217 drivers raced in the opening grading period of 2024, which contained 24 meetings.  The average car attendance across those 24 meetings was 35.54 and there were 59 different race winners.

The Best Attended Meetings for the Period were:-
King’s Lynn 2 Mar – 73 cars,  Hednesford 14 April – 65 cars,  Bristol 31 Mar – 62 cars,  King’s Lynn 6 Apr – 58 cars,  Northampton 23 Mar – 53 cars.

Drivers with the Best Attendance Record for the Period were:-
213 Tom Bennett – 13 app.,  3 Liam Rennie – 12 app.,  915 Jamie Jones – 12 app.;  24 Jon Palmer – 11 app.;  9 Harley Thackra – 10 app.

Top Scorers for the Period, by grade, were:-
White: 286 Kasey Jones – 175 pts;  Yellow: 528 Shane Hector – 83 pts;  Blue: 280 Peter Watt – 123 pts;  Red: 213 Tom Bennett – 241 pts;  S/S: 3 Liam Rennie – 247 pts.

Carry On Regardless - Most No-Score Meetings (Nils):-
925 Jake Wilson – 7 mtgs.,  296 Charlie Doe – 5 mtgs.,  588 Mike Kingston Jr. – 5 mtgs.

Never Quite Got Off The Mark - Most No-Score Meetings (Nils) And No Points:-
296 Charlie Doe – 5 mtgs.,  533 John Whittaker – 4 mtgs.,  856 Jamie Cocks – 4 mtgs.

2024 Novice Of The Year
The Novice of the Year is open to ‘genuine’ novices, i.e. those who are in their first BriSCA F2 season or have not raced in more than 3 meetings in total in previous seasons and who started this season with a white roof.  The novice who has scored the most national points at the end of the season will be the winner of the Novice of the Year title.
Current standings:
286 – 175pts, 727 – 63pts, 207 – 29pts, 128 – 24pts, 109 – 21pts, 157 – 16pt, 77 – 15pts, 104 – 10pts, 237 – 8pts, 215 – 5pts.
The winner will be presented with the Novice of the Year trophy.  The runner-up and the third place finisher will also receive trophies.

David’s Observations
• These grades will come into force on 1 May 2024.  The next grading period of season 2024 will run from 16 April to 20 May inclusive.
• In order to be eligible for downgrading on 1 June 2024, you must race a minimum of three times between 16 April and 20 May and also have raced at least once between 1 March and 15 April.
• International drivers are shown on the grading list solely for information purposes.  Their positions have no effect on grades.
• Points, appearances etc., are from meetings attended, that are on the National Fixture List.
• Following requests for such information, henceforth the grading list will contain an additional column showing a driver’s total tarmac points scored.
• Thanks are due to all drivers who have raced during the 24 meetings of the opening grading period.  Your efforts have raised the average car turnout per meeting from 29.79 (grading period 1 in 2023) to 35.54 this year.  Check out the Facts and Figures above.

Drivers Suspended in the Period (in points scoring order within grades)
    R:  302, 418;
    B:  736;
    Y:  525;
   W: 303.

Blacklist
There have been a number of adverse comments made by stewards on their reports during the first grading period regarding the standard of presentation of grade colours and the display of registered numbers on cars.  The main complaints are: poorly represented or incorrect grade colour on the wing and/or roof and poor or illegible numbers.  It is not sufficient just to stick a few strips of coloured tape over a predominantly different coloured wing.  Also, bear in mind that if your numbers are illegible at a distance and your transponder fails, you are likely to be missed by the manual lap-scorer.
The relevant sections of the Rule Book that deal with these points are:
Rule 228.01  The driver’s assigned racing number (as indicated on their licence) MUST be displayed on both sides of the car, and on both sides of any roof fin or aerofoil/wing.
Rule 228.02  The driver’s number MUST be black on a white background, in strokes of 1 inch (25mm) MINIMUM, to a MINIMUM height of 9 inches (228mm).
Rule 229.03  The whole of any wing, if fitted, must be painted/coloured in the driver’s official grading/championship winning colour with the exception of the driver’s race number which MUST be black on white.
Rule 229.04  The whole of the top surface of the roof plate on all cars MUST be painted/coloured in the driver’s official grading/championship winning colour…
Penalties for non-compliance are covered in Chapter 13:
Rule 307.01  Any driver appearing with the wrong roof colour, or without the required flashing superstar lights, will be made to start at the rear of the grid in all races until the issue is rectified to the satisfaction of the steward/scrutineer/clerk of the course.
Rule 307.02  Any driver persistently appearing with the wrong roof colour, or without the required flashing superstar lights, will forfeit any points otherwise due.
Make sure you do not fall foul of these rules in future or you might find yourself at the back of the grid or forfeiting points.