MST - Updating their web site

[alfa57]

Is anybody else fed up with the level of service being offered by MST this season – particularly the speed with which the results appear on the web site.

The Alfa championship races at Combe on the Saturday 27th March – the results eventually appeared on the site late on the Monday, two and a half days later.

Our second round was at Silverstone on Saturday 17th April. The results still aren’t there now (Tuesday lunchtime).

When I mailed MST yesterday they said there were no results as the meeting was abandoned due to the weather. Mmmm. . . maybe Sunday’s was but Saturday’s certainly wasn’t !!

I’m sure that one of the ‘benefits’ when we were robbed of nearly £200 for a transponder (as well as reduced entry fees !!!!) was up to date times on the web site.

Surely the BRSCC etc have a contract for MST to provide a service. Well from what I can see it’s not being provided.

Are other championships having similar problems ?

What’s happened – is MST going the same way as the BRSCC ?

[Adam43]

The results from my last meeting were up by the time I got home. An hour and half travel from Silverstone!

The site went a bit slow (in terms of download time) over the off season, but it isn't that bad now.

Technically transponders have nothing to do with putting the results on a website, although it was a sweetner for buying the transponders. I guess the argument is that the time saved from having transponder can be put to producing the results.

[ianpearson]

Alfa57,I believe there was a thread on here not long ago suggesting that the brscc were not paying for the service that gave you quick up to date results (i may be wrong). I run with the barc & certainly in the past the results have been the same day & so far this year when i first look (usually first thing i do when i get to work on the monday) they are there ready to print off. I think your problems are more to do with your club, I'm assuming you run with the brscc. Your right about the £200 it was another unpleasant hand out they we so often have to give.

[Mike Holmes]

Ian is correct the organising club has to pay MST a fee to have the results put on the site. Some do, some don't!!

[Adam43]

Yes, I know last year the BARC-SE didn't. Each year more clubs do, but it isn't directly related to your transponder fee (which is just a one off fee).

[StephenRae]

I've never got my head round who makes the money out of motorsport. Most of it is obvious, but when it comes to things like transponders it is less clear. The one I was forced to buy cost about the same as my SPA rev counter/shift light, and without being an expert is about 1000 times less complicated, so it's the profit that makes it expensive!
I thought part of the deal was to be an up to date complete record of THAT DAYS' times and results. Now I hear that the organising clubs have to pay for the privelidge of publishing there own results....the world gets stranger....

[Ian Fisher]

Alfa57 - Alfa1 (surely),

Yeah, the qualifying results are there, the grid is there, but the race results are miossing - maybe the BRSCC only paid 2/3rds of the bill?!!

It's either a poor service or poor quality control (is the link to the race results missing).

[Ian Sowman]

Indeed the Alfa results are missing. At some circuits access to a telephone line (which will be needed to upload the results) may not be there. Certainly Castle Combe and at present Mallory are two where you can't just plug in easily.

[DelaRonde]

Britcar from 20th March still isn't up......

[graeme]

My results from the weekend were up that night - but it would be good if they could time the cars correctly!!!

[zefarelly]

£200 for a transponder isnt cheap, and there cant be much in it either . . .not only that, theres no permissable competition, they take your money and still take nearly 4 weeks to deliver it !

[alfa57]

One of the other competitors in our championship got the following reply from MST :

I apologise for the delay in posting all the information on the website but as you may be aware the meeting was abandoned at 4 pm on Sunday afternoon due to very heavy rain. The timekeeper subsequently had to fly out of the country at short notice on Monday morning. We hope to update the information at the beginning of next week.
Sorry for any inconvenience caused
Rita Ashman
MST sports timing Ltd.


That doesn't explain why Saturday's results were not on there.

Perhaps I was right and the MST are going the same way as the BRSCC. Then again perhaps there's more to their relationship than I thought . . isn't Rita Ashman Barry's wife . . . the BRSCC Midlands secretary - perhaps she can chase him if there are unpaid bills ?

[Old Ropey]

Our meeting 17/18 April at Croft, Formula Jedi, a BRSCC Championship, was listed by MST until a week or two ago, but has now disappeared completely, presumably because BRSCC subcontracted the meeting/our just our 2 Jedi races? to the Classic Sports Car Club, who ran a fine meeting.
No information about anything.

[JohnMiller]

Originally posted by alfa57

Rita Ashman
MST sports timing Ltd.

That's interesting.

[Ian Fisher]

Alfa57,

The MST site isn't overly helpful, because under the 'BRSCC' section on the left-hand menu, the message 'No data is currently available for this meeting' appears, whereas if you choose the 'British F3/GT' section from the left-hand menu, you can at least see the qualifying times.

Looks like an ass-elbow interface problem to me....

[Ian Fisher]

The results are now available on the 'British F3' tab, but not if accessed on the BRSCC list of meetings.....