HOW TO BE A SACK OF POTATOES
Those of you who read Enduro article in the recent MSA magazine will no doubt have noticed the remark perpetuating the old joke about stage co-drivers being as much use as a sack of spuds. Coincidently that evening Denise gave a teach in at Dundry on the difference between multi venue and multi use co-driving, and also I received a copy of an article which has been written for the www.205challenge.com website to help the new (and not so new) co-drivers who enter the Challenge each year. It was written mainly by Ian Harden a motor sport journalist who also co-drives, but was added to by some of the other Challenge co-drivers. I have shamelessy blagged it, added a bit and I am sure Denise will have added some more before putting it in Tavern Torque. Hopefully it will be of help and put to rest the sack o’ spuds theory. There is a lot more to co-driving than just sitting there looking like a King Edward, and so the article has been broken down into chunks which will appear over the next few months. The best resource to learning more about co-driving is all the other co-drivers in the club – just ask up at Dundry, or put a question on the website forum.
Co-driving - essential reminders
Before the start - Documents. • Well before the date of the event arrives the co-driver’s job starts. Because it is down to them to ensure you receive a set of regulations and it is worthwhile contacting the organising club and requesting you receive a set of regs. Don’t automatically assume you will get a set even if you are registered for a Championship, as you may not. Road Book / Map Book (or Route Note Book) - make sure all the pages are there - check the page numbers. Highlight the controls so you can warn your driver in good time. It can be easy to miss a passage control after a stage when you are still sorting yourself out. Maps / Route Notes - mark junctions and ' cautions' (places with exclamation marks) with a highlighter. This helps if you lose your place on a stage. Suggestion - use green for junctions, yellow for single and double cautions, and red for triple (danger) marks. Be careful mind, you can only transfer info given by the organisers onto your maps/notes. If a pal tells you to watch a particular bend yet it’s not officially cautioned then you are not allowed to mark your map. Route or Timings Amendments - check the notice board Time Cards - make sure they are all there – if not, ask for another, full set at the signing on desk. Check your Time Cards have your car number on them, they may not be, in which case make sure you write it on. You must look after your Time Cards; guard them with your life. Competitor Liaison Officer - get his mobile ' phone number and find out where he will be during the rally (useful for queries) Start time - check the notice board - could it change on the morning of the rally?
At the start ramp (Main control) Arrive at the start area between 20 and 40 minutes before your due time, but don’t arrive too early as to make a nuisance of yourself, some start areas can be cramped so having you blocking the road for quarter of an hour won’t win you any friends. Helmets - make a final check - are both of them in the car? Use the start marshal' clock to set your watches to rally time (always carry two watches in s case one fails). Setting the time to the BBC or on the internet the night before can make it easier on the day.
Start time - confirm with start marshal that it hasn'changed overnight t Route or Stage amendments - check if there are any, and sign for them Don’t pass the yellow Arrival board until your allotted time (remember the two-minute ' window' , i.e. 59 seconds before, until 59 seconds after ' your' minute) Start marshal must sign your time card before you go Road Sections Calculate your next Arrival time as soon as possible (see Target Timing, below) mix on Use either the Road Book or the maps to navigate - never ' and match' one road section (although I must admit I tend to have both map and road book open, I use the map for more a long range overview of where we are heading and the roadbook for the finer detail Give clear, simple instructions, e.g. "Go two miles until Turn Left at the ' Junction" then as you T' near the junction, remind the driver "Turn Left at the ' Junction, then go half a mile until Turn T' Right onto a minor road". Try not to chat too much - you can easily lose concentration and miss a turning Reset the trip meter after each instruction - it' a real lifeline, although not essential. Some s rallies don’t have a road book, just maps. Reminder in case you get lost - one grid square on a 50,000 series map = 1 kilometre. At road section speed, you take about 1 minute to cover a kilometre. Target Time - how to calculate it 1. Check your finish time in hours, minutes and seconds. 2. Ignore the ' seconds'3. Add the . next Road Section time (in minutes) to the hours and minutes of your finish time. 4. The sum total is your next arrival time. (15) Stage Arrival Try to arrive about a few minutes before your due time, On road sections, don’t dawdle but don’t speed. You should have plenty of time to get to the next control. In most areas as soon as the police get wind there is a rally on you can bet they will be out in force, bless em. ' Visit the bushes' you need to - there' nothing worse than needing the loo halfway through a if s stage - your bladder takes a real hammering on a rough stage. Re-check your calculation of the arrival time before you go into the control If there is a queue at Arrival, get out of the car and go to the marshal to get your time - it' your s responsibility, not the marshal' s Do up your helmet strap - it' easily forgotten in the heat of the moment s Intercom - plug it in and switch it on. Adjust the volume. If your intercom uses batteries, carry a spare in your co-driver’s bag and try and remember to switch it off if the car is going to be left for a while. Probably best to buy a new battery every event, a small price to pay for something that could seriously ruin your whole event. Seat belts - do them up comfortably tight, not cutting in. Make sure your lap straps are comfortable, but they must not be loose Don'pass the yellow Arrival board until your due time (Two minute window) t Check the marshal has given you the time you want, and the time card is signed You should now have a minimum of three minutes between your arrival time and your provisional start time Use this ' dead time' tell the driver what the stage looks like, e.g. "It looks fast and open for to the first mile, and then it gets twisty". This gives him a general idea of what is ahead.
To be continued next month in Tavern Torque.