Motorsport marshal

Workers responsible for the safety of motor racing competitors

Motorsport marshals are mainly volunteer workers responsible for the safety of motor racing competitors. They are stationed at various points of danger around race tracks to assist them in case of any collisions, accidents or track problems. Marshals are also known as course workers, corner workers, corner crews, turn marshals, corner marshals, track safety workers, or (in rallying) rally marshals.

Often a Chief Track Marshal's responsibilities will include the supervision and briefing of marshals for all daily activities, allocation of day to day marshaling duties; provision of marshal's vehicles, training of all marshals for incident handling, flag signalling, fire fighting, communications and basic track first aid as well as monitoring of health and safety on site to ensure the safety of all guests and personnel off track. During the race the Chief Track Marshal's role is running the radio "network" and communication with all other track marshals as "net control". Successful Chief Track Marshals are highly organized with good communication skills and have previous experience in track marshaling or similar motor sport roles. Chief Marshal's line of command is Clerk of the Course. Chief Marshal works closely with Race Director, Chief Steward, and other senior race officials throughout preparation for the race, during the race, and post race.

In the dry, air conditioned comfort of the tower with their stopwatches and computers, the timing and scoring personnel keep track of the progress of every car on each lap. They provide the qualifying times, lap charts, and determine the finishing order.

Wearing distinctive shirts to set them apart from the pit crews and drivers, the pit and grid workers position the cars on the false grid, make last minute safety checks, and are responsible for safety in the pit areas.

The registrars organize the official entries and provide passes and credentials. They are also the first people to meet the drivers, workers, and officials when they arrive at the track.

Armed with sensitive detection equipment set up in a quiet portion on the track, these workers are responsible for ensuring that cars do not violate local or national sound control regulations.

Perched on their stand above the start/finish line, the starters control the start and finish of the practice and qualifying sessions and the races themselves. They also display the black flag signals when required.

The tech inspectors make sure that every car meets series technical specifications and safety regulations before it is allowed onto the track. They also perform the post race inspections.

The stewards are responsible for the overall organization and operation of the event, and are particularly concerned with issues involving safety and the enforcement of the rules. Most stewards hold, or have held, a national competition license.

The course marshals ensure that all required emergency equipment and vehicles (fire trucks, ambulances, wreckers etc.) are in place and ready to respond to an incident at a moment's notice. They are to give consistent information to drivers with racing flags and signals; assess the track surface condition; observe competitors for driving behavior and their cars' mechanical condition; help drivers and others in an incident; and communicate information to the stewards who are in charge of the event and rely on the accuracy of the workers' reports to make correct decisions.

These workers have training in medical response, fire fighting, and vehicle recovery.

Next to the competitors, these marshals are the most visible people on the track. They are viewed by the spectator as an integral part of the race, keeping the track clear, giving instructions to the drivers, and responding to incidents. These are the people who have the front row seats, with no one getting any closer to the action unless they get their own racing car. They are highly trained to handle crashes, fire, the needs of drivers who may be injured, and track cleanup. They have other duties, too, including signalling the drivers with flags, helping spectators, and keeping their sections of the track organized so that racing can proceed efficiently. When handling crashes and fires, these volunteers have been called the "shock troops" of racing, because until the ambulances, fire trucks, and crash/rescue vehicles arrive, the safety and efficiency of the track is in their hands.

The marshal's outfit may include white or orange flame retardant overalls, a worker's safety tabard, safety boots, protective gloves such as welder's gloves, and a hat or protective headgear. Marshals may carry a whistle, a cutting tool such as a knife, and rope. In the United States specifically, there are the NFPA 610 guidelines to follow.

A rally marshal is a marshal experienced or trained in the area of rallying. They hold different duties than a track marshal, as they are isolated from other marshals with radio cars spaced out along the length of a stage. They are there for the safety of the competitors, but in spectated rallies, they also may be required to control any spectators that may be posing a safety risk. Spectators can be of great danger to the drivers than on a track race, and if not aware of the cars they may also put themselves in great danger. Marshals announce the imminent arrival of a car by blowing a whistle to alert the spectators to be ready and to clear the track and sidelines.

Almost all British marshals are unpaid volunteers supplemented occasionally by certain paid crews for special duties. Marshals are registered with the British governing body, Motorsport UK and are often members of organisations such as the British Motorsport Marshals Club (BMMC), Scottish Motorsport Marshals Club (SMMC), British Automobile Racing Club (BARC) and the Silverstone Marshals Team amongst many others. British marshals have been known to attend foreign events such as IndyCar, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and many F1 events worldwide. Motorcycle marshals are organized differently, with support for FIM events coming from Racesafe and Racesafe accredited marshals.

Volunteer workers, usually members of the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA), are unpaid, incurring their own expenses and buying their own equipment to support a sport they love. These volunteers represent the majority of the workers for all other United States road racing activities. Although they are SCCA members, the workers themselves organize into either loose or highly regulated operational units that are separate from their membership in SCCA. Two of the oldest and most well known are the United States Auto Race Marshals (USARM), organized in 1964, and Lake Erie Communications, organised in 1962. Other less regulated worker organizations include the Texas Turn Marshals & Racer Chasers, the Leaping Lizards Corner Crew of Kansas City, the Swamp Rats from Florida, Michigan Turn Marshals (MTM), Race Services Inc. at Watkins Glen International and others. All of these worker groups emphasise camaraderie and professionalism among the workers to complement the competition of the drivers. Bobby Unser, three time Indianapolis 500 champion and competitor in all forms of racing, once paid SCCA workers a great compliment, albeit an ironic one, when he said during a televised racing broadcast: "These SCCA workers may be volunteers, but they're no amateurs. They're as professional as anyone in the sport."

Baku Marshals Club was established by Baku City Circuit Operations Company on February 16, 2016, to develop communication and coordination, empower team spirit and build a strong relationship among Marshals. "Baku Marshals Club" is also responsible for branding, promo, organizing events and communicating with local and international Marshals as well as managing Baku Marshals Center. One of the main objectives is to evolve Marshalling movement and expand this type of activity in Azerbaijan.