A situation was brought to my attention and was just wondering what the IOW world thought......

Remember this is a weekly show at a weekly race track (has nothing to do with VCS)......

A race team took their primary car out for hot laps and realized their engine had some interior noise.....When they approached an official about unloading the backup car they were told they could not.....

Should they be allowed to run the backup car?

What if there wasnt a problem with the primary car and just thought the other car was better?

Is this any different than switching to another teams car?

Should they be made to tag the tail of the heat?

If it happened in the heat should they be allowed to switch?

Did they do anything other than hot lap their primary car?

Only made 2 hot laps.....

Yes, a team should be allowed to use a back-up car...

If switch is made after qualifying, the cars loses their time.

If after the heat race, put them at the back of the field.

No penalty should occur if the switch happens immediately following hotlaps.

I really think that after qualifying starts or the heats that the car starting the night should be the only car allowed to run.

I witnessed a USAC Race a couple years ago where a driver flipped qualifying, Brought out his backup for the LCQ, Flipped again and then brought out his team mates backup and got in on a points deal as a provisional in the feature.

I still believe that you can do anything to the car durring the night, Change motors, weld it up or what not but the car they started the event (Hotlaps not included) should be the one used the remainder of the night.

I say this because there are a dozen guys at any race with one car and one car only and its a clear case of unlimited resources being able to BUMP a guy from a feature start.
Chuck, faulting nobody for doing what the rules allowed.

Based upon the facts presented, I totally agree with Bill. To me, this is similar to the thread about Hunter S. not being allowed to change a tire at Haubstadt last Saturday. Fans come to see cars race. Car counts are falling off. I just don't understand why anyone would want to somehow limit the number of cars the fans get to see race. In Hunter's case, we saw a great race anyway, and we have no way of knowing if there would have been even more excitement if he was allowed to change the tire. In the case on this thread, fans were deprived of the opportunity to see another car. I think that promoters and organizations should be looking for ways to attract more cars and fans, not the opposite. Just my opinion, I might be wrong.

Frank Daigh

If all they completed were 2 hot laps I think a backup car should be allowed.

No you didn't. The back-up car wouldn't have any points and wouldn't be eligible for a provisional. I'm assuming you're citing the Stenhouse night? He flipped his OWN car on his second lap of qualifying after setting quick time on the first. Then he jumped in the back-up car (with number 20s on it) and flipped in the LCQ. Night over.

Stenhouse also used Chuck Gurney, Jr.'s car as a provisional at Boswell and ran it up to like sixth or seventh, but that was disallowed because using someone else's car as your provisional car is not in the rules, apparently...

i don't know your rules ,I'll tell you how it works where I race....If you have a back up car it has to be registured,teched and signed in for the night ...if you have to use it ,you'll be placed at the back of the next event the driver is qualified for

So in the second instance, Someone legal wasn't allowed to start? Im not witch hunting, Just think a lot of guys (Most) have one car and one shot.