Gary Cornilles
Candi,
The "evidence" shows that the majority of teams were following (at least) the spirit of the rule and avoiding crossing the line. Clearly, a few teams blatantly disregarded the centerline rule and were simply using the fastest line possible, whenever possible. I wouldn?t necessarily call it cheating but if the great majority of teams were able to stay to the right of the line I don?t believe it was in the interest of safety that their line was determined.
How much of an advantage was gained is hard to quantify but, it seems reasonable that this team?s actions gave them enough of an advantage to impact the outcome of their particular race.
While I agree with George that the photographers should not be put in the position to police rules violations; it?s not uncommon for Race Officials to use video feeds to determine violations ?after the fact? in Pro races. I don?t think it would be unreasonable for you as an official to use this evidence in support of disciplinary action. What that action should be is up for discussion but I believe disqualifying a team for this violation is a bit harsh. The rules should be amended to give the head official the discretion of penalizing a team in an appropriate manner (perhaps a time penalty) based on the evidence presented.
The difficulty comes in awarding another team the victory based on the assumption that they committed no violations of their own. Is there any team out there that can say they never crossed the line during the race? Personally, I witnessed a lot of teams that ?assumed? the marshaled corners were closed and used the entire road. I don?t consider that a violation in the spirit of the rule.
In light of this evidence and with all the tools available to review post race data, there is no reason the 15 minute protest rule should continue to stand. If it's unfair, it's unfair and should be corrected if possible.
Regardless of what your decision is, the rules should be amended to address just such a scenario in the future. It will come up again?