Rally Finland Used Tractors To Make A Chicane For Some Reason
What do you use to create a make-shift chicane on a rally stage? Tyre walls? Hay bales? No, how about tractors.
Rally Finland organisers have come under criticism, particularly from FIA World Rally Championship drivers, after they created a chicane using actual tractors on SS1.
Two tractors were positioned on the Harju spectator stage run to create a chicane as part of a tie-up with event sponsor Valtra.
Unsurprisingly drivers were not happy with the decision to use tractors, especially because they were running gravel tyres when the chicane was on an asphalt section.
In the above video you can see VW rally driver Andreas Mikkelsen tackling the tractor chicane at the 1m35 mark.
Here’s what three-time WRC champion Sebastien Ogier had to say to Autosport about the tractor chicane:
“We talked about this straight after the recce and said this can’t be serious. The FIA is fighting for road safety and in F1 we see such bad accidents involving tractors [Jules Bianchi’s 2014 Japanese Grand Prix crash.
“OK, our cars are a little bit safer with more [protection] around us and we don’t arrive with the same speed, but anyway there’s no point to do that - it’s not really clever. We asked for these to be removed after we drove the stage on Thursday night for the second time we went to the stage on Friday, but they were not.”
Volkswagen team principal Jost Capito called it “irresponsible” and said “tractors have no place on a [rally] stage”.
Rally Finland’s clerk of the course, Kai Tarkiainen, said he was surprised by the reaction the tractors had and added:
“The company consulted with me to see if that could be done. I consulted the FIA and then made the decision. We measured everything and considered everything that could happen. It was done with the FIA’s measurements regarding how much free space there has to be between the obstacles and the regulation doesn’t define what the obstacle should be.”
What do you think? Was it OK or completely crazy? Let us know below.
Comments
sponsorship at its finest
That was a solid run. Like, woah.
They can say it has potential
On a crash like Jules bit jules hit the back of the machine where the counterweight is and here they would hit a rear tire or stairs
Valtra (tractor) was HUGE supporter during the race… Tractor is as dangerous as trees, rocks etc. on the stage. And if Valtra gives free tractors to use, why not make something with them. Why this is so hard to understand for someone. Sorry bad english:) In finland we alcohol!
Tracktors
Fun fact: We have tractor drag racing up here. But wait, there’s more; it’s done on a frozen lake!
They have used tractors before (although unintentionally)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c31qcSJsHLM
Lack of cones?
I know both the clerk, as well as Kai Tarkiainen, so i can say that the tractors were on the safe locations. The hay bales which were suggested would have been a good idea, but the FIA gave permission, and the FIA Safety Executive who rode the track before it was driven gave it a green light. So yeah, Ogier is just making excuses to not winning
I would have thought they have their own barriers that they place on stage instead of borrowing tractors. As for advertising, there are better ways that putting tractors in front of rally drivers.