General Rules

 

Allowable Use of the IRRA™ Trademark

General

Though the result of careful consideration by a body of experienced slot racing participants, these rules will undergo revision if required and therefore may evolve over time. However, the intent of this organization is to revise these rules ONLY when doing so is clearly necessary and beneficial for all parties concerned.

 

 

 

IRRA Board of Directors:

Bodies Committee: chair - Joe Neumeister

Motors Committee: chair - Ron Hershman

Chassis Committee: chair - Tony Pryzbilowicz (Tony P)

Components Committee: chair - Mike Swiss

Sergeant-at-Arms: Greg Wells

 

Samples of any new items for use under IRRA rules (such as motors and bodies) must be sent to the appropriate committee chair for further review by the board and committee members. Items should be readily available to dealers and raceways.

 

Items such as commercially available chassis or components for building do not need to be submitted for assessment / approval. Those selling such items assume the responsibility to ensure that the items offered for sale will be capable of meeting the specification written.  Should a manufacturer wish to still submit something for an opinion, they may do to the appropriate chair person. 

 

No reference should be made that an item is “IRRA approved,, or assessed to be legal when used properly” if it has not been submitted and a formal response received from the Board of Directors of the IRRA.

 

For clarification purposes, the term “Commercially Made” means an item that will be sold to raceways through the distributor network.

 

 

Any part, material, technique, or rules interpretation not specifically allowed
under IRRA rules is not legal and is prohibited!

 

The IRRA reserves the right during technical inspection
to disallow any car that does not meet the intent of the rules.

 

Tier Grouping

• The various classes within the IRRA have been divided into two tier groups to guide race organizers in selecting the classes to run, especially at large events.

Tier 1 Classes – to be run at all large events (these are the IRRA’s premier classes)

• Can-Am

• Formula 1

Tier 2 Classes – to be selected by the race organizers as additional classes

• GT Coupe
  
• Flexi GT
• JK Spec
• Retro Stock Car
• Retro Anglewinder

The JK Spec Class is intended for those new to scratchbuilding and/or race competition. The JK Spec class is for non-expert/non-pro racers and eligibility for the class will be determined as follows:

For large IRRA events it is up to the organizer and/or raceway owner
For local events it is up to the regional director/board
The criteria that will be used to determine eligibility for entrance is to be announced well in advance of the event.

An example of the criteria that could be used nationally as well as regionally is that those racers having had a podium position in any other scratchbuilt class during the prior 12 months would be ineligible to run in the JK Spec Class.

Entry Fee

• The entry fee amount will be determined by the Race Committee in concert with the raceway owner and will be announced in advance of the event.
• Every effort will be made to include track time in this fee. If that is not possible, then an announcement will be made as to the cost of track time or “pit pass”.

Tech Inspection

• The starting and closing times for tech inspection will be announced by the Tech Director prior to the event.
• Any driver whose car is not teched in by the close of tech inspection will not race in that class.
• All cars will be impounded after tech inspection and cannot be touched or worked on until the Tech Director distributes them immediately before the beginning of each race.
• Any driver found working on his car during the impound period will be disqualified.
• The Race Director, at his discretion, may perform a second technical inspection after the race is completed.

Track Condition

Drivers are prohibited from gluing the track before or during any races. The race committee and the track owner will ensure the tracks are properly set-up on race day.

Race Format

Option A

• Qualifying is not held. Top Qualifier for each class run will be awarded to the driver setting the fastest lap during the race.
• At any race event, the number of mains to be run in each class will be determined by the number of entrants in that class.
• Races will be conducted using a round-robin format if less than 11 people.
• Lane selection for each main will be determined by random selection or draw.
• Results in each class will be based overall laps/sections totals.
• All heats will be 3 minutes in length (or more, if desired).
• The length of the break between heats will normally be 2 minutes, although this may be increased by the Race Committee in consideration of the facility layout at the particular event’s raceway.
• All drivers are required to utilize Lane Change Cards to mark the stopping position of their cars at the end of each heat. Drivers who fail to use Lane Change Cards as required will have their cars moved to start the next heat from a position immediately past the lap counter’s dead strip.

Option B

• Qualifying is held.
• If less than 11 entrants, then a round robin format will be used.
• Mains are determined by qualifying order with 7 sit-outs (can use 6, if desired) spots for each main allowing for one move-up from a lower main.
• Lane selection for each main will be determined qualifying order.
• All heats will be 3 (or more, if desired) minutes in length.
• The length of the break between heats will normally be 2 minutes, although this may be increased by the Race Committee in consideration of the facility layout at the particular event’s raceway.
• All drivers are required to utilize Lane Change Cards to mark the stopping position of their cars at the end of each heat. Drivers who fail to use Lane Change Cards as required will have their cars moved to start the next heat from a position immediately past the lap counter’s dead strip.

Option C

• Qualifying is not held. Top Qualifier for each class run will be awarded to the driver setting the fastest lap during the race.
• At any race event, the number of mains to be run in each class will be determined by the number of entrants in that class.
• Races will be conducted using a round-robin format if less than 11 people.
• Lane selection for each main will be determined by random selection or draw.
• Results in each class will be based overall laps/sections totals.
• A Final Main will be run with the racers having the 8 highest total laps from the previous mains. The winner of this main is then the overall winner for that class.
• All heats will be 3 minutes in length (or more, if desired).
• The length of the break between heats will normally be 2 minutes, although this may be increased by the Race Committee in consideration of the facility layout at the particular event’s raceway.
• All drivers are required to utilize Lane Change Cards to mark the stopping position of their cars at the end of each heat. Drivers who fail to use Lane Change Cards as required will have their cars moved to start the next heat from a position immediately past the lap counter’s dead strip.

Black Flag

• Any car suffering damage that makes it a hazard to other drivers, due to constant de-slotting, or that is damaged in a manner making it illegal under IRRA rules (such as a loss of part of the body, loss of interior, or dragging on the track surface) will be black-flagged.
• A car that is black-flagged must be immediately removed from the track until proper repairs are made. Failure to comply with a black flag will result in the driver’s disqualification from the race.

Conduct

• The Race Director, at his sole discretion, will issue a warning to a driver exhibiting unsportsmanlike conduct. A second offense will cause the driver to suffer a ten lap penalty. A third offense will result in the driver’s disqualification from the race.

Marshalling

• All entrants are expected to marshal and/or to assist the Race Director if unable to marshal due to physical or medical reasons.
• Any driver failing or refusing to marshal as directed in a class in which he is competing will receive a five lap penalty for his race in that class.

Track Calls

• Track calls will permitted ONLY under the following conditions:

-          An umarshallable car in the straight in front of the Drivers, or on an inaccessible part of the racing surface.

-          An umarshallable car under a bridge or on the floor in an inaccessible location. A car on the floor is NOT automatically a track call.

-          A car landing in another racer’s lane, i. e. a “rider”.

Note: the situation where a marshal has more than one car to re-slot is NOT a track call.

• When a track call is made, the Race Director may, at his discretion, ask the driver calling “track” his reason for doing so. If the Race Director determines the track call to have been unwarranted and/or in violation of the rules, the driver’s car will be moved to a position immediately past the lap counter’s dead strip before racing is resumed.

Missed Laps

• Mid-race lap total adjustment will be made at the discretion of the Race Director, as each track and lap counting system is different. Race officials will review the missed laps adjustment policy at each event and communicate it to the racers.

Photographs

• Racers entering IRRA events must grant the IRRA the right to photograph all cars (including the chassis), and to publish such photos as the organization sees fit, for the benefit of fellow racers and the betterment of the hobby.