So, you think you may want to be a corner marshal. The first question you may ask yourself is, “What will I have to do and what do I need to know to work on a corner?”

The people on the corners serve several purposes, all very important to the safe conduct of a race. The first, and probably the most important, function is communicating to the drivers the condition of the race course through the use of flags. At least two people at each corner will be dedicated each race to flagging. One worker will be responsible for the yellow flag that warns the drivers of danger between this corner and the next. Another worker will be using the blue flag to warn the drivers that a faster car is approaching from behind. These two workers stand near each other, one facing on-coming traffic and one facing away. Since neither can see all that is happening around the corner, they must warn each other of danger coming from the direction they are facing. These two will also use other flags to warn drivers of debris or slippery conditions ahead, a slow moving or emergency vehicle ahead or that the race has been stopped.

A third worker, or sometimes the worker with the yellow flag, will be wearing the radio and will be in communication with race control. This is the second function of the corner workers. This worker will report all incidents or problems to race control and will inform the other workers on the corner of what is happening at other corners during the race.

Corner workers must also be ready to respond to any problems that occur with the race cars near their corners. If a car stops, for any reason, between their corner and the next, they will go to the car, with a fire extinguisher, to determine the problem. If the car cannot be restarted, the worker will assist in moving the car to a safe location and assist the driver back to the safety of the corner station. If the car can be restarted, the worker will direct the driver in safe re-entry of the racetrack.

During the race day the workers will also work to maintain a safe race surface by sweeping debris from the track and drying any oil or antifreeze that may be deposited on the track by a race car.

And finally, the corner marshals will watch the race cars to detect any possible mechanical problems that may be developing with the cars of which the drivers may not be aware. The workers report these problems to race control so that the race steward or the technical inspectors can determine whether to allow the car to continue.

Pauline Wilson or BJ Kellog will be happy to put you to work on a corner!