Having raced gearbox karts on short circuits (standing starts) and long circuits (rolling starts) there are pro's and con's for both methods.
With rolling starts there is not really any excuse for pushing, it rarely if ever happens on long circuit, so no reason why this cant be sorted out for short circuit DD meetings. For gearbox rolling starts I would say "queue jumping" is more of an issue where someone overtakes on the rolling lap (accidentally of course!) and it is not picked up by the starter or marshals. Once the lights change its on with the race.
On the other hand standing starts mean it is much more likely everyone starts from their assigned grid place (the grid marshals normally check). The biggest issue with standing starts, especially for 250 gearbox, is if the kart in front stalls or boggs down. A good start means there is very little time to brake or turn before hitting the kart in front. A 3, 2, 3 grid formation helps as there are more gaps to aim for. With a 2, 2, 2 arrangement (ie 2 straight lines) this is more of a problem as it is difficult to see what is happening in front. This is not a problem for rolling starts because everyone is already moving when they cross the start line!
If anyone is at Kimbolton this weekend look out for the 250 National starts. There should be a big grid (with the club, Super 4 and 250 masters series all racing together). With the new standing start grid formation at Kim its going to be very exciting!
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