Post by Eduardo Lorente on Dec 29, 2014 16:07:08 GMT
COMPETITION RULES AND REGULATIONS
Last Revision: 29 December, 2014
Last Revision: 29 December, 2014
To ensure driver “safety” and enhance the online experience we have adapted sections of the Sports Car Club of America, and National Auto Sport Association competition rules for our series. These rules are a supplement to the iRacing First Sporting Code. The intent of any action by the admin in response to a violation of the following rules is primarily to educate the driver on safer methods of racing. The Competition Committee is charged with determining the appropriate response (see 3. Driver Protests and Penalties).
1. DRIVER CONDUCT AND TRACK SAFETY
1.1 Rough Driving
1.1.1 At the Steward’s discretion, any driver displaying rough or unsportsmanlike driving may be penalized.
1.1.2 Examples of rough and unsportsmanlike driving include, but are not limited to: deliberate contact with other cars, impeding fellow drivers during a qualifying session, and unsafe reentry onto the track following an accident or spin.
1.2 General Passing Guidelines
1.2.1 The responsibility for the decision to pass another car, and to do it safely without harm to another car, always rests with the overtaking driver. The overtaken driver should be aware that he/she is being passed and must not impede or block the overtaking car (see 1.3 Blocking).
1.2.2 The act of passing is initiated when the trailing car’s (Car A) front bumper overlaps with the lead car’s (Car B) rear bumper. The act of passing is complete when Car A’s rear bumper is ahead of Car B’s front bumper.
1.2.3 The driver in front has the right to choose any line, so long as not to be considered blocking. The driver attempting to make a pass shall have the right to the line when their front wheel is next to the driver of the other vehicle (also see 1.4 Punting).
1.3 Blocking
1.3.1 A driver may choose to protect his or her line so long as it is not considered “blocking”. Blocking is defined as two (2) consecutive lane changes with the intent to protect his/her racing lane, and in doing so, impedes the vehicle that is trying to pass with each of the two (2) consecutive movements.
1.4 Punting
1.4.1 “Punting” refers to nose to tail (or side of the nose to side of the tail) contact, where the leading car is significantly knocked off of the racing line. Once the trailing car has its front wheel next to the driver of the other vehicle, it is considered that the trailing car has a right to be there. As such, the leading driver must leave the trailing driver enough “racing room”.
1.4.2 If sufficient racing room is left for the trailing car, and there is incidental contact made between the cars, the contact will be considered “side-to-side.” At the Steward’s discretion, incidental side-to-side contact is considered to be part of the sport of racing and does not merit a penalty. Additionally, if side-to-side contact results in one of the two cars leaving the racing surface (involuntarily), then it may still be considered a racing incident not meriting a penalty to either one or both drivers.
1.5 Off-Course Excursions
1.5.1 Competitors are required to follow the marked course during competition and shall not gain an advantage by an off-course excursion. An off-course excursion is defined as leaving the marked course with all four wheels. The definition of the term “advantage gained” will be left at the discretion of the Steward.
1.6 Counter-Course Driving and Stopping on Course
1.6.1 Driving on the course in the direction opposite to the normal traffic flow is strictly prohibited except in an extreme emergency and only for the sole purpose of getting out of harm’s way or when ordered to do so by the Stewards.
1.6.2 Deliberately stopping on course is expressly prohibited unless in the event of an emergency. An emergency is defined as only those concerning mechanical failure, or damage from an incident that renders the vehicle unfit to continue.
1.6.3 In the event of spin or accident with traffic nearby; all drivers are required to observe the "Lock Down Rule": hold the brakes and never let your car roll forwards or backwards across the racing surface.
1.7 Flag Observance
1.7.1 All flag rules must be obeyed. Failure to acknowledge a flag will result in a penalty as assessed by the Steward or Race Control. At the Steward’s discretion, additional penalties may be assessed based upon the severity of the violation.
2. FLAG SIGNALS
2.1 Green Flag – Indicates the start of a race, clear track condition, and/or the cancellation of a previous flag condition.
2.2 White Flag – When displayed at start/finish line, indicates the start of the last lap and will be displayed to the leader first and then to the remainder of the Competitors.
2.3 Checkered Flag – Indicates the end of a session, warm-up period, or end of the race.
2.4 Yellow Flag – When displayed motionlessly (Standing Yellow), indicates danger, no passing, be prepared to slow down. When displayed with motion (Waving Yellow), indicates extreme danger, no passing, be prepared to slow down, track may be partially or completely blocked. In either case, Competitors may not pass until the Yellow flag is removed, as indicated by the absence of the Yellow flag and/or presence of the Green flag at the next corner station.
2.5 Blue Flag (blue with diagonal yellow stripe) – Indicates faster cars are approaching. This flag is informational only. In all cases, it is the responsibility of the faster car to safely overtake the slower car. It is the responsibility of the slower car to maintain a consistent line. It is strongly recommended that a slower car being lapped makes every reasonable effort to facilitate a safe pass.
2.6 Black Flag (furled) – When displayed furled, indicates a warning from Race Control and may require action, such as slowing on course, to avoid an in-session penalty.
2.7 Black Flag – When displayed unfurled, indicates an in-session penalty from Race Control, return to your pit box to serve your penalty. When displayed with a white “X,” indicates disqualification from the session.
2.8.1 Guidance for the driver being lapped by a faster car:
2.8.1.1 The blue flag tells the driver that, “another competitor is following you very closely and is trying to overtake you, CHECK YOUR MIRRORS” (source SCCA).
2.8.1.2 You are NOT expected to get out of the way immediately - sudden, unexpected reactions by you may actually increase the chance of an accident with the car trying to lap you.
2.8.1.3 You are expected to be PREDICTABLE, so drive the racing line as you normally would.
2.8.1.4 If you are being lapped by a driver who is in a faster category car, it will be faster on the straights and accelerating out of the corners and should be able to pass you SAFELY on those sections of track.
2.8.1.5 If you are being lapped by a driver in your category of car, you may need to lift off the gas peddle to allow the car to safely pass you on those sections of the track.
2.8.2 Guidance for the driver lapping a slower car:
2.8.2.1 The blue flag does not tell the other driver to get out of your way - it is YOUR responsibility to safely pass the slower car.
2.8.2.2 As the faster car, your awareness of the situation will be much greater than the car being passed. It is unreasonable (and unsafe) to expect a driver in a slower car to drive their race focused on their rear-view mirrors, so it follows that the driver in the car doing the passing is responsible for the safe completion of a pass.
2.8.2.3 Do not "force" a pass on a slower car - you should always assume the driver does not see you.
2.8.2.4 If you cannot pass a slower (lapped) driver - BE PATIENT. You are the faster driver, if you are patient, you will find a SAFE location on track to complete the pass without risk to you or the other driver.
2.8.2.5 You and your direct competitors will all have to pass the same lapped driver at some stage of the race - so please be patient and avoid being involved in an avoidable accident.
3. DRIVER PROTESTS AND PENALTIES
3.1 Incidents may be reviewed at the discretion of the stewards. However, given the complexity of racing over long distances, drivers should always assume that an incident is undetected by the stewards. As such, the admin always encourage drivers to request a review.
3.2 To initiate a review, drivers should private message ALL members of the competition committee with the following information:
- Driver responsible for the incident
- Lap and/or time the incident occurred
- Description of incident
- Rule/policy that was violated
3.2 The request will not be reviewed by the competition committee unless it is completed in its entirety.
3.3 Incident review requests must be submitted within 48 hours of the conclusion of an event - once the 48 hours have expired, any right to a review of an incident is forfeited.
3.4 Racing incidents will be reviewed by the competition committee. Violations of the series rules may result in a penalty based upon the recommendations of the competition committee. Penalties may consist of a warning, loss of position, loss of points, suspension or ban.