Hypothetically speaking, imagine there were a seven times Formula 1 World Champion, who despite a career marred by controversy, opted to bow out at the top of his game. Imagine also, that in doing so he earned the respect of even his strongest critics, and that during his last appearance managed pull off the move of the race, putting a number on his replacement in the process.
Credit: Mercedes GP Petronas
A bad day at the office for the comeback kid.
Stretching reality to its limit, imagine that such a person would decide after almost three years away from the sport, to replace a sidelined ex-teammate in an awful car. Feigning injury would likely be the only way out of that situation, reputation still intact.
Imagine still, that such a person would then choose to make a season long comeback for the reigning World Champions, and in the first qualifying session of the year, manage only 7th position. Two whole places behind a teammate who nobody in the paddock rates highly and who's yet to achieve anything of note in his four year career. That kind of result could be painful to swallow for someone used to achieving so much.
Mind you, if such a situation had occurred, words could not describe how happy a certain person would be feeling right now.
I didn't mention Janna's birthday in the daily post today, because I knew we had a guest post stored up and waiting. Here, Janna tells us what she would like for her birthday.
It’s my birthday today and I keep being asked what I would like or what I’m getting. I like birthdays and I like being given presents but, even more than that, I like giving to someone else something I know they will really enjoy.
With that in mind, and because Christine & Mr C are too nice to ask themselves, I wanted to remind everyone about supporting Sidepodcast.
This site, and all of the podcasts, are the product of Mr & Mrs C’s “spare” time and dedication. They do this because they want to but it takes up a lot of their time and a considerable amount of money. They provide us with an amazing amount of F1 news and a site where we can share our views on all things F1 (and not) supported by their hard work.
You can support Sidepodcast from the home page. You can donate any amount for as a UK supermarket says “Every little helps”.
So, if you love listening to the podcasts, if you enjoy lurking in the comments to catch up on the latest panda news, or if you comment constantly, Sidepodcast supports us all and we need to give something back.
Finally, I started lurking on Sidepodcast around this time last year and de-lurked in July. I want to thank Christine, Mr C and all of the commenters for making the last year much better than it would otherwise have been. If you are lurking, they’re a really welcoming bunch, come and say hello, and don’t forget to donate.
As time passes, there is more and more in F1 that we need to try and keep track of. Bernie keeps on adding to the race calendar, there are more teams ready to launch and new drivers keep popping up with birthdays. The only thing there is less of is testing, but we still need to follow that as well. To aid us in the pursuit of remembering stuff, we have created an über-calendar - currently available below and in the playground.
A year or so ago, we created two separate Google calendars - one for F1 Minute, with all the race and launch dates on there, and one for Sidepodcast with an attempt at an upcoming podcast schedule. Neither of them did exactly what we wanted and they were gradually dropped as we moved on to other things.
Now that the need for a calendar has cropped up again, we decided to put our minds to the task and come up with a proper solution. Hopefully, we feel we have done that. Google allows the option to create many different calendars - really these should be called categories, I think - and you can feature them all on the same one, or you can pick and choose which are displayed. In this way, we have created the option of seeing the driver birthdays in one colour, and the non-F1 events in another. Those are just two of the calendar categories we created. In full, they are:
Commenter Birthdays & Anniversaries
Driver Birthdays & Anniversaries
F1 Minute Schedule
F1 Schedule
Non-F1 Events
Sidepodcast Schedule
Hopefully, these are quite self-explanatory, but a couple of things to note: the Sidepodcast calendar features all related things, including podcasts, live streams, special events, and meetups. The F1 schedule has races, launches, testing, and court dates. The non-F1 events include Autosport, Goodwood and things we will likely live comment such as Le Mans 24 Hours.
There is also a calendar over on F1 Minute, which selectively shows the F1 Minute and F1 Schedule, tailor-made to be slightly less cluttered.
If you are a Google user, you can even add them to your own iGoogle homepage, or calendar, by means of the little button in the bottom right. Click the plus, they'll be added, and you can then set your own reminders and such-like.
We are still tweaking the calendar, hence why it remains in the playground. The customisability seems to be endless, so we are also taking suggestions. I'm hoping to use the calendar to aid in some of the daily posts as well, so if anyone has links or thoughts about notable dates to remember, let us know. Plus, if I have missed your birthday, please do shout and I'll add it in.
In the middle of 2008, we shared information on where money from your very generous donations ended up, in the name of Sidepodcast. Back then, it was tickets to various events and subscriptions to the online services that supplement the podcast and site. Fast forward a year (and a bit, sorry this post is late), and we have shiny and exciting things to show off.
Our wonderful community has been even more generous in the past 12+ months, allowing us to purchase things that have turned our little podcast into a multimedia extravaganza! Okay, I am exaggerating quite a lot, but we have bought plenty of fun things!
Mobile Insight
We've talked at great length previously about the merits and pitfalls of the Official F1 app. Generally speaking the concept is excellent, but it seems to crash more than one would hope. It's not cheap either, so we put some of your donations to good use and purchased a season pass. Now, Mr C wouldn't be without it and I have to admit the track map with positioning of cars is something of a bonus.
A Massive Sidepodfan
Although this item came from one specific donation, it very much should be featured in this list. In the height of summer we were burning up in the studio, with many machines running at full stretch, plus a bright light making me look pretty. After announcing we needed an industrial strength fan, Alex very kindly donated the funds required. We immediately went out and bought the fan. Not only does it make the studio bearable, but the panda quite likes it:
Lots of Live Streaming
Live streaming video, without annoying advertising, isn't cheap. As our shows seem to be getting longer, there's been many hours of streaming over the last year. It's not all been smooth sailing, but it's been great fun and more improvements are in the pipeline.
Your donations make going live possible, and even though we have to give the server a swift kick every now and then, we are live long enough for great things to happen. Like Mr C killing off celebrities.
Ingredients for Sidepodradio Cooking Show
Oh yes, the cooking show that Mr C will never be allowed to forget. I can't exactly describe the fun-filled shopping expedition to get these ingredients, except to repeat that the only way he managed to identify the oil was because it came from a different aisle to all the other items, and it was yellow. Make sure you check out the show if you haven't already, and if you have, you know you want to hear the ineptitude again.
The Purple Wall
We've mentioned a few times that I am much quieter than Mr C when it comes to mic technique. Generally speaking, I have to have my mic a lot louder than his, because I am a delicate little podcaster. Eh-hem. It used to make editing quite tricky though, as his annoying voice would bleed onto my track. To solve the problem, we invested in some rather expensive, and just a little bit wobbly, soundproofing.
The purple wall is purple, and stands between Mr C and myself with a small little window for us to see each other. It solves the bleed issue, but still allows for visual communication.
Anglepoise Microphone Arm
This one is a relatively recent purchase, due to our house move. Mr C had already discussed our problems with microphone stands, and the fact that we were using the wrong type for our needs. We couldn't quite justify purchasing a new one yet, but thankfully, I am clumsy.
During our move, I dropped one of the stands and broke it. We had to hastily invest in a brand new Anglepoise, and it is brilliant. We've only used it for one show, but already, we are anxious to get the second one.
Of course we have purchased lots of other little bits and pieces. Websites and podcasts take quite a lot of maintenance, and there are domain names and subscriptions to be renewed. However, the above sums up our most enjoyable purchases of the year.
We are eternally grateful to everybody who's made a donation this year, no matter how big or small. We promise to continue to be transparent, and to offer even more behind-the-scenes insight into what we do, how we do it and how you can make a difference.
2008 was a prolific year for Sidepodcast, in terms of the amount of audio and video content we put out. It seemed like every week presented a new idea for a show and we ran with it where possible.
What had started out as a short, weekly podcast, grew sporadically, to the point we didn't want to burgeon listener's bandwidth with too much content and began leaving some shows off the subscription feed. It's always been a struggle for us since we started live streaming, to provide for those who are only interested in hearing the produced article, and for those who are happy to download everything. What was needed was the ability to choose.
Which is why today, we're introducing Show Selector.
In short, Show Selector allows anyone to customise the Sidepodcast feed, and download any and all content that they're interested in. You can pick from a list containing all of the things we put out - audio / video / live - it doesn't matter. You can mix and match as you please and come back and change your mind at any time. Custom feeds will update like any other feed, except they only update the things that matter to you.
As ever we're very keen for feedback on this, please let us know if it's useful, if anything is missing and if you want more or less customisation at your fingertips.
Re-e-wind
It's probably worth mentioning that Show Selector is the official title of this application, but when I touched on the subject in a London pub earlier this year, top commenter Bassano insisted that it could only be known as Sho' Selecta!, and there was no arguing with the man.
I'm pretty sure we don't mind what people decide call it, so long as it's useful.
I do have to take my hat off to the Sidepodcast Playground for the second time in a week, because without it, this mini-project may have taken another six months to see the light of day. It's not remotely finished, it'll likely go through many incarnations, but it is usable, today, and that's what we're really excited about.
And, we're back... sort of. Apologies for the impromptu hiatus. Things got too much and we had to step away from Formula 1. This post will explain what happened and our thoughts and plans for the future.
That Man
It's clear that, for us, the return of Michael Schumacher was the straw that broke the camel's back. If anyone thinks that MS would be enough to drive us away from a podcast we adore, they obviously don't know us very well. There is a list as tall as Kubica of reasons that Formula One annoys us and Schumi's announcement came at the worst possible time. We were stressed about Sidepodradio, I've been miserable about the sport for two weeks, and Mr C no longer had the will to keep his own spirits up, let alone mine as well.
However, with a few days off, and some serious thinking, it's all become clear. We knew it would. Schumacher will not chase us away, but Mr C cannot watch him. He has some very valid reasons for this and I respect them. With that in mind, the next race (or perhaps the next few) will be covered by me as best as possible. Mr C will take part in the Debrief where he can, and obviously, without his technical expertise, I'd be screwed.
Call us petty, if you like, but we specifically started Sidepodcast after Schumacher had quit F1 because we do not enjoy talking about him. And from the state of the comments over the last few days, there's good reason for that.
The P Word
Aside from the unwelcome return of a driver, the state of the sport is putting a real downer on things in Sidepodcast Towers, and we have come to the following decision:
If Ari Vatanen does not become president of the FIA, and Jean Todt gets the nod, we will not continue.
We would see the 2009 season out, but it would have to be the end. Ari is the future, Jean is equally as much unwelcome in our world as his sometime partner in crime, and Formula 1 can't stay stuck in the past any longer. We'll be campaigning for Ari to get the role, and crossing our fingers that he does.
Burn Out
A lot of people have commented that we deserved this break because we work too hard and must have burnt out by now. I would like to clear this myth up by saying: we love the work we do. We don't get paid for this and wouldn't do any more than we wanted to do. The fact is that making shows, forming the community, and fixing the internet makes our day. Sometimes we push ourselves to the limit, but it would never be enough to make us stop. We've been going for over two years with people worried about us burning out, and let me put your minds at rest, it hasn't happened, and it's not going to.
That being the case, we're in the early stages of planning a new non-F1 show. It's come to our attention that we have other things to discuss besides cars, and we would like to share them with the world. Expect nothing for a while yet, but there will be something of a community crossover, and everyone is more than welcome to join us wherever that may be.
That's the future, and I hope you can understand our need for a break, and our reasons for the above. If you have any questions, please ask, but we do not promise to have the answers immediately. Thank you for sticking with us.
In an attempt to distract from the potential diffuser row that could ruin all semblance of racing in Australia, it's time for a daily post that is all about the shameless plug.
The 2009 montage that was played during Episode 97 is now available all by itself. I really enjoyed making the six minutes of montage in the first place, and I've listened to it about ten times without getting bored. Everyone who voicemailed should give themselves a pat on the back.
We've decided that this particular off-season was the best ever. Now that it's over we can look back with fond (and not so fond) memories of the fun and games we have had since Brazil 2008. I know everyone is getting antsy for the racing to begin, but it is worth it to take a moment and think that the winter has gone amazingly quickly. Remember when we sat back and realised there were months ahead of us? Now they are all past.
The penultimate episode of the F1 Digest 2009 Season Preview series is available now, taking a whistle stop tour through the calendar. Let us know which events you are looking forward to, and which ones you are dreading. I think I can probably guess a couple that fall into that category.
That'll do it for now. Feel free to talk about things that aren't shameless self-promotion for Sidepodcast, maybe even self-promote your own season preview wares. Either way, as we countdown another day to Friday, I'll see you in the comments.
You may have already seen this mentioned in the comments over the last few weeks, but this is the official announcement. Sidepodcast is going to the Science Museum!
From 11th March onwards, the Science Museum in London have a Formula 1 related exhibit called: "Fast Forward: 20 ways F1 is changing our world". It's a look at how technology is being passed between F1 and real life, and includes bikes, materials, road safety, medicine, and much more. In fact, this video from the BBC can probably explain it better.
The idea initially came from Gavin, who suggested a meetup at the Museum, and then the wiki page was started, and now we even have a date. On the 15th April, Mr C and I will be in London poring over all the sciencey stuff, times to be confirmed. If you fancy meeting up, then feel free to leave your name on the wiki. You don't have to, of course, but Mr C does like his roll calls.
If you want more information about the exhibit, there's plenty to look at on the Museum's website. There are also details of how to find the place, for those planning ahead. The best part, aside from meeting us, of course, is that entry is free.
It's a new year and a new show, with the debut of Sidepodchat. The premise is simple, a few callers on Skype, some topics to discuss, and plenty of time to talk things over. This inaugural show features wet weather testing, the weight of paint, and who'll be a first time winner in 2009.
We can't promise when and where this show will turn up in the Sidepodcast schedule, but if you feel like taking part, visit the Wiki to sign up. The live show is available, if you want to get a feel of what it's like, and we look forward to talking to you.
This bumper post-New Year show runs through all the latest news and launches, catches up with the latest Sidepodtour events, and features a record number of calls.
Intro
We're back, and most likely, we've forgotten how to do this. Hope we kept you entertained whilst the live show was off air though.
Good Week / Bad Week
It's been a good week for Red Bull drivers, as Buemi is confirmed at STR, and Webber is all set to get back in the car. Meanwhile, Davidson is having a rough week revealing all about Honda, and Massa is worrying about numbers.
News and Views
We discuss the latest updates in the ongoing Honda saga, particularly Nick Fry's involvement. We also take a look at Donington Park now they've got the planning permission they so craved, and of course, we run through the three launches - Ferrari, Toyota and McLaren.
Sidepodtour
The Sidepodtour took us to Autosport International but we weren't particularly impressed with what we saw. Very little in the way of Formula 1 involvement, and it looks like the credit crunch is hitting hard.
Fantasy Racers
We tell you how to join up, plus indulge in our annual shout out to everyone who has signed up for a team already. If you haven't, get signed up now and we can shout you out on the next show.
Your Call
The new segment that replaces Feedback features a record number of Skype callers: Alex, Scott, R.G, Steven Roy, Alex (again), Lukeh, Jeremy and Andy. Plus, there's an email from Keith the Marshal, we talk about the awards, and focus on the Facebook group.
