Hi Folks,
By now you are all undoubtedly aware that there were technical issues on Wednesday, August 5th that caused the registration system for the Tire Rack SCCA ProSolo Finale to at first go very slowly and then to shut down. At the point of shut down 145 members had successfully entered the event through persistence and a bit of luck of their entry being in the que as the system came back to life.
The staff at MotorsportReg have apologized for this problem and they have been working on a technical fix to the issue. However, that leaves us with the need to establish the ground rules for restarting the registration process for the ProSolo Finale that is as fair and equitable as we can make it under these unusual circumstances. Before I outline the process we are going to follow, I would like to give a bit of background as a number of solutions have been offered by the members.
- Interest in ProSolo has definitely been on the increase over the last couple of years. In 2014 we had similar numbers of first tier qualifiers for the Finale. When all was said and done, we had about 60 first tier drivers who did not make it into the Finale. Leading up to the 2014 Finale we had a significant number of folks express concern that we were going to alter the published format for the Finale and try something like we did for the 2013 Toledo ProSolo so we could accommodate all the first tier drivers. We told them that we were not going to change the format by increasing the number of days of competition, as we had learned our lesson in Toledo that even changes made two months out created problems for entrants relative to planned vacation days, travel arrangements, and family/work commitments.
- When developing the 2015 ProSolo rules, we decided against making any changes to the Finale format, qualifying , and registration as we did not know whether the 2014 increases would continue or if this was an anomaly. Obviously for 2016 we are going to have to change a variety of things with ProSolo to accommodate this sustained increased interest over the last couple of years. However, making dramatic changes for 2015 at this late date would be unwise with many unknown side effects.
So, where does that leave us for this year鈥檚 Finale event?? Here is what is going to happen:
- We are going to restart registration for first tier drivers and increase the entry cap to 375, which would allow all first tier drivers to enter the Finale. The fortunate 145 entrants that made it in during the first registration period do not have to do anything further 鈥� they are entered in the Finale. While wiping the slate clean and starting the registration process over was an option considered, that approach had its share of negatives and this approach puts all first tier drivers on an equal footing no matter their circumstances
- The Finale will run within the scheduled time for the event (Saturday and Sunday). We simply cannot encroach into the time allotted for Nationals as Monday is a full day of set up for event officials AND a full day of course walks for entrants.
- However, the schedule within those two days and on Friday will be adjusted to accommodate this unprecedented number of entrants:
- Friday check-in will be extended one hour to 8 PM
- Saturday late check-in will be from 6:30 to 7:00
- Saturday class competition will begin one hour earlier, at 8 AM
- There will be no break between Heats 1 and 2 on Saturday
- Sunday class competition will begin 30 minutes earlier, at 7:30
- While we would like to offer the traditional 3 Heats with 12 runs, we may have to compress the event into 2 Heats with 8 runs. That decision will be made on Saturday based on the actual number of entrants, the time it takes to run Heat 1, and weather factors. Therefore, drivers should go into the Finale planning for it to be 2 Heats/8 runs, although we will do everything possible to accommodate 3 Heats/12 runs.
- In order to have the best chance of having 3 Heats and 12 runs, the following will happen:
- The 15 second shot clock will be fully utilized, so drivers need to be ready for this pace.
- For that pace to work, we will need all course workers to report on time and spread out while on course 鈥� we have seen a lot of clustering at worker stations this year
- The course will utilize a minimum number of cones
- Drivers need to avoid delaying the event. We have increasingly seen drivers idle through the course once the run is over competitively (red light, cones, etc.). For the Finale, there will be additional penalties for this practice; see Supps for details
We believe that what I have outlined above is the best solution for the unusual situation we are facing and it allows us all to consider what can be done in the future to allow for the popularity of ProSolo to continue to grow. I look forward to seeing everyone in Lincoln and together we can all enjoy this historic and record breaking event.
As always, thanks for your support and cooperation,
Howard Duncan, SCCA Senior Director of Solo and Rally