Anatomy of an Autocross
How the Green Flag Drops
Our Chapter’s autocross program attracts more members than Social events or our well-respected Driving School. We conduct a wide variety of events to meet the range of members’ interests, and our Board welcomes more ideas. But, maybe because we have such a large parking lot and a long history, more of us participate in autocrosses than anything else. Typically, we have up to 100 drivers, 20 Instructors, 15 staff members, and about 30 spectators for a total of 150-160 people in attendance, and that’s about seven times per year. That’s how you’ve “voted,” so we intend to keep delivering quality events. We’re also lucky to have such a dedicated Team of volunteers who put together the program. You might be surprised by the time and effort the whole Team puts in before, during, and after an autocross, so we offer you a glimpse at what it takes bring you a day of fun blasting around the cones
Twice a year, a scheduling meeting is held with all autocrossing car clubs (SCCA, Porsche Club, etc.). We select the January-July dates in November and the August-December dates in June. Beforehand, we look at all known competing events to avoid conflicts whenever possible. Once the schedule is finalized, we inform the Board, Newsletter Editor, Webmaster, autocross email list, Instructor email list, and nearby Chapters. Ten weeks before each event, the autocross is given a name, online registration dates are calculated, an article is written to appear twice in Fahren Affairs, and the info also goes to the Webmaster and Rich Gehring (who orders the set of trophies). Four weeks out, a check is requested to apply for the Insurance Certificate. About that time, the MotorsportReg website is updated to take online registrations.
Three weeks ahead, an email is sent to about 130 members who’ve requested a registration reminder. Online registration opens 3 weeks before each autocross, stays open for 2 weeks, and closes with a week to go so we can prepare. We also order porta-potties if we’ll be in an un-served part of the Stadium. The course designer personally visits the lot to lay out a course that avoids bad patches (getting tougher!), has runoff room from fixed objects, flows well but has some challenges, and is long enough to safely fit 4-7 cars at a time. A hand-drawn map is sent to Instructor Russ Bergholz who creates a digital map. The week before, radios are recharged, trophies get picked up, the entry list is sorted into even groups, the all-important coffee is ordered, and course maps are printed so each Instructor has one to show drivers. On the day before, Cunningham BMW packs up 300 bottles of water, the trailer is retrieved from storage, we print and cut nametags, create entry lists for Gate Greeters and Registration, and we buy a trunk-full of muffins and cookies and sodas oh my.
The actual day of an autocross is very busy for the staff. Here are some highlights:
6:00—Most staff arrives, which is before daylight some times of the year. The trailer is unloaded, radios are distributed, Registration/coffee/muffins are set up, Gate Greeters get into place, and the safety line goes up between the course and parking area.
6:20—Course designer drives our truck/trailer to create the layout in the empty lot as cones are tossed by volunteers from the trailer; Tech lines and pregrid are set up.
6:30—Gate is opened, first cone crew starts measuring course width (25’) and setting up cones to assure good “readability” (straight lines, smooth curves).
7:00—Tech and Registration open, second cone crew starts setting up the course from the finish end.
7:15—Trailer is placed, PA set up, Timing set up, rental helmets available from trailer
7:45—Course designer fine-tunes course, volunteers mark all cones, course worker stations set up, return lane to pregrid set up, Registration finalizes on-site registrations
8:15—Instructor meeting, timing begins data entry, Drivers called to their meeting
8:30—Participant meeting (please be on time!), Instructor low-speed familiarization
8:50—Course workers are taken to stations and radio check, first Group goes to Pregrid
9:00—If everything goes according to plan (and sometimes it does!), first car on course
10:30—Novice Group orientation and highway safety talk, final lunch order is called in, Timing fills out results boards with Participant names/classes, get ice for cold sodas
After last timed run—All Drivers are needed to stack cones, cones and equipment brought to trailer, Timing crunches results, trailer is packed up, Trophy Presentation
Whew! Each Autocross day ends with a real sense of satisfaction, but there’s more to do. In the days that follow, we inventory supplies (car numbers, Tech cards, schedules) compile results and photos for publication in Fahren Affairs and on the website, and prepare a financial statement for the Board. And we get ready for the next one…
We’re pleased to have such positive participation in our autocross events and hope this gives you some new insights. Of course we welcome more volunteers to help fill out our autocross staff to keep these events running smoothly, with the goal of having more than one person available for each task. The more people get involved, the more fun everyone has and the less any single volunteer needs to do. Let us know by email or at an autocross if you’d like to join this Team. It’s always more interesting to be an insider!
-Dan Tackett
