SCORE Journal - The Official Publication of SCORE Off-Road Racing
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1453527
http://read.uberflip.com/i/1453527-score-journal-february-2022 http://read.uberflip.com/i/1443954-score-journal-january-2022/5?m4= A VIEW FROM THE TOP SCORE’s President and Race Director Jose Abelardo GriJalva Offers A Preview To the 2022 Season By SCORE Journal Staff As the start of the 2022 SCORE season approaches, there are many questions, rule changes and other news that racers and fans are asking. We put these questions towards SCORE President and Race Director Jose Abelardo Grijalva to answer. SJ: Many Safety programs have been introduced to the SCORE World Desert Championship in the past 8 years. Will there be any additional rules or programs introduced for the 2022 season? Jose G: We are always working on making our races safer. For 2022 we are making the use of rear-facing blue lights on motorcycles and quads (person/racer) mandatory. This helps visibility of these vehicles in the dust and to identify the vehicle and the racer in case they are on the ground. Furthermore, if a competitor hits these vehicles, they will be disqualified. We are also trying to give the motorcycle and quad classes a larger gap, or individual sections, where they can run on a different course to avoid any accident involving a four-wheel vehicle. Other safety items we are working on will be including a Satellite phone or Satellite Push-To-Talk (PTT) for each racer so that they can contact us or our safety/ops team in case of an emergency. In many places on the course, radio communication is bad or non existing. This technology will help alleviate some of those situations. Another item on our list this year will be a mandatory dry break/redhead valve for fueling. SJ: For the 2022 SCORE San Felipe 250, will the start and finish line again be under strict COVID protocols? Jose G.: Since Covid started, we have worked on our protocols and we always have Plan A and B. For now, we want to go back to the way it was before, with fans allowed at the start/finish. This can only happen if there are no restrictions from the health department. But until that is possible, we will continue doing our races safely for our staff, racers, and spectators, even if it means restricting access to our areas. SJ: You had mentioned a different route for moto classes. Will this be implemented during the SCORE San Felipe 250? Jose G.: This is the first time that we will try this, as we will have all of the safety measurements in place, we want our motorcycle and quad racers to be safe and give them sections of the course that are not destroyed by powerful four-wheel vehicles. This will make the race for motorcycle and quad classes safer and enjoyable, yet challenging. SJ: Will there continue to be a helicopter sweep in front of the moto class and a sweep vehicle that was initiated for the 2021 SCORE Baja 1000? Jose G.: Yes, one of our helicopters will fly with the motorcycles and quads at all times with a SCORE official, Andy Kirker. He is a paramedic and film person as we will be covering two classes for our television broadcast program this year. We will also have paramedics behind the moto classes riding in UTVs in Matomi wash. They will chase behind the last bike to the finish sweeping the course. SJ: Are there any new class additions this season? Jose G.: We will continue to host the Pro Moto Rally Class for 2022. It’s not new, but we are trying to get more rally bikes to compete in SCORE. We are also modifying some classes to welcome trucks like the Ford Raptor and Ram T-Rex that will be a stock-style class with some safety modifications. SJ: Do you think the COVID Pandemic will affect the four scheduled races for 2022 and is there any chance any of them may be postponed? Jose G.: At this point, we hope that if it does have any impact at all, it will only affect the SCORE San Felipe 250 in that it may not be open to the public, and is being held at Rancho El Dorado. When the time comes, we will check with the Mexican state health authorities to see under which conditions we can organize the other races. We do not think that we will have to postpone any races and that we can go back to normal conditions as soon as the SCORE Baja 500, where fans will be allowed back to Contingency and the start/finish line. SJ: Many racers have had concerns over the increasing use of highway sections. Can you explain to SCORE racers and fans why this is happening? Jose G.: As much as we would love to just race on dirt, it’s almost impossible now. The reason is that there are more protected areas that we cannot use anymore to race on. In addition, there are increasingly more housing developments and fences. Baja is not what it was 50 years ago. We will continue to work on this, however, to minimize the courses running on the pavement as much as possible. SJ: Last season, 2021, we saw tremendous participation of government officials from the national to the city levels. Will SCORE again be working with many of these cities? Jose G.: Yes, we will work with more government officials this year. It works to our benefit to promote the races, safety, and economic impact for these cities. Although it was a small town in the past, San Felipe became Baja California’s newest Municipality as of January 1, 2022. So, we have been working on preparations for the SCORE San Felipe 250 race with its new Foundational Municipal Council. Baja also has a new State Government in place and has already had Governor Marina del Pilar Avila Olmeda at the last SCORE Baja 1000 race, and we have met with Miguel Aguñiga the new State Secretary of Tourism to help our partnership with everyone in Baja. We will also continue working with Baja California Senator Gerardo Novelo and Ensenada Mayor Armando Ayala, as well as with our great contacts within the Mexican Federal Government including the Secretary of Tourism, Customs and Immigration, the National Guard, the Army, Navy, and more.