Presumably .....................

**Peter Mallett** · 11 May 2000, 20:18 (Ref:10533)

You are all out there preparing your bolides (my spellchecker thought the word “bolides” should read “******es”!!!

) for the next outing. If not then what are you all doing? And. Is it printable?

In the UK the MSA has just released its quarterly magazine which is always at least a month out of date. (BTW, that’s 59 years and 11 months ahead of the MSA). In this magnificent tome, the powers that be like to flex their muscles and they do this by printing the results of its tribunals. Some of them are genuinely funny. Like the report some years back which went something like “Mr xxxx was fined £500.00 and had his licence removed for two years. Upon receiving the penalty Mr xxxx turned to the tribunal and said "“ think you are all a bunch of w***ers”.

This month carries the story of CR of (somewhere in the UK) and it goes something like this.

On 2 November 1999 the disciplinary council sat to consider ……… Mrs R (mother of CR) who at a Kart meeting assaulted a third party. “Mother” did not appeal the conviction but explained that CR had already served a thirty day ban”. She was fined and ordered to pay costs.

Question. What was the thirty day ban for and why would this be a mitigating circumstance?

So. This Karting lark sounds pretty dangerous to me. If the drivers don’t get you their Mums will!!!!

Anybody experienced the wrath of a competitor’s mum?

**Peter Mallett** · 14 May 2000, 19:02 (Ref:10534)

Er. Is there anybody out there? Knod if you can hear me. (Pink Floyd had some wonderful lyrics).

Graham · 14 May 2000, 21:25 (Ref:10535)

They're probably all busy rebuilding their cars after today's activities

Any more examples?

[This message has been edited by Graham (edited 14 May 2000).]

marcus · 15 May 2000, 14:47 (Ref:10536)

its a common occurance in karting and i guess in the lower forms of cars as well just as a guy is starting out. Fortunately my mother doesnt attend to many meetings of mine (i think she gets a bit scared) but there have been cases that i have seen and been involved in that really are quite silly. I havent raced since november 99 and they say your only as good as your last race.hhhmmm i ended up watching from a gravel trap...but I was racing against a young guy who was very quick down the straights but very slow in the corners..twice he passed me on the outside down the straight and i couldnt do anything about it but in the final he was even slower in the corners and I made my move in the corner leading onto the main straight and tried to be a bit sneaky about it by just edging him out a bit wider as we were side by side this slowed him up just a bit and i thought i was clear to hold him off down the straight only to have him range up beside me on the outside entering a hairpin at the end of the straight..Ok i thought I have the line he is not up far enough to claim the corner..WRONG !!!..he turned straight across the front of me and there was nothing I could do. I actually made contact with his left front wheel with my front right so there was no way it was his corner..but anyway we both ended up in the gravel trap..his mother was lap scoring the race and yelled and screamed her head off saying i dilliberately caused an accident not wanting to be beaten by a guy 7 years younger than me..she wanted a hearing and my lisence marked with dangerous driving..( it was quite a funny scene)...but then this voice came out of the blue saying ..."ummmm mum i think the crash was my fault as it wasnt my corner"..yep you guessed it the other bloke apologised to me claiming full responsibility for the crash ...and funny thing I never did hear anything from his mother again

Tony Harman · 15 May 2000, 15:36 (Ref:10537)

Your quite right Pete,
The glossy MSA newsletter can make entertaining reading on the juducial stuff.
More and more seems to be at junior Karting level, no offence intended Karting types,
I know someone who runs a youth football team and they have the same parental problems, they've even had to ban some parents from the sidelines
This is supposed to FUN

yelwoci · 15 May 2000, 16:33 (Ref:10538)

Pete,
As you well know, we used to have an individual racing a Capri with us.
Not only was he a throwback to before we split from the apes, but Dave Attenborough would have been happy in the rain forest with the mum.
We protested his driving at one meeting (he veered 20m in front of me and others at well over 100mph in practice).
The MSA Clerk of the Course was looking a bit strange after his mum 'represented' him, and he was not a timid guy!

IanC

Graham · 15 May 2000, 18:31 (Ref:10539)

Are you talking about Steve H?

He seems a good bloke.

SNH · 16 May 2000, 08:13 (Ref:10540)

scuse me Graham! If my mother had spoken to someone they would be a toad or a block of stone by now!
The 'person' that yelwoci is talking about had a mother who came & spoke to me about how unfairly her son, (brother/lover/guard dog/etc), was being treated by the Club. She said he was a nice lad & being picked on.

Steve Hart · 16 May 2000, 08:52 (Ref:10541)

Yes Pete, I'm one of thoses who's spent the last few weeks rebuilding my car....didn't get past the first day's testing at Snetterton. Incidentally, I was racing the next two days and was really doubtful the BRSCC would refund me any money - I immediately rang the secretary and she was very non-commital, saying I should send a fax from the circuit. I got it, though, so it's worth a go (£325-worth in this case!)

Re the MSA mag, I agree it's worth it just for the judicial stuff!

Did you notice a Toyota advert, 2nd page in this week's Autosport?....I quote..."apparently the drivers in Atlantics are too young to appreciate the concept of the caution flag"....and then..."when your hungry to win, throw caution to the wind"....and just to finish off...."the only flag worth caring about is checkered"....

great message huh?

Steve

**Peter Mallett** · 21 May 2000, 19:22 (Ref:10542)

Steve,

Its the argument I've had with FFord racers in the past. They're young and influenced by sponsors to the extent that concerns about personal safety and their opponents go out of the window. We lost a young racer at Oulton Park last year and it was that mentality which may well have contributed to his very sad demise.

On a more light hearted note. I got really frustrated at Brands Hatch watching the guys (my fellow competitors) practicing for the 1 hour race which was to be held on the Sunday. I raced on the Saturday. I am now committed to the 1 hour race at Pembrey in August just because of sheer frustration. You'd think that somebody of my age would know better!