Stuff you see in scrutineering

[GD66]

I find it strange that in the litigation state that oz is that you even have a scrutineer .

Well, reading the list of ailments Dave outlined earlier, it's lucky for other riders we do. Considering how each and every nats gets micro-examined on here, yet dickheads still roll up with an heap of crap and an attitude. One answer would be the same as my solution for eligibility : have your bike looked over by those racing against you.

[Nathan S]

Having travelled many of thousands of kilometres on bikes with rooted swingarm bearings, I can say that it is a very minor concern WRT safety.

Ditto rims that are cracked across the join - even if it breaks all the way through during the race (which is highly unlikely), the biggest problem will be the broken edge of the rim puncturing the tube. The spokes and the bead of the tyre hold it in place.
A loose spoke is much the same story - its not ideal, but nor is it the catastrophe that most scrutineers seem to imagine...

I was a CAMS accredited scrutineer (and CAMS are even more paranoid than MA).
One of the things that was repeated many times when I did the course was "you job is NOT to knock back cars. Your job is to get as many safe and legal cars out there competing as you possibly can". This is a lesson that many scrutineers seem to forget.

I don't want to race with someone who has no brakes and a sticky throttle. But if they choose to ride with leaky forks, or walk around the pits in jandals, then it makes no difference to me.

[albrid-3]

Well, have any of you fellow every swallowed a handlebar going over a jump, well I have, the went though my mouth guard knocked out my front teeth and cut the roof of my mouth inside.
I have scrutineered bikes for any years, if a bike rolled up with bars unplugged, solid foot pegs, loose spokes, no ball ends on brake and clutch levers, (side stands removed), any nuts and bolts loose on the bike, headstem loose  if they where not right, see you later mate, go away and fix them.  plus Helmets where always checked, they must display the snell number. if not, was not to be used.

 Thats all cool , but what if you missed something and it broke and he or someone else got hurt , would you not then be liable as YOU checked the bike and said it was OK.

I would not miss anything, I was very thorough, nothing got passed me.

[SlideRulz]

I wouldn't be a scrutineer for quids, damned if they do and damned if they don't.
Most of these points are even less important on Dirttrack but I for one don't want to be hot up someone's clacka when there front wheel collapse going into a corner at the end of the main straight.
They have a job to do and a rule book to follow.

[albrid-3]

I remember a fellow at a barrabool Australian vintage title, went over a jump on his Maico and when he come down the front wheel disintegrated, he ended up in a bad way. I don`t remember the scrutineers that weekend, but that maico was not checked properly. Another time I rode another fellows AJS 370 Stormer at Boagy race meeting at Leongatha, the whole time  I was riding that bike it felt strange, there was a clunking sound, as if there wasn't any oil in the front forks, when the race had  finished I told the owner,  a week later he called me, and said David, that sound you heard, was the forks, the bolt that held the forks in place where gone, only the front brake cable was holding the forks together. Now that could have been trouble for me, if those forks had have pop out.
Now that comes back on the owner not doing his maintenance the week before,  or the scrutineer over looked that, and did not test the forks on the day.

[FourstrokeForever]

Having travelled many of thousands of kilometres on bikes with rooted swingarm bearings, I can say that it is a very minor concern WRT safety.

Ditto rims that are cracked across the join - even if it breaks all the way through during the race (which is highly unlikely), the biggest problem will be the broken edge of the rim puncturing the tube. The spokes and the bead of the tyre hold it in place.
A loose spoke is much the same story - its not ideal, but nor is it the catastrophe that most scrutineers seem to imagine...

I was a CAMS accredited scrutineer (and CAMS are even more paranoid than MA).
One of the things that was repeated many times when I did the course was "you job is NOT to knock back cars. Your job is to get as many safe and legal cars out there competing as you possibly can". This is a lesson that many scrutineers seem to forget.

I don't want to race with someone who has no brakes and a sticky throttle. But if they choose to ride with leaky forks, or walk around the pits in jandals, then it makes no difference to me.

You've got to be kidding me Nathan.  For such an otherwise sensible bloke you've seriously dropped the ball on this mate. Or have you had too many Karva's?  Safety is paramount in what scrutiny is all about. It might have been different with your rally buddies, but I sure as hell wouldn't let some dodgy pile of crap onto any race track just to make up the numbers. If you want to ride by yourself with clapped out swing arm bearings that's fine....just don't do it beside me!

[William Doe]

  FFS I have been racing bikes for close to 40 yrs on both sides of the world . Reading this I must be the luckiest Bastard ever to line up on a start line as I have never seen a anyone seriously injured due to what a lot of you would consider life threatening issues with motorcycles .

I have also broken both legs , arms, collar bone , and a number of minor bones over the years . I have been knocked cold on several occasions , and yet I cannot attribute any of those injuries to mine or anyone elses bike .

We dropped scrutineering  at  motorcycle events here in NZ about 15 years ago ( for the reasons Asasin ) said earlier and yet as far as im aware we still have had no serious injuries or deaths as a result of this practice .

Road racing is a different animal all together, those guys are actually racing at speed on hard stuff called concrete or tarseal , and I agree that they need to be checked (by someone who A ACTUALY KNOWS WHAT THEY ARE DOING < and B SOMEONE WHO ACTUALY UNDERSTANDS AND CORRECTLY INTERPRETS THE RULES )

I had an encounter a few years back with one of your senior officials over a helmet , long story short the bloke didn't like me and did all he could to be a wanker . Fair enough a lot of people don't like me ( couldn't give a toss I am what I am ) but to take personal feelings into a professional role says more about him than me 

Take a step back for a minute and look at what we actually do  were a bunch of old wobblers , wobbling around a paddock at probably an average speed of 40 km hr ( and I run at the front of my classes )

Reading some of the latest posting on here from some makes me realise that they are obviously PAST IT  time to park it up and take up the pipe and slippers .

I don't condone dangerous or illegal eligibility practices , but I think GD66 summed it up with this .

One answer would be the same as my solution for eligibility : have your bike looked over by those racing against you.

And IMHO Nathans Rally scenario

One of the things that was repeated many times when I did the course was "you job is NOT to knock back cars. Your job is to get as many safe and legal cars out there competing as you possibly can". This is a lesson that many scrutineers seem to forget.


is spot on the money   

[Slakewell]

Jezbus
I thought Dave started this one for little light harted fun.

You remember fun guys 

[asasin]

I would not miss anything, I was very thorough, nothing got passed me.

I am sure you are very thorough and love your position of authority but you cant crack test every item , hub, handlebar mount , suspension point , bolt and tube. so the instant you pass it and it breaks its your problem.
 I am just making this point as this was taken to high court in NZ quite a few years ago after a crash at a local car club drags. Admittedly on a public closed road and private property got damaged . but the cops firstly pointed the finger at the person who last checked the car.the poor scrutineer who was just like you a volunteer..
 I also believe they did the same with officials and scrutineer at a event where a spectator got badly injured .

Better to have the competitor sign his bike is safe then it is entirely his problem

[Nathan S]

You've got to be kidding me Nathan.  For such an otherwise sensible bloke you've seriously dropped the ball on this mate. Or have you had too many Karva's?  Safety is paramount in what scrutiny is all about. It might have been different with your rally buddies, but I sure as hell wouldn't let some dodgy pile of crap onto any race track just to make up the numbers. If you want to ride by yourself with clapped out swing arm bearings that's fine....just don't do it beside me!

Not at all. All of the things that scrutineers typically make a big fuss over are really minor issues.
There's so many things that contribute to safety when you're racing a dirt bike - rider attitude is the biggest one by far. A swingarm with 5mm of side-to-side play is so far down the list that its amazing it even rates a mention.
An AT1 comes factory fitted with rubber swing arm bushes that allow the swing arm to move 5mm from side to side when the bushes are new.

Racing MX is a risky sport. Everyone who participates knows this.
MA needs to (be seen to) mitigate the risk to themselves - and that's all that scrutiny hopes to achieve.
But instead, we have some (I repeat some) scrutineers who think that their job is to send as many blokes home as they possibly can, and/or who just love making competitors jump through hoops for their amusement/ego trip.

To be honest, I've seen very little of it in VMX, but some of the comments in this thread show that the attitude is among us.

[OverTheHill]

Would this pass with flying colors at scrutineering, check ebay 151395280218 dt1mx mp3 speakers, just the ticket for when you're so far in front of the pack [or behind lol].

[OverTheHill]

i haven't read all the comments & a bit outa vmx touch here now but don't think we have scrutineering any more due to liability laws [or everyone being responsible for them selves--or liable for their own injury causing bikes] someone here [nz] will put me right.

[OverTheHill]

takes me back to 1967 when we were there & one of the kiwi's with a 250 cz had to [with help from a handy engineer over there] make up a front sprocket cover to get past the scrutineers. Was a wake up call for us guys who never worried about things like that [still don't lol].

[KTM47]

I think you're all Nazi's, if a guy wants to roll-up with an un-maintained bike that's his problem.  Maybe in roadracing where he could take-out someone else, at high speed and on hard bitumen, is a different story.

The only things I care about when checking peoples bikes to race are front & rear brakes and self-closing throttle.  Let em DNF, just moves me up a place  ;-)

You have got to be kidding.  Do you really think a motocross bike breaking something can't also affect another rider.  Road Racing already has stricter rules, drain plugs wired, etc, etc, but to say you shouldn't check the obvious things on a MX or DT etc is BS.

However you aren't doing a service on the bike just checking simple things, that can be checked in a minutes.

In the following order.

Front brake, steering head bearings, front spokes & wheel bearings, handle bar plugs, throttle self returns, foot pegs return, rear spokes and wheel bearings, suspension/swingarm bearings, rear brake and correct readable numbers.  If during this the scrutineer spots frame cracks etc take action.  Also helmet and licence.

You could check riding gear etc but I usually check that on the start line/gates and check back numbers too.

[the stig]

         The first thing I inspect is the lever ends . wheel bearings . sprocket covers . Tank and Seat secure .
         no fuel leaks. swing arm bushes. and that the engine is bolted in ..yep I have found a few loose in the
          frame..
         loose spokes just ask them to tighten them before they go out on the track
          After all your not out to spoil there Day Just to point out what they have missed in prepping the Bike.

         The Stig