Now we all know they happen and there’s enough coverage by mainstream media about them to make it look like motorsport is a completely incident-filled atrocity that should be banned, we all know the incidents are pretty rare and when they do happen, highly trained people jump into action to get the best result for all involved.
So, what does all of this have to do with a 7-minute record at Perth Motorplex?
Well, the 7-minute record is the time it took from a car entering the sandpit at the end of the track to recovering it and getting everyone back and running. It might seem a long time but take into consideration the following after an incident happens.
The incident crews need to get to the incident. There is no way to cover 100% of a track with people to respond to incidents so there will always be a delay. 10 seconds, 1 minute, it will always take time.
Once the incident crews arrive, they need to assess the situation and decide where to go from there.
Medical crews will almost always attend to an incident, especially where a sudden stop happens.
The rescue and recovery crew will need to assess how best to remove the vehicle without damaging it further.
The cleanup crew will need to clean up the area where the vehicle came off and if needed traceback if any oil was left on the track and then clean it up
Once all of the above is done, then all people involved need to get back into position before the competition can start again. So to turn around a track after an incident in just 7 minutes. Impressive.
Hats off to you Motorplex management and staff!
