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COMSCC Scrutineers are present at each event to help competitors know what they need to do to be safe and to compete fairly.
Like all our volunteers, scrutineers are representatives of the club. Our actions and interactions with other members will influence a member's perception of the club. You may not feel powerful, but you will be seen as that, especially by new members. If our scrutineers are friendly and helpful, that is how the entire club will be perceived.
We often have to make decisions, and when those decisions are not favorable to a competitor, we must be kind about it. Most of us have been in those unhappy shoes before – and we may be again.
A COMSCC Scrutineer is not an expert in everything. That’s one reason for having a group of Scrutineers - we can help and advise each other. We also rely on competitors to know their own class and volunteer information and answer detailed questions when we need that help. Follow the buddy-system. It works for diving and evaluating cars too. Have a 2nd or 3rd scrutineer present, and seek one out that may have unique knowledge about the car or class.
This is especially important if you could be seen as having a conflict of interest. Are you in the same class, and run competitively with the car being protested? At the very least you should have another scrutineer there. In most cases, it’s best to have two others there and to stay on as the 3rd, and not take a leading role.
A forward-thinking Scrutineer brings a printed copy of the current Rules to each event. You are expected to have read the Rules, but not to have memorized them.
Below, you can find every clause in the 2011 COMSCC Rules in which the Scrutineers are mentioned. These are our official responsibilities – but they are only part of our work.
Have fun at this. The cars and people in this club are great fun to be around, and the Scrutineer role gives you a great chance to enjoy them.
Safety Tech
We have no formal way of assigning people to staff the tech line. Most of the time, volunteers appear. If not, the Chief of Tech goes looking for them. When there aren’t enough volunteers, the line can be arduous for everyone. A Scrutineer at any event should check right away with the Chief of Tech to find out whether help is needed, or just show up and grab a clipboard. At NHMS, those helping with tech are allowed through the gate early.
Safety tech is not to find classing errors – its purpose is to verify that all cars are safe before they go on the track. Full class tech would take a lot more time. However, it is useful to look for obvious errors, especially if the corrected class would require additional safety equipment.
Car ClassificationsFor cars competing prior to the 2000 season that are outdated by these [roll bar] rules, "grandfathering" will be granted to those drivers/owners who request that their car be considered. Grandfathering of existing cars will be up to the discretion of the Scrutineers and Chief of Tech and will only be extended to cars that are brought to the Scrutineers or Chief of Tech.
Cars determined by the Scrutineers to have removed interior panels beyond the spirit of this rule will be bumped up one class.
Automobiles involved in an incident causing damage must be inspected by the Tech Inspector and/or Event Scrutineers before being allowed back on the track.
This is by far the Scrutineers’ biggest activity. Surprisingly many people don’t seem to read the rules, so if we’re lucky they actually ask us before making assumptions.
Sometimes a classification or eligibility question is hard to answer. We use e-mail and the Scrutineers Forum to hash these out amongst us. Occasionally a vote has been needed, but almost always we come to something approaching a consensus.
In consequence of our role in communicating and enforcing the rules, we are in a unique position to offer improvements each year. Keep track of the issues and uncertainties that arise, and submit rules change proposals each fall. Don’t assume your proposals will be accepted – there is often another side to it that you might not have thought of.
In practice, we frequently get asked about classification by email before the event, and very often also during an event.Individual car classifications may be changed during the competition season by a majority vote of the board of Scrutineers for new and not otherwise classified cars or cars classified in error.
New competitors may receive classification assistance at Tech Inspection from the Scrutineer in the tech line.
We have not done either of these things in recent memory.To insure that competitors are classifying their cars within the rules of the club and to promote proper vehicle maintenance, a secondary inspection by a Tech Inspector and/or Event Scrutineer may be done to a random sampling of cars in any class. The Scrutineers reserve the right to re-classify a vehicle at any time.
ProtestsGray market and limited production models will be classified at the Event Scrutineers' discretion.
The competitor may be required to provide a factory shop manual of the competing vehicle's model and year to aid the Event Scrutineers in determining what is the "as delivered" configuration. Should a vehicle's as delivered configuration be subject to investigation via a protest, track record inspection, or other inspection deemed necessary by the Event Scrutineers, the competitor must provide a factory shop manual or risk disqualification or bumping to the appropriate class as deemed appropriate by the Tech Inspector/Event Scrutineers.
Any specific vehicle not assigned to a Street Touring class in this rulebook shall be evaluated and classified by the Scrutineers.
Any competitor entering a Prepared car not explicitly described below should consult with the COMSCC Scrutineers, who have discretion to classify it as they deem appropriate.
We get relatively few protests. Generally, a competitor will ask (or complain) about another competitor prior to the Time Trial, and we’ll have a quiet talk with the driver being inquired about. Generally there is a misunderstanding on one side or the other, and we are able work it out amicably.
If we can’t agree all on a resolution, then we encourage the complainant to make a protest. It is through protests that we 1) continually clarify and reinforce everyone’s understanding of the rules, and 2) remind all that we actually do care about the rules and the fair competition they are there to create.
On the other hand, if the competitors in a class are not really concerned about the status of a questionable car in their class, we generally stay out of it, once we know that the driver of the questionable car is aware of the issue. It is the competitors within the class who have the most at stake.
When the question is difficult or if a disqualification seems called for, we always get several Scrutineers together to review the situation and make as sure as we can that the decision is correct and fair. We also call on class competitors for information that they may know more about than we do. If the protested car is in your own class, recuse yourself.
Class RecordsAll protests must be presented in writing by the entrant to an Event Scrutineer.
Protests may only be filed by event competitors of the same class, Event Scrutineers, and Event Chairpersons.
A competitor may appeal a decision made by the Event Scrutineer in writing to the Board of Scrutineers. This appeal must be made within 7 days following the time of the protest in question. The complete Board of Scrutineers will vote on the appeal and deliver their decision to the competitor before the next time trial event. This decision may not be appealed to the Board of Directors.
Competitors have become more aware of the re-tech requirement lately, but it is often forgotten anyway, especially by new members. We usually remind people about it at the drivers’ meeting. We also like to post a list of Scrutineers at the event so that people know where to find help, and to get their cars re-teched if they need it.
If you know someone may have set a record, don’t wait for them to come forward. Go and remind them that they might want to get their car teched.
Competitors who believe that they have set a new class record must present their car for inspection by a Scrutineer (or Event Chair in the absence of a Scrutineer) for inspection, to verify compliance with class requirements.