Trulli and Yellow Flags

[Asp]

Bewildering handling of Trulli's car today, doesn't everyone think? If it needed the waved yellow out for nearly 10 laps (as it was just on the track with no way of recovery) - why not deploy the SC? As even Brundle commented, the drivers were hardly slowing down for it, and when it went to double waved yellows as marshals were trackside looking at the car and deciding if they could do anything to it, a fastest lap was set! (was it Kimi?)
I've got a feeling that the SC would have been deployed, but (possibly due to the car being in quite a blind spot) it took time for Race Control and Charlie Whiting to see what was what, and deploying the SC a few laps after the incident - well, we know the backlash that would have occured!

[Adam43]

I think Montoya, Michael and Kimi all set the race's fastest lap (at the time) during that period! And no doubt all the drivers were keeping their foot in.

Difficult one to call, I suppose. Did they ever move it?

it is not that long ago since htey did used to leave cars in places much worse than that.

[Valve Bounce]

I didn't think the car was in a dangerous spot at all. It wasn't as if the car had crashed and another car could do the same at that loaction. Deploying the safety car could have nullified SchM's lead, might even have affected the outcome of the race and ultimately the Championship.

IMO, the safety cars is just that safety car, and I honestly do not think that safety was an issue for anyone. It has long been my view that the safety car should only be used when there is an issue with safety, not to rescue a car parked safely at the side of the track.

[Dutch chap]

As I recall, there is the rule that drivers should pay attention to a yellow, meaning reducing their speed. The fact that during the time this yellow flag was out several drivers broke the lap record just does seem to reflect that a) drivers did not obey the rules and b) something should have been done with car. Being a marshal myself, I know that my colleagues in Italy kind of use the same system as we do in Holland, wich means that they are very well capable of removing this car, with the use of their 'course cars','intervention vehicles' or whatever you want to call them. For my first remark, about drivers not obeing the rules, it is simple to me: punish them (=stop & go) and for the second remark: now whe are getting in a difficult area. Since the closed televison circuit systems arrived on racing tracks they have helped the CoC or Race Director or what ever the title of the guy in charge is/was in an enormous way. BUT, by now the CoC, who has allways said to observers and the crew on the rescue units/recovery cars etc. 'you are my eyes and ears' is relying totally on his video screens and is ignoring the views of the marshals and their reports by telephone and radio. I've seen it before, I've been in it before, I've been on the radio before, the CoC is just looking at his video screen and makes a decision on what he sees on that, not on the reports and suggestions of marshals who now what they are talking about bcause they are on the scene. I recognise what we all heve seen today from my own experience. I imagine that my italian fellow marshals are quite frustrated about this, because they knew were very capable of clearing the track (=moving Trulli's car to a save spot, but were simply not allowed to, although they suggested it to Race Control. But hey, thats how it goes nowadays, the CoC (or Charlie Whiting) made a decision on what he saw on his screens because that was a save thing to do. He ruined part of the race, but it was a save decision. It could have been a better race, but who listends to marshals??

[Dutch chap]

While I was typing my response, Valve Bounce made his contribution. Of course VB, there was no reason to deploy the SC for this. But leaving the car standing were it was, was not the best idea either. The rule is, that when a car is parked at a dangerous spot (and this one was) the yellow flag must me waved, so that means no overtaking on this spot, and therefore influincing the race. As I have posted before, I just know that ifmy Italian com-marshals would have doen what they ussuly do, just remove the car by giving it a tow to a save spot, the spot would have been clear within 1 or 2 laps.

[Damon]

The cynics view of course would be that Michael was leading at Monza and Montoya's pretty hot off the restarts...

[Valve Bounce]

Was Trulli's car stopped at a location which was liable to become dangerous? Was a car likely to crash into it? I guess this is the question.

[GP Racer]

The yellow flag was out for about ten laps or so, and nobody was slowing down for it. All the drivers knew it was for Trulli's car, which was well out of the way.

How can you expect the whole field to slow down on every lap that the flag was out? Or what would happen if say Schumacher slowed for it, and Montoya didn't, and he makes up ground? What by the rules constitutes slowing down anyway, 20MPH, 40MPH? Just asking.

All in all, I think it was handled pretty well.

[Valve Bounce]

I have suggested before (and the idea was poo poo-ed) that in a situation that was dangerous, all cars could be required to used their speed limiter for a distance defined and controlled electronically by sensors installed at regular intervals on the circuit. If cars can drive safely down pit lane at the speed set by their limiter with all the crews working close by on one side, surely marshalls can direct cars to run safely at this "limited" pace on the opposite side of the track. This way, no driver can gain on another, which is what happens whenever the safety car is dispatched onto the circuit.

I opined that the safety car should only be deployed when the track itself is partially blocked, when cars must be removed from the track, or part of a corner becomes dangerous when another car is likely to crash into a car off the road there.

The last thing we want to see is marshalls clearing debris from the track while the cars zoom past at high speed.

[strad]

VEry similar to what Bernie had almost in place, but the plan seems to have fallen apart with the digital TV deal.
The plan was for the cars to be automatically slowed in yellow flag areas...bunch of other stuff but that was in the package.

[f1manoz]

I thought waving the flags for that long was strange. Because, IMO, Trulli's car was not in a particularly dangerous position. Far off the racing line, out of harms way basically... and when was the last time someone spun going down there...