Transponders?!?!

[danielleallen89]

What's going on with the transponders issue? it seems like EVERY enduro race there's something wrong with the transponders. Why don't ya'll have one car, or just someone walk over the line, at like 9am in the morning on raceday, and see if they're gonna work? instead of making everyone in the pits wait 2-3 hours until you figure out what's wrong with the transponders?! There were a lot of furious drivers out there yesterday...

[mystic1582]

For real!! That waiting is a bunch of crap. I have better things to do with my time.. With all the problems, you would think a dry run in the morning or hours prior to racing would be standard procedure. Another 12 hour day from start to finish. I had planned on going back to work in the late afternoon...instead, I arrived home @ 10pm. Another thing that totally pi$$ed me off is the rough riding or plowing you out of the way. Most of the top 10 cars that finished in the 4 cylinder class got around slower cars without incident. But a few idiots are determined to simply spin out every car they can't pass, or put them into the wall.
Steve Petry #8P

[EnduroFromDE]

It seems the transponders have been a big issue during or right after a rain storm. I don't know what the reason the delay was, but all I say was 10 men leaning over the front strech wall and two guys waving transponders over the line. Well, what was the issue???

[pitbull113]

New transponders? Money well spent!! Bring back the flop clock!!

[CJfilms]

Wait up a second...there was a reasonable issue here this time...

Two weeks ago, the last Mountain Speedway Event, two late models made HARD contact right on the line...it cut the wire completely. The rest of that night, the whole system was acting up. The following day, we got rained out...it was repaired over the week...Saturday, we got rained out again...that's why they were never tested since the repair.

YES, it would have made sense to test out a transponder of two before the race, or even during the test and tune.
--Reason why they didn't do that:
1. The system has been working without a hitch since the loop was replaced. (remember the last race?)
2. Brad, our transponder operator, was never brought back to the track to run the computer on an off day to test things out either. Which he would not be able to predict a problem if he is not aware of the severity of the damage to the loop wire.
3. When the wire was fixed...sorry, the loop...none of the rest of the wire was checked. That's where the problem was...we had a short.

This problem would have happened at whatever event Mtn held next, it just happened to be an enduro... Plus, the regular events, there may only be 20 or so cars on the track at once, so hand scoring is an option on those events and a problem can be avoided.

Sorry for the inconvenience, but at least it was fixed and is back to normal! And at least it was fixed THAT DAY!!!

You've got to give those guys some credit! They took more heat from the patient fans and Joe breathing down their necks than anyone else that day!

[richardpetey]

How many times do you have to soil your underwear, before you strap on the DEPENZ........................
After another transponder fiasco, the fans left in droves..............Do you blame them ?........................
UNCLE PETEY..................

[BBI1432]

I couldn't agree with danielleallen89 more, someone should walk a bunch of transponders over the loop as soon as the pits open, so if there is problem, you have plenty of time to fix it before the races are scheduled start. The stands were PACKED at 1, but by the time races started, I noticed many fans had left. At least the racing was good once they got going!

[Geno]

I’m not disagreeing that the system shouldn’t have been tested before hand, but at least the races were run and cars were scored correctly.

Thank you to the Butler Twp. Vol. Fire Department for running around like madmen, testing leads and finding out where the short was!

[spier racing 93]

Just wondering...How deep is the "loop" burried? Is it all the further down it can go or is it up too high or what?

[racenut38]

I'm glad thay got it up and running. Hats off to the guys and a big thanks to the people who helped scored the trucks. Transponders are the way to go. I love the mylaps lap chart.

[CJfilms]

Hey Ty, the loop is only burried 1/4 inch into the asphalt...as per AMB's requirements. Also, the loop is not to be run through a small pipe (like pvc) or wrapped in anything else for that matter. AMB says to cut a line 1/4 inch deep in the asphalt and LAY the loop in it, the only thing to cover the wire is supposed to be silicone to prevent water damage and keep it in place.

That's why Billy insists that cars with flats are black flagged and sent to the pits immediately. Also that's why we have to be on top of guys running lap after lap with a flat... If someone keeps going over the loop with that rim gouging at the asphalt, you can almost expect there to be problems.

I hope that cleared up some questions...Billy said it best guys, "When the system is working properly, it's the best thing out there."

[spier racing 93]

Well that explains why it is so easily damaged...What type of wire is it for the loop? Is there any way that multiple loops can be installed so that there are backup loops if one is damaged?

[Geno]

Ty,

The wire that was damaged wasn't on (or in) the track, it was part of the "loop", which runs up to the scoring tower. I think you're beating a dead horse.

[nobandwagonhere]

Believe me...on Monday I was NOT the happiest of campers. Waiting on line for almost an hour to do a transponder run was not my idea of NEETS racing. Some could hear me for miles yelling "LETS GO!!!". I could not BELIEVE that of all things, transponders were going to be an issue AGAIN. But what made my day was the fact that ....1) they fixed it. 2) we raced. Trust me...we were ready to pack it up and leave. Disappointment, frustration, the feeling of getting a bull---- story about how it would never happen again. All this was BEFORE talking to Billy and Mama NEETS and finding out it was just a break in the wire......not a transponder malfunction. My opinion was...and is....there was plenty of time during the Test and Tune to check. But it all worked out. I saw the look on Billys face worrying about how he was going to face all of us and hand out yet another disappointing NEETS anouncement. But we raced. Granted, the trucks got the brunt of it, but I can honestly say....as one who helped score the trucks...we did our darndest to score those trucks as accurately as physically possible. And any honest driver of the trucks will say; I think we were right on the money. (except the photo finish...that's all on you Billy! ) For those of us in the 8cyl's.....we raced clean and red flag free. I lost faith for a little while, too. But once I saw the looks on the faces of those in that tower....the look of feeling like you let everyone down. The determination to get these guys racing (you have to care about your drivers to have those looks and feelings) ...I changed my tune. But had I not gone up there, I would probably still fell the same way. Bottom line is....we raced. The transponders worked. It is all up to each driver whether or not they want to keep the faith. Its understandable. But theres no sense beating it to a pulp. We raced. We were computer scored, and we had fun doing it. It worked out. And I dont know about you...but I, for one, am looking foward to the Fem-Enduro!!!!

[EricaR]

I would first like to say that I for one am also sick and tired of the transponders not working and I am the one that hands them out...HOWEVER...I am also sick and tired of having the majority of the drivers miserable and cranky with those of us in the office, *****ing and moaning about them, EVEN IF THEY WORKED FINE!!!
There was a MAJOR wreck on that loop the last race we ran in the Late Model division, did anyone ask if the drivers involved were okay? Yes, to those of you who might be a touch concerned, they were thankfully, however, the loop was not. And Joe fixed it as far as he knew. The wire was severed, no it cannot be dug deeper into the track, no, we cannot cover it with anything other than a thin layer of silicon, it is where it needs to be to have the transponders functioning properly. Joe is one person. HE CANNOT DO IT ALL. Yes, he makes the money at the track, but he also has the best payout in each division and has overhead that he also has to cover, the most of which is insurance that he pays for to protect you if you are injured. Also, paying his employees, paying for the ambulance (which is NOT cheap), paying for the rent for the track which he DOES NOT OWN, plus the incidentals that you encounter on a regular basis. Buying new transponders I'm sure was not on his list of things that he would like to do with some extra money that he might have had to put back into the track. Because he also hears you when you all complain about the condition of the bathrooms, the weeds that are overgrown, the the track that has patches. So no, he is not rolling in the dough, like most of you think. And I, for one, can tell you that he was as sick as we all were that those transponders were not working.
He thought the problem was solved when he found the slice in the wire. Should someone have checked that they were working earlier in the morning? YES!! Does Joe know how to work the computer to check for something like that? NO...he knows nothing of the program in that computer. And..the transponders worked FINE the last Enduro race. The problem was not with the transponders themselves, but the wire that runs underneath the guardrail. Let me think about this for just a sec here....most enduro races 150+ cars in 3 divisions, all of you slamming off of the wall over, and over, and over becaue most of you take these races like they are Demo derbys, and one thin wire underneath. What we may as well just say is a knife being pushed over that wire again, and again, and again.....wire will break, transponders will pick up, but the signal will not transfer into the computer that our little bitty wire is attached to.
How about instead of complaining, volunteering to help a guy out. Why doesn't everyone just pick a day, give the guy a call, and say, hey, I have the day off, I would like to thank you for letting us have a place to race by helping you cut the grass, or...I own a construction company, let me help you fix up the grandstand bathrooms...if everyone offers your help and support, maybe just maybe, the place will be a little nicer, maybe just maybe, the next time you need a favor, Joe will be the first one to lend a hand. I know that he has helped many of our drivers out who were in a tight spot. Need a part? He might have one, truck break down...he'll send a truck. Joe is a great guy who gets dragged through the mud over and over.
I, for one, am ready to never again work another Enduro, and I know personally that there is another key figure, that you all depend on as well for each race, that is ready to say shove it, too. If that happens, you all can say goodbye to the transponders, and go back to the flop clock, back to cheating the flop clock...then you all can complain as much as you want to, I won't be there to hear it time and time again.
I will now step down from my soapbox. I love all of you guys, and I love watching the Enduro races, but just give us a bit of time to get things in order. We are trying hard to get things taken care of and get things updated and make things run smoother. We just need some time to get the kinks out of the system. Please be patient, and instead of complaining all of the time, it would for once be nice to hear a compliment now and again. I cannot thank all of those guys that were out there for the three hours it took to get those wires jimmied up so that the system ended up working again, it wasn't a permanant fix, but it did the job for one day, it is being taken care of this week.THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!! To all of you who saw that there was a problem and offered to help fix it. Erica