tagged 
F3, FIA, IRL, MotoGP, Motorsport, NASCAR, Rossi, SCCA, Track Safety
F3, FIA, IRL, MotoGP, Motorsport, NASCAR, Rossi, SCCA, Track Safety Brno
Saturday, August 14, 2010 at 01:35PM
In the absence of other major race series this weekend all eyes are on Brno for the Czech MotoGP. For once Lorenzo did not grab pole, and both he and Rossi dropped the bike near the end of qualifying, but so did a lot of others. Pedrosa grabbed pole from America's Ben Spies who is obviously benefiting from being here before, and his increasing experience with the MotoGP machinery. In the 125cc class the usual order changed due to Marquez still feeling the result of his crash earlier in the week, but still on the front row. Pole went to young English rider, Bradley Smith, which will give my mates back there plenty to cheer about. Moto2 continues to be almost anybodies race on any weekend, which at least keeps it interesting.
Let's hope tomorrow's GP lives up to the grid with probably four riders all in contention on qualifying times, and Rossi lurking in fifth.
The other series racing is the British F3 at Silverstone where points leader Jean-Eric Vergne took pole for both races, but was beaten by James Calado in the first wet race. Is this his Achilles heel? Vergne seemed unbeatable up to now and has been predicted for big things.
Here in the US the NASCAR boys, and girls, are at Michigan where Jack Roush made a surprise visit following his plane crash at Oshkosh a couple of weeks ago. Good to see you up and about Jack, but sorry to hear about the eye. Jack has some great WWII planes, and when he used to do his end of year thank you to sponsors at Road Atlanta he would take them to the nearby airfield to give rides in both his many cars and planes. Does Jack still do that I wonder? It used to provide a very interesting comparison of the performance of the different vehicles, such as the Panoz ALMS and a NASCAR, no contest around Road Atlanta.
Our would be F1 racer, Danica, has played down expectations of her performance in the Nationwide race! Who had any? She finished 22nd at Mid-Ohio last weekend in an IRL car, and this is who we want to promote F1 in the US?
Booked the hotel for the Track Forum in Cologne, Germany, next November. Looking forward to it, should be a great conference. Started thinking about next year's New York Forum, and so should you if you are involved in the sport here in the US. After meeting with the attorney yesterday it just brought home again the poor state of tracks and track management here, and the need for more effective licensing and inspection. The lack of any consistent standards such as the FIA applies, and the myriad sanctioning bodies allows tracks to avoid play one off against another and avoid meeting even basic standards or best practices. Last Turn Club touched on this recently and the SCCA has been trying for some time to impose some basic requirements for certification, but lack the clout to force necessary upgrades. I understand that the current state of racing here makes earning a dollar very hard for track owners and operators, so spending on safety improvements is hard, but not as hard as when you face a law suit for wrongful death. Think about it.
Let's hope tomorrow's GP lives up to the grid with probably four riders all in contention on qualifying times, and Rossi lurking in fifth.
The other series racing is the British F3 at Silverstone where points leader Jean-Eric Vergne took pole for both races, but was beaten by James Calado in the first wet race. Is this his Achilles heel? Vergne seemed unbeatable up to now and has been predicted for big things.
Here in the US the NASCAR boys, and girls, are at Michigan where Jack Roush made a surprise visit following his plane crash at Oshkosh a couple of weeks ago. Good to see you up and about Jack, but sorry to hear about the eye. Jack has some great WWII planes, and when he used to do his end of year thank you to sponsors at Road Atlanta he would take them to the nearby airfield to give rides in both his many cars and planes. Does Jack still do that I wonder? It used to provide a very interesting comparison of the performance of the different vehicles, such as the Panoz ALMS and a NASCAR, no contest around Road Atlanta.
Our would be F1 racer, Danica, has played down expectations of her performance in the Nationwide race! Who had any? She finished 22nd at Mid-Ohio last weekend in an IRL car, and this is who we want to promote F1 in the US?
Booked the hotel for the Track Forum in Cologne, Germany, next November. Looking forward to it, should be a great conference. Started thinking about next year's New York Forum, and so should you if you are involved in the sport here in the US. After meeting with the attorney yesterday it just brought home again the poor state of tracks and track management here, and the need for more effective licensing and inspection. The lack of any consistent standards such as the FIA applies, and the myriad sanctioning bodies allows tracks to avoid play one off against another and avoid meeting even basic standards or best practices. Last Turn Club touched on this recently and the SCCA has been trying for some time to impose some basic requirements for certification, but lack the clout to force necessary upgrades. I understand that the current state of racing here makes earning a dollar very hard for track owners and operators, so spending on safety improvements is hard, but not as hard as when you face a law suit for wrongful death. Think about it.
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