Author Topic: Thanks to All Volunteers  (Read 9715 times)

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Offline Dan Stokes

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Thanks to All Volunteers
« on: April 06, 2009, 12:10:25 AM »
I never know what to write  about this.  Any words I write just seem too small.  As I've said before - "No Volunteers, No Racing".  This time we had the greatest number of volunteers EVER and it is true that many hands make light work.  Whether you worked all weekend or helped clean up the track after the oil downs or helped pack out this afternoon - THANKS.

If I missed thanking any of you in person, please considered yourself thanked now.  Keith and Tonya and Joe and Donna also expressed their deepest thanks to all.

Dan Stokes
Volunteer Coordinator, ECTA
Wilmington, NC - by the sea

ECTA idiot, Bonneville volunteer

Offline dr j

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Re: Thanks to All Volunteers
« Reply #1 on: April 06, 2009, 01:05:46 PM »
Dan,
Thanks for coordinating all those volunteers.  That is a hugely important job to keep Maxton running smoothly.
In planning for the next meet how long does packup on Sunday afternoon usually take for the volunteers?
Jarl
Jarl- Moto Madcap
Sharpsburg MD
BUB2012- Morini 350- 4 Mod Pushrod records, Parilla 175- M-VG rec
250cc 4stroke Nitrous Motorcycle- 131.8mph
250/4 Naked Motorcycle-115.6mph
APS/F-125/2 115.2mph
P/PV-175/4 Moto Parilla-59.7mph
29 Retired Maxton Class Records on 3 bikes and 4 engines

Offline sabat

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Re: Thanks to All Volunteers
« Reply #2 on: April 06, 2009, 01:09:33 PM »
For the first time, I stuck around for about an hour spooling cable and breaking down the tower. I hope to make it a habit. Thanks to all the volunteers for making the event run smoothly.

Now if we could get the safety trucks to show up on time, we'd be in business!

Offline MiltonP

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Re: Thanks to All Volunteers
« Reply #3 on: April 06, 2009, 02:51:31 PM »
It was my first time doing the Icky Oil-Down Shuffle and I have to admit it was almost fun!  Then again, it wasn't 100 degrees in June either at the time.   :-D  It may have even been the main factor to my loosing 4 lbs over the weekend! :cheers:

Offline CTRon

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Re: Thanks to All Volunteers
« Reply #4 on: April 06, 2009, 05:20:29 PM »
Now if we could get the safety trucks to show up on time, we'd be in business!
aint that the truth!
maxton 2 club member 205.188mph  A/BFR
loring 2 club member 219.807mph  A/BFR
Wilmington 2 club member 202.702 A/BFR
bonneville 2 club member 225.003 XXF/BGRMR

Offline 1mile14

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Re: Thanks to All Volunteers
« Reply #5 on: April 06, 2009, 08:08:10 PM »
A big "thank you". This was a great time this weekend!!!!!!!!!!

Offline Seldom Seen Slim

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Re: Thanks to All Volunteers
« Reply #6 on: April 07, 2009, 09:52:55 AM »
So we started teching bikes about 2 Friday afternoon, knowing (KNOWING) that there'd be far less than there'd be cars.  About 5PM I had Nancy take a photo lkooking down the line of bikes.  There must have been about fifty of 'em in line!  Gee-zul-man, my aching back. . .  I worked 'til about 7 and there were still a few hangers-on that needed finishing.

Some requests from the guys/girls that inspect.  PLEASE!  If you are asked to make some modifications, whether simple -- better safety wire or a better hold down for your battery or whatever -- take your bike out of line and do the work elsewhere.  Then come back with the finished bike so we can get you completed.  Trust us -- we'll try to help you skip through in stead of having to wait in line again. 

If your inspector asks you for a change - don't spend too much time arguing that you've been approved for the past XXX events without that having been required.  It may be so -- whether it was missed or it's a new rule or whatever -- arguing with the inspector won't get you anywhere other than a cranky inspector.  PLEASE accept the fact that we're there to get you on the track with a vehicle that meets our requirements, and even if it's something you don't aggree with -- the inspector can't allow you to proceed.

Worst of all is the racer that arrives with something that doesn't meet the requirements and cheats.  The biggest example we saw this weekend is the fellow that had a helmet with a Snell M95 sticker.  When told he wouldn't be allowed to use the helmet he found a newer one that had the correct cert. and we approved it with one of our stickers.  Later on, in line at staging, he was seen wearing the first helmet -- with the sticker he had peeled off the "okay" one.  Come on, guys and girls -- it's your head we're looking out for.  The stickers we use aren't that difficult to move around from one helmet to another -- so we have to rely on you to not cheat.  It's your head we're trying to protect.  By the way -- if I had been at the line to see the "wrong" helmet I would simplyhave taken the helmet to Al and let him chat with the rider when the guy asked for the helmet back.  That would have been a good bit of entertainment for Al, no doubt.

Inspectors are NOT trying to keep anyone from racing.  Get that through your heads and everything will be a lots smoother.

Thanks -- end of rant.
« Last Edit: April 07, 2009, 05:55:42 PM by Seldom Seen Slim »
Jon E. Wennerberg
 a/k/a Seldom Seen Slim
 Skandia, Michigan
 (that's way up north)
2 Club member x2
Owner of landracing.com

Offline White Monster

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Re: Thanks to All Volunteers
« Reply #7 on: April 07, 2009, 09:57:10 AM »
Well said Jon !!
Be safe, go fast, have FUN !

Offline DahMurf

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Re: Thanks to All Volunteers
« Reply #8 on: April 07, 2009, 10:37:45 AM »
Agreed! Well said Jon! The simple truth is we're all racers & most of us are pretty nice. :evil: If you don't meet the requirements we'll all get through the process a lot faster if you just ask how can I meet the requirements and if necessary followed up with can you please help me or recommend someone that can help me. All that arguing does is delay the inevitable and delay the folks behind you. So those of you in line that see someone ahead of you not prepared properly or struggling, help them out cause it will get you out of the tech line sooner. ;)

Another point on this is that as time goes on we see & learn new stuff. Sometimes we see a new safety concern that may or may not be highlighted by our rules. Once we see it we check everyone. This is for your safety so don't be offended. We're not trying to beat you down we're trying to make sure you have safe fun and are able to return to race with us again! We're not the enemy, really we're not! For those of you with the faster bikes, yeah, we're looking at them harder. We do it because we want you to be safe and we don't want to have to consider speed restrictions if we can't keep our top competitors safe. I don't know about you but I welcome additional eyes looking over what I'm gonna ride. ;)

Debbie
Miss you my friend :-* - #1302  Twin Jugs Racing
ECTA 200MPH club@202/Texas 200MPH club@209/Loring 200MPH club@218
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Offline Commuta_Busa

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Re: Thanks to All Volunteers
« Reply #9 on: April 07, 2009, 03:06:05 PM »
man oh man did Todd sock it to me  :-D no just kidding. I had some minor safety infractions that were noted and I had corrected by Sat. morning. No big fuss. Todd and Deb were nice enough to hold on to my tech sheet. One quick check to make sure I made all of the corrections and I was a go.  :cheers:

Todd gave light to something I would never have noticed and I'm sure not to many others would notice either. The lanyard/teather line i have was aged. It still coiled fine and when I yanked on it it would disconnect at the connector and kill my engine. What Todd pointed out was at the point whether the plastic coil is crimped to a ring the plastic had thinned itself out over time. With a light two finger pinch Todd demonstrated this by rolling the cord between his fingers and it snapped right off. Better to fail tech then fail during a pass when it's most critical. Todd also mentioned to me of the newer designs that use a nylon cord. Sure wnough today while searching around inline I found it. Funny thing. The same company I got my original plastic lanyard years ago is the one selling the new nylon style one.  :-)

Everyone should listen to tech and head their advice/warnings/gospel/etc. Take your bike back to your put area, make the corrections needed and you'll notice there's still plenty of time before the racing to get squared away with out delaying everyone else in the tech line and confusing the whoel process.  :cheers:

Thanks Todd & Deb
(Todd - btw, I'm getting you a tech engineer that will be able to provide you more info on the rotors. They're in the UK so I'll no more in a few days)

Offline hombre

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Re: Thanks to All Volunteers
« Reply #10 on: April 07, 2009, 07:45:41 PM »
Thanks to all the people at ECTA in Maxton for the warm welcome I received! Without out a doubt, you are the most friendly and helpful bunch of sympatico lunatics I have ever met!

Special thanks to Bob and Todd, without whom I would not have passed tech! See you all soon!

Walt

Offline relaxedfit

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Re: Thanks to All Volunteers
« Reply #11 on: April 08, 2009, 11:48:41 AM »
I'm more nervous in tech than any other time  (maybe that would be dif if I went fast), but talk about "no volunteers, no racing"! Nobody gets more heat than they do--they share the temperature. No volunteers work more hours. Thanks to all of you for your caring and time.
Ken Presson
Having nothing to do in shutdown is our goal

Offline Dan Stokes

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Re: Thanks to All Volunteers
« Reply #12 on: April 12, 2009, 05:46:04 PM »
Ken - Good point on the inspectors!  I don't "coordinate" the inspectors so they tend not to be on my mind as much, but they are GREAT folks.  I hope we can work out a schedule so late arrivals can get teched when they come in.  It worked out this time just great but it doesn't always.  (I get to go hunt down someone in these situations and the inspectors are generally racing by then).

As I said before - THANKS to all

Dan
Wilmington, NC - by the sea

ECTA idiot, Bonneville volunteer

Offline Seldom Seen Slim

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Re: Thanks to All Volunteers
« Reply #13 on: April 12, 2009, 07:08:20 PM »
Well, Dan -- maybe it worked out great from your point of view, but things could have been a little more smooth from the point of Todd and me and the others that inspected.  At one point I had Nancy mosey to the middle of the return road and shoot a photo of the line of bikes awaiting inspection.  It looked about a mile long.

We're working on smoothing the inspection process with a new rule or two about how to get into and through inspection at Maxton.  Come visit us in mid-May -- you'll see, I hope.  Smooth and quick and not too much cranky time in line.
Jon E. Wennerberg
 a/k/a Seldom Seen Slim
 Skandia, Michigan
 (that's way up north)
2 Club member x2
Owner of landracing.com

Offline joea

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Re: Thanks to All Volunteers
« Reply #14 on: April 12, 2009, 08:03:32 PM »
why wouldnt the dude who cheated on the helmet....simply be escorted of
out of the event....????

that infraction put him and the sanctioning body in a very dangerous place.....