Sidepodcast

Daily: 17th February 2010

It's back to work for Formula 1 today, and for us as well, as testing resumes in Jerez. So far the forecasts have suggested more in the way of rain, but there will be a dedicated thread for all testing talk along later. I'm hoping the weather clears up a bit as it's much more exciting when things are actually happening out on track. Anyway, here are some things we're talking about:

• Mr C has been busy updating Ye Olde Comments, so if you visit any blog page, you'll find that there are a couple of improvements. The buttons have returned, allowing easy quoting and italicising of comments without having to remember the code itself. There's also the option to share comments now, along with whole articles. If you hover over the comment you're keen on, hit that share link, it'll send you on over to Twitter so you can spread the words of wisdom. Good work, Mr C.
• Our resident comic genius Stuart Taylor gave us a new situation to ponder with his latest guest post. The premise behind the pictures, aside from the obvious, is that things could always be worse. Joe Saward has also posted an article about a similar subject, albeit a little more frustrated about the subject.
• Meanwhile, back to testing, it seems as though James Allen is going to attempt to switch on the auto refresh on his super duper Twitter page. To be fair, we are a little bit skeptical about how long his site will stay up for, but having looked at it now, the main page is down but the Twitter bit is still up. There is hope! It will be interesting to see how it works and it will add yet another element to the testing proceedings.

That'll do for now, let us know how you're week is going, and what you're doing post-pancake day. I will see you in the comments.

F1 Debrief - LOL, Retweet!

• Length: 47:05 
• Size: 43.3 MB 
• File: debrief133.mp3 
• Transcript: Coming soon 
• Torrent: debrief133.torrent 

This week we discuss CBeebies, ARCA, exclamation marks, red vs orange, James Allen’s awesome Twitter thing, Kamui Kobayashi and Canadian coverage.

Intro

Our sincerest apologies, but this is definitely a Twitter heavy show.

Good Week / Bad Week

It's been a good week for the BBC, as they keep Anthony Davidson, and got to launch nothing at all. It's also a good week for Paul di Resta who was confirmed at Force India. It's been a bad week for Christian Klien and Nelson Piquet Jr, though, who are still outside of Formula 1.

News and Views

We have more launch coverage, with Toro Rosso revealing their year old Red Bull to the world during the test. Virgin Racing had an even worse time as their online launch didn't go very well at all, and even Twitter couldn't save them.

Also of note, testing was seriously popular which was unexpected, Twitter was huge, and Mercedes signed Heidfeld as their test driver.

Here's the updated table of our launch scores:

Feedback

A voicemail from Nick leads us into a discussion of GP2 vs F1, we get constructive criticism over our content and my pronunciation, plus some thoughts on how teams do and don't declare their fuel weights. We also almost get distracted by talk of LOST.

Housekeeping

There's a new rankings system in town, and it's based on some seriously technical algorithms, plus Kathi convinced Danny to start Fantasy WRC.

Linkage

• Jaime Alguersuari on Twitter
• Sidepodcast: F1 2010 Launch Coverage
• F1 Photos
• Virgin Racing
• James Allen's Twitter Thing
• Tweets of the Week
• Claire Williams on Twitter
• Media. Future. Change.
• Fantasy WRC
• Craig Scarborough on Twitter
• Sidepodcast: Introducing Christine's Rankings
• McRae Formula 5000

Daily: 26th November 2009

Thursday has arrived and although it is an unpopular day amongst Sidepodcast readers, I am determined we should all make the most of it. To help us along the way, here are some of the things we're talking about:

• Pitlane Fanatic have kicked off a great new series of posts, going deeper into some of the well-used phrases of an F1 weekend. This first entry looks at the racing line, particularly when cornering, and how getting it right can affect your performance when you come out of the corner. A very insightful post.
• James Allen has shared the latest in the Schumacher rumours, and although the speculation hasn't stopped, it still seems to be erring on the side of unlikely. I also enjoyed James' top 5 drivers post, where at the bottom he picks some winners of his book. He follows it by saying, if you didn't win, still buy the book anyway! Made me chuckle.
• Meanwhile, it seems like Simon Gillett just isn't ready to give up on the British GP dream, despite the fact that his company have gone into administration. He thinks the possibility is still there for a buyer to come in and save the day. Hmm.

That's all for now. Let us know what you're up to today and how your week is panning out, and I will see you in the comments.

Daily: 7th May 2009

I am taking back the reigns of the Daily post, thanks to Mr C for covering. We're both still under the weather, if we're honest, but we're soldiering on because there's some good racing around the corner, I just know it. Meanwhile, here's what we're talking about:

• It took them all day, but we finally found out what FOTA thought about the budget caps idea. They want to "talk about it." Now, I don't need to tell you that "we have to talk" is generally not a precursor to good news, but they haven't come out all guns blazing as I thought they might.
• Simon Gillett has been given to the end of June to sort out his paperwork for the British Grand Prix. It's the extension he was after, but you have to wonder why the documentation hasn't already been sorted, when DVLL has had the contract in place for about nine months.
• With news flying about with teams bringing new parts, and dropping existing technologies, James Allen wrote a good post a couple of days ago detailing each team's plans for the Spanish Grand Prix. Things may change before the action gets going, but it's definitely a good place to start.

That'll do it for now. Don't forget to check out the F1 Big Picture for the past few days, if you haven't already, as we've looked back into the history of the Spanish GP, and at what happened last year as well.

If You Can't Beat It, Fake It

I know a lot of people have managed to avoid being sucked into the land of Twitter, and I applaud you. I also suggest you do not continue to read this post as it's another one of those annoying blog entries about how cool fitting things into 140 characters is.

Sidepodcast has had a love/hate relationship with the Twitterverse for a while, ever since March 2007 where we signed up thinking it would be nothing more than a fad. Two years, and a brief trip to Identica and back, and it's fair to say we are hooked.

Twitter is useful for connecting to users when the site fails, for discussing things outside Sidepodcast's scope (as if there is such a thing anymore), and for finding out useful snippets from other people. James Allen and Lee McKenzie are often sources of paddock gossip, and it's good to discuss F1 with an entirely different set of people.

Recently, a new genre of Twitter has emerged and it is 100% proud to be fake. Posing as Formula 1 drivers, team bosses, and F1 big-wigs, the fake Twitterers are gradually taking over. At first, the number of microposts was overwhelming, but as the novelty has now died down, we're seeing some fabulous gems cropping up.

Here's an example of a conversation I had with Fake Jarno Trulli:

FJT - I listen to your podcast on plane to Bahrain (I made a rhyme!), it is excellent, but needs more Jarno in it!
mrschristine - Ah. We will possibly need to see more crashes like at Shanghai then. They're good for a few minutes discussion.
FJT - Pah, I will give you something far better, a win! No more crashing for Jarno!
mrschristine - If you win, promise to make you a special jingle and everything.
FJT - Hooray! As I said to my engineer a few years back in Turkey, 'I'm a pushing like a hell!' That's how much I'm going for it!

Then Trulli took pole position, and I told myself not to make anymore rash promises on Twitter.

Mr C also had a good conversation with Fake Sebastien Buemi when the (fake) Swiss joined the site:

FSB - Not impressed with @sidepodcast laughing at me: http://is.gd/rN7d (1:08 in) nooooo.
sidepodcast - you almost linked to the right one, you were so close, three episodes out... nooooo

Of course, the fake universe may not be everyone's cup of tea, and I don't think all of it is worth paying attention to. But occasionally there are snippets of genius, and let's face it, it's the closest we're going to get to chatting with an F1 driver on Twitter.

A full list of the fake drivers and company is available here and I recommend following one or two, if only to watch from a safe distance. I'm wondering if it's only a matter of time before we start to see more fake accounts. Fake Sidepodcast, anyone?

Sidepodpanel - Puddles

• Length: 38:10 
• Size: 35.1 MB 
• File: panel10.mp3 
• Transcript: Coming soon 
• Torrent: panel10.torrent 

Chris Evans stands in as a last minute host, but ably guides us through topics such as where Lewis Hamilton could go if he were to move teams, what F1 technology you would want in real life, and of course, there are imitations galore.

Joining us on tonight's panel:

• Gavin Brown
• Steven Roy
• Andy Taylor
• Pat W
• Scott Woodwiss
• Alex Andronov

Sidepodpanel will be back next week, assuming we can find a guest host to take the reigns. If you fancy having a go, please sign up on the wiki. If you'd rather take part as a panellist, there's also a page for that.

F1 Debrief - They Came From Far and Wide

• Length: 39:06 
• Size: 36.0 MB 
• File: debrief102.mp3 
• Transcript: Coming soon 
• Torrent: debrief102.torrent 

This week we discuss the Chinese Grand Prix, and update the Fantasy Racers competition, plus talk about our trip to London and the Science Museum to meet the lovely Sidepodcommunity.

Intro

Someone picked up a cold at the Science Museum, and it wasn't me!

Good Week / Bad Week

A good week for legal rear diffusers, and for Hamilton and Vettel being nominated for awards. A bad week for Ferrari who have to sort out their personnel, and for the Race of Champions who need to sort out their decision making.

News and Views

Why has Ron decided to go? We ponder the three possible reasons for his decision. We also discuss what is up with Flavio Briatore and his sudden hate for all things Brawn.

The Race

A Safety Car start meant the good action was delayed slightly, but once it started it was all go. We discuss some great pit stop work from Toyota, the difference between Heikki and Hamilton this race, plus whether Sutil should be embarrassed or not.

Fantasy Racers

I have regained some of my dignity and now place 12th in the league, whilst the other half sits down in 195th.

Feedback

An email from Keith the Marshal leads us into a voicemail from Lukeh, expertly imitating the BBC's Legard. Then we also hear from Sebastien who is disappointed with the Beeb's pitlane reporting.

Linkage

• Science Museum Exhibit
• My / Lukeh's / Pat's blog posts about the meetup
• Renault F1
• Gavin's spreadsheet
• Fantasy Racers
• F1 Digest
• Sidepodcast Wiki

Daily: 10th April 2009

This is it, my final daily post before I head off into the sunset... for a few days. I am leaving you in the capable hands of Mr C, and that should be scary for us all. No mention of pandas, or Franck, or Le Seb. How will you all cope? Oh well, here's what we're discussing at the moment:

• Bernie reckons McLaren could get a ban, especially considering they are "up in court" for the second time on a similar charge. James Allen also suggests that as the hearing is just before the British GP, it would make for some spectacular headlines. Oh dear.
• Speaking of the British race, Donington Park is due for another FIA inspection soon, and track boss Simon Gillett says this nugget: "When you work with the likes of Tilke to run your FIA submissions and track safety, you have got to say that you are betting on the right horses." Oh dear.
• Finally, we are all still pondering this Renault Roadshow crash, mostly because is it even possible to go so vastly off, seconds after starting in what can only be described as a straight line? Looks like a scary accident, but how was it even possible? Oh dear.

With those happy thoughts, I bid you adieu. I'll still be popping up in the comments from time to time, and I may post the odd picture to drop.io, just to make sure you don't forget me. Therefore, I will sign off with: Mr C will see you in the comments.

Keeping Track

Last year, a driver was only supposed to use one engine for two races. If his engine blew up and he needed a fresh one, a penalty was imposed. Personally, I found it quite hard to keep up with this. Was the driver on his first or second race with his engine? Would he be forced to back off in the closing stages, coasting to a points finish? Was he more or less likely to break down this time around? Is it a penalty, or did the problem occur in transit?

I tried to keep a record, but in the end, I didn’t feel it mattered that much. At the beginning of every race, ITV commentator James Allen would explain the ruling to us anyway, point out anyone affected, and Martin Brundle would pick up on those who were managing their engines.

This year, however, it’s all gone a little bit crazy. Now we have to keep an eye on the engine and the gearbox. We need to remember who is going back ten places and who only five. We need to count two rounds for the engines and four for the gearboxes. And worst of all, the first engine breakdown is a freebie, no penalty at all.

The FIA say they will monitor the first engine breakdown and make sure it is a genuine failure. I don’t see why. If a team wanted to waste their freebie on switching an engine just because they feel like it, that’s their choice. When one does break down, they’ll wish they hadn’t.

The point of my discussion here, however, is to decide how best to monitor this silly situation. To a certain degree we can still rely on commentators, but I’m in a position this year where I need to know.

I’ve been thinking about how to track the long-life components for a week or so now, and the best I can come up with is a spreadsheet. Drivers names down one column, races across the top. Each race has a column for the engine and one for the gearbox.

Print.

My high-tech plan for the season is to scribble a number one for the first race for each component, then a two for the next one (three’s and four’s as needed). I know, it’s quite ingenious, isn’t it? The FIA would never be able to think up anything quite so innovative.

Sarcasm over though, this is yet another layer of added complication for the casual fans, especially the new ones. It takes a certain level of dedication to devise a chart and religiously keep it up to date. You see it with football fanatics all the time. But the new or fickle armchair motorsport supporter isn’t going to be able to keep track of who is where and what they’re doing and more importantly why the fastest guy in Saturday's qualifying is starting from P16 because he blew his engine and gearbox on his in-lap.

Long life components are fine for the purpose of keeping costs down, and reducing the sport’s environmental footprint. But the other side of the coin is the risk of alienating current fans and increasing barriers to entry for newcomers.