Caitlin Sartori, the Rules and Technical Admin Coordinator here at MA outlines rule changes, the why, how and so on!
Rules are sometimes created, amended or deleted to make the competition easier or more fair, or to reflect new technology or equipment which has become available. Rule changes are driven by the user of the sport – you! Whether you’re a rider, part of a team, volunteer, parent, member (the list goes on), if you have vision to benefit a discipline, you are eligible to submit a rule change request.
The process for rule changes is almost a year-long cycle in preparation for the release of the following year’s edition of the Manual of Motorcycle Sport (MoMS). We open rule change request submissions at the start of each calendar year, and from here, each submission goes through a lengthy process of discussion and research before a final determination is reached.
This process involves each discipline Commission discussing and giving an initial recommendation on the relevant rule change submission. It is then discussed with our Rules and Technical Committee, who are a panel of experienced and knowledgeable motorcycle experts with a well-rounded history of involvement in the sport. The Rules and Technical Committee act as an independent panel of experts to assist in the rule change research and final determination.
Throughout this process, we (the MA Rules and Technical department), facilitates this process, ultimately working towards editing of the MoMS and sending the year’s edition to print.
Sometimes, rule changes can be immediate. These are notified via a Bulletin on the MA website and a press release.
Rule change requests can be accepted by us at any time of year, bearing in mind to be considered for the following year’s edition, it is imperative they are received by us at the start of each calendar year.
We encourage rule change requests to be considerate and beneficial to the majority of the discipline.
For more information on the rule change process, please head to our website here: https://www.ma.org.au/licences-rules/rules/rule-change-process/