2011 NWR Solo Supplemental Rules

1.     RULES

Regional Series events will use the current SCCA Solo trials and Solo Rules (SIIR) and the PCS, GTCS, and GCR as they apply.

2.     DRIVER QUALIFICATIONS

All competitors (except Formula Junior) must possess a current valid driver’s license and must be at least 16 years old on the day of the event. (Exception: A driver with a valid WA learner permit may drive with a parent/guardian.) Drivers under age 18 must have written parental permission to compete, AND a parent or guardian must sign the appropriate minor waiver.

3.     DOUBLE ENTRIES

At the discretion of the Double Entry Committee (Event Chair, Chief of Registration, and Chief of Timing), double entries may be allowed. The second entry at an event will be entered as “Time Only” (TO), is not be eligible for event trophies or series points, and must run during the second half of the day. Double entrants must work two work assignments, once in the morning and once in the afternoon. Chief of Workers assigns double entrants to any afternoon run group to balance out worker needs.


4.     PASSENGERS

If allowed by the SCCA SIIR, a passenger is permitted on any run during the event provided:

1)     The driver is an event entrant and the car has passed Tech Inspection;

2)     If the driver is inexperienced, the passenger is a novice instructor approved by the Novice Chair or the Event Chair;

3)     The passenger is at least 12 years old (NOTE: A minor passenger may only ride with a parent or legal guardian);

4)     All necessary waivers have been completed for the passenger;

5)     The required safety equipment (see SIIR, Section 4.3) is in place for the passenger and fits properly; and

6)     The car has an adequate passenger seat.


5.     SPEED LIMITS

The off-course speed limit is 15 MPH. This applies to all pit areas and to any on-site entry/exit roads. VIOLATORS MAY BE SUBJECT TO IMMEDIATE DISQUALIFICATION AND REQUIRED TO LEAVE THE EVENT SITE.


6.     INTOXICANTS

Absolutely no alcoholic beverages or drugs are permitted at the event site during the event. Any additional site requirements must be obeyed as well. Drivers are not allowed to compete under the influence of such substances. VIOLATORS WILL BE SUBJECT TO IMMEDIATE DISQUALIFICATION AND REQUIRED TO LEAVE THE EVENT SITE.


7.     CHILDREN AND PETS

The grid and course areas are OFF LIMITS to children and animals during competition. All pets MUST be leashed or otherwise restrained. Children are not permitted to use bicycles; no one may use skateboards or roller skates/blades on the event site. Bicycles are prohibited in the grid area.


8.     TIMING VEHICLE

The timing vehicle is ABSOLUTELY OFF LIMITS to all persons except event administrators.


9.     SITE FACILITIES

Fuel, air, and helmets may not be readily available at the event site. Competitors are advised to be prepared for such unavailabilities.


10.            CARS PREPARED TO WWSCC RULES

 Cars prepared to the WWSCC Improved category rules (only) may compete legally in their appropriate SCCA Solo Street Prepared class at Regional events.  Similarly, cars prepared to the WWSCC Prepared category rules may compete in their appropriate Solo Prepared class and cars prepared to the WWSCC Open Street class rules may compete in their appropriate Solo Street Modified class at Regional events..

11.            WORK REQUIREMENT

Competitors must complete a work assignment to qualify for event awards and Regional Series points.  Failure to complete a work assignment may result in restriction from future events at the discretion of the Event chair or Solo chair.

12.            RUN/WORK SCHEDULE

Competitors will be assigned a work group during the same half of the day as their run group. Day halves will swap times at alternating events. Thus, a class that runs and works during the morning at one Regional event will run and work during the afternoon at the next Regional event. NWR/SCCA reserves the right to revise class/day half assignments to adapt to participation patterns, event administration, and scheduling.


13.            OUT-OF-GROUP RUNS

Competitors needing to run outside of their assigned group run time MUST request to do so in writing, to the Event Chair, prior to the close of registration. The required form is available at Registration. Adequate justification (e.g., work conflict) is required. Out-of-group run requests shall be posted at the scoreboard. If a weather change influences class results in favor of an out-of-group competitor, an ad hoc committee composed of the Event Chair, Chief of Tech, and Chief of Timing will determine an appropriate time penalty, such as assigning a time 0.001 sec. slower than the slowest time in the class. No more than three out-of-group requests will be honored for an individual during a single season.


14.            OUT-OF-GROUP WORKING

Out-of-group work requests must be submitted in writing to the Chief of Workers prior to the first affected work time.


15.            SCCA CLASSES

Cars will be classed according to the current SCCA Solo Rules (SIIR). To provide better competition for lightly-subscribed classes, certain classes are grouped together based on class similarity and SIIR Appendix B (Bumping Order) to form the following Regional classes (each having an Open and a Ladies class):

Stock 1 (S1/S1L):  SS, AS, BS, FS

Stock 2 (S2/S2L):  CS, ES

Stock 3 (S3/S3L):    DS, GS, HS

Non-Stock 1 (NS1/NS1L):    ASP, BSP, ESP

Non-Stock 2 (NS2/NS2L):    CSP, DSP, FSP

Non-Stock 3 (NS3/NS3L):    All Prepared, Modified and Kart classes, and FSAE

Non-Stock 4 (NS4/NS4L):  ST, STS, STR

Non-Stock 5 (NS5/NS5L):  STX, STU

Non-Stock 6 (NS6/NS6L):  SM, SSM, SMF

Finishing position within each of these Regional classes will be determined using the National PAX/RTP Index method, as described in Rule 16. Cars entered in these Regional consolidated classes will display their appropriate SIIR class designation (AS, CSPL, etc.), not the Regional class designation.

The following classes (Open and Ladies) will run as standalone classes, not in one of the Regional combined classes: Open PAX and Non-Stock PAX (Rule 16), Street Tire (Rule 17), and Novice (Rule 18).

16.            PAX CLASSES

Four PAX Index-based classes will be offered: Open Pax, Open Pax Ladies, Non-Stock Pax, and Non-Stock Pax Ladies. All cars are eligible to compete in Open Pax and Open Pax Ladies.  Non-Stock Pax and Non-Stock Pax Ladies are limited to cars in the Street Touring, Street Prepared, Prepared, Modified and Street Modified classes (ALL NS classes).  Class designation is an “X” following the normal class letters (e.g., ASX, CSPLX). The current National PAX/RTP Index values will be used to compute times for scoring. Street Touring cars run with the Stock classes. PAX-Indexed times are computed as follows: 

Time = (scratch time x PAX Index) + penalties

17.            STREET TIRE CLASSES

Two Street Tire classes will be provided: one Open and one Ladies. Class designation is a “T” following the normal class letters (e.g., AST, CSPLT). The class is for cars using non-autocross DOT-approved tires. Purpose-built autocross or road racing ('R'-compound) tires are not allowed. See SIIR section 17.3 for tire eligibility specifics. The current National PAX/RTP Index values will be used to compute times for scoring (See Rule 16 for formula.)  Street Touring classes are not eligible.
.

18.            NOVICE CLASSES

Two Novice classes will be provided: one Open and one Ladies. Class designation will be NOV (or NOVL). The classes are intended to be transitional classes for new Solo drivers. Event trophies will be awarded per the Solo Rules (limit 5), but year-end class trophies will not be awarded. However, a Novice Driver of the Year will be selected from new competitors. A Novice is an individual competitor who has not competed in more than three (3) SCCA Regional events. A competitor that has run as a Novice three (3) times must move to a regular class. Tires for Novice classes must comply with the Street Tire class restrictions (see Rule 17). The Novice classes are not intended for drivers who cannot run in their regular run group but have failed to meet the provisions of Rule 13.

19.            TIME ONLY CLASS

A single Time Only class will be available in each half of the day. The class is intended for instructional and testing purposes, and to accommodate entrants who do not desire to compete for series points. Entrants must complete a regular work assignment before they run. No awards accrue to Time Only entries. Event results will include a class listing for Time Only, but may suppress the class from the Top Time and Top PAX Time listings. Time Only cars will display no class markings other than “TO.

20.            TIME ONLY AM AND PM “I” CLASSES

These classes are non-championship indexed classes.  Drivers may only choose these classes for their first runs of the day; i.e., not for double-entry second runs.  The classes are not required to run in the same group. Entrants cars will display the letter “I” and the car’s index class designator (e.g., BSPI).

21.            PM “second run of the day” CLASSES

These classes are non-championship,  non-indexed classes designed for people who are running for the second time that day.  Drivers may only choose these classes for their double-entry second runs.  The classes are not required to run in the same group. Entrants cars will display the letter TBD and the car’s index class designator (e.g., BSPTBD).

22.            AWARDS

Trophies will be awarded at all events according to participation levels as follows: one trophy for every three competitors in a class, rounded to the next whole number. For example, for seven entrants, three trophies will be awarded.  A competitor must participate in at least five (5) events in a class to be eligible for a year-end award in that class. The number of events counted toward year-end awards is determined by the following formula: (no. of events)/2 + 2, rounded to the next whole number. Thus, the best 6 events are counted for an 8-event series, 7 for a 9-event series, and 7 for a 10-event series. There are no year-end awards for Novice classes. In addition to year-end class award, a Worker of the Year and Novice Driver of the Year will be selected.

23.            SCORING

The fastest of the timed trophy runs, plus any penalty seconds applied, will be used to determine a competitor's place in class. Unofficial results will reflect the raw time plus all cones and gates.

ALL timed runs at any given event would be considered “competition runs” for all classes except OPax(L) and NSPax(L).  OPax and NSPax classes will score no more than three runs for each event.  For all other classes all competition runs would be scored for the event and year-end season awards.

A Competitor’s score should be posted as soon as practicable after the run and should be posted prior to the start of the competitor’s next timed run.  The posting of Class Standings should be regularly up-dated during the Run Group.  Final Class Standings must remain posted for a minimum of 30 minutes to satisfy time limits for filing any timing and/or competitor Protests.

The “performance index” system will be used in awarding season points to competitors, as follows:

Points = (Fastest time in class / Competitor’s best time) x 100

24.            PYLON PENALTIES

The following excerpt from the SCCA SIIR shows examples of situations for which a penalty is or is not assessed:

 

25.            EVENT RESULTS

Results will not be mailed to each competitor. They will be available from the region web site (www.nwr-scca.org), and will normally be printed in the Northwest Region/SCCA newsletter (Northwest Sports Car News).

26.            The 2010 National PAX/RTP Index is as follows:

 

SS

0.860

ASP

0.871

XP

0.890

AM

1.000

AS

0.854

BSP

0.865

BP

0.875

BM

0.965

BS

0.847

CSP

0.863

CP

0.866

CM

0.915

CS

0.840

DSP

0.849

DP

0.874

DM

0.913

DS

0.825

ESP

0.852

EP

0.873

EM

0.907

ES

0.829

FSP

0.838

FP

0.876

FM

0.908

FS

0.837

 

 

GP

0.850

FSAE

0.960

GS

0.812

ST

0.824

 

 

 

 

HS

0.803

STS

0.826

SM

0.877

F125

0.959

 

 

STR

0.842

SMF

0.870

FJA

0.869

 

 

STX

0.830

SSM

0.883

FJB

0.834

 

 

STU

0.844

 

 

FJC

0.772

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

27.            TIMING EQUIPMENT FINANCIAL PENALTIES.

Competitors are expected to drive on course in a fashion which does not threaten the integrity of the timing system components (i.e. not spin through the finish gate or get lost and drive over the timing cables). To enforce this requirement, a financial penalty (fine) will be assessed for the following incidents:

As of 1/1/2005, the fine for all such listed incidents is $100.00.

Payment of the fine is due immediately at the time of the incident. Competitors subject to a fine can request terms for payment on a case-by-case basis, but it is expected that all fines will be cleared prior to competition in further events. Failure to pay a fine will result in suspension of the privilege to participate in all future events until the fine is paid.

28.            NUMBER OF DRIVERS PER CAR PER RUN GROUP

No more than two drivers may drive the same car in any single run group, except in the event of a mechanical DNF after the Run Group has begun.  If the mechanical failure happens during a race weekend, then the exception will carry over to the next day of competition.  The Run Groups will be structured so that the corresponding Open and Ladies classes will not compete in the same Run Group.  I.e. Stock 1 and Stock 1 Ladies will not run in the same group. 

29.            ORDER OF RUNNING

A minimum of five minutes must have elapsed between runs for any car during Regional Championship Series events.  This includes reruns or runs for another driver of the same car.  A grid marshal will be specifically assigned to handle two-driver cars and will keep a time log to assure compliance with the five-minute minimum between runs.  The time shall be measured from the time the car leaves the finish area of the course until the time it leaves the start line. 

30.            COURSE DEVIATIONS

If a car deviates from the course so that all four wheels are off the paved surface that driver will receive a DSQ from the event and will no longer be allowed to run that day. 

DSQ is defined as disqualifications, no further driving participation is allowed for the day. All previous runs times will remain and be used for final scoring. Final decision to apply a disqualification may be over-ridden with complete agreement of both event chair and safety steward.

31.            COURSE APPROVAL

A course map for each event must be presented for review revision and approval at a Solo Committee meeting or meeting of the assigned Solo Safety Stewards, prior to course setup.  Adequate time shall be allowed for onsite review, revision and approval by the Solo Safety Stewards prior to the start of the event.  When possible the course shall be setup the day prior to the event, and review and approval conducted at that time.  The event chair is responsible to assure the course review and approval process is implemented.  The event chair must be alert to incidents and changing weather conditions and work with the course designer and SSS to make course changes if necessary. 

32.            INCIDENT RESPONSE

When an incident occurs that involves personal injury, or property damage to the site or participant cars/equipment, the event chair and Solo Safety Stewards shall consult to determine if/what actions need to be taken regarding the driver/participant, the course design or event operating procedures before the event continues. 

33.            Sound

1.1.     Procedure

A section of the course shall be selected as the measurement site. The section shall be located where all vehicles will be driven at full throttle as much as possible, i.e. a straightaway. An area 100 feed wide (from course centerline) on each side of this section of the course must be free of reflective surfaces larger than a lamp post.

The meter shall be located 50 feed from the edge of the course, centered in the section, and perpendicular to the direction of travel of the vehicle. The meter shall be positioned 3 to 4 feet from the ground. All readings shall be taken on the “A” scale, under SLOW response.

All cars passing through the measurement site shall be monitored. Only those cars which register above the approved limit shall be recorded on the noise monitoring log sheet. The recorded information shall include car, class and number. As the vehicle passes, the highest reading shall be noted. Sound reading shall be recorded for cars exceeding 93.0 dBA. Under adverse conditions, i.e. rain, the recording readings may be only for cars exceeding 95.0 dBA.

Course communication shall report noise readings above 97.0 dBA.

1.2.     Policy for readings between 97.0 and 100.0 dBA

Notification to drivers of vehicles with readings of 97.0 to 100.0 dBA shall be made as soon as possible, preferably on the day of the occurrence.

1.3.     Policy when noise level exceeds 100.0 dBA

A run shall be defined as any time the vehicle enters the track, regardless of specific driver.

Any run that results in a reading in excess of 100.0 dBA shall be disqualified. There shall be no exceptions.

Any run which exceeds 107.0 dBA shall result in immediate disqualification of the vehicle from any subsequent run, which may include any additional drivers. This disqualification shall extend until the vehicle can be proven to the satisfaction of the Noise Committee Chair or his designee that the vehicle conforms to the 100.0 dBA limit. An exception for valid mechanical problems may be considered.

Upon completion of any run resulting in a reading in excess of 100.0 dBA, and prior to any following runs, the driver shall be notified of the offense.

On the first violation the driver shall be required to immediately make an attempt to bring the vehicle within compliance. Physical changes to the vehicle that result in a drop in the noise output of the vehicle are the only accepted means of compliance.

On the second violation of a single day’s event the vehicle shall be disqualified from any subsequent competition, which shall include any additional drivers. This disqualification shall extend until the driver or owner can prove to the satisfaction of the Noise Committee Chair or his designee that the vehicle conforms to the 100.0 dBA limit.

1.4.     Unsportsmanlike Conduct

Any attempt to simply divert sound by directing the exhaust away from the meter without reducing the level shall be considered unsportsmanlike conduct and such is subject is immediate disqualification. Permanently affixed tips which divert to the side are not subject to this rule. Diverting sound up or down is not subject to this rule. The intent is to prevent movable tips with the intent of defeating sound measurement.

 

34. Allowance for body kits

Addition of spoilers, splitters, body kits, rear wings and nonfunctional scoops/vents is allowed. The intent of this allowance is to accommodate commonly available appearance kits, and replicas thereof, which have no significant aerodynamic function at Solo speeds. Body kits are limited to bumper covers (including modified OE bumper covers), valances, side skirts, and fender flares. Standard parts may not be removed except for the substitution of spoilers, rear wings, bumper covers and valances. Rear wings must attach only aft of the rear wheel centerline.

The allowances regarding wings and spoilers only allow swapping like for like if the original device was not an OE option as configured by the factory, i.e. a spoiler for a spoiler or a wing for a wing. If a vehicle is available without a wing or spoiler from the manufacturer then either can be installed. Surface area of all splitters, spoilers and rear wing (see 12.9) shall not exceed 5 square feet in sum total. Substitution of rear spoilers or wings must retain any original third brake light functionality unless otherwise equipped. No underbody panels may be added or substituted. The drilling of holes for the purpose of mounting these pieces is permitted.

35. Season entries

Non-refundable, full-series event pre-payment will be available prior to the first full event each season.  A 10% discount will be offered to those who pre-pay for the full season.