NASCAR officials becoming familiar with system during ‘dry runs’
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The shakedown for NASCAR’s new pit road officiating system continued this past weekend as officials put the new technology to use during the Rolex 24 at Daytona International Speedway.
It was yet another “dry run” for the program, which uses 45 cameras to monitor pit road actions and then feeds that video to a central location where eight officials monitor the stops and are alerted to any potential infractions based on software built into the system. Officials replay the video of each flagged stop individually and either confirm that an infraction had occurred or clear the stop when it is determined that no infraction has taken place.
The technology was not used to officiate the Rolex race, or those in which it was used during the latter part of the 2014 Sprint Cup Series season as officials tested and became familiar with the program.
Gene Stefanyshyn, vice president of innovation and racing development for the sanctioning body, said the system would continue to be used in an unofficial capacity during the early activities at Daytona International Speedway next month before likely being put into official use in time for the season-opening Daytona 500, scheduled for Feb. 22 at DIS.
“Where we’re at right now, we have a high level of confidence in our officiating (with the technology),” Stefanyshyn said, adding that the focus going forward is on working to develop and refine “the ability to distribute the data provided by the system to the television partners and the teams.”
The system will alert officials to such possible infractions as a team having too many crewmen over the wall, crewmen entering the pit box too soon, or a competitor driving through too many pit stalls when entering or exiting his or her pit stall.
Some possible violations, such as exceeding pit road speed and missing the commitment line when entering the pits will continue to be ruled on by officials in the scoring tower.
“It’s another tool in the toolbox for us to officiate races,” said Steve O’Donnell, executive vice president and chief racing development officer for NASCAR. “But I think it puts us at the upper echelon of all sports.
“One of the things that gets missed in NASCAR is that every second of every race is under review, so unlike other sports where there’s limited challenges or a flag is thrown, every moment of every race is under review. … It’s not just important for us to police the races, it’s (important) for us to get data out to the fans.”