Proposal for lappers issue

super_fan_38 wrote:

Here is a privateer's response:

Here is a privateer's response:

super_fan_38 wrote:

Here is a privateer's response:

Here is a privateer's response:

mark_swart wrote:

My solution, it would be an SX-only rule: Riders receiving blue flags will move to the left half of the track until the lapping riders are...

My solution, it would be an SX-only rule: 

Riders receiving blue flags will move to the left half of the track until the lapping riders are clear. 

Why it works: 

- Removes interpretation for what the "race line" is. Leaders can still go where they want (at their own risk), but will always know the right is clear in lapping situations. 

- Allows both leaders and lappers consistency, and they all can plan race strategy and line choice around it. Yes, this impacts optimum line choice for leaders, but that is already happening and continually turns out bad. This way less chaotic for them than trying to guess what the lappers are thinking.

- Allows lappers to continue their races for position on the left half of the track. 

- Enables cut and dry decisions for penalties based on AMA review of recordings. 

This may not be as perfect as everyone having telepathy, but I think it's a solid, straightforward solution that could be applied consistently and objectively. No extra equipment, no lap time analysis or math, no split second midair guesswork, easy penalty decisions. 

Lappers to the left in SX!!

ARM670 wrote:

Isn't that what Vince did when he hit Eli?  In all seriousness that makes the tracks narrower than they already arr

mark_swart wrote:

Not really since the track was open and Eli would have had no way of knowing if Vince intended to be left or to move left...

Not really since the track was open and Eli would have had no way of knowing if Vince intended to be left or to move left. If that rule was in place, Eli would have known Vince was required to be on the left and if he had taken the right it would have been clear. And it's only narrower for a brief period during the overtaking. Hunter's incident would have been completely eliminated. At least that's how I think it would have all worked out. I wish we could at least try something instead of watching this same thing happen over and over.

SPYGUY wrote:

At the most elite level of motocross racing in the world, why do we let riders that have no shot of finishing in the top 10...

At the most elite level of motocross racing in the world, why do we let riders that have no shot of finishing in the top 10 get out there and screw with championship contenders?

No one is watching the battle for 19th.

SPYGUY wrote:

At the most elite level of motocross racing in the world, why do we let riders that have no shot of finishing in the top 10...

At the most elite level of motocross racing in the world, why do we let riders that have no shot of finishing in the top 10 get out there and screw with championship contenders?

No one is watching the battle for 19th.

Sidewinder 1 wrote:

I don’t know why exactly but this strikes a chord with me. 

SPYGUY wrote:

At the most elite level of motocross racing in the world, why do we let riders that have no shot of finishing in the top 10...

At the most elite level of motocross racing in the world, why do we let riders that have no shot of finishing in the top 10 get out there and screw with championship contenders?

No one is watching the battle for 19th.

Sidewinder 1 wrote:

I don’t know why exactly but this strikes a chord with me. 

ando wrote:

Yep.  Some people, maybe a lot of people, get misty-eyed about a couple of privateers making the main event but for me it would make absolutely...

Yep.  Some people, maybe a lot of people, get misty-eyed about a couple of privateers making the main event but for me it would make absolutely zero difference to my viewing experience and perception of the event if there were seven fewer back markers on the track.

I watch SX, Outdoor Nationals and MXGP because I want to see the best riders in the world duking it out.  If you are 5-10 seconds per lap off the pace you are nowhere near the best and never will be.  

This is not against the individuals who are privateers.  They obviously work damn hard and have plenty of talent to earn a place in an SX main event.  By most reasonable measures they are exceptional when compared to the population of dirtbike riders.  In a competitive environment however where there can only be one person at the top the slope gets steep very quickly and close enough isn’t good enough.

Where this whole issue starts to become a real problem is when it has widespread impacts.  When backmarkers affect the outcome of a race.  When track design starts being compromised for the safety of the slowest rider.  In professional sport if you have to accommodate a wide range of capabilities - physical, financial, logistics etc - you diminish the overall level because at the very least you have to consider the lowest common denominator.  

I get the history of the sport and that shouldn’t be forgotten but we’ve moved a long way beyond that.  Other than in name most privateers aren’t professional - they barely make a living (if at all).  There should be a tier of racing for these guys but elite level Supercross, the pinnacle of the sport, isn’t it.

super_fan_38 wrote:

Here is a privateer's response:

Here is a privateer's response:

ARM670 wrote:

The 1st few sentences kill your point for safety. Some sections of the track the left is the fast lane, some sections its the right side...

The 1st few sentences kill your point for safety. Some sections of the track the left is the fast lane, some sections its the right side. Some times carrying momentum takes you to the left. So you think a lapper getting a blue flag and moving to the left is a safer option than hold your line? I think everyone is to caught up in a knee jerk reaction to find a fix. Fine or suspend the ones who do not follow the rules and at the most put a light system on the handle bars to aide with seeing the white flag.  That may be hard as well.