Ummmm......Dave, I don't think I could have said it better.

Race often comes down to choices. If we are racing at Hastings and I choose to put rain tires on (definition to follow) and I head out to the grid and it does not rain, I took my chance and it went the wrong way. We are talking about 7 and 8 lap races, not 45 lap races, there is pretty small window. As Dave said, we can argue the safety thing all day but it is very subjective at best. I think the fact that you can find and by strange, one-off, DOT (REAL) rain tires makes the whole thing silly. I, like Dave and I think everyone else in the club, do not want to tear my equipment up any more than I have to. Current DOT tires are almost identical to slicks in every way, with just very small grooves and they do not heat up in the rain and they do not dissipate water which is what is needed to keep our two very small contact patches on the pavement. I think it is very simple as well, rain tires or DOTs, period. I will try and define it and we can stick with it.

Racing in SS with rain tires does not take away from the spirit of SS any more than quickshifters, TC or putting on a $2500 shock. Just like riding with a helmet does not take away the freedom of riding a motorcycle.