American Federation of Motorcyclists Policies & Procedures
The AFM exists solely to provide motorcyclists an opportunity to roadrace motorcycles at selected venues in a responsible, organized and safe manner, and to remain financially solvent such that the club endures well into the future. In order to do this on an ongoing basis with a minimum of risks or problems, certain policies and procedures, which may not be found in the AFM rule book, are applied and enforced by the Board of Directors, officials and the members themselves. The following are some of these policies and procedures.
Use of the AFM Member Roster or Mailing List:
The AFM member roster and mailing list (including e-mail) are confidential and are to be used only for official AFM business as approved by the AFM Board. Unauthorized use of them for purposes such as soliciting or campaigning by phone, mail or in any other way is prohibited.
The mailing list may not be purchased, but it may be used by AFM for the purpose of direct mail advertising, usually by an outside company, with the approval of the Board. Most preferred is for the company to provide the “ready” mailers & all postage and for AFM to do the labeling & mailing using the AFM roster; This is for a charge of $1 per label. On some occasions the Board may approve the “trading” of the mailing list (or some portion) with another organization for something of like value, or may allow some group or individual to use the mailing list (or some portion) for specific purposes. In any event, any company, organization, group or individual may not use it for any purpose not specifically authorized by the Board. Phone numbers and/or postal or e-mail addresses will not be given to others, whether on request from non-members or from members requesting same. Instead, the contact information of the requesting party will be taken and passed on to the member(s) being sought.
Voting for Office or Voting On Other Business:
All AFM members in good standing may vote on any issue in question or for any member running for office, at meetings or by mail, as the case may be. Ballots for elections held by mail will be sent via first class mail to all members on the AFM roster. Ballots returned to the club (i.e. the vote was sent in) may not be changed, even on request by the person voting.
AFM officers are nominated and elected by the members, and candidates for office must be AFM members in good standing. Nominations for any position coming up for re-election will be opened at two consecutive chapter’s monthly meeting prior to the existing officer’s term running out; the ballots will not be counted or tabulated while the ‘ballot is out’ (which will be at least 30 days from the mailing out of the ballot).
Assigning of Competition Numbers: (Refer 2.1.5)
All numbers are assigned by the AFM License Committee. Any rider wishing to renew his or her license and retain their competition number from the previous year may do so by filing a complete application along with the applicable fees no later than the announced cut-off date, as set by the License Committee. After the cut-off date, numbers will be assigned by the committee, at its discretion, with consideration given to the rider’s years of active membership. The general rules used to assign numbers are as follows: 700-999 numbers are given to First Year (FY) and Novice Clubman (NC) riders, 400-999 are given to Novices, Experts have access to all numbers, and 2 digit numbers are saved for Expert riders with a minimum of 3 years racing experience with the AFM. The 1-5 numbers are given to the year end Top Five finishers in Formula Pacific, and the 6-10 numbers are given to the year end Top Overall point earners…NOTE: the people who are already in 1-5 from Formula Pacific standing will be excluded from the 6-10 numbers, and the next down Overall points earner will get that number; there will be no one assigned two numbers from 1-10.
No changes to the issued member number will be made after it has been issued; no exceptions. Any deviation from the above policies is at the discretion of the License Committee.
Motorcycle must bear the rider’s official assigned AFM number. Exceptions must be approved by both Race Director and Chief Scorer. (Refer 8.2)
Reciprocity Licensing: (Refer 2.1.3)
Riders visiting from other recognized road racing clubs are allowed to become Reciprocity Members. After completing an AFM application and paying the applicable fee, the rider may enter AFM events. The rider must provide documentation from the other racing club that the rider is classed as a Novice or Expert. If the rider cannot provide such documentation, the rider must take and pass an AFM authorized school. Reciprocity members may earn race day awards & contingencies, but will not accrue points toward year end awards. Reciprocity riders may upgrade their status to Full Membership at any time before July 1st of each race season; no upgrades are allowed after this date. In the event of an upgrade, all championship points earned to date will be applied. Motorcycles must bear the rider’s official assigned AFM number. Exceptions must be approved by both Race Director and Chief Scorer.
Duties of Members of the AFM North Board and Other Race day Officials: Tentative duties for the following elected or assigned positions are described below. The duties listed are not necessarily all encompassing for each position, nor are they necessarily required, and duties can be shared with others with Board approval.
President – Attend and Chair Chapter meetings; attend, chair and act as voting member at Chapter Board meetings; attend and act as voting member at Inc. Board meetings; act as main negotiator for obtaining race dates at present and future racetracks and for all aspects of track contracts; represent the interests of the Chapter and/or the Club in seeking sponsorship, contingencies, and other business.
Act as liaison on race day between the AFM personnel operating the event and the track’s personnel or management. Represent their electing chapter in club business as needed; perform tasks and duties for the chapter/club as needed or requested by the Board.
Vice-President – Attend Chapter meetings and act as Chair when the President is absent or unable to do so; attend and act as voting member at Chapter Board meetings and act as Chair when the President is absent or unable to do so; act as backup or secondary negotiator for tracks, race dates and other responsibilities of the President. Represent their electing chapter in club business as needed; perform tasks and duties for the chapter/club as needed or requested by the Board.
Secretary – Attend, take minutes and distribute same to the Board for General Chapter and Board meetings; attend and act as voting member at Chapter Board meetings; organize agendas for meetings and incoming correspondence to the club; keep crash records, organize incoming crash appeals, and write letters after crash appeals have been decided; write other correspondence representing the Club’s or Board’s desires; handle insurance contracts, claims, and other business for the Chapter or Club.
These duties may be performed by more than one person, although the official elected Secretary must be main coordinator for any tasks or duties assigned to others. Anyone performing any of the duties of the Secretary and who does not officially hold the title of Secretary must be approved by the Board (and does not necessarily need to be an AFM member).
Treasurer – Keep track of income and expenses of the club/chapter; handle deposits and paying of bills; keep abreast of the club/chapter’s financial state and make suggestions or forecast periodically (as things change or as new plans are being proposed); keep proper books and make financial status reports periodically or as requested by the Board; provide a brief financial summary for each monthly chapter meeting and read it at the meeting; invest club monies as requested by the Board.
These duties may be performed by more than one person, though the official elected Treasurer must read the minutes at meetings. Anyone performing any of the duties of the Treasurer and who does not officially hold the title of Treasurer must be approved by the Board (and does not necessarily need to be an AFM member).
North Rep – Attend Chapter meetings and act as voting member at Chapter Board meetings: attend and act as voting member at Inc. Board meetings; represent their electing chapter in club business as needed; perform task and duties for the chapter/club as needed or requested by the Board.
At-Large Rep – Attend Chapter meetings and act as voting member at Chapter Board meetings; attend and act as voting member at Inc. Board meetings; perform tasks and duties for the chapter/club as needed or requested by the Board.
Rider Rep – The Chapter Rider Reps are responsible for some or all of the following duties on each race day:
1) Be present and available to both riders and track officials.
2) If possible, display the Rider Rep banner in their pit space so as to make them more visible to the riders.
3) Act as liaison between rider and race day officials, for riders needing the assistance i.e. in cases of rider disputes, etc……
4) If requested by the AFM Board or race day officials, act as Safety Committee person on racedays, to objectively investigate & record reported incidents or disagreements, act as arbitrator and diplomat in such incidents, and report conclusions (or suggestions for further info required) to the AFM Board or race day officials. If possible, the Safety Committee should handle explaining conclusions on incidents to the riders involved, and make sure the rider at fault (if one exists) completely understands the issues and means to “avoid it” in the future.
Chief Tech Inspector – The chapter Chief Tech Inspector is responsible for some or all of the following duties on each race day:
1) Be present and available to both riders and track officials.
2) Organize and orchestrate Tech and the Tech Inspector crew on each race day morning, train or “OK” tech inspectors as needed for the crew, make sure tech inspection is consistent, thorough, and in agreement with AFM Rules & Policies.
3) Setup their pit space in a consistent and visible area with a Tech Inspection sign. They should be available throughout the day, or have a qualified Tech inspector available (when the Chief Tech Inspector is not around), to handle late or re-tech needs of the riders.
4) Be available to inspect bikes that are suspected of having safety violations (or other reported incidents) and record & report findings as required by the Race Director, Referee, or Safety Committee.
5) Keep up with pertinent rule changes, and if possible, make suggestions to the AFM Board or Race Director if any new bikes or other safety issues surface within Tech.
Chief Registrar: – Handle printing, mailing and e-mail blast of race and practice pre-entry notices; handle incoming race and practice pre-entries and post entries at the track(if accepted); keep track of the number of entrants and deal with entry over-runs (as approved by Race Director and the Board); compile and create race grids and race class combinations using agreed upon policies (or recommendations approved by the Race Director and Board); be present on practice and race days to handle rider entry changes, refunds, etc…..; provide feedback and suggestions to the Race Director and Board about entry situation and/or improved policies.
Chief Scorer – Organize and orchestrate the scoring crew as needed to effectively and accurately score AFM races; tabulate and record AFM class points for individual events and for seasonal championship; distribute to the appropriate people the official race results and points for events and for class championships in a timely fashion; investigate any member’s notice of a possible error or correction to official race results and points for events and for class championships; provide feedback and suggestions to the Race Director and Board about scoring situations and/or improved policies.
Chief Communicator – Coordinate communication and information passed to/from the course workers and Race Control; especially as related to directions from the Race Director; tabulate a race log of incidents/situations as they occur during the race day; work with the Race Director to keep the race day safe and to act in response to any developing situations; make announcements as directed by the Race Director.
Chief Worker Coordinator – Attend each practice and race event; coordinate workers for each event and recruit new course workers; work with the Race Director to keep the race day safe and to assist in the course worker’s implementation; act in response to any developing situations; make announcements as directed by the Race Director.
Announcer – Attend each race event and act as event announcer, add interest and flavor to each race event thought lap-by-lap coverage of each race and inter-race times; be impartial in announcements and reflect the best interest of the AFM.
6)Race Pre-entries, Entry Fees, Deadlines, etc. (Refer Appendix J)
The following are descriptions of the procedures, necessary information, forms used, and deadlines for pre- and post-entry for AFM races:
Pre-entries:
The schedule of dates for Pre-entries (i.e. date mailed and/or e-mail blast, first acceptance date, deadline and race date) will be distributed to the membership via US mail and/or e-mail blast and the website.
The pre-entry form is mailed or sent via e-mail blast on the Monday 4 weeks before the race event it corresponds to. No pre-entries will be accepted before 8am on said day; any pre-entries received before then will be returned or discarded (depending on how fees were paid).
A sample pre-entry form, from the rulebook or website may be substituted, as can a mock pre-entry made with the following info: -name -AFM# -for each class entered: class name, make of bike, model year and engine size -typical (or best) lap time at the track the event will be held -Full day practice; include the same info as above. -
Payment type – check, money order, credit card (card # and expire date noted) Pre-entries are accepted via on-line entry (recommended), fax and US mail. Address: P.O. Box 4248, Modesto, CA 95352 Fax (866) 611-4219.
No hand deliveries. The “cut-off date” (AKA pre-entry deadline) is the last date that the pre-entry fees will apply…after the deadline, the post-entry fee structure applies. It is also the last date that at least one spot on the grid in at least one race will be guaranteed for a rider. After the cut-off date, wait lists may impact/hurt a rider’s chance to race. Riders already pre-entered may make changes or additions after the deadline, at the discretion of Registration and if wait-lists allow.
If payment covering all fees for races, practices and transponder rentals is not received at the time of pre-entry the balance must be paid for at registration.
Entry fees are stated on the website and on-line registration.
Confirmation of entry received:
On-line registration will send you a confirmation via e-mail after your entry is accepted and finalized. Usually, if the entry does not finalize there is a processing payment error. Correct and resubmit.
If you do not receive a confirming e-mail, your entry may not be valid. Direct all problems to the Chief Registrar. Race School Entry Policies: At this time we have out-sourced our NRS. Pacific Track Time, Keigwins at the Track, and Z² Track Days are authorized to conduct the school. Contact information can be found on the AFM Web site.
Electronic Scoring System and Scoring Transponders:
AMB X260 Transponders and scoring system is used in conjunction with Zoomius Race Day Management System. Rental units are available at the track for a fee. You may purchase a unit directly from AMB or other source (i.e. another rider, website sales, etc). Riders may share units; ONLY one rider per race weekend can use the transponder. The transponder number needs to be entered during your on-line entry process. All riders must have an operational AMB Transponder mounted on their bike (per manufacturer specifications) at all times while on the track. When renting a transponder you are responsible for the transponder if you lose, break, damage, or otherwise render it unavailable or inoperable; the cost is the going rate from AMB at the time of the transponder mishap.
Contingency Forms: A contingency sheet will be printed and attached to your tech sheet. Detach, sign the form and take it to the contingency person for decal verification. Sponsor decals are available at the contingency location. Contingency can be found at Tech, Saturday 8am to 5 pm and Sunday 8am to 10am. NO form will be accepted after 10am Sunday. Anyone caught falsifying contingency information may be disqualified (per the AFM rulebook).
Refund policies, Billing Practices, and Credit Balance: (Refer Appendix C)
Refund Policy:
Complete details on all refund policies can be found in the rule book. Please read this section over so you will understand what the policies are in terms & amount of refund, and so you will know when the refund is automatic and when you have to request it.
Credit Balance: Overpayment by check or cash will result in a credit balance in your account. The credit will automatically apply when you do your next on-line entry. If you do not use your credit by season end, an AFM check for the credit balance due will be sent to you at your current roster address.
Billing Practices: The AFM never cashes any checks or submits any charges to your credit card until after you have participated in the event you made the payment for. All payments (credit cards, checks, cash) are processed on the Tuesday following the race. Returned checks, declined credit cards or other non-payment of fees may result in penalties, fines, non-acceptance of entries, being put on “cash only” basis and/or possible suspension of AFM license (Refer 4.2.4)
Year End Awards: Classes: In the event of a tie in the point standings for the year-end Top awards in a class, two awards are given for the tie position and no award given for the next position. (i.e. a tie for 1st place there would be two awards given for 1st place and no 2nd place awarded; a third place would be awarded)Top 10 Plates:A tie in point standings that affects year-end Top 10 plates is resolved by comparing the best finishes of each of the tied riders. The rider with the best finishes is considered the holder of that plate number. (E.g., rider A has finishes 2,1,3,3,3,3,3 and rider B has finishes 2,2,2,4,3,3,4; rider A has the best finishes and is the holder of the plate number). Only one rider will hold each Top 10 plate number during a season.