Race course prep
 

I serve as a marshal for a local Pro race in the northeast. One of the corners on the course contains a sewer cover worn smooth by years of traffic. Last year I watched a racer slide off the cover onto the asphalt. I felt the pain vicariously.


I contacted the towns public works dept to have the cover replaced but Im not sure it will be done for the race-or at all. I need some ideas about how to create a nonskid surface on the cover that I can do quickly without drawing attentionto myself or my handiwork. May have to do the job at night.


Any ideas?

How about some non skid paint?

Or just a quick application of peel and stick non-skid. Available in pre cut pads or uncut rolls. Sticks to just about any dry surface, requires no drying time.

The paint sounds like the best solution, but it would take time to dry. If it's painted the morning of the race, it wouldn't be completely cured by race time. You'd need traffic cones to block it until the paint is dry, but you are trying to do it by stealth.

I wonder how peel and stick non-skid would handle the big sideways force from the tires. Would it start peeling off? And the cover likely has a dish or curve in the surface, so that might make it come loose easier.

So, put a test patch of the non-skid on a few weeks before the race. See if car tires peel it off.

Not a good idea, I'm afraid, given the USA's propensity for legal action. If you placed a stick-on anti-skid surface and it came loose, it would take very little for an ambulance chasing lawyer to get on your case. It would, in any case, only be a very temporary solution.

It may take some time, but an official replacement for the sewer cover would be the best long-term and safe solution.

I had also thought about those non-stick surfaces like sandpaper.

I did wonder what the road rash from landing on a sheet of sandpaper would be like :eek:

An advantage of something like non-skid paint is that you could likely give it a good color like florescent yellow :) I'm sure the highway department will be your friend forever :thumb: But, giving it some color might also help a rider make a quick choice of routes.

If you make any modification to the cover then you sort of "own" the consequences. I wouldn't do it. Any chance you can get with the race officials and have them make an announcement before the race to the riders?

Have a lawyer send a letter to the city about liability and the city's responsibility should any damage or injury result of the sewer cover.

There are notes that Mark Cavendish hit a storm sewer grate moments before he went down. It is difficult to say if that contributed to the crash, but those road features aren't always benign, nor can they always be avoided.

Changing the coefficient of friction on a corner could have dire consequences as the OP mentioned. I'm not sure that new steel would be that much better, although perhaps if it is very fresh, it would still have some texture from casting.

Maybe have a storm sewer cover just for the race, to be pulled and put away for another year?

There have been a lot of comments about road paint. Around here, some of it appears to be put down like a tape, has texture, and is quick drying. But that would be something that the road maintenance departments would have to help with.

Holes in the storm grates can provide important ventilation, or access points for tools, and shouldn't be covered.

If the polished surface is too slippery then it is necessary to un-polish it. An easy way is to take a heavy duty sander of rotary grinder with rough sandpaper to the surface. Ask the highway department to do it or if they will allow you to do it. Mention possible liability issues.

Where upon the city cancels the event permits for fear of liability issues...

Neon orange paint, several large arrows, and one of those flashing arrow signs pointing to it, with phone numbers of the city administrator and a good personal injury lawyer.

We live in a damned if you do, damned if you don't society.

Have no doubt that the race organizer would also be named in any personal injury lawsuit, especially if the road hazard was known.

Likewise, if a "fix" was insufficient or caused more injury, then the race organizer would still be named.

Liability wavers may well be ignored for a known hazard.

Manhole cover
 

The race was last weekend and I learned a lot about race admin and muncipal operation. The Asst manager of the borough said that the manhole was the responsibility of the water and sewer provider(not the boro). All the boro did was paint a circle around the manhole.


While a race marshall and I were marking the manhole with chalk a racer stopped by on a warm up lad and thanked us for our efforts.


The race director came by and said the cover was ok!


After figuring out the responsible party for the manhole I called the water and sewr authority. I explained that the cover is very slick and a Cat 3 racer slid and crashed last year. The W&s representtative sounded sincerely sympathetic and promised to have the field crew take a look at (hopefully replace ) the cover.

For future reference or if anyone else has a similar problem: If you went with the paint option, I wouldn't worry about cones until the paint dried. You aren't worried about aesthetics, in fact, if the surface looks worn you are less likely to get caught. Any vehicle driving over the tacky paint would just leave road grit behind, making the surface look more used and increasing the non-skid properties. You could use black or even clear non-skid paint.

I see the greater problem being that, if you apply anything to the cover and a rider falls, the liability is on you. If you have documentation of your request to the city or W&S (this is why I prefer email to phone calls for such matters) for the cover to be replaced or improved and they do not comply, the liability would be on them. You still have to take measures to ensure rider safety, but using temporary bright colored marking paint to outline the cover and warning riders about it in pre-race instructions may cover you adequately. It sounds like you did a good job.

Another option might be to request that the city or responsible entity sandblast the cover to restore a less skid prone surface. Many cities have portable sandblasters and air compressors. If the W&S is operated by the city, you might want to find a mayor or council person who is up for re-election and invite them to be an MC or official starter, then mention the problem.

Kinda surprised no one mentioned stealthily replacing it with another one from nearby.

Is the sewer cover either, recessed, or raised(set several inches above the surface of the asphalt)?

The sewer cover is depressed more than one inch due to paving over time. The W&S authority will have place a new cover and flush flange around the cover.


Coincidentally a surveyor with an office a half a block away offered paint but we declined due to liability issues.

So, how was the race? Anybody eaten by the killer manhole cover?

Keep on the local government. If there is a bump, perhaps you can get the government to prioritize fixing it before next year's race.

That thing sounds dangerous. Best to pull it off and lay it aside until the race is over.

No, I'm not being serious.

Deck tape, from an LBS that sells skateboards...

You can prepare a piece of Masonite cut to size and painted with sand paint. Then on raceday, put it in place, glued down with spray adhesive, and tape down all around with duck tape make a smooth blend to the pavement.

Sweep the area before applying the tape so it sticks better rather than sitting on dust. Also use a weather grade designed to stick on wet surfaces (if rain is an issue).

This method is quick and reliable and allows the job to be done in minutes -- after the road is closed.

What's the big deal. Racers encounter new courses every time they go race. When I raced I would scope out the Racecourse and pay special attention to sewer covers, grates, especially anything that's metal which everyone knows is very slippery. You deal with the course that you are racing on.

Yes, it's part of the course, but there's no reason to leave hazards in place if they can be addressed. Keep in mind that the peloton can come up on it at high speed, and if there's a turn, a rider in the middle can slide and take out half the field.

Some considerations are whether it's in a bad place, ie. a hard corner, narrow road near the bottom of a fast descent leading to a turn, etc. Also how many laps are involved. A fast short course crit will multiply the potential hazard by the number of laps, so the standard of care should be higher.

Well yes. But a good racer will know where the hazard is on a course and position himself so that if someone goes down he doesn't take him down. I would never trust someone's attempt to make a manhole cover safe
I would always avoid it.

It's racing.

And I agree that it's possibly a huge liability if a corner guard starts trying to make a manhole cover safer.