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https://www.americanmotorcyclist.com/Home/News-Story/ama-selects-daytona-motorsports-group-to-manage-professional-racing-series
Ant the dip shit who took the flag and stood in the middle of the track he is lucky he didn't get nailed then maybe he would have figured it out, what a moron.
The Shop
Bike is on one side, rider is on the other.there only option is to just Let the riders know there is an issue. If the chose not to let off to see what the problem is then they are the one at fault.
While it is admirable what nick wey tried to do, once he gets the flag, only 3 or 4 riders go by. Whole different deal then when they are coming by in a group.
It is easy for grant Langston to babble on about somebody should do something. He is paid to babble on. Weege was the voice of reason.
For those of you, like crusher, that think jumping out in front of the riders is "part of the job", I promise you, it is not. I say that as someone that has gotten hit by a 450A rider at LL's. I say that as someone that has seen it happen to many flaggers over the years, including two that suffered broken femurs. I say that as someone that remembers reading about the flagger at Washougal that suffered horrendous injuries several years ago.
Those riders could not avoid seeing the flags where they were. They were being waved vigorously. The individual riders bear sole responsibility for anything that happens after they pass that flag.
Sorry folks. but if there is a yellow flag riders need to slow the hell down and go past that area SLOWLY. NOt this "let them know there is an incident bullsh*t. It started a while ago and we are reaping what we sow.
it sure the hell isn't the flaggers fault. and to see this posted this way is crap.
in the one video there was no less then 3 flaggers waving flags and riders are still hitting the downed bike? THe reason is you may as well wave a stick at them as they don't slow down and they don't stop racing.
this policy should have never been watered down much like many other things have been in the 'name of racing" it will just get riders, flaggers, etc hurt.
Next we will start "blaming" the rider for falling in the wrong spot.
There wasn't much slowing going on...
Having said that, the flaggers were fucking re-re's. Get out there and move the fuckers. Don't want to? Pay for admission like everyone else.
You agree that the riders were not slowing down for a waving yellow flag that is just a about impossible to miss, and your solution is for the flagger to step out in front of them......
I ask again, which way was the flagger supposed to direct them... to the right side of the bike on a 3' strip, towards the rider waving his arms, or invent some kind of signal that he hopes the riders will translate as " bike on one side, rider trying to cross on the other"
It was a complicated situation made worse by it happening on a blind jump that also had a corner. The riders were actually hitting the jump in the middle and landing on the outside. Plessinger actually made it worse by waving his hands over his head so the riders saw him first and must have assumed that was where the problem was. The one thing that would have made the entire thing much worse was a flagger getting hit and knocked forwards on the track adding to the obstructions on the blind side of the jump.
While it was a sucky situation for plessinger, he crashed and added to the confusion. What if he had taken the same chance you are asking the flaggers to take and trusted that the riders would use caution when they see a waving flag? He also could have gone up the hill lime he ended up doing and crossed the track, then the flaggers would have had a clear choice to direct the riders.
As it ended up, nobody got hurt, including plessinger. Calling the flaggers asshats and retarded is silly. It is always easy to sit on the couch watching it repeatedly and play coulda/shoulda/would but to blame the flaggers for ap having to wait and his bike getting hit when they did exactly the one thing they could do is wrong.
The only true remedy would have been for the riders to actually use CAUTION.
Simple as that.
You even acknowledge it in your post when you said
"agree,
There wasn't much slowing going on..."
The flagger in the red and blue shirt was an MX Sports employee, part of the crew that goes to every race. The other flagger was a track employee, flags every race there. Nick Wey is a former professional racer. Aaron Plessinger is a professional racer. The other 39 guys on the track were professional racers. No one was there "just to get close to the action" but it was a tough situation, for many reasons.
I was not at the race, so I watched and screamed at my computer for the flaggers to slow the riders down like everyone else probably did, and Nick Wey thankfully did in person. The riders were not paying attention to the flags and certainly not slowing down enough. We will be reviewing this photo tomorrow with the entire crew and trying to figure out what could have been done to make the situation safer, and not add any danger as well (which sometimes happens when a flagger gets out on the track in a different situation). We are on it and will do our best to learn from this and prevent it from happening moving forward. I've already been in contact with Jim Downey of the Brett Downey Safety Foundation this morning on some ideas.
This was also the same spot where we came up with the Wheels on the Ground flag after Austin Stroupe's bike got run over back in 2010, but the jump changed and they moved the WOG flags down to the double before it. I'm glad Aaron is okay, glad Nick was there to jump in and glad no one got hurt, though it was painful to watch.
DC
Racer X
Pit Row
I would discourage everyone from signing up to flag a national because you will get burned at the stake for doing your job by the internet police.
I have worked at a track over the last several years, everything from flagging to staging and even announcing.
For flaggers on the ground I think a lightweight tuff block with an arrow on it would be an easy fix.
Using this as an example the flaggers could have placed the tuff block on the face of the jump with the arrow pointing to which side of the track offered more space for the riders.
Obviously that would have still left AP having to wait for the pack to go buy but he also could have made his way to the top of the jump and made it across the track when safe and feel confident that no one was going to land on him once he made it to his bike.
The tuff block serves as both a visual and physical barrier. Most riders will play chicken with a person waving a flag knowing that they will win. A tuff block in the way will not move and the rider has no choice but to pick an alternate route. Thats where the arrow will serve as a visual aid and let them know which side to go to.
Arrows should be printed on every side so the person placing it can easily see that he has it pointed in the right direction.
Are flaggers actually supposed to go out on the track like Nick did? I don't think I would be wanting that job if so - and the heat of the moment was already mostly past by the time he did what he did. He likely wouldn't have done that with a pile of bikes coming at him & not doing what they were supposed to be doing. Not sure him jumping in when he did actually helped much.
Plessinger also wasn't helping much with the waving around he was doing - that would send riders away from him, which was into the downed bike.
Post a reply to: Those flaggers don't know how to flag