Sidepodcast

F1 Debrief - This is an Absolute Nerdfest

• Length: 55:05 
• Size: 50.6 MB 
• File: debrief137.mp3 
• Transcript: Coming soon 
• Torrent: debrief137.torrent 

Coming up on this week's show, we talk about visits to the Queen, Williams holding a grudge, surreptitious snorkels, bumpy roads and singing commentators.

Intro

A curious thing has happened, in which Mr C finds himself agreeing with an unlikely source.

Good Week / Bad Week

It has been a good week for Brawn GP and Nick Fry as he accepted a Laureus award on their behalf. Jenson Button is also having a good time of it as he is fast becoming bi-lingual. It's been a bad week for Stefan GP, as their road to F1 might be a bit tough, whilst the Bahrain organisers struggle to control their champions.

News and Views

The McLaren wing kerfuffle seems to be over for now, although that only seems to be because the team didn't do so well in Bahrain. Elsewhere, it feels like the entire paddock is picking on Schumacher.

The Race

We recap some of the key points, including Chandhok's lack of laps, Vettel's reliability problems, and Webber's overfill of oil. We've created a fabulous Factbyte Factbox that has made the weekend much more interesting for us, which is lucky because the racing was dire. We decide to forego moaning about the race and instead let our voicemails do the talking.

Feedback

Two quick shoutouts, some emails regarding Fantasy Racers and pronunciation, a message from Sir Stirling Moss, and a note about how very nerdy the weekend has become.

Linkage

• Williams iWitness
• Darren Heath: Diminishing Returns
• Manipe F1
• mclaren.com
• Live Commenting
• Sidepodcast: Bahrain 2010 - Race Highlights
• Greta Cottage Workshop
• Alex Snell on GetJealous.com
• Stirling Moss

Bahrain 2010 - Team Standings

Ferrari had the best possible start to their championship campaign, whilst Red Bull could have got a lot, lot more. Both McLaren and Mercedes finished ahead of them.

Daily: 14th March 2010

It's Sunday at last and we are about to embark on our first Grand Prix of 2010. It's pretty exciting, and not just because the Factbyte Factbox will be making it's race debut. It was an exciting if hectic experience covering qualifying, so let's see what we can achieve over a full race distance! Anyway, here are some other things we're talking about:

• With extra teams on the grid, it looks as though the FIA have had to change parc ferme quite considerably. Adam Cooper has a good insight into the F1 spy cameras that are now overlooking the cars. We thought maybe it was a little bit Big Brother.
• Will Buxton has some thoughts on the new section of the track, particularly pointing out that: "Quite apart from the fact that there simply isn’t enough track length between corners to allow anyone to have a decent stab at a passing move, the track width is so slim that you can barely fit two cars side by side." Bahrain Fail?
• As a sort of final word on the McLaren vent, Scarbs F1 has a great explanation of how it works. I was still a bit confused but as it happens, it doesn't seem to be as important now that the McLarens didn't qualify that far up the grid anyway.

That's all for now. I hope everyone enjoys the race, and as always, I'll see you in the comments.

Daily: 12th March 2010

It's Friday and at long last the 2010 Season is underway. In just a few short hours we will be up again, ready to watch Free Practice 1 and from then on, it's all about the racing. Well, hopefully. There's lots of good stuff and many threads to come today, so keep your eyes peeled so you don't miss a thing.

• Jake has written another great blog post, this time talking about time spent with some of the drivers ahead of the weekend's action. I particularly find the Schumacher/Rosberg stuff fascinating because we've seen visual evidence of their distaste for each other now, and... it's scary stuff!
• It's the last day to change your Fantasy Racers teams and whilst there will be a reminder post along later, I thought it was worth mentioning now. Particularly as I want to give a shout out for Pat's fabulous post about the different prediction and fantasy F1 games that are available at the moment. I had no idea there were so many!
• All that stuff about McLaren's rear wing is coming to a head now the teams have gathered together, and there is plenty of discussion about the silver car's extra hole. Scarbs has the detail (for Mr C), whilst Autosport put it into English (for me). Ahh, controversy. Is it November yet?
• In self-promotion news, Mr C wrote a great introduction to the Force India podcast which makes a triumphant return for 2010. More audio from teams is greatly appreciated. The man also posted a breakout regarding Renault's new sponsor, and he actually managed to create a picture with no red in it. Woohoo!

That'll do it for now. I know you're excited already, so instead, why not tell me how and where you are watching Free Practice, if you are. I'll see you in the comments.

Daily: 11th March 2010

Hello and welcome to horrible Thursday. However, I believe this one won't be as bad as others we have experienced recently, as we are all focused on the goings on in Bahrain. We were super busy yesterday and we're going headfirst into the weekend in a similar fashion. Meanwhile, here are some things we're talking about:

• I was catching up on some blog feeds yesterday and discovered this excellent post from RG, discussing people in Formula One, and motorsport generally, in the north of England. I liked the post, even if it does appear that RG forgot all about Rob Smedley. Humph!
• Mr C's favourite blogger ScarbsF1 has a Bahrain Preview post up which goes into a bit more detail about the McLaren rear wing issue. We're expecting the FIA to inspect the part and make a decision in Bahrain, which is leaving it a bit late if you ask me.
• We posted plenty of fab things here on Sidepodcast yesterday, including your Bahrain Race Information. This tells you important facts and figures about the race, and highlights the TV and podcast schedule. The F1 Digest Preview was posted, and Mr C had a quick look at some of the new websites from teams.
• Also, for everyone who has been curious about the Joe Saward competition - it is now closed, but we have not yet picked a winner. We will do so as soon as we can, and let you know via the blog. If there's no post, it's because we haven't got our winner yet!

That should do it for now. Let's all keep our fingers crossed that Thursday goes okay, and I will see you in the comments.

Live Telemetry and More From F1 Teams This Year

This week, two F1 teams launched revamped websites to coincide with the new season. Both have taken different routes and both have pushed the online F1 experience forward in their own unique way.

AT&T Williams

The new Williams site offers inline commenting on all stories including news items, and iWitness columns. Additionally you can rate posts, and leave feedback on videos. This puts user generated content front and centre within the site. No longer are thoughts from fans tucked in a corner where people in suits hope no-one will spot them.

I love that the Williams teams have done this and the only downside appears to be the need to register before commenting. When Red Bull Racing revamped their site a few weeks back, they too opened comments on posts and multimedia items, but allowed anyone to comment with ease.

Another tantalising section of the Williams site promises driver blog updates throughout the year, apparently Rubens is up first and blogging in Bahrain. This is something we've been calling for since Sidepodcast started way back in 2007, and might just set new standards in F1 coverage.

One notable exemption from the Williams site, is the live timing system, which debuted during winter testing, and that is where McLaren have the edge.

Vodafone McLaren Mercedes

Team McLaren will to be pushing the technological envelope to it's maximum this weekend in Bahrain, with the launch of their new Race 1.0b Live Data Viewer. A system that will provide live information to fans during every practice session, qualifying and the race.

Credit: mclaren.com

A screenshot of the Race 1.0b live data viewer, offering insight from the pit wall.

McLaren are no strangers to supplying live updates over the web. Last year they came up with a peculiar telemetry widget which detailed information on braking and acceleration changes from both of their drivers on track.

The Race 1.0b (no I don't get the name either) appears to be a vast improvement though. Amongst other things, it promises:

• Live GPS circuit map data
• Detailed car telemetry
• Comments from the pit wall
• Comments from mission control (in Woking)

The accompanying teaser video also suggests driver radio messages will be transcribed and relayed back to us, which will be a massive boon after the commentators have talked all over them.

We are very much looking forward to seeing the 1.0b in action. Whilst we can't pretend to be huge fans of the revamped McLaren web site, the offer of live data more than makes up for the kooky design. In fact it pushes McLaren to the forefront of fan interaction. Can anyone raise them?

F1 Digest 2010 - Bahrain Preview

• Length: 11:05 
• Size: 10.2 MB 
• File: digest149.mp3 
• Transcript: digest149.pdf 
• Torrent: digest149.torrent 

The Formula One season finally gets underway with Bahrain replacing Australia at the start. We've got all the information you need to know from weather to driver quotes and my own predictions.

Vital Statistics

• Date: 14th March
• Circuit: Bahrain International
• Length: 6.3km
• Laps: 49

Preview

In the first digest preview of 2010, we solicit opinions on the Bahrain circuit, recap what happened in 2009, and run through what each of the teams is hoping for from the weekend. Notably, Lotus aren't feeling that positive, whilst McLaren and Ferrari are both confident they can do well.

Daily: 10th March 2010

Say hello to Wednesday as we reach the middle of the week. Who is getting unbelievably excited for Free Practice on Friday then? Yesterday we were discussing whether it was acceptable to leave a wedding early so you can watch qualifying. I say yes, how about you? Meanwhile, here are the other things we're talking about:

• The Factbyte Factbox had a radical overhaul yesterday and finally completed the goal we had in mind for it since it debuted a year ago - live updates. There's more information about what we're trying to achieve, and what happened during the brief test last night on this post. Don't worry if you missed it, though, it'll be back plenty of times during the season!
• It was a day for refreshing websites yesterday, as McLaren launched their new site, Williams had a fresh lick of paint, and Autosport introduced a new 2010 Season Guide. The new season preview edition of Grand Prix Plus emerged yesterday as well, so make sure you check that out if you haven't already. All good stuff that should keep you busy for a little while!
• Whilst doing a bit of admin for F1 Big Picture, it occurred to us that we'd fallen into our trap of introducing concepts and not really telling anyone about them, so we decided that for 2010 we'd try and be a bit more transparent - or at least plug things more. This post over on F1 minute explains the pattern our Big Pictures take ahead of each race.

That should do it for now. There's more good stuff to come today, so we'll be keeping busy, but I will see you in the comments.

Chandhok Makes His Christine's Rankings Debut

It's been a busy week in Formula 1, with the demise of US F1 and the rise of HRT F1. Terrible name, interesting driver pairing. Bruno Senna and Karun Chandhok were both present for the launch and some interesting tweeting occurred.

Elsewhere, there is movement upwards for Webber and Glock, whilst the McLaren boys finally get some points on the board - not all good though. I know plenty of people have been keen to see Hamilton and Button drop the 'N/A' status, and this is their week.

Notes:

1. If it's good enough for Senna, it's good enough for Timo: gaming and fitness collide.
2. A Lap of Bahrain with Mark Webber
3. It's not a great pic but I like it anyway: http://twitpic.com/16kpv1

This time next week we will have seen the first race of the season, so expect plenty of driver movements. If you spot anything I should include on the list then please let me know in the usual ways! I'm always open to suggestions.

Daily: 5th March 2010

Friday has reached us at last, and I know I'm not the only one who is glad Thursday is over. From the very beginning when I thought it was still February, everything that could go wrong seemed to go wrong. But never mind, we're on to another (hopefully better) day and here are some things we're talking about:

• The very badly named HRT team dominated headlines yesterday as they launched a new car and confirmed another driver. With a full line up now of Senna and Chandhok, they're gearing up for the season to begin and team principal Colin Kolles is still suggesting they could be the most successful of the new teams. I'm not sure about that, they haven't had a minute out on track.
• It looks as though we might be getting another of those pre-season controversies, with Red Bull "asking the question" about the McLaren's rear wing. This brings back so many bad memories of the diffuser issues before the 2009 season got underway, and through the first few races. Let's hope they can sort this out before it gets anywhere near overshadowing the action.
• Renault will be running some Lada branding on their car this year, as the manufacturer get on board sponsoring both the team and Vitaly Petrov. Presumably they don't mind the horrible red mirrors, then. The name looks good on the car, although I can't decide if that's just because it's nice to see sponsorship rather than empty chassis'.

That's all for now, let us know what you've got planned for the weekend, and I will see you in the comments.