Thanks 'QuickOldTimer', you saw my points (intended only to help as a bit of constructive criticism) which so far have been completely missed in an effort to defend everyone who has come in for any criticism.
I do not wish for anything to get personal and I 100% appreciate that support is needed and a lot of the work is voluntary. The day was cold and yes, marshalls stand out in that weather all day for little reward. From the driving standards in SNR Rotax I expect the CofC may have had his work cut out sorting things out and I do feel sorry for him.
However I dont think this gives voluteers the right to treat competitors as I saw. There is no need for 'I'm in charge so you will do this' which is exactly what I witnessed from the grid marshall. You can say X is such a great person, but that is not what was happening. I have absolutely no reason to say otherwise, just as a competitor who raced at Wombwell years ago and who called in out of interest to watch. What I saw was not welcoming and did not encourage me (who was actually thinking of racing at Wombwell next month) or new starters.
Again, I wasnt racing this weekend, I didnt know anyone racing, I didnt know anyone on the wrong end of any decision and I dont have a clue about any names. I am simply stating what I saw as a completely independant person. Drivers were sat in their karts, there was an empty grid slot and the grid marshall was downright rude to a guy on a Tonykart who had not realised this and didnt seem to have a mechanic handy to help move his kart across. I stand by this observation 100%. Maybe I witnessed a one off. There was just simply no need for the atitude.
I almost wish I hadnt bothered commenting because its all got a little defensive and the first instance is denial and the standard response that everyone involved is a volunteer so basically the competitors should think themselves lucky. All I am saying is that after racing different things for 15 years at different levels in different countries this was not good customer service and I would argue that the drivers are to a large part customers.
The club may not run to make a profit (so may not think of drivers as customers) but ultimately if the drivers arent happy they have a choice and can go somewhere else. If enough go somewhere else then there is no need for a club.
I realise SYKC is a smaller club which is exactly why new drivers should be encouraged at this level, not berated for having a small kart part missing. A friendly word would be much better than quoting the blue book to a new starter. The readyness of the competition secretary of the club to quote the 'blue book' in a defense, in an earlier post maybe illustrates my point.
I hope my post is well structured enough for those who have an interest to read it through with an open mind and take on board the points I have have raised and understand that maybe there are a few issues that could be addressed.
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