I went to Cayuga today, turned some good laps on the road course, and have some in car video too

Here's the bad news: The MTO has a building about 1km east of the track on Kohler road. Today, with the help of the OPP, they were pulling over anyone and everyone for visual inspections. Several people got tickets for no cat, and someone got a ticket with points for an improper seatbelt. (yeah, like the factory seatbelt is safer than his 5 point sparco)

I lucked out in that all the cops were busy, they had a mustang, a modded Porsche 996 (sounded AWESOME ripping down the front straight

Of course, if your car is on the up and up, you SHOULDN'T have to worry, but not all cops are as understanding about DSMs as Jon is.

This really pisses me off. They're directly targeting the people who take their cars to the safety of a racetrack to race their cars. Their new campaign claims to be to eliminate street racing, but targeting people who take their cars to the racetrack is only going to keep people away from the track and on the street. Why would someone want to drive an hour and a half to the racetrack, only to be hassled as if they were at a Woddbridge or Markham gathering? The mood at the track today because of thias was just terrible. WANKERS!!!

I agree 100%. Here you have people driving hours out of their way to run their cars legally at the track. What's the point in persecuting someone who is making the effort to race safely? It's like like setting up a RIDE checkpoint outside an AA meeting.

Anyone know the number to the complaints department in regards to OPP actions ??

Great, once word gets around, more street racing because there's no point keeping it safe at the track if you're going to get hassled. Just incredible. This would certainly make a good article for the Wheels section. At least there's St Thomas.

write a letter to the editor to your local papers saying the police are trying to prevent you from racing on the track so you'll just have to do it on the street.

I agree, they ARE obviously targetting people who ARE taking it to the track (otherwise they wouldn't be setting up at the track.).

However, keep in mind that all they are doing is making sure the people going to the track are doing so LEGALLY. ie: it doesn't matter WHERE you're going, or WHAT you're going there to do, it's illegal to drive a car with no cat. It's illegal to tow a trailer that exceeds it's weight limit.

If I wanted to stop people who were driving without cats, I'd start at the track too. (People who don't race, generally leave their exhausts alone.)

I guess what I'm saying if you want to race your street car, keep it street legal. If you want a race car, make sure you get it to the track safely.

You're right Steve, but it's still a kick in the nuts to the people who are making an effort to race in a safe and legal location. I'm not condoning driving illegally modified cars on the street, but you have to ask what message does it send? It says we don't care that you drove two hours to race legally, you are still a racer and those five-point harnesses are illegal. :rolleyes:

Legally justified or not, It's an extension of the street racing crackdown to persecute people who modify their cars, period.

It would be a good idea to contact Toronto Motorsports Park and have them lobby the local cops, since the crackdown directly affects their business as a dragway.

I think the point is that there are plenty of cases where the police look the other way in the interest of society / public safety / whatever, and that this should probably be one of those cases.

If you want people to take the racing off the streets (and anytime you get them in front of the media that's what they say) then encouraging racers to take it to the track is a obviously a good thing. Even if this means turning a blind eye to some minor violations (minor relative to speeding down the 400 series highways at 200+ KM/H) for a little while.

What they're doing now is like setting up one of these needle exchange programs, but anyone who shows up gets dragged in to the truck, given a blood test, and if it's not clean they are thrown in prison. In that situation how long will it be until nobody shows up, and you're stuck with the original problem worse than ever?

That totally blows. I cannot imagine the police like that around here. I am sure it will happen soon but that is retarded. Go to track to eliminate street racing but get hassled worse t han if you were on the street cruising around. I understand all points but that is wrong doing what they did potentially causing harm to a business. Cayuga track should lobby to their OPP for sure.

Side note. Ontario DSM Meet I am tying to organize with Chuck. I wanted a track day for Saturday, August 23rd but I am unaware of exactly where Cayuga or St. Thomas is in comparison to lets say the Airport area?. Which is the preferred track? Which is better suited to meet the needs of a large group going, facilties, travelling, roads to get there? ANy ideas? I am not sure many people would want to be hassled on the way to the track like Rafal mentioned in the Meet thread.


Thanks for any info guys.

REGISTER FOR IT if you want to attend. WHy would you not want to attend?

If you get a ticket for not wearing the proper DOT approved seatbelt there is a way out in Ontario. The Highway Traffic Act has a provision whereby your doctor can give you a note exempting you from wearing a seatbelt 'for medical reasons'. Yes, Alice in order to wear a much safer 5 point you have to be allowed to not use a cheapo 3point. I know from experience, was given a $170 ticket but the cop told me to get a doctor's note (I have had surgery on both shoulders so had a legitimate excuse, you may have to make one up but hey we all have old hockey injuries right?). Walked into the cop shop with the note and they cancelled the ticket right there.

I wonder if my doctor is willing to give me a note like that.... it will be an offense for him.

btw I just remember, the childseats are also using 5 point seatbelt, so they should get ticket also?

I would like to know how it is illegal to drive a car on Ontario roads with no cat when a cat is not required for a mechanical safety check. A mechanical safety check (up in Northern Ontario)is all that is required to deem a car road worthy. There is no such thing as emission testing in Northern Ontario.

So if I am driving my car in Toronto and get pulled over for not having a cat, how can they charge me when my car is legal??

BTW,
I live in Timmins and work in the GTA.

Its called emmissions laws. Just because you are exempt from emissions testing, doesnt mean you can pull the cat off without reprocussions.

....and even up North you are required by law to have a cat if your car was equipt with one from the factory.

I beleive its about a $1000 fine if you get caught.

What if you pass the emisions test without a cat?

you can't

any car, pre-smogger years, which is pre 73-74ish(depends on Car Maker) is Cat exempt, That is when most manufacturers started using it. Anything after that came with a Cat from the factory, you need it there, even to pass saftey. And seeing most emissions are government regulated, especially something like cats is important. Most drag guys either gut cats, or cut them in half and weld em over the pipe, if the car is emissions exempt and you don't get much back fire, cops will let you go. If you have something that needs emissions, lets say a DSM, just get a 3" down pipe, and an electric cutoff when you want to play, flip the switch open exhaust, full power, close the switch, stock exhaust, no bs, no problems

for guys who don't know what an electric cutout is, http://www.turbodepot.com/productcart/pc/viewPrd.asp?idproduct=726
you can get them any where, don't even have to be electric, can be cable operated or even plate on bolts.

There is no real reason as far as I know to not run a high flow cat now aside from the price, are they not extreemly efficent while barely robbing power? (Please corect me if I am wrong)

But I think the really utterly stupid thing that the OPP run the tag line "Take it to the Track" throughout the whole anti street racing campeign, yet there they are at the track just salivating at the chance to write a couple hundred fines in the shortest time alotted.

Its hard enough to convince ppl to drive to Cayuga to go racing, and then spend the buck on fuel and entry price. why make it more difficult, if anything this has really re-contributed to the problem in a big way.

Not to mention most of the fines are bogus and the most cops don't even know what they are looking for.

we really have to do something about the rampent hipicrytical behaviour of the authorities, and the serious profiling and targeting of sport compacts.

http://www.supraforums.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=131129&pagenumber=1

Carl

I'm liking his idea .... we should ALL get organized