Proposed Rule changes 1/26/09

[swiftsam]

Sweepstakes is meeting tonight and will discuss these proposed rule changes:
1. Required mouthguards for drivers.
2. Required double bales at all times.
3. Language regarding treatment of the buggy during an accident.
4. 'Spin Test' to evaluate brakes and wheels without moving a buggy.
5. Follow Car Certification Program, needed for at least one person in any active follow car. (Similar to the required driver meetings)
6. Edited some rules to be more concise, clearer, accurate, and shorter.

The full proposed changes are available at
http://cmubuggy.org/files/bylawsChanges-1-26-2009.txt

Any opinions? Drivers, how do you feel about wearing mouth guards? Haybale teams, how do you feel about carrying twice as many every weekend?

Is it time to find a higher-tech protective barrier for the chute if we decide that we need 2 truckloads of haybales to do the job?

[mldarm]

I would guess that an alternative to haybales would be cost prohibitive, but presumably it would be longer-lasting. The bale supply tends to dwindle through the semester as they start to fall apart, and if the homeless take them. I would be for an alternative it it were feasible.

Also, I'm curious how a 'spin test' will work during capes. I would think it would be easier to do during a safety, when buggies are usually set with their wheels of the ground already. Plus it would force orgs to have their wheels on during the safety.

[Abby]

1. Stupid. If something hits you in the mouth that hard you're screwed anyway. What prompted that?

2. That make chute significantly more narrow. You could watch tape and see clearly that if you had a second bale, especially on the inside, it would cause some accidents.

3. What kind of language? Every accident is different, everyone has to use best judgement. Is there something to add to that?

4. Again, why?

5. Whatever

6. Swell

Bales are expensive, I recall $1200 per truck and that was a long time ago. Also source of angst for Sweepstakes chair (though source of hilarity for roommate of said chair). So investment in an alternative might makes sense long term.

[swiftsam]

2. That make chute significantly more narrow. You could watch tape and see clearly that if you had a second bale, especially on the inside, it would cause some accidents.

Well, double bales have been standard for truck weekend and raceday for a while, the new rule would just make it standard for rolls.

[Carl Nott]

1. It is the first step towards the ultimate goal: Ball-gagging our drivers. I of course support this.

2. Smaller chute = more accidents = more fun for alumni. I of course support this.

3. Hmm. Very interesting. I assume the 'freeroll portion of the buggy course' is defined as the time between push off by Hill 2 and pick up by Hill 3? Couldn't find the definition of freeroll. So if the Hill 3 is smoked badly enough the buggy will be considered to have been in an accident? Hmm, it looks like accident is defined twice (under 'Buggies' and under 'Accidents').

4. Trying to... find out if someone is sandbagging their wheels for cape testing? Good luck with that.

5. I would like to preemptively submit that I am a designated Follow Car driver for SPIRIT. I have missed and am going to miss all of the meetings (I live in Seattle, doh!). Who should I meet with the review the content of each meeting I'm going to miss?

[Abby]

I should have been more clear on my point about the bales. I get that double bales are there for raceday and I agree that they should be.
It is also to be assumed that a driver knows her line and the course very well by raceday. New drivers are all over the place and every inch counts (that's what she said), and are also going slower. So I would say the extra space would be more helpful than the extra safety. Maybe double bales for the spring when everyone should know what they are doing and are going faster.

Carls point about ball gags is not so far off. Rules are clear that helmets and goggles have to be secured. How do you secure a mouthguard? If it falls out, a driver would likely not be able to pick it up and put it back in, nor should she while driving, then you have a loose object inside the buggy. If the mouthguard falls out and gets jammed up in the wheels, brakes, etc, is that DQ or reroll?

[abordick]

In my industry, loose objects in the vehicle are called FOD. . . and I HATE FOD.

Double bales are standard, so let's make them standard.

I'll read the rest when I get home. The spin test sounds stupid. We have a test for speed and while I'm not physicist, if you can stop the buggy going fast enough, then you can stop the buggy going fast enough.

Ball Gag. Nice Carl, you never cease to dig lower than I thought possible. EDIT: AND I LOVE IT!!

[Abby]

I will still give 5 American dollars to whomever can tell the story of what happened that led Sweepstakes to think drivers need mouthguards. It has to be good.

[DangerMike]

One more entry in the new rules: Stop flags must now be yellow. I know a lot of drivers have blown through stop flags. Former drivers: was color really a problem?

[Carl Nott]

One more entry in the new rules: Stop flags must now be yellow. I know a lot of drivers have blown through stop flags. Former drivers: was color really a problem?

Okay Bordick. I had a great comment. But for you I won't post it. Because I care. I'm not even hinting at what it was about.