Live comment long and prosper
Potential topics for returning and upcoming live thread discussions
During a recent twitter discussion with Mr C on whether or not we should live comment an ice hockey match I somehow volunteered myself to write a post on events we have live commented on Sidepodcast and what we should live comment in future. Naturally suggestions are more than welcome so feel free to make them in the comments.
How many people are in space right now?
Keeping track of who is floating through the outer limits of space
With the end of the space shuttle program and the delay before whatever will follow it becomes operational, it is easy to think the heady days of SidepodSpace are over but nothing could be further from the truth. In fact there is more happening now that at any time since the term SidepodSpace was coined.
It's time to treat safety seriously
Motorsport safety is constantly improving, but it's never complete
There has been a huge outpouring of sadness about the death of Dan Wheldon and a great deal of soul searching by many race fans who have never watched a young man die behind a wheel before. My first emotion as it usually is in these cases is anger that yet another driver has died in a preventable impact and in a clearly predictable set of circumstances.
2011-Kentucky Indy 300
The next round in the Franchitti/Power fight for supremacy
The Indycar circus moves to Kentucky for the penultimate round of the championship with only the final race in Las Vegas in 2 weeks time after this.
2011 Indycar - Sāo Paulo 300
Live commenting the Brazilian round of the IndyCar series
It's a live Indycar race in Brazil. What else do you need to know?
The end of qualifying?
The unintended consequences of tyre tactics on Saturday
We all saw the advantage Mark Webber and Lewis Hamilton gained from saving more sets of new soft tyres than their rivals for the race. Webber as a result of failing to get out of Q1 where he used hard tyres had the penalty of starting near the back of the grid. After starting on hard tyres which caused him initially to go backwards he was able to switch to softs and using DRS pass most of the cars in front. As other drivers ran out of new tyres he gained pace relative to them and was able to pass cars to the point where he finished on the podium.
Fantasy Racers 2011
Introducing a new season of driver selection with fantasy F1
Well peoples it is almost the start of the F1 season and that means it is also Fantasy Racers time. You can't have Fantasy Racers without a Sidepodcast league - it just would not be right. So I have started one and everyone has to join. It's the law.
Friday Fun - Walk on music
What theme tunes should the Formula One drivers have?
While watching the start of the BDO World Darts Championship I couldn’t help notice the theme music that accompanies each player on to the stage. For example Martin ‘Wolfie’ Adams always enters to ‘Hungry Like the Wolf.’ Of course darts is not the only sport to use walk on music. Boxing has used it for decades. So I couldn’t help but wonder what piece of music would be appropriate for each of the F1 drivers.
Thursday Thoughts - So far so good
The new teams help F1, but are they just making up the numbers?
I think the simple answer is that F1 is better with the new teams than it would have been without them. Without them there would only have been 18 cars on the grid which is unacceptable to most people. We needed more teams to guarantee the future of the sport.
On track with Steven Roy
A review of several racing days with a lot of learning to do
Many years ago I was lucky enough to fit in a couple of experience days then a 4 day racing school course and after that a couple of races all in Formula Ford 1600s. As usual when I start a post I know some of the stuff I want to include but I am not really sure how I am going to stitch it all together but I am sure I will find a way.
Thursday Thoughts - Appropriate logos and helmet lottery
An irreverant look at things that could improve Formula One
Team logos will have to properly reflect the team rather than be something drawn up by a marketing department which in their world reflects the team’s image and values. Since Ferrari has now decided it is a one driver team the prancing horse will need to have one of its back legs chopped off. Over at Red Bull the logo will be changed to show several bulls charging at each other with bulls representing the two drivers, Helmut Marko, Dietrich Mateschitz and Renault. Standing in the middle will be will be a matador with a chequered cape representing Christian Horner trying to get them all charging in the same direction. I am sure others can come up with similar logos for other teams.
Thursday Thoughts - Sending Tilke to the moon
Looking at what works and what doesn't on the F1 calendar
Great subject for the first Thursday Thoughts of the off season. I still think the best way to improve the tracks on the calendar is to remove Hermann Tilke from the scene. Maybe Branson can sacrifice one of his spaceships to take him to the moon and let him plan a track there. He would have a lot of work to do surveying and allowing for the lower gravity and lack of atmosphere that by the time he was finished everyone would have forgotten about him and he could be abandoned there torturing himself rather than us with his inadequate imagination.
Innovation and safety
Is there any room for compromise when it comes to new F1 designs?
We have grown used to certain things on F1 cars being so fundamental that they only change when regulations make change inevitable. Most changes in recent years other than incremental aero updates are invisible to fans regardless of how hard we try to spot them.
F1 - How it should be
Changing regulations keep the sport on its toes, but here's the ideal
The after effects of the Bahrain Grand Prix continue to reverberate around the F1 world, and Steven Roy has gathered his thoughts to discuss how he thinks F1 should be.
Friday Fun - 6 word memoir
An internet meme becomes a Formula One memory game
For this week's Friday Fun, Steven Roy has tracked down an internet meme that we can turn into an F1 related game. I can't wait to see what you come up with this week.
Gerry Birrell - What might have been
Another excellent history lesson with a lesser known driver
Steven Roy is back again with another story from F1 gone by. I've never heard of this driver, so once again, many thanks go to Steven for the excellent history lessons.
François Cevert
A look at the history of the French F1 driver
François Cevert was born in Nazi occupied Paris in February 1944. He became interested in motor racing after meeting his sister’s boyfriend and future Monaco grand prix winner Jean-Pierre Beltoise. After completing two years of national service Cevert entered and won the Volant Shell competition in 1966. The prize was a sponsored season in the French formula three championship with Alpine.
Jim Clark - Yes, he really was that good
A different perspective on the talents of the British champion
Having watched BBC4’s re-run of Jim Clark: The Quiet Champion recently I was surprised at the effect that he had on people even though I know all the stories and I have seen the film before. It seems incredible to me that someone like Dan Gurney still breaks down and cries when speaking about Clark even though the film was made 40 years after his death.
Sidepodradio - Sidepodspace
Introducing the science and space segment of the broadcast
Gosh, that title has way too much 'sidepod' going on. Initially, I had planned to write a short post for each of the Sidepodradio shows encouraging audience interaction. Steven suggested the hosts write their own posts, and offered to do the first one.
Jim who?
A name in Formula One that should be remembered
There are people who believe that the thing that sets F1 apart from other classes of racing is technology. The theory is F1 has the best people and has always had a technological lead. Only F1 could have ever made the great breakthroughs in technology that have taken us from barely modified road cars to cars that, in theory at least, could run upside down on a ceiling.
365 F1 stories
Recent stories
Making history in 41 seconds Blog entry- There's no I-Pace to hide Blog entry
- Crunching some uncomfortable numbers Blog entry
- F1 teams report gender pay gap data Blog entry
- Selection box - New Year’s resolutions across the paddock Link collection
- The Motorsport Saga: Breaking dawn Blog entry
- Selection box - What does this mean and how does this work? Link collection
- Selection box - This could go very wrong! Link collection
- Post-F1 Paths - Series 1 roundup Blog entry
