Running first overall and punted out of the race by a fake point-by (Page 1 of 3)

Odd..

I would have been quite confused if someone who had just passed me (three wide into T3 nonetheless) was suddenly pointing me by.

I always see a right  hand raised inside the car waving to indicate a yellow, and that's exactly what that hand movement looks like to me. Point bys i'm always careful to not wave, just raise a hand and point. The fact he slows up and doesn't pass backs up the thought that he believed there was a yellow.

He should have been able to see you, but if he was focusing his attention around the left hand corner and assumed you understood his wave as "yellow", he'd assume you wouldn't want to pass.

Just trying to show how maybe his story checks out.

Further questions are where is your fire proof balaclava and why brake with your right foot when you aren't shifting gears.

The hit does suck, without a doubt.

Lemons, being a series open to all comers, regardless of skill level or experience, is prone to be rife with this type of stuff.

I like to think I am always giving myself an out for bizarre, sudden, unexpected, uncalled for and inexplicable moves.

I'm sure I slip into race mode sometimes when I shouldn't but I try to be pretty cautious working traffic. It's also easier once you've kind of clocked all the teams' capacity for pace and can sort of read their car's "body language" if you know what I mean. Game recognize game, and otherwise.

IMHO waving an arm inside the car to get the guy's attention behind you is a waste of time for this reason.  We are all confused what he meant.  Waving the left arm up and down outside the car just signals to the guy behind you "hey! Something is going on and get your eyes up!"   

Point by's should be a clear left arm pointed left for a pass on left and up over roof for a pass on the right.  In 20 races those three arm signals haven't been confusing for anyone.

It would be helpful for Lemons to adopt an "official" in-car hand signal guide or go over hand signalling at driver's meetings.

As a relative n00b, I've only given 2 hand signals - animatedly pointing with left arm out window at track or fully extending right arm and pointing to passenger window to give point-bys and direct traffic around the U-van. I've gotten a fair number of courtesy waives in response (where there was NO yellow flag).

If a waive also means "Yellow", we've got a Clearance, Clarence.. Roger, Roger situation.

And middle finger extended...

I totally see why you think that is a point-by, but the driver may have meant something else.  What I have no idea but a lot of the hand signals in the cars that make sense in the drivers mind is totally confusing to everyone else.

I had a driver that thought he was doing a clear point by message but when I saw it on the video I had to ask what he was doing cause to me it looks like he was ordering a round of orange whips.  I then suggested that instead of twirling his finger he actually uses his finger and points in a direction that he wished the driver to pass on.  very large motions to make it clear.

He was maybe distracted by giving the point-by and lost track of where he was on the track for just enough time to give you a bump. Looks more like a driving mistake than anything to me.

Regardless of the misinterpreted hand signal, what does that have to do with hitting you?  He dive-bombed you on the previous turn going 3-wide, does whatever with his hand, slows down because he just got boxed in by the car ahead, you pass him back on the outside, cleared him, then he hits you...WTF?

Whether there was a yellow or whatever excuse he used for slowing down, he still didn't need to make contact with you.  No excuse for that IMO.

This!

The prevailing (but not universally adopted) signals I've seen across orgs on the West Coast are:

- Pass to left - point out the window to left
- Pass to right - point out window over roof to right
- Yellow/slow down/pitting - out the window, hand up in a fist
- I see you - tap on inside mirror
- MIddle finger extended - you're #1

The problem with inside the car hand signals is that they are hard to see, what with roll bars, cameras, drink bladders, etc.

Easy to see consistent communications are the most important - that's why I would really like to have whatever the "official" Lemons hand signals are covered in the driver's meeting. This will especially help the newbs. And mentally afflicted, like myself.

Again, contact happened at a left hand corner with a flag station on the left. If the other driver was focusing his attention left he may never have seen you make the move and then drifted into you.

we all make mistakes now and then.

As for hand signals, you are not obliged to give any at all. You don't have to give point-bys, wave for yellows, or any of the rest. The only one I've ever heard talked about formally was the fist out the window at track out. The fact that us slow cars may occasionally feel nice and hug the side while pointing is just a kindness.