tagged Bernie Ecclestone, Ferrari, Lance Armstrong, MotoGP, Red Bull, Rossi, Sol Real, Tour de France
Entries in Tour de France (17)
Time
Monday, July 19, 2010 at 11:30AM
One of the results of moving is changing the time zones. Has some good consequences, football starts early and we do not have to stay up all night to watch. On the other hand events like the Tour de France starts around 4 am! Good job they repeat it. We have a great race going, sure Lance is out of the running but he is hanging in there to finish and we have a terrific duel going on between Schleck and Contador. Great mental sparring going on and they are in a class of their own this year, except "class" is not a word I would use for Contador after today's move on Schleck. I cannot believe that Lance or one of the other greats would have taken advantage of a mechanical problem of his rival.
It is taking some time to get the house sorted, but it has only been two days. Kitchen is nearly done, but still boxes everywhere. Still found time to put the finishing touches to the web site, all we need now is the logo. Getting together this morning with the other partners so maybe we can decide on the final design. It will be good to catch up with the other guys and find out what has gone on while I have been moving.
My great friend Snoopy, who is French, says he cannot believe how much we move, Europeans cannot leave home like that. If I had lived in France perhaps I could not either, but England in the late 60's was not fun, and besides, most people in this sport have to move. When I worked with Kenny I asked why there were so many Australians and New Zealanders, and he said they were used to traveling and living in different countries.
Fantastic result for Valentino Rossi yesterday, he held nothing back despite the leg, fighting with Stoner for the last podium spot. Commentators made a lot of him riding with his broken leg, and sure that is very gutsy, but not unusual for motorcycle riders. Doohan rode just about all season with a broken leg and a thumb brake. Still do not know how they do it given the amount of effort it takes with the legs to turn these machines. Nice to see that Roger Hayden will replace De Puniet rather than some geriatric test rider, as it should be, give the young guys an opportunity.
Buemi says he has now decided to re-sign with Torro Rosso, but Glock is one of the drivers being tipped to replace Petrov, despite a pretty good rookie season. Renault are obviously looking to build a serious team again.
Bernie is playing his usual games, saying he does not really need the Monaco GP. He tried to get rid of it once before as he does not control it and they do not pay the fess like everyone else, but the sponsors told him he had to keep it. Maybe the reduction in sponsor support has given him ammunition to do it this time. He is looking to bring in India and Russia, while keeping the teams happy by limiting the number of races to twenty. At the same time that argument over the logos on team trucks continues. It seems so petty I can only imagine APM is hurting for signage money.
Red Bull owner Dietrich Mateschitz assures us that he will give both his drivers equal treatment even if it costs them the title. They cannot shut up about it can they? Just show us, don't tell us. Ferrari's Team Manager has told his men that anyone who does not still believe they can win the Championship can leave now. I like that.
IRL put on their annual crash fest in Toronto, and elsewhere Carl Edwards pulled his usual stunt to win a race."We came here to win," even if you kill someone I suppose? Grand Am had a race in New Jersey, but did anyone notice?
It is taking some time to get the house sorted, but it has only been two days. Kitchen is nearly done, but still boxes everywhere. Still found time to put the finishing touches to the web site, all we need now is the logo. Getting together this morning with the other partners so maybe we can decide on the final design. It will be good to catch up with the other guys and find out what has gone on while I have been moving.
My great friend Snoopy, who is French, says he cannot believe how much we move, Europeans cannot leave home like that. If I had lived in France perhaps I could not either, but England in the late 60's was not fun, and besides, most people in this sport have to move. When I worked with Kenny I asked why there were so many Australians and New Zealanders, and he said they were used to traveling and living in different countries.
Fantastic result for Valentino Rossi yesterday, he held nothing back despite the leg, fighting with Stoner for the last podium spot. Commentators made a lot of him riding with his broken leg, and sure that is very gutsy, but not unusual for motorcycle riders. Doohan rode just about all season with a broken leg and a thumb brake. Still do not know how they do it given the amount of effort it takes with the legs to turn these machines. Nice to see that Roger Hayden will replace De Puniet rather than some geriatric test rider, as it should be, give the young guys an opportunity.
Buemi says he has now decided to re-sign with Torro Rosso, but Glock is one of the drivers being tipped to replace Petrov, despite a pretty good rookie season. Renault are obviously looking to build a serious team again.
Bernie is playing his usual games, saying he does not really need the Monaco GP. He tried to get rid of it once before as he does not control it and they do not pay the fess like everyone else, but the sponsors told him he had to keep it. Maybe the reduction in sponsor support has given him ammunition to do it this time. He is looking to bring in India and Russia, while keeping the teams happy by limiting the number of races to twenty. At the same time that argument over the logos on team trucks continues. It seems so petty I can only imagine APM is hurting for signage money.
Red Bull owner Dietrich Mateschitz assures us that he will give both his drivers equal treatment even if it costs them the title. They cannot shut up about it can they? Just show us, don't tell us. Ferrari's Team Manager has told his men that anyone who does not still believe they can win the Championship can leave now. I like that.
IRL put on their annual crash fest in Toronto, and elsewhere Carl Edwards pulled his usual stunt to win a race."We came here to win," even if you kill someone I suppose? Grand Am had a race in New Jersey, but did anyone notice?
Sweet Revenge
Monday, July 12, 2010 at 10:36AM
How sweet it must have been for Mark Webber to win the British F1 GP yesterday. "Methinks they protesteth too much" is how I would treat Red Bull's continual assurances that Vettel is not getting preferential treatment. Team Principal Christian Horner insisted that the differences between the two wing versions were minor, and only affected driving characteristics. If that was true why risk having a problem with Mark by changing it over to Vettel's car after Vettel's wing had broken in practice? Sources have revealed that there was both a lap time and a weight difference between the two versions. Mark commented that the car felt better with it on. Horner saying that they gave the wing to Vettel because he was ahead in points makes more sense than "there were minor differences." It's like the Turkey deal all over again, they cannot stick to a story. So, if Mark wins the World Championship are we going to see a Champion walk from his team again? You have to love him for his honesty and lack of PC!
Not that winning the Championship is going to be easy. They said that Jim Clark could just drive around a car's problems, as did Senna. Now I am not yet saying that Hamilton is in that illustrious company, but you have to admire his ability to take a car that is not well set up and putting it fourth on the grid when his World Champion team mate can only manage 14th and says it is undriveable. Then he runs a strong second in the race, setting fastest times. Cudos to Button to take that ill handling car and get it up to fourth, he has a different style to Lewis but is still very effective. You do not really see how he does it. McLaren have a great team with these two and of course the engineers and mechanics, and yes I am biased.
Ferrari are again exercising their selective memory and "the rules do not apply to us" mentality. Do they not recall Spa three years ago and that great duel between Raikkonen and Hamilton? When Kimi pushed Lewis wide at the "bus stop" and Lewis did pass Kimi, let Kimi back past him again, and then overtook him, only to be penalized for not letting Kimi by far enough! Lost the race and the Championship. So why was Alonso's pass on Kubica any different?
Nice to see Williams up there again, and the Cosworth is obviously not too shabby. Yamamoto ran around last, must have been weighed down by his wallet! Well done Nico Rosberg, beat your elderly team mate again. Michael is not driving well and cannot be enjoying his time back in the car. Even the TV commentators are now comparing his age with every other driver he gets passed by.
Did not get to see the ALMS at Miller, but well done Highcroft, and it seems that the Drayson car ran well. Keep Emmanuele in the car so we have some competition for Brabham and co.
Did not see WSBK either, but it is turning into a Biaggi benefit. Pity about Corser and the BMW's. Did anyone see the accident in practice? Brno is a safe track so I am surprised at his injuries, was it just a high speed get off?
Congratulations Spain for the World Cup. I lived in Spain for a year and love the people and the Country, so if England could not win I am glad Spain did. Hard to believe it was their first final and win.
Sad to see Lance Armstrong having such a tough time on the Tour, but I guess when your luck runs out. He is still amazing, but in a way he is finding out what Michael is finding out, the current crop of riders are pretty damn good! I know I am an Aussie, but I think Andy Schleck is who I would like to win.
Not that winning the Championship is going to be easy. They said that Jim Clark could just drive around a car's problems, as did Senna. Now I am not yet saying that Hamilton is in that illustrious company, but you have to admire his ability to take a car that is not well set up and putting it fourth on the grid when his World Champion team mate can only manage 14th and says it is undriveable. Then he runs a strong second in the race, setting fastest times. Cudos to Button to take that ill handling car and get it up to fourth, he has a different style to Lewis but is still very effective. You do not really see how he does it. McLaren have a great team with these two and of course the engineers and mechanics, and yes I am biased.
Ferrari are again exercising their selective memory and "the rules do not apply to us" mentality. Do they not recall Spa three years ago and that great duel between Raikkonen and Hamilton? When Kimi pushed Lewis wide at the "bus stop" and Lewis did pass Kimi, let Kimi back past him again, and then overtook him, only to be penalized for not letting Kimi by far enough! Lost the race and the Championship. So why was Alonso's pass on Kubica any different?
Nice to see Williams up there again, and the Cosworth is obviously not too shabby. Yamamoto ran around last, must have been weighed down by his wallet! Well done Nico Rosberg, beat your elderly team mate again. Michael is not driving well and cannot be enjoying his time back in the car. Even the TV commentators are now comparing his age with every other driver he gets passed by.
Did not get to see the ALMS at Miller, but well done Highcroft, and it seems that the Drayson car ran well. Keep Emmanuele in the car so we have some competition for Brabham and co.
Did not see WSBK either, but it is turning into a Biaggi benefit. Pity about Corser and the BMW's. Did anyone see the accident in practice? Brno is a safe track so I am surprised at his injuries, was it just a high speed get off?
Congratulations Spain for the World Cup. I lived in Spain for a year and love the people and the Country, so if England could not win I am glad Spain did. Hard to believe it was their first final and win.
Sad to see Lance Armstrong having such a tough time on the Tour, but I guess when your luck runs out. He is still amazing, but in a way he is finding out what Michael is finding out, the current crop of riders are pretty damn good! I know I am an Aussie, but I think Andy Schleck is who I would like to win.
tagged ALMS, Alonso, Andy Schleck, Biaggi, Brabham, Corser, Drayson, F1, Ferrari, Highcroft, Jenson Button, Jim Clark, Kubica, Lewis Hamilton, Mark Webber, McLaren, Michael Schumacher, Red Bull, Rosberg, Senna, Tour de France, Vettel, WSBK, Williams, World Cup
Air Travel
Sunday, July 11, 2010 at 09:36AM
Air travel, who needs it! It is supposed to be fast and convenient when in truth it is neither. A good friend back in Australia who was a pilot told me "if you want to be sure of getting somewhere do not fly." And that was in the late seventies, how bad is it now. Missed the blog yesterday while flying from Phoenix to New Orleans on Delta, via Atlanta of course, and taking twelve hours with only four of that actually flying! I would not mind that they have delays and problems with aircraft if they actually told you the truth and not the continual lies. Only one very nice lady actually told me the truth. They must all go to school to learn how to lie to customers, yes customers, something the airlines have forgotten about, and to threaten them with not flying at all if they dare to complain. Try and find a complaints button on their web site.
So, here I am back in Louisiana finishing packing and getting set to drive back to Phoenix. We have a hanger to set up at Falcon Field, a municipal airport in Mesa, where we are going to promote the new track. Put in some toys to compliment the helicopters, planes, and power boat already there, and set up a projector and some couches and we are ready for our first group in two weeks. As I said, the project is evolving and we are now planning to place"casitas," garages with living space above, along pit lane so it looks like a European track. Getting nicer every day.
Big day today which I will try and watch between packing. World Cup final, British GP, ALMS Miller, and Tour de France. Hope you all enjoy, back Monday!
So, here I am back in Louisiana finishing packing and getting set to drive back to Phoenix. We have a hanger to set up at Falcon Field, a municipal airport in Mesa, where we are going to promote the new track. Put in some toys to compliment the helicopters, planes, and power boat already there, and set up a projector and some couches and we are ready for our first group in two weeks. As I said, the project is evolving and we are now planning to place"casitas," garages with living space above, along pit lane so it looks like a European track. Getting nicer every day.
Big day today which I will try and watch between packing. World Cup final, British GP, ALMS Miller, and Tour de France. Hope you all enjoy, back Monday!
tagged ALMS, Arizona, Country Club, F1, Phoenix, Tour de France, World Cup
Late!
Tuesday, July 6, 2010 at 08:36PM
Hi everyone and sorry for being late, but it's been a busy day. Started with a trip to the County seat and a meeting to go over the project with County Staff as a first run through. No red flags, some good info and all we need to start the rezoning. That will take a few months, but in the meantime we can be promoting the memberships and getting our plans finalized and contractors sorted.
Followed that with a meeting of the partners to go over our program for the next few weeks to finalize the name and logo, web site and promotional material. Oh yes, and move my furniture to Arizona. Xan is busy organizing that so that when the movers come we are ready. Interesting times.
Had a contact from Serbia about the FIA guidelines for a track. It is so hard for someone who has no background in this and the country has no history to even know how to start, had to feel sorry for him. Hopefully gave him some places to go and learn. Poor guy has been given this task because the client cannot afford to hire someone like me. How do they think they are going to afford to build the track if they cannot afford my fee? Like I said with Palestine, this sport just keeps on growing. I'm probably crazy, but I'll likely lay him out a track, my good deed for the year. What can I say, I love the sport.
Still not a lot of news to comment on. We have ALMS at Miller this weekend, not that you'd know it. British F1 GP which should be a great race. Lots of teams and drivers really wanting to win here, and it will be interesting to see what the new section does for the racing. World Cup Final, Holland already there, but sorry to my Dutch friends, I fancy Spain or Germany will beat them. Tour de France continues on its crazy way, the first week never usually this fraught. A lot of sore bike riders out there, and some just out.
Bernie says he is still trying for a race in New Jersey, overlooking Manhattan. When asked about what would happen if Austin did not come through he said that there were penalty clauses, but that he remains confident that this will not happen and says that the government "won't lose their money". However, he does sound one note of caution: "It's hard to promote anything in America. It will either get a following or it won't." Never a truer word spoken, after all he has been trying for thirty years. Long Beach, Detroit, Dallas, Phoenix, Indianapolis and now Austin?
Followed that with a meeting of the partners to go over our program for the next few weeks to finalize the name and logo, web site and promotional material. Oh yes, and move my furniture to Arizona. Xan is busy organizing that so that when the movers come we are ready. Interesting times.
Had a contact from Serbia about the FIA guidelines for a track. It is so hard for someone who has no background in this and the country has no history to even know how to start, had to feel sorry for him. Hopefully gave him some places to go and learn. Poor guy has been given this task because the client cannot afford to hire someone like me. How do they think they are going to afford to build the track if they cannot afford my fee? Like I said with Palestine, this sport just keeps on growing. I'm probably crazy, but I'll likely lay him out a track, my good deed for the year. What can I say, I love the sport.
Still not a lot of news to comment on. We have ALMS at Miller this weekend, not that you'd know it. British F1 GP which should be a great race. Lots of teams and drivers really wanting to win here, and it will be interesting to see what the new section does for the racing. World Cup Final, Holland already there, but sorry to my Dutch friends, I fancy Spain or Germany will beat them. Tour de France continues on its crazy way, the first week never usually this fraught. A lot of sore bike riders out there, and some just out.
Bernie says he is still trying for a race in New Jersey, overlooking Manhattan. When asked about what would happen if Austin did not come through he said that there were penalty clauses, but that he remains confident that this will not happen and says that the government "won't lose their money". However, he does sound one note of caution: "It's hard to promote anything in America. It will either get a following or it won't." Never a truer word spoken, after all he has been trying for thirty years. Long Beach, Detroit, Dallas, Phoenix, Indianapolis and now Austin?
tagged ALMS, Arizona, Austin, Bernie Ecclestone, F1, Serbia, Tour de France
The Future
Sunday, July 4, 2010 at 01:25PM
Who can question whether motor sport will continue when you read an article from our National Public Radio, NPR, sort of BBC but more independent, about women racers in Palestine! Yes there is a Palestine Motorsport Federation. I would have expected just owning a car in Palestine would be a big ask, let alone risking it in racing! And there is a female team. Where there is a will there is a way. How can you say motor racing is going to die when you see it growing in the most unlikely places. We will always race something running on some sort of fuel.
I know NASCAR is not going to die, but it is going through some pain. The second biggest race at Daytona and the back stretch grandstand is not even open. Even the Budweiser Porch, where they took out seats, was empty, and the RV parking next to it empty as well. Now, it is still attracting probably 150,000, not too shabby, but the glory days seem to be over. I was sucked in by the promise of seeing all the green laps, presuming Coke had paid for the broadcast and there would be no ads. They manage to go 45 minutes of a soccer half without them, so why not. Wrong, while we had picture in picture, it turned out to be one long commercial, if possible more annoying than if they had ad breaks.
If you want to see a sport that draws a crowd tune in to the Tour de France. 450,000 yesterday in Rotterdam, and many, many more on the route today. The most amazing thing to me is that they stand there for hours waiting just to see them go by once for probably less than a minute. How do we explain that or learn from it for our own sports. And this is a sport that they keep saying is a bunch of druggies! I do not think the average Joe is buying that. These guys are real athletes and heroes of sport.
Jean Todt thinks we should worship Michael Schumacher like that, "He demands respect." No one demands respect, you earn it. I do not care what he won, I still do not respect him. I respect his skill, but not the man. Stirling Moss never won a World Championship, but who could have more respect?
Our Japanese stand ins at the MotoGp certainly are not winning any respect. Akiyoshi managed to beat Dovizioso, but only after Dovizioso had fallen off!
I know NASCAR is not going to die, but it is going through some pain. The second biggest race at Daytona and the back stretch grandstand is not even open. Even the Budweiser Porch, where they took out seats, was empty, and the RV parking next to it empty as well. Now, it is still attracting probably 150,000, not too shabby, but the glory days seem to be over. I was sucked in by the promise of seeing all the green laps, presuming Coke had paid for the broadcast and there would be no ads. They manage to go 45 minutes of a soccer half without them, so why not. Wrong, while we had picture in picture, it turned out to be one long commercial, if possible more annoying than if they had ad breaks.
If you want to see a sport that draws a crowd tune in to the Tour de France. 450,000 yesterday in Rotterdam, and many, many more on the route today. The most amazing thing to me is that they stand there for hours waiting just to see them go by once for probably less than a minute. How do we explain that or learn from it for our own sports. And this is a sport that they keep saying is a bunch of druggies! I do not think the average Joe is buying that. These guys are real athletes and heroes of sport.
Jean Todt thinks we should worship Michael Schumacher like that, "He demands respect." No one demands respect, you earn it. I do not care what he won, I still do not respect him. I respect his skill, but not the man. Stirling Moss never won a World Championship, but who could have more respect?
Our Japanese stand ins at the MotoGp certainly are not winning any respect. Akiyoshi managed to beat Dovizioso, but only after Dovizioso had fallen off!
tagged Daytona, Jean Todt, Michael Schumacher, MotoGP, Motorsport, NASCAR, Tour de France