How will Pros react to NJMP?

[Burt Munro]

I have not been to NJMP.  I'm curious if the track will face the same type of scrutiny as HPT did this past weekend as a 1st time AMA venue.

From comments I've read from the ASRA/CCS race weekend it sounds as if there may be similar concerns about runoff space and solid objects.

Anybody out there who has raced at both willing to express an opinion?

Will we see riders pull out due to track safety?   Are there steps the track can take to eliminate problems?  Will they be willing to make the changes like HPT did?

Seems rather sad that there may be issues with a brand new track built specifically as a Road Racing venue that was not designed to accommodate top level racing.

[antirich]

The AMA is running on the Thunderbolt course, different track than what CCS raced on.

I've ridden both several times since the place opened. Thunderbolt has very nice facilities for teams and such, but I personally think there are a few areas of safety issue. The biggest (in my opinion) is the bridge support, which I think is worse than the Lightning track.  There are a series of fast S's before you go under the bridge and on the front straight, so I see bikes fighting it out to get the best drive onto the straight. If a bike gets forced out into the dirt, they'll go right for the bridge. A car already hit the support in the Dayton Prototype race last year, split it in two.

There's been a few opinions on run-off in turn one. I think the last turn is bad as well (for AMA speeds), but I'm not up to the pro level by any means. Rest of the track seems rather safe, better than a lot of tracks you see on TV. Still don't know why US tracks are so fearful of the gravel traps, they would help a lot.

I've heard they're running the first chicane in order to get the speeds down. If they do this, pit out will be a death wish, which is why non of the track day orgs run the first chicane.

Apparently, the word from the riders was that they liked the track during testing a few weeks ago. I find that hard to believe that no one had any safety issues, maybe a little pressure from DMG on what to say? Who knows. Have to wait till the old guys (Hacking and Maladin) get there to voice some honest opinions.

I do know that the turnout for June's bike show/race/event was a huge success and the CCS race had an even larger draw. I think this really woke the track up to the potential of bike events, so I think they'll start re-thinking things. They have been promoting the AMA race pretty heavily, and I'm sure it'll be a huge draw. There hasn't been an AMA race in the NorthEast in a decade or so, and the last one was Louden (8 hours from NYC).

Despite the demographics, I don't think the car events have pulled the kind of audiences that the track was hoping for. If bike racing can do better, I'm sure they'll start listening to the DMG, CCS, and WERA on what they need to be done. Money talks, and NJMP needs it.

One little interesting rule is the restriction of personel over the armco during a race. According to the track, only EMTs and crash truck personal are allowed on the live side of the armco during a race, and they'll only role if the red flag is flown. EMTs  are only stationed in the pits, not along side the track like at most facilities. CCS officials where not happy about that rule, and I can't blame them. Basically, if a rider is down, bike on fire, what ever, all a corner worker can do is hold a flag. No one is allowed over the armco to assist the bike or rider in any way. They claim it's a state law, but whoever wrote it has obviously never seen a bike race.

I'm sure the AMA won't tolerate that rule, but they must know about it. We'll see what happens in a few weeks.

[benprobst]

AMA already tested there. Some had concerns, but no blow outs like Topeka. Most seemed to like the track.

[SVbadguy]

The rule about cornerworkers not going over the armco applies only to employees of NJMP.  Some (most?) of the workers during the CCS event were there as CCS employess and they could go over the armco to do whatever they needed.   So AMA better bring or hire some of their own cornerworkers to work the races.

[Kuala76]

I will be there corner working :).  The guy who is organizing the corner marshalls will have none of that "no over the armco" business  ::)

[Simon]

I will be there corner working :).  The guy who is organizing the corner marshalls will have none of that "no over the armco" business  ::)

Damn straight. If they expect me to stand-by while some one is down and hurt, they'd better chain me to something very, very, heavy!

[Ducatista]

I felt I was more at risk busting my @$$ hopping back and forth over the Armco than I was actually out in front of it.  I'm sure the spectators along the fence on the outside of 7 got more than their fair share of chuckles as I was figuring out the method to do this gracefully, or at least as gracefully as the white dork pants and hiking boots will allow me to do!

Speaking of which, Kumi, any word on my being able to cornerwork for this event? 

[dylanfan53]

One little interesting rule is the restriction of personel over the armco during a race.

I'm sure the AMA won't tolerate that rule, but they must know about it. We'll see what happens in a few weeks.

I watched the Heartland Park races other day and at one point there was a cornerworker brooming off the outside edge of the track in an impact area as the riders were coming at him.  That didn't look cool on several levels.  No reason it couldn't have waited until the end of the race.  The only riders going out to that edge would have been in the act of crashing anyway.     

[Ducatista]

I watched the Heartland Park races other day and at one point there was a cornerworker brooming off the outside edge of the track in an impact area as the riders were coming at him.  That didn't look cool on several levels.  No reason it couldn't have waited until the end of the race.  The only riders going out to that edge would have been in the act of crashing anyway.    

I don't think any seasoned cornerworker would disagree with you on that one.  Generally, you don't want to put yourself in any spot where you don't have a couple of seconds warning.  It is fine to be in an impact zone, but you want to be far enough into it that if a bike does crash, you have enough time to take a few strides to safety.  We'll step out onto a hot track during a gap to retrieve debris, but that's done with coordination from other cornerworkers to ensure we have the time to do it safely.  We also don't want to spook you guys, either!

[Kuala76]

Well the event has been held :) It was a BLAST working it! No workers (including the few that were NJMP employees) were told they couldn't go over the armcos, and if anyone saw the coverage, the corner working at this event kicked butt!! I may be a bit biased  8)

[Expat2b]

Heck, it was a blast just spectating!  A few of us who made a merry at the big Corona party Sunday night stayed over instead of driving home and woke up to a nice writeup in the local Vineland NJ paper, The Daily Journal (it was Monday's headline story, in fact)

"RECORD CROWDS AT RACETRACK"

http://www.thedailyjournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009909070313

[MELK-MAN]

without a doubt the corner working was AWESOME, i was not there but watching the telecast the CW's would ..often in pairs.. run out to get bikes and bodies outa the way. NICE job!