I am here to address a growing concern of mine, highlighted by some events this weekend at the ESC race at Killington:
Where are all the course marshals?
In the earlier years of racing, at every single race, from Mt Snow to
Mtn Creek, there were marshals [volunteers] track side with whistles and
radios - both on Saturday and Sunday. Up until 2012 (the year I took
off from racing), there was a steady decline in their presence, though
they were still scattered along the course. But now, I don't see anyone
out there who would be able to aid me in a time of crisis or concern,
and this is not acceptable.
The sounds of whistles and the crackle of radios was as common place as
bird songs out on the hill, but now, all is quiet, and this is cause for
alarm. After noticing the lack of marshals in 2013 and thus far in
2014, I am bringing this forward in an attempt to make this issue heard.
After hearing of an incident at Killington just this weekend, a severe
situation in which a course hold and class rerun was instituted, I was
shocked to hear that there were only a couple medics there to attend to
the rider, and it was up to the spectators and a racer to call a halt to
the race.
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| Knowing the track ahead is clear is paramount for fast riding. |
Not only is this unacceptable for race day, but this is also an issue during the two days of practice on Friday and Saturday.
With mixed categories sharing one track, making sure that the track is
clear for riding should be top priority. With Cat 2/3 racers sharing
one ribbon of dirt with Cat1 and Pro riders, there is going to be a lot
of discrepancy in ability and race etiquette. Marshals are there to
regulate traffic, impose rules, provide guidance, and above all, make
sure rider safety is established. I have been hearing too many
pit-chats about riders rounding blind turns or approaching
jumps/drops/fast/technical sections to find a rider down unannounced, or
simply not being informed about an upcoming incident on track, despite
multiple by-standers and/or other stopped riders.
I understand that organizing a race is no cake walk, but, more needs to
be done about on-track safety in regards to marshaling. I can't think
of any other sport similar to ours that doesn't have track-side support
at regular intervals for all days of practice and race days. After ten
years of racing, I have come to expect certain levels of support at
races. I can understand a glitch in timing; I get that delays happen.
There is no excuse though for leaving and entire (or large sections of)
track unattended when 200+ people are out on course pushing the limits
of mind, body, and engineering.
If it is a matter of just getting a headcount, all is takes is asking
spectators to volunteer their time while out on track to aid in rider
safety and course regulation. Compensate them with a bagged lunch and
tshirt or something of the like. This was standard procedure for
countless years at Mtn Creek, Platty, and Mt Snow - I know because my
mom and dad were always volunteer course marshals. There are plenty of
WAGs and BAHs who would be game to have a radio, whistle, food, and
tshirt while they watch there significant other fly by every 20minutes.
It also helps build a sense of community and camaraderie amongst the
racers and fans.
My hopes for this piece are two-fold:
1. Just get marshals out there with whistles and radios.
2. Getting people, riders and spectators alike, to lookout for one another out there.
Thanks for reading and being a part of this conversation. If you wish
to share some constructive thoughts, constructive ideas, constructive
concerns, or anything else that is relevant, please positively add to
the conversation.
