Bump and Run
May 4, 2020 19:21:05 GMT -5
Post by Scott Bolster on May 4, 2020 19:21:05 GMT -5
With the Throwback Cup Series coming up, I wanted to get into the ever-present issue in oval racing - especially short track racing - of the Bump-and-Run tactic.
There's a vast difference between Accepted and Acceptable:
1) It is accepted that this tactic has been around racing forever.
2) It is not acceptable in the overwhelming cases. If it were acceptable, the person getting punted out of the way wouldn't get so angry about it. The only time that I've seen it considered acceptable to the driver getting moved is when they had used up their tires and knew that they were just jamming up the field lap after lap because they had to slow down excessively through the corner in order to get the car to rotate.
Any monkey in a racing suit can sail it into the corner and move someone out of the way. That's not racing in my opinion. There's a level of artistry to making a quality pass in oval racing. Studying the car ahead to see where their weakness is; backing up a corner to get a better exit than they can; being able to out-brake them on entry; etc. I admire that kind of skill.
The question is, since Bump-and-Runs are inevitable, how am I going to officiate them?
1) You will be raced how you race others. So if you move someone, don't complain to me when you get moved. Live by the sword; die by the sword.
2) While I won't penalize every Bump-and-Run because, chances are, you will come out on the short end in the long run when your reputation causes everyone around you to race you how you raced others, I will absolutely rule that any accident caused by someone executing a flagrant (where it is blatantly obvious that the intention was to move the lead car) Bump-and-Run, they will be automatically deemed At Fault and will receive an Avoidable Contact Penalty.
3) This is an invite-only league. If you make a bad reputation for yourself that causes enough people to regret your presence on track, you will not be invited back in the following season.
There's a vast difference between Accepted and Acceptable:
1) It is accepted that this tactic has been around racing forever.
2) It is not acceptable in the overwhelming cases. If it were acceptable, the person getting punted out of the way wouldn't get so angry about it. The only time that I've seen it considered acceptable to the driver getting moved is when they had used up their tires and knew that they were just jamming up the field lap after lap because they had to slow down excessively through the corner in order to get the car to rotate.
Any monkey in a racing suit can sail it into the corner and move someone out of the way. That's not racing in my opinion. There's a level of artistry to making a quality pass in oval racing. Studying the car ahead to see where their weakness is; backing up a corner to get a better exit than they can; being able to out-brake them on entry; etc. I admire that kind of skill.
The question is, since Bump-and-Runs are inevitable, how am I going to officiate them?
1) You will be raced how you race others. So if you move someone, don't complain to me when you get moved. Live by the sword; die by the sword.
2) While I won't penalize every Bump-and-Run because, chances are, you will come out on the short end in the long run when your reputation causes everyone around you to race you how you raced others, I will absolutely rule that any accident caused by someone executing a flagrant (where it is blatantly obvious that the intention was to move the lead car) Bump-and-Run, they will be automatically deemed At Fault and will receive an Avoidable Contact Penalty.
3) This is an invite-only league. If you make a bad reputation for yourself that causes enough people to regret your presence on track, you will not be invited back in the following season.