Safety
Thursday, June 2, 2011 at 10:49AM
A few coincidences in the last few days have prompted me to write about motorsport safety. I was due to join a panel discussion after a showing of the Senna film in London next week, but the technical difficulties of doing it from Phoenix proved too much. One of the things I was asked to comment on was the impact Senna's death had on safety.
It is true the events of that weekend prompted Max Mosley to re-light the need to improve safety that Sir Jackie Stewart started and which had perhaps lost momentum. Senna's was the last death in F1, so perhaps it worked, but it made me consider what had really changed.
The biggest steps have come with the cars themselves, and as we saw at the weekend in Monaco drivers can now survive virtually intact some huge accidents thanks to the “survival cell” that surrounds them, but what of the tracks themselves? Have we really seen such a great improvement, and the real question for me is what has been done for the bulk of competitors at National level and below?
Safety costs money, and most competitors and track owners do not have any. As a track inspector here in the US I face the problem of telling an owner he needs to fix something, only to be told he cannot afford it, and he can’t. I had a track manager tell me the other day that they subsidize track rentals by around 40% because that is what the market will bear.
The Tecpro barrier is a case in point. They may be better, but only tracks run by Governments can afford them. Jarno Zaffelli sent me information the other day on an installation he is supervising at Imola, but said that cost was not an issue. Well for most of us it is, and having tires is better than nothing. There is also a better mesh available for the debris fence, at a price, but I cannot get proper fences built now, let alone the best one.
Even for F1 tracks we still see corners like the last one in Sao Paulo, which cannot be changed till next year despite two deaths there in other events, and we have street events in Valencia and Singapore which by their nature have to be a compromise. The last corner in Korea was not a great example either, as was the wall that Webber hit. Yes we have asphalt run off everywhere these days, but again at what cost? You probably add about 200% to the area of asphalt at a track, and that is probably the most expensive piece. It was said in Abu Dhabi that the walls were moved closer to give it more of a street track feel. And now they are going to bring MotoGP there?
The cost of most tracks is about one tenth of what is spent on F1, they have to make money, so how is safety going to improve? This does not even take into account the thousand or so little tracks here in the US that operate on a shoestring without basic knowledge of safety in most cases. It’s OK having helicopters, fast intervention vehicles, surgical units and loads of fire fighters and doctors for GP’s, but what about Joe Bloe on a Saturday night in his sprint car?
All the effort is being made at the top level, but there are huge numbers of competitors at risk below that who are not receiving enough attention. Here in the US the Sports Car Club have been trying to improve things through a track review program with limited success, and they have great training for their officials and safety teams, but that is the real extent of it.
On a different note, it seems my prediction of Nick Worth's departure came true very quickly, and the lifting of the state of emergency in Bahrain did not change much on the ground.
It is true the events of that weekend prompted Max Mosley to re-light the need to improve safety that Sir Jackie Stewart started and which had perhaps lost momentum. Senna's was the last death in F1, so perhaps it worked, but it made me consider what had really changed.
The biggest steps have come with the cars themselves, and as we saw at the weekend in Monaco drivers can now survive virtually intact some huge accidents thanks to the “survival cell” that surrounds them, but what of the tracks themselves? Have we really seen such a great improvement, and the real question for me is what has been done for the bulk of competitors at National level and below?
Safety costs money, and most competitors and track owners do not have any. As a track inspector here in the US I face the problem of telling an owner he needs to fix something, only to be told he cannot afford it, and he can’t. I had a track manager tell me the other day that they subsidize track rentals by around 40% because that is what the market will bear.
The Tecpro barrier is a case in point. They may be better, but only tracks run by Governments can afford them. Jarno Zaffelli sent me information the other day on an installation he is supervising at Imola, but said that cost was not an issue. Well for most of us it is, and having tires is better than nothing. There is also a better mesh available for the debris fence, at a price, but I cannot get proper fences built now, let alone the best one.
Even for F1 tracks we still see corners like the last one in Sao Paulo, which cannot be changed till next year despite two deaths there in other events, and we have street events in Valencia and Singapore which by their nature have to be a compromise. The last corner in Korea was not a great example either, as was the wall that Webber hit. Yes we have asphalt run off everywhere these days, but again at what cost? You probably add about 200% to the area of asphalt at a track, and that is probably the most expensive piece. It was said in Abu Dhabi that the walls were moved closer to give it more of a street track feel. And now they are going to bring MotoGP there?
The cost of most tracks is about one tenth of what is spent on F1, they have to make money, so how is safety going to improve? This does not even take into account the thousand or so little tracks here in the US that operate on a shoestring without basic knowledge of safety in most cases. It’s OK having helicopters, fast intervention vehicles, surgical units and loads of fire fighters and doctors for GP’s, but what about Joe Bloe on a Saturday night in his sprint car?
All the effort is being made at the top level, but there are huge numbers of competitors at risk below that who are not receiving enough attention. Here in the US the Sports Car Club have been trying to improve things through a track review program with limited success, and they have great training for their officials and safety teams, but that is the real extent of it.
On a different note, it seems my prediction of Nick Worth's departure came true very quickly, and the lifting of the state of emergency in Bahrain did not change much on the ground.
Lotus, Renault?
Wednesday, June 1, 2011 at 12:22PM
Hot on the heels of the concerns raised about Lotus Renault finances there is a very interesting piece by Joe Saward today on the goings on behind the scenes.
http://joesaward.wordpress.com/
As I said, Tony Fernandes only has to wait this out. It also seems the question of drivers is far from over with Grosjean's name being mentioned despite a less than stellar performance last time out in F1, and a falling out between Kubica's manager and Lopez from GenII Capital.
Reports are coming in that the crane at the chicane in Monaco is to be moved so the run off can be moved back another 20 meters. The logic is that an accident there will bring out a red flag or safety car so there is no rush to move a car, but that is not necessarily true if it is down the escape road. Still, as often is the case it is a choice between less than perfect options. I forgot to comment on the removal of Maldanado's car in less than a lap last weekend, that's less then a minute from when the leaders were expected, so great job. If you read the comments my view on tires is "old fashioned'" but perhaps so am I and glad to be. At the Circuit Forum in Cologne last year Hubert Gramling, scientific adviser to the FIA Institute, proved that straw bales actually worked better, how old fashioned can you get! No one is suggesting going back to them as they of course catch fire and make a mess when you hit them, but it goes to show that not all new ideas are better. Remember when catch fences were all the rage, and then gravel, ploughed this way and that, and now we have asphalt everywhere. Yes you can go under tires, but Perez was not so far from going under the Tecpro, especially if he went in nose first. Anyway, I am happy to spark debate and will publish all comments even if they disagree with me.
It seems that Rosberg is re-signing with Mercedes up to 2016. He must believe Ross Brawn when he says the 2012 car will be "excellent."
Someone not keen to extend a relationship seems to be Virgin who are reported to be looking to tie up with McLaren in a similar way as Force India. Sorry Nick Worth and Cosworth. Still, Cosworth look like picking up Lotus Renault next year. Lotus Cosworth? Now that has a familiar ring to it.
Bahrain's "state of emergency" is lifted today. Now what? The FIA says it will listen to the teams, who object to the calendar being extended but will not come out in public and say they do not want to go. Gutless.
http://joesaward.wordpress.com/
As I said, Tony Fernandes only has to wait this out. It also seems the question of drivers is far from over with Grosjean's name being mentioned despite a less than stellar performance last time out in F1, and a falling out between Kubica's manager and Lopez from GenII Capital.
Reports are coming in that the crane at the chicane in Monaco is to be moved so the run off can be moved back another 20 meters. The logic is that an accident there will bring out a red flag or safety car so there is no rush to move a car, but that is not necessarily true if it is down the escape road. Still, as often is the case it is a choice between less than perfect options. I forgot to comment on the removal of Maldanado's car in less than a lap last weekend, that's less then a minute from when the leaders were expected, so great job. If you read the comments my view on tires is "old fashioned'" but perhaps so am I and glad to be. At the Circuit Forum in Cologne last year Hubert Gramling, scientific adviser to the FIA Institute, proved that straw bales actually worked better, how old fashioned can you get! No one is suggesting going back to them as they of course catch fire and make a mess when you hit them, but it goes to show that not all new ideas are better. Remember when catch fences were all the rage, and then gravel, ploughed this way and that, and now we have asphalt everywhere. Yes you can go under tires, but Perez was not so far from going under the Tecpro, especially if he went in nose first. Anyway, I am happy to spark debate and will publish all comments even if they disagree with me.
It seems that Rosberg is re-signing with Mercedes up to 2016. He must believe Ross Brawn when he says the 2012 car will be "excellent."
Someone not keen to extend a relationship seems to be Virgin who are reported to be looking to tie up with McLaren in a similar way as Force India. Sorry Nick Worth and Cosworth. Still, Cosworth look like picking up Lotus Renault next year. Lotus Cosworth? Now that has a familiar ring to it.
Bahrain's "state of emergency" is lifted today. Now what? The FIA says it will listen to the teams, who object to the calendar being extended but will not come out in public and say they do not want to go. Gutless.
Day After
Tuesday, May 31, 2011 at 02:12PM
The day after a long weekend of racing and not much stirring the blood. Lewis continues to dominate the news with some observers agreeing he was badly treated for trying to overtake on a track that is nearly impossible. Now the Station Hairpin, showing my age, was never on, the only move that worked there was Schumacher on Rosberg and as team mates they gave each other room. Lewis was never far enough alongside Massa to do it, and without the benefit of replay I do not think he was far enough alongside Maldanado to make it stick. His move on Schumacher earlier at that corner seemed to me to almost wheel to wheel and Michael had to let him have it. Whatever the circumstances his comments afterwards were totally out of order, as I think he has since realised, but the damage is done. He says he is not changing his approach and if he continues to be penalized he will quit F1, which is again a silly comment from one of the top drivers. Is he missing his father's steadying hand, or was that what caused the split?
Joe Saward has some interesting photos of the two passes at Ste-Devote:
http://img23.imageshack.us/img23/8572/hamiltonmonaco2011t1.jpg
http://img857.imageshack.us/img857/3797/hamiltonmonacoturn1b.jpg
It's all just inches, but it looks to me that he was further alongside Michael, and not convinced that Maldanado moved over on Lewis, you'd have to look at Maldanado's previous laps to see what his usual line was.
Eric Boullier is playing down the stories of Lotus Renault's financial problems, saying all is well. He is telling Heidfeld that he needs to lift his game though. I must say I think we all expected more out of Nick, but perhaps this is why he was without a drive?
Bahrain has again come out and said they are ready to stage the race. You all know my thoughts on this, but read the BS on pit pass.
http://www.pitpass.com/43806-Bahrain-ready-and-waiting-to-host-2011-race
Joe Saward has some interesting photos of the two passes at Ste-Devote:
http://img23.imageshack.us/img23/8572/hamiltonmonaco2011t1.jpg
http://img857.imageshack.us/img857/3797/hamiltonmonacoturn1b.jpg
It's all just inches, but it looks to me that he was further alongside Michael, and not convinced that Maldanado moved over on Lewis, you'd have to look at Maldanado's previous laps to see what his usual line was.
Eric Boullier is playing down the stories of Lotus Renault's financial problems, saying all is well. He is telling Heidfeld that he needs to lift his game though. I must say I think we all expected more out of Nick, but perhaps this is why he was without a drive?
Bahrain has again come out and said they are ready to stage the race. You all know my thoughts on this, but read the BS on pit pass.
http://www.pitpass.com/43806-Bahrain-ready-and-waiting-to-host-2011-race
Last Turn
Monday, May 30, 2011 at 02:41PM
No not the last turn club, the last turns at Indy and Charlotte. Both the Indy 500 and Coca-Cola 600 were won and lost at the last corner. Earnhardt Jr. had his best run for a long time only to run out of fuel, but J.R. Hilderbrand had even worse luck crashing at turn 4 at Indy. He almost won even so, Wheldon only just beating him to the line even though he was still on all four wheels. Reminded me of Adelaide in '85 when one of the Ligiers finished on three wheels.
Pirelli finally did something I agree with, coming out and saying the rule should be changed to prevent tire changes under red flag conditions. Ruined the race for the fans. Let's hope someone is taking note.
Martin Brundle echoes my thoughts, speaking of Lewis he said “You wonder if he needs a bit of a mindset change.” I'm afraid Lewis is becoming a whiner, nothing is his fault. The Stewards have apparently accepted his explanation and apology, but I doubt the FIA are going to let it go at that. Bringing the sport into disrepute?
Ferrari has continued their opposition to the 4 cylinder engine and has proposed a V6 for 2015, with the V8's being limited by fuel and with KERS to make them "green." Cosworth came out and said the 4 cylinder isn't green anyway. Todt has come out now and said he is looking for harmony, so maybe the engine deal is not decided yet.
Pirelli finally did something I agree with, coming out and saying the rule should be changed to prevent tire changes under red flag conditions. Ruined the race for the fans. Let's hope someone is taking note.
Martin Brundle echoes my thoughts, speaking of Lewis he said “You wonder if he needs a bit of a mindset change.” I'm afraid Lewis is becoming a whiner, nothing is his fault. The Stewards have apparently accepted his explanation and apology, but I doubt the FIA are going to let it go at that. Bringing the sport into disrepute?
Ferrari has continued their opposition to the 4 cylinder engine and has proposed a V6 for 2015, with the V8's being limited by fuel and with KERS to make them "green." Cosworth came out and said the 4 cylinder isn't green anyway. Todt has come out now and said he is looking for harmony, so maybe the engine deal is not decided yet.
tagged Charlotte, F1 engines, FIA, Ferrari, Indy, Lewis Hamilton, Pirelli
Charlotte, F1 engines, FIA, Ferrari, Indy, Lewis Hamilton, Pirelli Lewis
Sunday, May 29, 2011 at 02:48PM
Monaco continued to give us some major crashes, and thanks to the design of the modern F1 car they all walked away, figuratively. A couple of things stood out in the race for me. "Controlled aggression" is what they say you need around here, but Lewis forgot about the controlled bit. I don't know if it was the mistake by his engineers in not sending him out early in the Q3 session started this, but I am beginning to wonder where his head is at. You know I am a fan and said after Turkey that Whitmarsh should not be asking him to avoid aggressive moves, but maybe he is seeing something we are not, until today. OK, that aggression got him past Michael, just, but his moves on Masssa and Maldanado where not smart. We saw it on the first lap in Monza last year, and just maybe we have gone over that fine line between great passing moves and stupid ones. I cannot help asking where he would have finished if he had just driven a calm race, probably fourth or fifth. His comment about being called in front of the Stewards 5 times in 6 races "may be because he is black" is a very unfortunate statement by someone not in control. Let's hope an apology is forthcoming.
The other thing I cannot understand is why under a red flag teams are allowed to work on the cars and change tires? Number one this robbed us of a great finish and penalized Alonso and Button. I know it is the rule, I am just at a loss at what that is trying to achieve? It was obvious that no one was going to pass once they all had new tires, the only thing the restart accomplished is Maldanado's car being damaged in a crash. Vettel has to be congratulated on being able to get that many laps out of the soft tire, I for one could not believe he was not stopping again. The track helped of course, but the still had to drive faultlessly. Mark Webber's luck did not get any better with a delayed pit stop.
Aussie Daniel Ricciardo did his resume no harm by winning the FR 3.5 race, while Alexander Rossi seems to have had a good race before tangling with a back marker.
Kimi finished 27th in his Nationwide debut, and did not enjoy it much by the sound of it, complaining about how hot the cars are. The race was on the same time as the soccer, so missed it, but the commentators agreed he drove well, losing time with a pit exit speeding penalty and split splitter, if that does not sound too odd.
Checa is hot at a freezing Miller Park in the WSBK qualifying, nearly a second if front of second placed man Camier, and over a second on Biaggi.
Now I am going to crave your indulgence and talk about soccer and Barcelona. The Champions League Final was a great match, played in good spirit, but Barcelona were just too good for Man U, in fact too good for anyone. Watching the game it struck me that Barca play the game like a bull fight. Barnard's lost it I hear you say, but bear with me. If you have not seen a bullfight it is a mind game between the matador and the bull. The bull charges into the ring, going for anything and everything, much like Man U started. But as with the bull, that aggression is absorbed and gradually abates as Barca exert a little pressure back, controlling the ball and taunting the other team as happens in the ring with the bull. Eventually the matador uses his cape to mesmerize the bull, just as Barca's short passing game and ball control does to the opposition. At times Man U's defence were static, just watching until the "sword" was applied, the rapier pass through the gap to a player open in front of goal. So 3-1 is the result, and some team has to figure out how to match them at this game. Barca controlled the ball for 70% of the time, and this against one of the other great teams in the world!
If I may continue, I could watch Messi play all day, every day. Not only is he the best player in the world today, perhaps of all time, or will be, but his enjoyment at playing is evident whatever is happening to him. Lewis could learn something here. It does not matter if he has just missed a goal or been taken down by a cynical foul, he gets up smiling. Nothing fazes him. His mind must be amazing. I know mine is more like Lewis'.
The other thing I cannot understand is why under a red flag teams are allowed to work on the cars and change tires? Number one this robbed us of a great finish and penalized Alonso and Button. I know it is the rule, I am just at a loss at what that is trying to achieve? It was obvious that no one was going to pass once they all had new tires, the only thing the restart accomplished is Maldanado's car being damaged in a crash. Vettel has to be congratulated on being able to get that many laps out of the soft tire, I for one could not believe he was not stopping again. The track helped of course, but the still had to drive faultlessly. Mark Webber's luck did not get any better with a delayed pit stop.
Aussie Daniel Ricciardo did his resume no harm by winning the FR 3.5 race, while Alexander Rossi seems to have had a good race before tangling with a back marker.
Kimi finished 27th in his Nationwide debut, and did not enjoy it much by the sound of it, complaining about how hot the cars are. The race was on the same time as the soccer, so missed it, but the commentators agreed he drove well, losing time with a pit exit speeding penalty and split splitter, if that does not sound too odd.
Checa is hot at a freezing Miller Park in the WSBK qualifying, nearly a second if front of second placed man Camier, and over a second on Biaggi.
Now I am going to crave your indulgence and talk about soccer and Barcelona. The Champions League Final was a great match, played in good spirit, but Barcelona were just too good for Man U, in fact too good for anyone. Watching the game it struck me that Barca play the game like a bull fight. Barnard's lost it I hear you say, but bear with me. If you have not seen a bullfight it is a mind game between the matador and the bull. The bull charges into the ring, going for anything and everything, much like Man U started. But as with the bull, that aggression is absorbed and gradually abates as Barca exert a little pressure back, controlling the ball and taunting the other team as happens in the ring with the bull. Eventually the matador uses his cape to mesmerize the bull, just as Barca's short passing game and ball control does to the opposition. At times Man U's defence were static, just watching until the "sword" was applied, the rapier pass through the gap to a player open in front of goal. So 3-1 is the result, and some team has to figure out how to match them at this game. Barca controlled the ball for 70% of the time, and this against one of the other great teams in the world!
If I may continue, I could watch Messi play all day, every day. Not only is he the best player in the world today, perhaps of all time, or will be, but his enjoyment at playing is evident whatever is happening to him. Lewis could learn something here. It does not matter if he has just missed a goal or been taken down by a cynical foul, he gets up smiling. Nothing fazes him. His mind must be amazing. I know mine is more like Lewis'.