Prescribed time
Time set by the organiser within which a section or task must be completed – closely related to the target time (Sollzeit).
The prescribed time (German Vorgabezeit) is the time set by the organiser within which a particular section or task must be completed. It is announced in the regulations or roadbook and forms the reference against which the time actually taken is measured.
In practice the prescribed time applies, for example, to connecting sections between two time controls for which a certain time window is given, or to individual tests with a fixed target time. Anyone arriving earlier or later than prescribed receives penalty points – depending on the regulations, per started minute or second of deviation.
The term overlaps strongly with the target time (Sollzeit) and is often used synonymously. Where a distinction is made, the prescribed time emphasises the nature of the organiser's specification, while the target time denotes the time to be matched in the test.
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Related terms
Regularity test
A scored test in which a section must be driven at a prescribed, as-constant-as-possible average speed. Consistency is scored – not hitting a single target time as in a time trial.
Time trial (TT)
A scored section where a single prescribed target time must be hit as exactly as possible (abbreviated TT). Unlike a regularity test, the target time counts, not a constant average.
Maximum time
A penalty time for special stages or tests not completed properly. It is usually calculated as the best time plus a fixed number of minutes.