Re: NEQ Corral '97 - Audi-Mt. Washington Hillclimb

[Dan Simoes <dans@ans.net>]

> 1. It seems that someone made off with a very large section of the Blue
> Storm fencing which has the Audi Quattro logo on it. Audi is upset that
> someone made off with this fencing and whoever took it has risked our
> relationship with the Mt.(returning it would be a good idea although no
> one knows who took it),

Great!  I've been trying to contact Audi for several months, to 
no avail.  Have them call me and I'll see if I can't find that
fence.  It was only an Audi logo BTW...
 
> 2. Several Quattros that identified themselves as part of the Corral
> attempted to seek free passage up the Mt. on Saturday. It was very clear
> in the information provided that the admittance to the NEQ Corral DID
> NOT provide for free passage up the Mt.,

On Saturday, I asked if I was allowed to drive up to the top.
I knew I would be spending hours sitting on top of a mountain and 
making a significant
contribution to the event.  It would have been a very small concession
to allow course workers to drive up to the top at non-race moments.
Since the request was declined, Jim Griffin and I pooled funds
and drove up.
 
> 3. The most disturbing issue occured on Sunday afternoon after the Race
> was over. As we all know the event ran late and everyone was trying to
> get off the Mt. so that the Mt. Washington folks could get the Mt.
> cleaned up, the road re-graded and get the 'vette out from among the
> trees. There was a Red Quattro who went up the Mt. and after being
> stopped and told to go back down was found to have shrugged off this
> request and was found later coming down from higher on the Mt. as these
> sections were being re-graded.

I'm sure you don't mean your wife, so that points to me as "the red quattro."
After the event was over, my coworker (ham) radioed down to the base
and received permission for me to drive to the top.  As a matter of 
fact, there were several people coming down the mountain sans vehicle
and I suggested to him that I could pick some of them up.  

I drove to the top and encountered no regrading.  The vette driver was
hanging out looking at his car.  I talked to him a bit, snapped some
photos, and continued up to the top.  I looked around for a minute or
two, and proceeded down the hill.  I came across the Peugeot being
winched out, so I waited until that was clear.

At no time did I see any regrading being done, nor was there any indication
from any of the 10+ mountain workers I passed that I was in a place I
was not supposed to be.
 
I also saved someone's *ss bigtime, as there was a clueless Nissan
Sentra driver who apparently didn't read the instructions on driving
down the mountain, who had big clouds of smoke coming from his rear 
brakes.  I had to practically force him to the side and explain
that his driving style would surely cause brake failure.  No extra
charge for this service.

> For the NEQ Corral '98 we will have to have a wrist band ID system and
> will work out a system of control with the Mt. to insure these above
> issues don't occure again.

This was my second event there, and control is fine, but keep in mind
there is a fine line between control for the sake of safety and
control for the thrill of empowerment.  Being too anal about rules
takes away from the event.

BTW, you forgot the disappearance of a few Audi Quattro banners,
and a red quattro doing a power slide on the grass (to free a stuck
right caliper...) :)

| Dan |
-- 
Dan Simoes                                dans@ans.net
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