OK, this is my second attempt to do a blog entry on the subject of flags used in racing. The last time I did this, I had a system crash just as I finished the article and, despite WordPress having an auto-save function, I lost the lot. Needless to say I was too disgusted to start all over so I shelved the idea for another day.
If you watch motorcycle racing you will regularly see flags being used to notify riders of various aspects of what is happening on the track. Unlike car racing, where two way radio communication between the pits and the competitors is allowed, no such usage is permitted in motorcycle road racing. The rider is dependent upon his/her knowledge of what the flags mean plus their own pit boards when and if they are used. So I thought that I’d run through the flags and how they are used so that you will have an even better idea of what is going on than you had before.
The graphic above represents the flags that are used in car racing and are not exactly the same as what are used in motorcycle racing but there are some similarities. (picture courtesy of Erebus Motorsports)
Absurdly, like Windows where you have to press the “Start” button to stop the computer, the first flag that a rider sees when he arrives at the grid for the start of a race (after his warm-up lap where stationary yellow flags are displayed all around the circuit – more on this later) is the red flag. Under normal racing conditions, the red flag has a completely different meaning to which I will get later. The primary grid marshal will display a red flag as he stands in front of the front row of bikes. The rest of the grid marshals will watch as the bikes form up into their allocated grid positions (hopefully the riders have remembered – they often don’t). Once the grid is full and all bikes are stopped in their correct positions, the marshal at the back of the grid will wave a green flag to indicate that the grid is set. The primary grid marshal then points to the starting lights, tucks the red flag under his arm and retires to the (relative) safety of the edge of the track.
The traditional way of starting a race used to be the use of the national flag of the nation in which the racing was taking place. It began by having the flag raised and then quickly lowered to indicate the start. However, clever riders started to figure out a way around that, watching carefully for the “flinch” that indicated that the starter’s arm was about to fall.
So, the method was changed so that the national flag was raised from beside the starter’s body rather than dropped. The logic was that it was harder to discern when the flag was going to move if it was disguised till the last second beside his body. This system worked much better but was still a little inaccurate and still made it difficult for the Clerk of Course to determine if a rider had “jumped the start.”
With the advent of technology, race tracks switched over to using a series of red lights, going out in sequence till they were all extinguished as a means of starting the races. Riders being riders, however, soon got used to timing the phasing of the lights and jumping, sometimes before, just as the last light went out. So the final wrinkle was introduced, which is what we use today. Once all but the last the red light has gone out and the bikes are “staged” to use a drag racing term, the starter in the tower has the discretion of when to extinguish the last light and release the field. Since this involves the pressing of a switch and usually takes place in a gantry high above the grid, the riders have no way of knowing or discerning when that switch will be pressed.
A good starter will vary this last part of the process for every race so that nobody can time the sequence and discern a pattern. A good starter also will ensure that the delay between the extinguishing of the last two lights is not excessively long. Riders are impatient and clutches are delicate. Bikes can overheat if left on the grid too long with their motors running and, on a hot day (they usually are) riders are already uncomfortable enough in their leathers and protective gear.
This is the reason, incidentally, why you will often see a few riders hang back on the warm up lap and time their arrival at their allocated grid spot to the last second. Less time waiting on the grid resolves most of the above issues and also means that the rider has the hottest tyres on the grid when the red light goes out.
So there is no green light, a la traffic lights, to actually start the race. Once the race is under way, the riders are kept informed by other flags which can be waved at the start/finish line and also at the various marshalling points around the circuit.
The flag which riders watch for most is the YELLOW flag. It indicates that an incident has taken place on the track that can impinge upon their safety. A STATIONARY yellow will be waved at the marshal stand BEFORE the location of the incident. Once riders see the stationary yellow they are required to slow down, stop racing and maintain their position. NO OVERTAKING is allowed while the area is under the control of a yellow flag. Claiming not to have SEEN the yellow flag is not deemed and acceptable excuse and this applies all the way from the smallest club race to a World Championship event. Marc Marquez was penalised at the British Grand Prix last year for failing to slow sufficiently when the yellow flag had been displayed.
At the marshalling stand closest to the incident site (but before it) a WAVED yellow flag will be displayed to let the riders know that they have arrived at the danger area. Riders are to negotiate the area safely and are not to recommence racing until they see the next flag which will be the GREEN flag. This flag will be displayed at the next marshalling point.
Unlike car racing where a “full course yellow” is often used when the intervention of a safety vehicle is required, motorcycle road racing only uses yellow flags locally. The only time that yellows are used all around the track is on the riders’ warm up and sighting laps.
The next flag to consider is the LACK OF ADHESION flag. This flag is a striped yellow and red flag and is used to notify riders that there is oil, debris or heavy concentrations of water on the track. It is also used when large amounts of cement dust has been used to clean up an oil spill. It is usually displayed locally but can be displayed all a round the circuit if weather conditions have suddenly changed during the progress of a race. Riders are free to continue racing but do so at their own risk.
Riders may sometimes see a BLACK flag. The meaning of this flag appears to be universal across all disciplines. It means that, for a reason determined by the Clerk of the Course, a rider has been disqualified from a race. There are a multitude of reasons for a rider to be disqualified. He may have been reported by a corner marshal for dangerous riding; he may have inadvertently gone out in the wrong race; he may have ignored a direction from marshals; or there may have something dangerous or unsafe about his bike that requires that he be taken off the track quickly.
Since the black flag is only displayed at the start/finish line and since the s/f line is usually on the straight, the fastest part of the track, it is easy for a rider to miss the black flag when it is displayed, especially if he is engrossed in a battle with another rider/s. So the use of the black flag is backed up by a board that is also displayed at the s/f line on which board the rider’s racing number will be prominently displayed. The CoC will usually allow some leniency in these situations but, go for more than a few laps without obeying the black flag and the rider’s name will be announced over the PA at the end of the race and a visit to the CoC’s office for a “please explain” will follow.
As in the case of the red flag (following), if a rider is black flagged, he must not stop on the track immediately; this is plainly unsafe. He is to slow and enter the pits by the usual method that would be used at the end of each race. He will then be told the reason for the black flag.
The RED flag is used when the race needs to be stopped prematurely. This is usually because of an accident so that safety crew can quickly and safely reach the situation and take the appropriate action. The red flag will firstly be displayed at the s/f line and then Race Control will radio all marshal points and tell them to also display the red flag. When a rider sees the red flag their first reaction is to treat it as they would treat a yellow flag. Slow down, maintain position and then return to the pits by the usual method. This is to be done as quickly as possible as intervention vehicles are not allowed to enter the track until it is fully cleared. As with the black flag above, the riders must NOT slow dramatically and suddenly or stop on the track at all. To do so could easily cause another accident.
The last flag is the one that no racer wants to see, it is the BLUE flag (usually with a big yellow dot in the middle). This flag is displayed at all marshal points as a rider rides by to indicate to a rider that he is being lapped by faster bikes. This usually happens late in the race and doesn’t happen that often. If a rider sees the blue flag being WAVED at him he is to continue to ride as he had been doing. He are not to look around to see how close the leaders are behind them, nor is he to do anything to try and accommodate the faster bikes or make their passage past any easier. The rider is to maintain his usual racing lines and the onus is on the lapping riders to do so with safety.
Now, a quick word about boards. As well as flags, the marshals at the s/f line have a collection of boards that they use to augment the flags. The first is the LAST LAP board. Unlike car racing where a white flag is traditionally used to indicate this, in road racing a board is used. This is displayed to the lead rider and is held out until the last rider in the field has passed it. The starter knows these facts because he/she is in radio communication with Race Control who will give them the appropriate numbers.
There is a blank board also used on which the number/s of a rider/s who have been deemed to have jumped the start can be displayed. In this event the rider must continue racing but will be made aware by seeing his number on the board that he is facing a 10 or sometimes 20 second time penalty that will be added to his race time at the end of the race. At some of the bigger tracks a separate set of boards is also used which progressively flip over to count down the number of laps left in the race.
The last flag is, appropriately, the CHEQUERED FLAG. This flag indicates that the race is over. Riders are to behave as they would when a red flag is displayed, slowing and entering the pits by the usual method.
So, that’s it. I hope that this little article has revived your flagging interest. More stuff tomorrow.