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| The Rules have Arrived! |
1) Classes and Order of Start
"I (E). Classes: Each motorcycle will compete in one of three Classes:
1. Class I: Motorcycles with a displacement of 749 cc or less2. Class II: Motorcycles with a displacement of from 750 cc to 1000 cc
3. Class III: Motorcycles with a displacement of 1001 cc or more"
(Reading further into the rules)
III . Order of Start
A. (2): On Stage 1, the order of start will be the Motorcycle Cannonball 2010 Grand Champion, followed by Class I, Class II, Class III. The order of start within each Class is determined by the date of entry (see II.B.2), with the exception that hometown and home-state entries (those with New York and Pennsylvania registrations) start at the front of each Class.
A. (3). On subsequent Stages the order of start will be Class I, Class II, Class III at specified intervals.
Now obviously, my BSA will fall into Class I. With me will be my friends from the UK, Ken Ashton and Mike Wild aboard their Rudges. Our smaller displacement machines will unlikely be able to keep up with the Harley, Indian, and Excelsior models that will dominate the field, but I'm okay with that. So although we may be registered in the smallest-displacement class, Ken, Mike, and I will be allowed to depart before the other two groups of riders. Hopefully it will be a good thing for us!
2) Equipment
II. G. Equipment
1. The following equipment is allowed:
a. Pencils, pens, and scratch padsb. Timepieces
c. A tire pressure gauge, compass, thermometer, and altimeter
d. One operating speedometer; one operating odometer
e. A cellular telephone
f. Digital cameras and video cameras
2. The following equipment is prohibited: Any positioning or communication device which uses satellite technology
(such as Global Positioning System).
3. A team found with illegal equipment is subject to the penalties specified in VI.B.2.
Who says you need GPS to cross a continent..? Cannonball Baker certainly didn't have one in 1913. No, ladies and gentlemen, we're doing this the old fashioned way (okay, so pay no attention to the cell phones and digital cameras/video cameras).
3) Support Vehicle Information
"II. E. Support Vehicles
1. Each official entry is allowed one official support vehicle. Any vehicle accompanying the Event is considered an official support vehicle.
2. A support vehicle may be designated as the official support vehicle for more than one entry.
3. During a stage, a competing motorcycle may receive service and/or assistance from official MOTORCYCLE CANNONBALL 2012 Course Vehicles and personnel, from other riders, and from businesses and individuals not otherwise directly associated with any team. During a stage, a competing motorcycle must not receive service or assistance from anyone associated with any Event team including, but not limited to, support vehicles, family members, and friends.
4. Support vehicles must follow Support Crew Instructions.
5. On most days, Support Crew instructions take Support Vehicles directly to the next overnight city by a route mostly different from that followed by competing motorcycles. On these days, where portions of the route are the same, a support vehicle must not travel near its competing motorcycle.
6. On several days, Support Vehicles follow a major portion of the motorcycles’ route. On these days, support vehicles must not be in the field of competing motorcycles during the day’s run; therefore, on these days, it is recommended that support vehicles depart at least 30 minutes prior to the official start of the stage.
7. If a team's support vehicle is observed violating Support Crew Instructions (such as moving in the field of competing
motorcycles when instructed not to or traveling near its competing motorcycle) the team will receive a penalty of 50 Points for the first occurrence, 250 Points for the second occurrence, and disqualification for the third occurrence.
8. If a support vehicle is designated the official support vehicle for more than one team, each of the teams will receive the
penalties assessed because of that support vehicle."The important thing to take away from this is that I will NOT be able to utilize the assistance of my support crew while competing during the day. My guys will usually be taking a different route than me entirely. I will be expected to manage any breakdowns on my own, or with the assistance of fellow riders. If the problem is un-fixable on the roadside, my bike and I will be placed on a truck into the next overnight checkpoint, at which point my support team can help.
In regards to the support vehicles being in the field of competing bikes- After watching the forums on the Cannonball site, and talking back and forth with fellow entrants I have learned that fans on motorcycles will be able to ride alongside us for photos and videos, though they are unable to assist.
4) Scoring
V. C. Timing and Scoring
1. Timing
a. Official time is referenced to radio station WWV of the National Institute of Standards and Technology. We will
attempt to have a WWV radio signal and synchronized clock at each day’s start. (WWV time is also available bytelephone: 303-499-7111.)
b. Time Zones: The time of the time zone at the start of each stage is used for scoring throughout that stage, regardless of time zone changes (be sure, however, to reset your time after you arrive at the stage’s finish line if the time zone changes). Time zone information will be given in an Event Supplement and in the Course Instructions.
2. Scoring
a. On each Stage, each team accumulates one Point for each mile the rider travels on the correct Route, up to the total official distance of the stage, reduced by any penalty Points that team accumulates.
b. Missed Checkpoints
(1) A motorcycle which misses (fails to pass) a Checkpoint will receive the penalty stipulated in V.D.3.
(2) A motorcycle which arrives at a stage finish more than 45 minutes after the official finish time will be scored as
having missed the Checkpoint, and will receive the penalty stipulated in V.D.4.
c. Ties (for cumulative score) are broken by the following procedure:
(1) The motorcycle in the lower Class wins the tie (e.g., a Class I motorcycle wins over one in Class II).
(2) If a tie still exists, the older motorcycle by model year wins the tie.
(3) If a tie still exists, the older rider wins the tie.
Simple scoring- every mile equals one point. The tie breakers are interesting. As the lowest displacement class, I definitely like the Class tie breaker. The older rider tie breaker is somewhat unfair to a young person like me, but I'm not complaining at all!
5) Penalties
V. D. Penalties
1. A team that does not complete an entire Stage within 45 minutes of the Finish Time for the Class under the
motorcycle’s/rider’s own power will receive a DNF (did not finish) for the Stage (but will still receive Points for miles traveled until 45 minutes after the Finish Time for the Class).
2. Penalties for not completing a Stage’s Route
a. For each mile not traveled under a motorcycle’s/rider’s own power..............................................1 Point and DNF
b. For not following the correct Route or shortcutting the Route ................................................................ 100 Points
3. Penalties for missing Checkpoints
a. Missing a Checkpoint, except the final Checkpoint of a Stage............................................................... 100 Points
b. Missing the final Checkpoint of a Stage at the Finish Line......................................................100 Points and DNF
4. Penalties for being more than 45 minutes late at Checkpoints
a. 45+ minutes late at a Checkpoint, except the final Checkpoint of a Stage........................no penalty, if the checkpoint is still open
b. 45+ minutes late at the final Checkpoint of a Stage at the Finish Line....................................................................
1 Point per mile not traveled (based on location 45 minutes after the Finish Time for the Class) and DNF
5. Penalties for being early at Checkpoints
a. Early at a Checkpoint, except the final Checkpoint of a Stage............................................................... no penalty
b. Early at the final Checkpoint of a Stage at the Finish Line............................................ no penalty, but see V.A.I.c
6. Equipment and personnel changes
a. Replacing a motorcycle’s engine............................................................................................................ 200 Points
b. Substituting a different motorcycle ...................................................................................................disqualification
c. Substituting a rider (see II.D.2.b)...................................................................................... 100 Points per new rider
7. Tickets and citations
a. It is the riders’ responsibility to observe all state and local motor vehicle and equipment laws. One possible source
for information on state helmet laws and daytime headlamp laws is http://motorcycleinfo.calsci.com/PrintLaws.html.
Motorcycle Cannonball takes no responsibility for the accuracy of this information.
b. Receiving a ticket/citation/written warning for an equipment violation.................................................... 100 Points
c. Receiving a ticket/citation/written warning for riding while intoxicated or under the influence..........disqualification
d. Receiving a ticket/citation/written warning for dangerous or reckless riding ..............200 Points or disqualification
e. Receiving a ticket/citation/written warning for a moving violation...................................................... 200 Points
8. Other penalties
a. Choosing to run with a lower Class on a given Stage (as specified in VII.E.2) ............................................ 50 Points
b. Interfering with Checkpoint operations ..........................................................................200 Points or disqualification
c. Support vehicle violation (see II.E.7) ............................................................................first occurrence, 50 Points
....................................................................................................................................second occurrence, 250 Points
................................................................................................................................ third occurrence, disqualification
d. Failure to stop at a Stop Sign ...............................................................................................50 Points and DNF
e. Failure of a motorcycle to be in a Special Display Area during specified hours (see VIII.B) ............. 100 Points
f. Leaving a hosted Lunch Stop before the scheduled departure time ................................................ 50 Points
g. Consuming alcoholic beverages or illegal controlled substances while participating...................disqualification
Once again, pretty simple scoring. If I break down and have to be trucked into the next checkpoint, I receive a 1 point penalty and a DNF (Did Not Finish). Must obey all traffic laws, which is common sense. The two interesting rules that I saw were rules about substituting an engine, and leaving the display areas at hosted stops. No complaints about anything I've read thus far.
6) Speeds
VII. E. Speeds
1. On flat, straight roads, motorcycles will be required to maintain 50 MPH. Stage times are calculated using this average speed on straight, flat roads, with additional time being allowed for grades, curvy roads, roads with lower speed limits, and congested areas (such as cities and towns) with stop signs and traffic lights. In addition, 15 minutes has been allowed for each refueling stop (which are often less than 50 miles apart, but never more than 75 miles), and 45 minutes to 1 hour has been allowed for each lunch stop.
2. On a given Stage, a Class II or Class III team which may be incapable of maintaining required speeds may elect to run with the next lower Class, at the cost of a 50-Point penalty. For example, on Stage 4, a Class III team may choose to run with Class II (receive Course Instructions and penalties based on the Class II schedule); that team would receive a 50-Point penalty on Stage 4.
The way the event is set up, rider's machines are recommended to have a fuel range of 75 miles per fill up. While most of us will be carrying spare petrol with us, it is nice to have the comfort of knowing distanes between fuel stops is so small. Each day is basically scheduled for 8 hours of riding, pending weather conditions and break downs.
7) Daily Roadbooks
Every morning, we will be issued that day's directions about 20 minutes before Class I goes off. I'm currently looking at a couple of different roadbook holders (more on that soon). Below is a picture of what the example looks like. Again, I apologize if the picture is hard to read. The directions are split up into several different columns, containing pictoral representations, odometer readings, tips on upcoming fuel stops, and written directions.
More updates soon!
Buck Carson
Confirmed Cannonballer # 3
Carson Classic Motors Race Team
where can i find rules for next run
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