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The Ultimate Motor Sport! |
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The Ultimate Motor Sport! |
The most unique form of auto racing in the world. Just about every aspect of this sport is unique, in fact, about the only thing it has in common with other motor sports is that the green flag means go and the checked flag means the race is over, almost everything in-between is excitingly different!
The events duration is not determined by a fixed number of laps, but by time, making this sport very "broadcast friendly". The winner is the one that completes the greatest number of laps in the given amount of time.
One of the most unique things about this sport is that although a fixed number of cars start the race (usually between 24 and 30), cars will be added to the field. When a car has a problem on the track that puts it out of the race (or in the pits for any length of time), the next car in line (as determined by qualifying) will be sent onto the speedway. If the car that had the original problem gets fixed it can return to the track. Once a car has been on the track it is free to continue and complete as many laps as it can. The number of cars on the track may actually go up as the race progresses (again this is unique to motor sports). This means that cars that failed to qualify do not load up and go home (as in all other motor sport events), they may still get a chance to not only race but to win. Adding cars to the field guarantees that the action stays intense.
Combine the fact that the race is a timed event and that cars are added to the field and a truly unique possibility arises: A car could neither start nor finish the race and yet still win the race.
The most unique aspect of this sport has to be the race course itself: Roughly the shape of a figure-8. The middle of the track is known by many different names; cross over, intersection, X,..etc., but whatever you call it, it's what makes this sport extreme, and sets it apart from any other form of motor sports. A driver needs to posses a near-perfect combination of talent, timing, courage and luck to be successful at this sport, a shortcoming in any category can spell disaster.
The ultimate in run-what-ya-brung racing. There is only one rule in N.O.F.E.A.R.'s rule book: Cars must be safe for figure-8 Competition. That's it. Cars must be constructed so that there is minimal risk involved to anyone! This includes the driver, competitor, crewman or spectator.
This is obviously an objective rule, that is open to all sorts of interpretation. The only interpretation that matters, however, is that of the N.O.F.E.A.R. officials. If they don't think it's safe- it doesn't race. Period. All vehicles will be required to pass a safety check before being allowed on the race track. Using common sense when building the car will go a long way in eliminating problems during the safety inspection. Rules may be added on a track by track basis where there may be special safety considerations due to the size and/or layout of a particular track.