Photo : Frederic GAUDIN / ACO - Frederic GAUDIN / ACO

 

There are three types of officials who remain in the pit lane during the race. First there are the scrutineers who are responsible for all the technical aspects of the cars. Then there are the safety marshals and finally the officials who supervise refuelling. These are all very important and are also ‘judges of fact’ and are there to make sure nobody breaks the rules. The official who is allocated to a pit focuses mainly on safety. He will check that the team mechanics are wearing fire-proof suits and crash helmets. He will also make sure that one of the team is close to car with a fire extinguisher and that the car is ‘earthed’. Then he makes a note of the amount of fuel that the car has taken and finally assigned to stand a car that focuses on safety and first checks that mechanics wear their helmets, that the fire extinguisher is close when filling the tank, the grounding is set. Then he notes the amount of fuel that was added and also checks the driver’s identity bracelet before he gets into the car and makes a note of that as well.

The pit lane marshal also records other information such as the number and type of tyres that are fitted (wet or dry). He is a busy man because he is also making a note of any changes to the brakes and any fluids that are added. This is all recorded in case there are any disputes later. The scrutineers who monitor compliance with regulations have a different job to do. They are in charge of several pits and ensure that any refuelling and pit stops are performed correctly. They are totally impartial and pay particular attention to the number of mechanics working on the car and the sort of work they are doing. Many of these marshals work at overseas races to gain experience.

So to summarise: The pit marshals focus mainly on recording information while the scrutineers make sure the regulations are applied correctly!

Cécile Bonardel / ACO

Translated by Jock Simpson / ACO

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