Assistance is required at every autocross in the mundane task of setting up and tearing down the course. There will usually be copies of the map available, and small groups of people will be sent out to “build” various sections of the course, then the course designer will take a small crew to tie the sections together and verify that everything went down the way they intended. After that, the safety guru will take a walk around the course. The last step after the course has been approved by safety is to put a chalk outline around each cone and apply a chalk-dust line wherever the course designer or safety feels it is necessary.
Helping set up the course gives you the opportunity to get very familiar with the course and can sometimes even let you in on little secrets that the course designer put into the design that might help you drive it better! Regardless, your help will always be appreciated in setup and teardown of the course. The quicker we get the course set up, the more time everyone has to walk it prior to the start of the event. And the quicker we get it torn down, the sooner we can all go enjoy the rest of our day! If you can’t do anything else to help out, try showing up a little early or staying a little late to help with this sort of thing. The more the merrier!
Most event chairmen like to design their own course, it’s one of the perks of the job! But some of them recognize that they don’t have the skills to do it, and will defer the job to someone else. A wonderful opportunity for the budding course designer. But, fear not. If that opportunity does not present itself to you, you can always volunteer to be an event chairman yourself… then it’s all yours!
Of course, we don’t leave you to it without any tools. We’ll provide you with a blank course map with an accurate scale to sketch on, and even a few sample courses if you want them. You’ll also be provided with the basic safety guidelines, and you’ll have a safety marshal assigned to your event who will help you design a course that is both safe and fun. If you want to learn more about course design (hint: Reading this stuff can help you become a better autocross driver even if you don’t intend to ever design a course.), check out Roger Johnson’s Course Design Bible. An excellent source of information to help you design a safe and FUN autocross course.
