Re: AHFS details
I'm afraid that this issue has about played itself out for this go-around. About all that's left to do is to apply the lessons of the past couple of weeks to the future. My view of the situation is not a personal reflection on any of the individuals involved and I certainly appreciate the willingness of a number of very visible participants in the AHFS/tech process to either contact me directly or to send me their views through other conduits. As in most similar situations that involve almost every aspect of our daily lives in addition to this sport, no one is ever at fault for something that doesn't meet general expectations. For a large organization, that's the beauty of a "committee" or a "system." It's impossible for anyone outside the inner loop to find out exactly what transpired.
We can only lick our wounds and plan ahead. To me, there are several basic things that are clear:
1. Nothing ever remains what it seems to be for very long. Sudden, abrupt changes are what it's all about.
2. The wording of any "system" is usually vague enough to eventually bite you in the ***. That's why it's called a "system."
3. Anyone who relies on "past practice" as interpreted by any "system" is likely to be unpleasantly surprised.
4. This is merely precursor to other interpretations that could be made, either pre-announced or applied retroactively. We need to study the "system" for how it can. worst case, be interpreted and plan for that eventuality.
5. Screw me once, it's your fault. Screw me twice, it's my fault.
Among the future surprises that might show up (unannounced or retroactively) could be:
1. Runs at altitude tracks could be counted (unannounced and/or retroactively).
2. Runs at National Opens and/or Divisionals could be viewed as triggers and/or counted in the average (unannounced and/or retroactively). Don't assume that just because it is more complicated to do it this way, it won't be done. Most of us are computer literate enough to know that it could be done electronically should the organization decide to devote resources to resolving the side issues.
3. The wording of the "system" including phrases such as "engine family average" and "class/engine average" can be re-interpreted at any time for any reason, unannounced and/or retroactively.
The bottom line is clearly that racers can take nothing for granted. Any time that any racer goes down the track, the data will be available to someone at some point in the future to be used to justify any interpretation. We've just had an example laid out for us. If we don't learn from it, it's our own fault.
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