Brian Nystrom
Joined: 26 Jan 2004
Posts: 5101
Location: Nashua, NH4/20/22 7:38 AM |
Policing the crowds at races has always been a problem and it's really an impossible task given the length of the courses. It sucks when a spectator affects the outcome of the race as happened at P-R, but at least that incident wasn't as egregious as many we've seen. I agree that fines are warranted, but in the heat of the moment, I wonder if they really provide any deterrence.
They
could
make the fines equal to the first-place prize money, but then you'd have riders looking for spectators to tangle with so they can get a nice pay day. ;-)
IMO, they
should
be arresting anyone with flares and smoke bombs, as those create all kinds of hazards and the perpetrators are easy to spot.
FWIW, I was able to watch the SBS coverage of both races using Express VPN and their Melbourne, Australia server. They also have full replays available on-demand.
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