most drivers.

In Roger's AutoX design book he talks about a "Sea of Cones," which I learned about at Alameda when somene designed just such a course.

It was the last meet of the year and in most classes the final results would be determined by the runs at that days event.

I can't remember the number but it was something like 40% of the runs were DNF's.

WELL THAT DESIGNER SURE GOT US! GREAT WAY TO DECIDE THE CLASS WINS FOR THE YEAR, HEY!

BS I say.

So until GGR gets serious(*) about course design and setting them up correctly I say, "Keep lining the courses so everyone has a reasonable chance."

And if you going to pull a change up on the members then let them know what you're going to do in advance.


(*) At all the Reno events I've attended people show up a day in advance to set up the course and make sure it was right. We even took the course down each evening (two day event) and put back up the next morning because of site restrictions.