EXCITING CONTENT
GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY
Our own racing galaxy , that is . It takes a vast effort to put on Motul FIM Superbike World Championship races all across our WorldSBK universe , but there would be no competition at all without thousands of volunteers , including the small army of race marshals needed to keep the action running safely , and on schedule . We now delve into the world of the unsung heroes of race weekend to find out who is under all that high-vis clothing .
There are signs around racetracks that explain ‘ Racing is Dangerous ’. For everyone , potentially , not just the leather-clad human projectiles flying around the asphalt . Trying to keep everybody safe in our world are the race marshals . We see them jump into action when the riders crash but their combined duties and responsibilities go far beyond dragging smashed Superbikes and raging riders out of the gravel traps . It was slightly astounding to me to realise that there can be anything from 200 to 300 race marshals at WorldSBK rounds . Most work on trackside at the many static marshals ’ posts , but they each have their specialist teams and tasks . So we asked two top-level marshalling specialists to tell us more . Raffaele De Fabritis performs a number of roles in bike racing , including being in charge of the marshals at Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli . That ’ s a well-known venue for WorldSBK , whatever direction the racing is run in . He is Clerk of the Course too . Having been Race Director of Misano since before the new millennium , he is hardly short of experience from the ground up . John Proctor , a former Maths and Physics teacher , is the vastly experienced Racesafe Chief Marshal in the UK , in what is a very different set-up from some other territories . The UK racing landscape has its own highly polished and organised national Marshals ’ entity , Racesafe . Created in 1995 and operating from 1996 onwards , it now contains around 1000 marshals and medical staff at any one time . All WorldSBK circuits must adhere to very high pre-set standards but even with common goals , how you get to the same point - how it is organised well - can have a local flavour and colour . And remember this fact well . The marshals are highly skilled and committed , but still a volunteer army … What are the tasks that these race marshals - highly visible in their
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