Bob Barnard Track Engineering

After watching as much as I could take of the ALMS offering of the race from Mid Ohio yesterday, which was not much, I asked my mates Tony Dowe and Tom Kjos their view, just to make sure I was not over-reacting. Most of you were saved this latest idea from the brains trust. It looked and sounded like a movie, aimed at the complete idiot who knew nothing about the sport, and mimicked a NASCAR offering featuring the team radio traffic. As Tony said "They are trying to attract the “casual” viewer that has little or no knowledge of what racing is about for the lowest possible cost, they will kill it!"

Following my comments in yesterday's blog about Dorna and Moto3 I had to ask is motorsport dying as a spectator sport? Tony in his usual fashion was blunt. "Yes, thanks to the suits and accountants who think they know what the public wants." It seems they most care about what their bottom line wants, what the TV wants, what the manufacturers want, and least of all about what we want to watch.  With even NASCAR struggling to fill the stands you have to ask where is this going? OK, some will say it is the economy, but can they tell me that soccer and football attendances are down? What about the TV figures, it does not cost most folks to sit at home and watch.

Is motorsport turning into a "hobby" for enthusiasts? For years the joke has been that to make a small fortune in motor racing start with a big one, but it is true for almost everyone except a fortunate few, and very few, who make money at this, so yes it is a hobby. That would account for the rise in country club tracks to cater for this growing number that want to drive fast and not go racing, at non-spectator tracks. For most series you may as well say they are non-spectator events now, look at Grand Am.

FOTA has just staged a fan town hall meeting so at least they recognize the need to address what the fan wants, but their hands are tied for most of the changes that we want by the "powers that be."

There seems to be general agreement that the Czech MotoGP was a pretty boring event. So what went wrong? Motorcycle GP's used to be the most exciting form of racing. We know what went wrong. The manufacturers wanted four strokes, Dorna wanted to make it "cheaper" and no one invested in young talent, so now when the Doctor retires it is basically done. Oh Yes, Valentino and Yamaha et al confirmed what we all knew, he is going to Ducati. That will spice things up for a season, maybe, but what then.

In other news Mr. Schumacher is blaming the car for all his woes, I guess it steered itself into Barrichello? Bahrain is to revert to the original track layout for next years GP, it seems you can have too many corners after all. Korea has delayed the obligatory race meeting prior to the F1 GP, so they are cutting this fine, although with a street race like Adelaide we had no "dress rehearsal." Jean-Eric Vergne clinched the British F3 title with a win in the third race at Silverstone, so presumably is free to go off and try his hand at something faster.

Saw TV footage of the desert race that claimed the lives of eight spectators. To say it was totally out of control would be complimentary. It looked like a cross between Spring Break on Daytona Beach and the Portuguese round of the World Rally Championship. People right next to the course  and on it, not that the "course" was defined in any way. How do the organizers, and I use the term loosely, live with themselves?

Yesterday's and this mornings results were predictable. Danica lived down to her expectations and finished 27th having struggled all race and went laps down early on. This was a Nationwide race and on this form she is a shoe-in to get an F1 ride. She does get press coverage though, more than the winner of the race did. If that is why you are racing then I guess it is a great result, but most of us go racing to try and win.

In Brno Mr. Lorenzo continued on his winning way. One English friend called it the dullest race all year, and there have been a few. I expected Valentino to do better with his couple of weeks to recuperate, but no. Looks like Lorenzo has the Championship sewn up baring a major crash. The Moto2 race sounded a far better race, but we won't see that till this afternoon, and we do not get the 125's at all, not that it sounded great. The young English pole setter faded in the race so I guess that was not much fun to watch either Eddie?

The big news is that the last two-stoke class will disappear in 2012 and be replaced by Moto3, they were up all night thinking that up. So instead of three great classes, all worthy in their own right, we have now a distinct system of second and third class citizens. It is a 250cc single, four stroke of twice the size to presumably make the same horsepower. And this is progress? That is what made the two stroke so popular, it was more efficient, and isn't that what being "green" is all about?  It was simpler too. I remember Brian Hart who was making an F1 engine at the time being in our garage at Mugello and being astounded that we stripped the engines after each practice and warm up! He said they did not open an engine at the track, too complicated, just got another out of the crate if one went bad.

Of course this is done in the name of cost cutting and progress. At least it is not a one make series. Have the ticket prices been cut as a result of all this cost cutting? How about Dorna's profits? Has anyone asked the punters who pay to watch what they prefer? I for one vote for the two stroke days, and I do not feel alone, or someone living in the past.

Back in Britain Mr. Vergne had to settle for third in the reverse grid F3 sprint race, not much point putting it on pole in that scenario is it?

Here in the US there was an horrendous accident and eight deaths at an off-road race in Baja California. Unprotected spectators hit by a car. That is going to have repercussions. Driver had to run away to escape the wrath of the crowd, but who's fault is it, probably not his. Motor racing in whatever form involves drivers pushing themselves and their equipment to the limit of their performance, and inevitably beyond it. So as a track designer I start with the basis that there will be an accident, now how to mitigate the impact on the driver, and avoid harm to spectators. So, don't blame the driver when he crashes, after all that is what most of the punters have come to see. Ask why were the spectators there without protection? My condolences to the families and the injured. As I said, predictable.

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.

There is a connection on Facebook to Paddock Talk that has good press clippings from all over on F1, or you can go to http://paddocktalk.com/news/. In today's is a piece on how the German GP made a profit! They were hoping to break even, but the Mayor confirmed that they made about $180,000, but would have lost a bit over $9m on Bernie's original deal. Not bad though for building and maintaining a track, promoting and running an event. I hope Tavo and Red McCombs are reading this stuff. If Tavo gets his way and runs the race for forty years that is $7.2m, provided he has the same good deal as the Germans. Pretty good return on $250m plus investment, not.

Elsewhere Spa is expressing concern about breaking even with an F1 GP and staying on the calendar. This is the best track we have and it would criminal to lose it. There was a discussion on LinkedIn about your favorite sequence of corners. I have one, Spa!

On another article it says four drivers are "bying" for a seat at HRT. Is this a misprint or is it an intentional play on how to get a ride at HRT?

Rumors continue to circulate that the Korean GP track will not be finished. Surely with two months to go it is obvious if it is or not? I know with one month to go before we finished Daytona back in 2004 there were many doubters, but we had the track back and running early and knew we could make it. Bernie is reported to have offered the Aragon track in Spain the race, but Aragon will not stump up the fee.

Over at Brno it was business as usual for Lorenzo, quickest in first practice for the Czech MotoGP. Rossi was third, and Stoner, on what will soon be Rossi's Ducati, could only manage sixth. Early days though.

Sorry to hear about Hans Stuck's blood clot as a result of a racing accident a month ago, get well soon Hans.

English Premier League kicks off this weekend, go Spurs!

At home I am waiting for attorneys to show up to discuss an expert witness case, should be an interesting morning.

So it is summertime and the living is easy. Let's all go on vacation during the best weather  and then go back to racing when autumn arrives. Is there logic in this? Is it too hot for the competitors or the spectators? Do the spectators have better things to do? This to me is an ideal time to race, Soccer and American Football have not started yet, and there are no other major events to compete with. Do the teams want to go on holiday when the weather is good? I would think they could afford to go somewhere warm even if it is November/December. If the teams need a break make it at the end of the season. You cannot convince me that the designers have switched off their brains and are laying on a beach in Brighton.

Only bright spot is the MotoGP race from Brno starting tomorrow.

Personally it looks like I have a temporary track to design and set up next year. These are always a challenge, but satisfying to get right. Lots of detail and it all comes together at the last minute. You start with an almost clean slate, and it all has to be set out on paper so everyone knows their piece of the puzzle when the time comes. Always daunting when you look at your checklist from previous events, but it is a question of prioritizing like any construction job. Then there is managing the track during the event as there are no permanent staff like a normal track to look after things.