A day at the races -
(A beginner's guide to a race meeting)
Starting racing can be quite daunting for the novice. There is a lot to take on board and to take care of. This article describes a typical race meeting from start to finish and explains what happens and when.
Friday morning.
Course setup.
Generally the organising branch starts with little more that a field and a lake. It may come as a surprise to know that we organise everything, from loo hire, skips for the rubbish, course marking to paddock layout and the PA system.
For most of our race meetings, the course is erected on the Friday before the Saturday start.
It's fare to say that any help on course setup will be gratefully received and so if you can get to the race site on the morning before racing starts you will be made welcome and put to work.
Arrival.
The first competitors and their families usually start to arrive on the Friday afternoon. They find a space for their craft in the paddock area and find a pitch in the camping area. It's always a good idea to get to the meeting on the Friday so that you can get set up nice and early. By Saturday morning the paddock will be nearly full and there is a lot to do anyway without having to worry about finding a paddock space and a camping pitch.
Saturday.
Course inspection and marshal's briefing.
First thing on Saturday morning sees the Race Director inspects the course and then brief the marshals. As a driver you won’t take part in this but if you spot some activity on the course, first thing in the morning, that’s what’s going on.
Scruiteneering.
The first thing for all drivers to do is get their craft and safety equipment scruiteneered. For this you will need your log book, craft (obviously), your crash helmet, gloves and life jacket. The scruiteneers are generally drivers who've volunteered to inspect craft and make sure they conform to the HCGB's construction requirements. Please bare in mind that these people have their own craft to prepare as well as scruiteneer yours so please be ready in plenty of time and make sure they know who and where you are so the process can go smoothly
Initial scruiteneering.
A new craft will require a more through scruiteneering before it can be used. This takes longer than the normal one so it's worth contacting the scruiteneers before the meeting so that everything can be done in time.
It's not unusual at the first meeting of the year to allow extra time at the start of the meeting as there may well be a lot of new craft all needing their initial scruiteneering.
Drivers briefing.
This is one of the most important parts of the day. All drivers must attend the driver's briefing. This will be held in the paddock on each morning of the race meeting. The Race Director will explain the course layout and any specific points to be aware of.
At the end of the briefing "signing in" sheets are distributed to the drivers and all drivers must "sign in" on the sheet relevant to their chosen formula. Grid positions and lap scoring information is built up from theses signing in sheets so it's vital that you attend the briefing and sign in.