Bob Barnard Track Engineering

IMSA has announced changes to the way it runs events following the debacle at Sebring. All seems a bit like changing deckchairs on the Titanic to me.

Changes coming to IMSA Race Control include the following:

- Enforcement of an IMSA rule requiring the display of the car’s number on its in-car cameras. So why was it not enforced before?

- Upgraded video review equipment to high definition (HD). Really, in this day and age.

- A new system for cross-checking cars and drivers involved in on-track incidents. Now there's and idea before you ping someone with a drive through which ruins their race.

- Addition of a third driver advisor to work alongside the IMSA Race Director and two driver advisors to assist with evaluating responsibility in incidents and other on-track situations. So three driver "advisors."That could well be four different opinions. How about just asking the marshals at that post?

IMSA also is adjusting its full-course caution procedures to maximize green-flag running time. Changes to the procedures, which will be confirmed by IMSA Rule Book bulletins, are as follows:

- At events where there is only one prototype class in a race, the pits will be opened for that class when the field is packed up and while GT cars are still performing the Pass-Around procedure. This change will expedite the full-course caution process by a full lap. So how many events only have one class, and we still wait for the safety car to "pack" the field up. At Le Mans and in F1 the pits do not close, so what's the deal here in the US? Yes some cars get caught, but that's the luck of the game, and closing the pits does not prevent this.

- The “Lap-Down Wave-By” procedure – which provides a strategic opportunity for cars a lap or more behind to gain a lap back by staying on course while leaders make pit stops – will be more limited in its application. There will be no Lap-Down Wave-By in races less than two hours and 30 minutes in length. For races between two-and-a-half hours through six hours, the Lap-Down Wave-By will be used only once in any 90-minute period after 60 minutes from the start of a race. No Lap-Down Wave-By will be used in the last 30 minutes of a race. I can see waiving cars by that have got between the pace car and the leader, but why all the others? Another NASCAR hangover? Lap down cars can still gain a lap back without closing the pits if they choose to stay out. All this is getting so complicated with different rules for different races what's the poor spectator going to know?

- Efforts also will be made to use “Debris Yellows” where a situation is likely to involve the simple removal of debris or the flat-tow of a stopped car to a safe location. A Debris Yellow includes the Pass-Around procedure, but the pits remain closed until the race is restarted. So who decides where the situation is simple, and we still have the wave around. In most countries these are covered by a waved yellow at the part of the course involved. Le Mans is changing its procedures with in car lights, which I presume we have anyway.

I don't see much here that is going to see more racing.

On a completely different subject I was watching the world business report on Al Jazeera last night and saw a piece about Australia losing more jobs. GM, Ford and Toyota have all given notice to stop manufacturing, and now Philip Morris is to stop making fags. No big loss to me, but to the workers it is. BP also announced it is closing a refinery. Australia will then have four, and another is expected to close because the refinery in Singapore can make six times the amount Australia's can! Last time I looked Singapore did not have any oil. In fact it has little of any natural resources, but somehow can continue to grow. Amazing. It is cheaper to ship their crude to Singapore and then bring it back as gas etc? Well I guess they ship their iron ore and coal overseas and then buy it back as cars etc. What happens when a situation arises that Singapore is no longer an ally, or Indonesia, the largest Muslim country in the world, decides it does not like Oz anymore?

Could it be that between the environmental controls, carbon tax, 17% leave loadings, long service leave, and 38 hour work weeks Oz has priced itself out of being competitive? Over governed and over regulated.

There was a lot of talk about how great it is that in 2014 Sebring looks like it did 50 years ago. What other major track looks 50 years old and has outdated safety. Probably the other track owned by ISC, Watkins Glen. And this is good why? I have said in past years that there is a point beyond which "character" becomes dangerous, and Sebring is long past this. Turn 17 is hideous with cars "kangaroo hopping" through it. Dorsey Schroeder said he was always amazed when he got through it each lap. Well we had a reg flag for a couple of cars that did not. The wall on drivers left at exit is too close and has one row of tires not properly attached. Compare that with Turn 5 in Melbourne where there are at least four rows if not five. Again the wall comes back to accommodate the bridge abutment.

That was just one crash however. After the three hours on Fox, with all the usual infomercials and historic photos we had a car almost burned to the ground and a previous crash so had about an hour of racing. It got a little better when it streamed on IMSA.com with fewer breaks, but in the end we had almost 6 hours of yellow and red flag in a 12 hour race. Part of this the ridiculous time it takes to clear a car and get back to racing under the closed pit lane system. In the last hour we had a car off at Turn 9, not damaged, just stopped. It took 30 minutes to go back racing, so we had a 20 minute sprint and no time to catch the Ganassi car which benefited from pitting just before the yellow.

The standard of driving was so bad that even Jim France suggested that they pass out business cards for racing schools. I know "gentlemen" drivers have been part of sports car racing since the first Le Mans, but some basic level has to be maintained or as was said, they will kill someone. It says much for the design of the cars that no one was, especially the crashes at 16 & 17. 

The US commentary was right up to it's usual standard. They must think we are idiots, Radio Le Mans where are you? On Motors TV in Europe that's where. Two gems when it got dark  Varsha, " now you can see why headlights are so important." His emphasis. The Justin Bell talking about how drivers cope with the reduced visiblity at night. "Generally the track doesn't change between corners." Really, so sometimes they rush out and throw in a chicane or something? Honestly, you couldn't make this stuff up.

I am at a total loss why Fox would even show this. Three hours of a twelve hour race, and the first three, not the last. Filled with ads and nonsense. It must be a condition of the NASCAR contract.