AOLLracing.com Official Rules of Online Racing
Last revised 01/28/2007
These are the rules that will govern our league. They have been approved by all Board members. It is IMPORTANT that you read them, learn them and know them.
The purpose of our rules is to ensure clean competitive racing for all our members. Any questions or comments regarding these rules should be directed to the AOLL Board. The AOLL Board reserves the right to change these rules at any time, however, o rule will be changed without notice to the league.
NOTE : FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH THESE RULES WILL RESULT IN DISCIPLINARY ACTION AGAINST THE OFFENDING DRIVER OR DRIVERS!
GENTLEMEN'S AGREEMENT
The Gentleman's Agreement is a philosophy to govern your driving style. It is not a concrete set of rules. We as a league of such size need to have rules to control the flow and enjoyment of the league. Rules can be added as necessary by the Board.
- I agree to race clean and give other racers the respect I feel I deserve.
- I agree to practice offline until I am comfortable with racing several lines at that week's track.
- I agree to never call another racer a name or type any negative comments during the race.
- I agree not to race if my equipment is not in proper working condition. Some tracks can be run if you modify the controls, but only run in the race if you have practiced with the modifications and can run cleanly.
- I agree not to pass before the start line on starts/restarts and that the car in front of me starts me. It does you no good to go when green flies only to have to back off to keep from passing before start line. This just causes cars to bunch up.
I agree to maintain a constant speed during pace and caution laps and try to maintain a proper distance between my car and the car ahead of me.
PROTESTS
Any race protest should be sent to the AOLL Board via EMAIL along with a description of the incident, including the approximate lap during which the incident occurred.
ALL protests MUST include a replay with at least 1 full lap before and ½ lap after the incident included. Whenever possible, we encourage the drivers to work out their differences via private e-mail.
PENALTIES
Unless otherwise noted, these penalties apply for ALL offenses.
1st Offense
2nd Offense
3rd Offense
- 1 race suspension
- NO provisional points for missed races due to suspension
Blatent disregard for the rules,fellow competitors,on track ettiquete towards others in a league environment,will result in removal from the league with Board members approval.Race and treat others with the respect you would ask in return.
FLAMING AND DRIVER ATTITUDE
Flaming and cursing other drivers absolutely will not be tolerated. If you have a problem with another driver, handle it in private e-mail LIKE GENTLEMEN, you don't need to flame by mail either.
This rule will be strictly and actively enforced. Wrecks are going to happen. Tempers will get hot, however, this is only a game and we do this to enjoy each other's company and to experience a little of the excitement of real drivers.
No one is perfect. We are all human and we all will make mistakes. Please, do not take your frustrations out on anyone in a public forum. No one else wants to hear it and it is a distraction to others on the track. If the situation cannot be handled between the involved parties you can ask the Board for a ruling.
If you flame another driver in public chat, in a race, on the AOLL mail list, or in any other public AOLL related forum you will face disciplinary action by the AOLL board.
PENALTIES FOR FLAMING
The first flaming incident will result in an automatic 4 race probation and 25 point deduction at a very minimum. Blatant flaming may result in an immediate suspension or ejection from the league, at the discretion of the AOLL Board.
A second flaming offense in the same points season will result in immediate suspension or ejection from the league at the discretion of the AOLL Board.
- NO provisional points for missed races due to suspension
CHATTING RULES
When the Race Admin is talking in ALL CAPS, quit all public conversation and give him the floor. You are responsible for all information given by the Race Admin.
PRACTICE
QUALIFYING
WARM-UP
- Drivers meeting Admin has the floor no Chatting.
RACE
- GREEN FLAG RACING - NO UNNECESSARY CHAT
Unnecessary chat is deemed as anything not pertaining to an action you will be taking on the track. Telling drivers when your pitting or exiting the pits or to pass low is an action performed on the track which is ok or even required
- YELLOW FLAG LAPS
All chat is permitted up till the one lap to go signal. Excessive yellow flag chat can be disruptive to some and therefore discouraged. Damaging or spinning another car while chatting under yellow will result in a penalty. Drivers must maintain pace speed and following distance from car ahead
STARTS AND RESTARTS
ALL green flag starts and restarts will be double file unless noted in the race memo.
THERE WILL BE NO RESTARTS BY LEAGUE ADMINS UNLESS 1/2 THE FIELD IS BOOTED FROM THE SERVER AT RACE TIME.AT THAT TIME WE WILL GO BACK TO HAPPY HR. UNTIL THEY RE-JOIN. 1 RE-START WILL BE PERMITTED PER RACE FOR BOOTS , NO EXCEPTIONS AFTER 1 START. IF THERE IS A SERVER PROBLEM AND THE FIELD CANNOT RE-JOIN, THE RACE WILL BE CALLED A RAINOUT IF THE SCH. DOES NOT ALLOW A MAKE-UP DATE.
Re-starts will be single file ONLY f there are 10 laps or less to go. If you are a lapped car please be courteous and let the leaders race for position.
Spacing between the cars during starts and restarts will be set at 0.5 to 1.0 seconds as defined in the race memo for each event. It is recommended that you use the next higher gear and let off the gas when you shift. Power shifting or using too low of a gear will result in you loosing the rear and causing others and yourself to wreck thus causing more yellows.
Drivers who routinely lose control of their cars on starts and restarts may face disciplinary action from the board up to and including suspension from the league.
PACE SPEED
ALL drivers, including the leader, are REQUIRED to maintain their pace speed until the green flag flies.
Drivers must maintain a pace speed within +3 or -3 mph of the pace car or the car in front of them.
No driver may begin their acceleration to race speed prior to the green flag. Any driver found to be jumping the green flag will be penalized.
PASSING ON STARTS / RESTARTS
There will be absolutely NO passing on the initial race start prior to the Start / Finish Line.
UNLESS SPECIAL RULES APPLY then those rules will be enforced and mentioned in the drivers meeting as part of the race notes.
The green flag starts the race so do not jump the green to get a run on the car in front of you.
PASSING DURING GREEN FLAG RACING
It is the duty of the overtaking driver to safely initiate and carryout a pass on the cars ahead of him. It is the responsibility of a driver being overtaken to be aware that a car is attempting to overtake him and to give room to the overtaking driver once a safe pass has been initiated. In general, the safest way to pass on an oval is to initiate the pass as you exit a turn heading onto a straight portion of track.
ALL passes MUST be initiated before making entry to the next turn. If an overtaking driver does not have at least a fender underneath the car being passed prior to that car's entry point to the next turn, the pass should be aborted. If it is NOT aborted, it will be considered a DIVE PASS. Dive passing is illegal in the AOLL and will be penalized.
The one exception to this rule is on Road courses (Sears Point and Watkins Glen), where "late braking" and out-cornering another racer into a turn are considered appropriate tactics, however, no matter where you use these tactics, if you slide into the other car, you will be held responsible for the incident.
Passing a car once you have entered a turn is frowned upon UNLESS the car ahead of you enters the turn too hot and slides up the track. In that case, the driver who slid up is expected to hold his line if he cannot safely move back down. The driver who was following has every right to hold the low line and use it to overtake the car that slid up. It is the responsibility of the car that slid up to be sure no other car has moved under him before he moves back down. It is the responsibility of the following driver to be sure the car ahead has slid up enough to safely move under him. Please try and use good judgment and respect for each other when these situations occur.
RACING BACK TO THE LINE
Racing back to the line when a caution comes out Will NOT be permitted UNLESS THERE IS 10 OR LESS LAPS. Lap cars, or those in the process of being lapped,must give way to the leaders and not race them for position.
Any driver who causes an incident while trying to overtake another driver after the yellow comes out will be held responsible for the incident and may be penalized. Lapped cars if not in the top four and being able to see the leader should not expect to get their lap back. They should also do so safely.
YELLOW FLAG PROCEDURES
Drivers are expected to let off the gas at the start finish line and slow gradually until they are on the backstretch. This may cause the lead cars to pass the pace car. That's fine. Just slow down or stop when it is safe to let the pace car pass you. We would much prefer to see you pass the pace car rather than slam on the brakes causing drivers behind you to experience the accordion effect, most likely leading to an accident. Additionally, we encourage all drivers to stagger themselves higher or lower than the car ahead of them in order to allow extra room should the driver ahead slow more quickly than expected.
We ask that you close up within .5 seconds of the driver ahead of you during the first 2 laps of a yellow so that all racers have a shot at using pit strategy to keep or improve their position and so that damaged cars have as much time as possible to be fixed without losing a lap. Please be courteous and respectful of those who are behind you.
Chat, as defined earlier, is allowed under yellow but please be cognizant of the above rules. Chatting under yellow should not be done if you cannot adhere to the above rules.
ENTERING / EXITING PIT ROAD
It is the driver's responsibility to signal whenever he is entering or exiting Pit Road. It is also the driver's responsibility to enter and exit pit road safely. You shall announce your intention to Pit (Auto chat) at least ½ lap prior to pitting during green flag racing and anytime prior to entering pit road when under yellow. You shall announce your intention to leave the pits as soon as you are ready to pull out of your pit stall.
BUMP DRAFTING
Bump Drafting is not considered a preferred racing technique in the AOLL. However, it is a nearly inevatable occurance in restrictor plate racing. Albeit not considered illegal, it will only tolerated in the AOLL as follows::
Bump Drafting is to be only done only in a straight line, absolutley not in, or entering a corner or in the tri-oval.
If a wreck is caused due to bump drafting and is witnessed by an Admin, you will be expected and/or asked to park and/or disconnect from the race. If you do not disconnect you will be removed from the race server.
If the wreck is not witnessed by an Admin and the accident goes to review and:
DAMAGED CARS
In the event that your car is damaged, use your best judgment in whether or not to call for a tow truck or attempt to drive your car back to the pits.
If you cause another wreck while trying to drive your car back to the pits, you will be liable and will be subject to league penalties. Do not drive around the track more than one lap with wheel damage. The preferred passing line for damaged cars will be determined for each track and discussed in the driver's meeting or race memo.
CHEATING
Cheating of any kind is prohibited in AOLL. Any driver caught cheating will be EXPELLED from the league.
RACE TIMES
The AOLL race times are as follows:
The AOLL IROC Series
- ALL league races are run on Sunday nights. (Schedule)
- Practice begins at 8:00 p.m. EST
- Drivers meeting begins immediately after qualifying
- Race begins at approximately 9:15 p.m. EST
- Provisionals must be requested by mail before the drop of the green and are last place points. 5 provisionals per season are allowed.
LEAGUE E-MAIL AND POLLS
It is imperative that when email is sent asking for a response, that you answer ASAP. Decisions that we make as a League have a lot to do with the feelings of the entire league or at least the majority.
It is your responsibility to check email and understand any league communications that are sent to you.
MISCELLANEOUS
The AOLL Board retains the right to expel any driver at any time should they act in a way detrimental to the league.
Removal from the league will require a yes vote from ALL board members.
