The first post in the new forum.
The title says it all. Are our stages really closed to non-rally traffic?
I have recently retired as a Steward, since I do not want to be a participant in the event where we end up killing someone.
Almost every event that I have attended in the past five years, there has been some incident with non-rally traffic on stages. Some very serious. In fact, several times, I have been spectating (at official and unofficial locations) and had I not been there, there would have been civilian vehicles accessing stages.
What do people think about this situtation? Is it lack of manpower, lack of marshal training, lack of authority to stop civilians, lack of education of locals, etc.?
I am particularly concerned about roads, trails, etc. being closed with only yellow tape and not physically blocked. Access by snowmobiles, ATVs, dirt bikes and mountain bikes are also issues that have not been properly dealt with.
If I was first car on the road these days, I would have concerns. On the other hand, many of the incidents that I have seen, or know about, have occured in the middle of the pack.
Finally, we need very specific rules in the rule book about how competitors and marshals are supposed to deal with such indicents when they occur.
Doug Woods
The title says it all. Are our stages really closed to non-rally traffic?
I have recently retired as a Steward, since I do not want to be a participant in the event where we end up killing someone.
Almost every event that I have attended in the past five years, there has been some incident with non-rally traffic on stages. Some very serious. In fact, several times, I have been spectating (at official and unofficial locations) and had I not been there, there would have been civilian vehicles accessing stages.
What do people think about this situtation? Is it lack of manpower, lack of marshal training, lack of authority to stop civilians, lack of education of locals, etc.?
I am particularly concerned about roads, trails, etc. being closed with only yellow tape and not physically blocked. Access by snowmobiles, ATVs, dirt bikes and mountain bikes are also issues that have not been properly dealt with.
If I was first car on the road these days, I would have concerns. On the other hand, many of the incidents that I have seen, or know about, have occured in the middle of the pack.
Finally, we need very specific rules in the rule book about how competitors and marshals are supposed to deal with such indicents when they occur.
Doug Woods