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[Racerb0y]

Good morning,
    Been a racer for over 20yrs now, lots of fun & won a few here & there, & am comfortable with that. The occasional trackday is the order now in my life.  So, my concern & its not a big deal but its been bugging me.
Ive ridden with many clubs that rent VIR, TPM, NESBA, CCS, WERA, CornerSpeed & PRE; at times a private group. During those events I have never ever had my ass chewed out b/c I pitted out & did not stay on the blend line, in the race group? on first pitout? Now, I understand thoroughly about the safety of staying on the blend line when the course is hot, of course you keep right on pitout at VIR north if its hot,(especially if riders are alrdy out there)  Im in the race group, usually the 1st one out or I may leave in the 2nd or 3rd row depending on how many riders there are. But in all my yrs running VIR (since 2000) even during CCS practice, First pit out was no big deal of maintaining a run on the blend line.  I know the tracks hot the minute we go out, but to stay on the blend line on first ones pitout all the way to turn one in my mind, is not unsafe.  Im not breaking any rules unless its PRE policy to stay on the line thru turn one, even in the race group & your the first one out. Im only mentioning this b/c at the last full course in July, I pitted out all morning like I usually do, run for the race line all the way to the left, then my my entry into turn one. When I came back in, some guy (I am assuming a control rider) reamed me a new one b/c of my entry onto the track.  No introductions, insulting, embarrassed my wife just chewed me out.
He was rude, my wife was right there getting his mouth full, I thought I was in the race group, not intermediate or beginners. Then he walked away. So, I ask, as a racer in your Advanced group, am I supposed to maintain the blendline all the way to turn one even though we just pitted out?  BTW, in that group, thruout the day, I observed racers in that group bolt right to the race line on pitout.  I wonder if that guy got to them as well? In end, I understand the safety aspects of pitting out if the track is alrdy hot, you come in for something, talk to the track marshal, etc, he checks your six, then you go, now, the blendline is important.
No matter, I'll continue to ride with your club, I like your mgmt style, Hats off to Mr. Wells, is such a great asset.       

[RocketDan]

Hey there, thanks for the commentary. To answer the basic question, yes it is policy/rule to NOT pass the blend line at anytime on pit out, even if you are first out. And this applies to all groups. The reason for the rule is so it is consistent and there isn’t a different pit out procedure for when the track is hot.

I understand that experienced racers should know when it’s safe and when it’s not. And really, any advanced rider should know. But as you know, sometimes things happen, and people can make mistakes. The best way to hopefully avoid someone from having a brain fart and passing the blend line on a hot track is to just never pit out and cross the line, hot or not. And since it is just a track day, there isn’t a need to get on race line until after turn one. Waiting and playing it safe helps avoid possible incidents.

And I’m sorry that you received a bad experience from someone for not following this rule. I get that you didn’t realize it was our policy. This is the type of thing that is covered in the rider meeting, but due to Covid the A group wasn’t going to the meeting in person, so things like this were getting missed. We are having in person rider meeting for everyone now. Hopefully this will help clarify the few important points the A group guys need to know which might be different from other organizations.

Again, thanks for the comments and hope to see you out there again soon.


Daniel Hughes
2015 R1

[Stony]

I also race and ride in PRE's ADV group. I would like to point something out about this instance that paralleled something similar to what happened to me (last year) and one other I paddock with (this year). It's how the situation is handled. It can mean all the difference between a pleasant or adverserial exchange. We all want to be safe, and when tesions run high, take a few breaths and come in camly and have a discussion. The result will be better than a red faced exchange.

Everyone will do something stupid at one point or another. Mostly we are already embarrased when we did it and have already learned from what happened.

[Kyle M]

As Dan pointed out it’s a PRE policy that we feel improves the safety at our events. There’s no personal background or extenuating circumstances that justify breaking that rule.

Once a individual comes to realize that there are no excuses for breaking the rule then all exchanges about the rule being broken will be positive. But if an individual tries to explain or argue why their actions did not break the rule or why they did not have to follow the rule then everything from that point forward has the potential to be less than ideal.

My opinion and my experience have led me to believe in life when you do something wrong the quickest way forward is to take ownership for the mistake. Anything other than those actions just prolong and often make situations worse

[Racerb0y]

Well, thankyou all for your input.  I understand and am tracking on it.  Im good with it, always have been.  It would of been better if that person just came to me and explained his concern in lieu of his angry out burst.  Enough said, time to move on, after action is noted.  Im a better pitout person now!! Blend line is my friend.

[52 Ruhe]

Rude as in the kind of person that fires up two different race bikes in a garage at 6AM. As noted in the event email you received. VIR policy is quiet from 11PM- 7AM. Yet another example of your disregard for others.

And the conversation about blend line started with asking you to mind the blend line. That was right before you thought the request was an opening to a debate. It wasn’t.

Nor is this open for debate.
Good luck to you in 2021 riding with a different org.