saucy-scooby

Now correct me if I am mistaken, but the idea of staging a rally is to fid out who has best car/speed/driving skills on various surfaces.

Can someone please explain why a majority of this year's WRC drivers will be given speeding penalties...points on licences, fines etc....for doing what they do best?

Apparently all the speeding cameras on the WRC stage routes using public roads have not been turned off nor have the powers at be had the common sense to consider that a car doing high speeds on a road, surrounded by spectators, with numbers and sponsorship info plastered all over it might just be taking part in the world's best known rally championship.

Wakey Wakey Wales!!!!!

These guys are racing for a reason, they are not joy riders out for fun.

Use your common sense please (if you have any)

davyboy

WRC does not use public roads in the UK.

All the speeding offences were committed on public roads between stages.

This should be an interesting thread with all the "you should get locked up for speeding brigade!"

Johnny50

Yeah, just heard this on the radio..

Seems they were all speeding inbetween stages or the like.

Would seem a bit harsh to ban them...but if it came to it, i'm sure the co-drivers could take over at the end of each stage.

davyboy

Why is it harsh to ban them?

If someone on here had broke the spped limit and got caught, he woudl be hung in scoobynet court!

davyboy

BTW I just playing devil's advocate here!

KungFuMonkey

Many of the rally drivers ive seen are lunatics on the road sections.

Worst was at the Argyll rally last year, when a competitor was comming up the road flat out on the wrong side, and forced the Clarke of the Course off the road onto someones door step!!!!

Worst bit was he then arrived at service 10 mins early and had to sit there waiting. If he'd been driving more sensibly it'd only have taken him a few more mins, and he wouldnt have been repremanded.

It was worse in the Group B days. I remeber watching footage of one of the Metro 6R4 drivers on the RAC getting stopped by the police for doing 70mph+ down the hardshoulder of the M6 (I think) because of a traffic jam. The police werent very impressed.

I think as long as its not dangerous it isnt a problem (same with anyone driving), but the roads round the stages are always packed, so if their being dangeroud they deserve points and fines.

Jono

D6ale

iTrader: (1)

Just read about it in the sun.....

Burns,Colin McRae,Sainz,Makinen all face fines etc for speeding.

burns has 5 counts against him for speeding in 30,40,50,60 and 70mph road sections....some face disqualification!!!

FIA have said they can continue to compete without normal road licences...

grovesy

If all the top drivers are banned for next year (in this country) will they not just abandon the british leg ???

Well done you backward welsh bumpkins

Richard Askew

F*cking double standards within the governing body once again - when I was younger I was facing a potential ban and when I asked the MSA how it would affect my competition license I was told: No road license = no comp license

SJ_Skyline

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/3108065.stm

PhilsGT4

It could be argued that they should be punished like everyone else, but remember that bloke in a 911 GT3 (I think) was caught speeding and was let off because he argued that he had an international race licence and his car was more than capable of going at speed - so wouldn't it seem right to allow the same to happen here - at the end of the day they are almost without doubt the best drivers in the world!!!

mel

There are not supposed to break the speed limit between stages!

[Edited by mel - 7/30/2003 8:56:11 AM]

RichB

Are the cars registered with the DVLA then? I bet Burnsies motor is not registered in his name, can't they just say, "it's a company car, don't know who was driving at that time officer..." Then the manufacturers pick up the fine...

Badger Stuffer

Paulo P

iTrader: (42)

that's amazing. Fair play though, it's in the rules I think that they are not allowed to break the speed limits between stages. didn't Makinen get penalised for this earlier this year?

Paul

Paulo P

iTrader: (42)

lol @ Jason Quality picture

SiDHEaD

Nice one BS

Scoobychick

iTrader: (1)

The German traffic police were out in force with their radar on the autobahn during last weekends Rallye Deutschland too. We heard the Ford weather crew warning their drivers of the radar traps location whilst listening in on our scanner, about 20 minutes after they gave out the first location the police moved to another one, the Ford guys then gave out this location too

Needless to say we took it easy on our way back up the autobahn.

[Edited by scoobychick - 7/30/2003 9:44:31 AM]

RS2 JIM

iTrader: (5)

I think it's a shame for the drivers to be prosecuted for breaking a few speed limits unless it was for some sort of ridiculous speed. Ok so speeding is against the law etc but if they were doing, say, 40 in a 30 i would think they of all people have the right car and ability to stop the car well before ANY other car on the roads. If they were doing 70 in a 30 then throw the book at them. That is totally unnacceptable and irresponsible on their part. I hope that nothing comes of this and no-one recieves a bad from racing.

Further up the post there was mention of someone driving a porsche being let off as he was a qualified racing driver and had a racing licence. There was a similar case with the Chief of an english police force who was caught at over 100mph crossing the Pennines. He escaped prosecution because he had been trained to a Class A level by the police force for high speed driving and therefore was perfectly in control of the vehicle. Surely this isn't fair either?
I have a police motorbike licence that my fathers motoercyle dealership paid for as a publicity excercise so does that mean i can jump on a bike and do 100mph without fear of prosecution? hmmmmmm i think not!

I really hope this doesn't affect this years rally.

James

Andrew Dixon

If it's the case I am thinking of, the Porsche driver used the defence of the car being capable of high speeds to escape a conviction for Dangerous Driving .. he still took the full rap for the speeding offence!

D6ale

iTrader: (1)

also from Sun newspaper...

" yesterday magistrates in port talbot south wales adjourned hearings until november when the rally returns."

so that means nothings gona happen till november..so for this season at least everyone is ok.

if they do get banned and not able to compete it would be applicable for 2004 onwards...

this could bring in early retirement for makinen and sainz?

sammyh

iTrader: (1)

Thanks :P

Gidney&Knowlesy

Stuffer of Badgers; great photo. Now what will they get done for?

1. Speeding
2. Car out of control
3. No number plates
4. No road tax
5. No road insurance
6. Wearing helmets in the car
7. Flamer kits on
8. No cats on the car
9. Illegal tread on tyres

Kin hell they'll never be back; "WRC cancelled due to prison sentences"

pbee

How can it affect Sainz and Makinnen, do our courts have power over the countries their licences are issued in, If a Brit is caught speeding in france its a hefty fine no points though or bans,

or am i mistaken ??

grovesy

XtremeScoobies "Flamer kits????"

I don't think WRC cars have a spark plud welded into there back boxes.

mattstant

Interesting that Pbee as a dutch friend of mine who is living here in the UK was taken to court recently for going through a red light
they couldnt put any points on his licence and therefore neither could they fine him.

Apparently if they had gone for dangerous driving they may have got a ban but they could find no way to impose points on his licence.

He was well chuffed LOL

Pete Croney

The rules used to be if you committed a traffic offense on the rally (on the road) then you were disqualified from the rally. This may still apply and I'm sure someone was disqualified last year, though may not have been on the British.

Leslie

If the rally rules say you should not break the speed limits on public roads as I always understood them to do, then there simply is no excuse for it. You can't pardon it because of the car or the driver's ability. That just isn't in the Road Traffic Act. Only the public services are entitled to speed when on a call. It is black and white I'm afraid and it is down to the individual to obey the rules or face the consequences.

pbee

I think Tommi Makinnen was done for speeding in cyprus, He was fined the equivelent of £5000 by the FIA, Dont know what the cyprus authorities did.

DaveD

iTrader: (2)

One of the hazards of spectators having to use the rally route??

If road sections are timed at 30mph, it doesn't leave a lot of lea-way when rally cars get held up in traffic - especially when stages are close to each other.

One more reason not to stage the rally in South Wales with its hundreds of towns & villages.......