93dBA sound limit at Autocross sites

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   Hey folks!
Need a little feedback here, please.
There's a site here in North Texas (DFW area) that several Auto-x groups run at.  The site is a parking lot for a School District's community Football Stadium.  Groups have been running at the facility for 22 years but the School Board just recently decided that they need to re-think future use of the location for auto-x groups.
Several factors have been given as to why the School Board is considering auto-x groups being not able to use the site.  But just recently the issue of "sound complaints" has rasied it's ugly head.  Yes, there are homes & apartments in close proxcimity.
So, all the groups wanting to use the site are trying to determine a reasonable dBA level to present the School Board.
Obviously the 100dBA level is easiest to present to the school board & most of our members are understanding that this is the acceptable level at National events.  But I've recieved a few letters from folks suggesting that 100dBA will more than likely not keep local neighbors happy based on other Region's history.
So, I need some feedback from Regions actually using the 93dBA level @ 50ft sound policy.
Can the 93dBA @ 50ft level be obtained & enforced easily?
Has it kept local neighborhoods/site management happy with the noise level?
Thanks in advance,
Brad Maxcy
Texas Region SCCA Asst RE - Solo

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autoxmax Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: November.07.2005 Location: Allen, Texas Points: 11	Post Options Post Reply Quote autoxmax Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Topic: 93dBA sound limit at Autocross sites Posted: December.14.2010 at 4:09pm
	Hey folks! Need a little feedback here, please. There's a site here in North Texas (DFW area) that several Auto-x groups run at. The site is a parking lot for a School District's community Football Stadium. Groups have been running at the facility for 22 years but the School Board just recently decided that they need to re-think future use of the location for auto-x groups. Several factors have been given as to why the School Board is considering auto-x groups being not able to use the site. But just recently the issue of "sound complaints" has rasied it's ugly head. Yes, there are homes & apartments in close proxcimity. So, all the groups wanting to use the site are trying to determine a reasonable dBA level to present the School Board. Obviously the 100dBA level is easiest to present to the school board & most of our members are understanding that this is the acceptable level at National events. But I've recieved a few letters from folks suggesting that 100dBA will more than likely not keep local neighbors happy based on other Region's history. So, I need some feedback from Regions actually using the 93dBA level @ 50ft sound policy. Can the 93dBA @ 50ft level be obtained & enforced easily? Has it kept local neighborhoods/site management happy with the noise level? Thanks in advance, Brad Maxcy Texas Region SCCA Asst RE - Solo

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Bruce Bettinger Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Groupie Joined: March.28.2009 Location: Derby, KS Points: 63	Post Options Post Reply Quote Bruce Bettinger Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: December.14.2010 at 4:49pm
	First of all do you have sound equiptment to measure the sound? If not then it doesn't matter where you set the limit as you can't enforce it. If you do then you find that very often it is not the dba limit, but the pitch of the exaust. For your aggrement with the school board I would suggest setting the limit as high as you can as you can always lower it, but once set you can't raise it. Make sure they know you are more then ready to work with them to solve any problems that come up. Better to have restrictions than no site. The local round-d-round dirt track here offered the people around the track free season tickets. Doubt that would work for solo. Hope you get better advise than this from others who have crossed this bridge and are able to keep your site. Between lawyers and comunity beautification (trees, shrubs, light poles, and curbs) we are losing a lot of sites.
	Bruce (Lost in Kansas) Bettinger

autoxmax Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: November.07.2005 Location: Allen, Texas Points: 11	Post Options Post Reply Quote autoxmax Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: December.14.2010 at 4:58pm
	Meter isn't a problem. Agree on the pitch of the exhaust issue. And I guess that could be handled on a case-by-case basis & is already written into the Region's Supps as such. The concern is we might not get a 2nd chance if more complaints are received. We didn't even know there were issues until I tried to schedule dates for next season!

John Frank Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Visit Members Homepage Add to Buddy List Senior Joined: August.16.2004 Location: Aurora Colorado Points: 191	Post Options Post Reply Quote John Frank Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: December.14.2010 at 5:00pm
	There are sound limits at many of the Solo sites that are used in our area. You might look at http://www.rmsolo.org/ There are several people on the contacts page that I am sure can help answer specific questions.
	John Frank Webmaster/Chief T&S Continental Divide Region www.scca-cdr.org

Randy Hickman Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Visit Members Homepage Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: August.13.2009 Location: Wellington, CO Points: 7	Post Options Post Reply Quote Randy Hickman Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: December.22.2010 at 5:01pm
	As John notes, we have a number of site-specific sound limits in the Colorado and Continental Divide Regions. We've spent the last several years in Colorado Region running events with a 93db limit, and found it to be quite workable. We did have one site that a 93db limit wasn't sufficient for (neighbors complained, and we don't run there any more) but in general, it seems to be a reasonable number to work with for "sensitive" sites. All of our rules regarding sound requirements can be found at http://www.rmsolo.org/sound.html If you have specific questions, feel free to contact me via email. hickman"at"rmsolo.org Edited by Randy Hickman
	Colorado Region Solo Chair Chief of Web, RMSolo.org