YOUR FIRST EVENT - ON THE DAY

At any event there must be a Clerk of the Course, a Scrutineer, one or more Stewards and, if required, one or more Timekeepers.

Your first job will be to attend ‘Signing-On’. This not only confirms that you have actually turned up, but also ensures that you are covered by the event insurance. Authorised events are covered by public liability insurance, and the officials are covered for loss or injury caused through their negligence. Individual competitors are not covered for injury or damage; this may be arranged through specialist insurers. Signing-on will usually be conducted by the Secretary of the Meeting, who’s job is to assist the Clerk of the Course and others, and to handle all the associated paperwork.

Your next port of call will be Scrutineering. Here your car will be checked by the Scrutineer to make sure it conforms to the MSA’s safety standards and for compliance with the regulations. He or she will also want to see your overalls and helmet to make sure they are in good condition and meet the required standard. There will also be a noise level test. You will not be allowed to compete without the scrutineer’s approval; at speed events this takes the form of a sticker or ticket to be displayed on the car.

The Clerk of the Course is responsible for the general conduct and control of the event; he may conduct a drivers’ briefing before the event starts, which is often mandatory. The Stewards are independent of the organisation and running of the event, and are there to make sure that all relevant regulations are observed, and to advise or arbitrate in the event of a dispute if required. The Timekeeper’s job is self-explanatory. In addition, there should be a Chief Marshal, who is responsible for recruiting enough marshals to run the event and for allocating them to posts, and a Course Controller, who controls the communications system etc.

With all the official stuff out of the way, you can now concentrate on enjoying yourself. Talk to and learn from all the other competitors around you, remembering that they were all complete novices once, and when your class is called you’ll be ready to venture out onto the track for the first time…

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