SCRUTINEERING UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT

There were few positives to emerge from the turmoil brought by the coronavirus pandemic. But one benefit from the misery was that it provided the opportunity to look at long-established practices with a fresh pair of eyes – perhaps the most obvious example in wider society being the flexibility offered to many by being able to work from home.

And COVID-19 certainly offered the chance to press the reset button on some of the antiquated procedures in club racing. Gone were the forests of paper used in race control buildings up and down the country, as the handling of results and judicial decisions went digital. Gone was the need for competitors to physically sign-on at events – this could instead be completed online in advance. And gone were the long queues at the scrutineering bay early in the morning at race meetings for pre-event inspections, replaced by drivers completing a self-declaration and spot-checks being carried out.

“The objective mustn’t be an exercise in finding ‘What can I fail someone on?’”

It was an era of change – and change out of necessity. Quite simply, to allow motorsport to restart in a world where social distancing and