At the start of this month, Formula One was quite quiet, with a race and then a huge three week break to fill. Towards the end of the month, things went mad with drivers announcing their retirement and tyres not fulfilling their required roles. In between all that, we found time to write some things, record some shows, and generally have a lot of fun.

Formula One in June

From the twisting and brake-heavy Montreal circuit, F1 took a bit of a break before turning up at the engine-screaming Silverstone for the British Grand Prix.

Sidepodcast in June

This month was all about shows returning from the past, and although all the links will be in the next section, it's worth a brief mention about what we've done and why. Racing Families was a brand new mini series but the concept of seven short shows over the space of a week has stood us well in the past. They are one of my favourite things to do - research and record a specific topic and release a new show each day for seven days. It also appears that guessing what else will be featured during the run of the series has become a popular pastime, with the first thread getting heaps of suggestions!

In an earlier life, F1 Digest used to be a series of four shows that detailed everything occurring during a race weekend - from event preview to race review. It was last seen at the start of the 2010 season, but makes a triumphant return in a slightly more free-form, slightly better edited and slightly slower-spoken form. This time, all the efforts are concentrated on the race preview, and as with a lot of the things we are introducing this year, we've got a great basis for improvement, for freedom to play around, and just keep trying new things. There were even a couple of sound effects in the first episode, so it's fun for all the family.

Whilst I was busy recording all those podcasts, Mr C was busy behind the scenes. A new technical update this month brings users of the Firefox browser in line with existing functionality that other users have enjoyed for a while - you can now subscribe to pop-up alerts any time a comment or Factbyte Factbox update is posted. Simply, check the tick box above any comment or active FBFB thread to enable timely reminders in the corner of your desktop.

Shows in June

From just the one show last month, our podcast archives are groaning at the seams with the additions in June.

• An Aside with Joe - Too much of a good thing is too much
• An Aside with Joe - War on all fronts
• F1 Digest - Prelude to the British Grand Prix
• Racing Families - Series 1 Omnibus
• Racing Families - The Andrettis
• Racing Families - The Fittipaldis
• Racing Families - The Franchittis
• Racing Families - The Hills
• Racing Families - The Rosbergs
• Racing Families - The Villeneuves
• Racing Families - The Winkelhocks

Features in June

We've had some quality features posted on the site this month, and thanks must go to the dedicated writers that keep their insights and witty words coming. Adam has not missed a beat with his driver of the day style analysis in Class of the Field, taking a look at the performances in first Britain and then Canada (technically posted in July, but who's counting?)

Meanwhile, Stuart has desperately been trying to avoid the constant tyre talk but the sport keeps on making it hard for him. At least when he does it, he does it in style. We've got the pictures, and taking a closer look at the words is Will, who explains why Formula One is so acronym-heavy in 2013. And last but not least, Steven took a difficult but very important look at marshal safety after the tragedy in Canada.

Posts in June

There's been some stellar work happening on the blog as well, with Ryan taking a look at Sauber's lack of progress this season, and myself doing a similar thing with Romain Grosjean's performance. Lukeh posted a very popular piece on viewing IndyCar from outside its home country, and we took a look at Lewis Hamilton flying high with the Red Arrows.

• Friday Fun - North West, South or East
• From one Arrow to another
• Getting his armour on - Christine's Rankings, Week 18
• Happy Birthday, Mum! - Christine's Rankings, Week 16
• I didn't know the rules so... - Christine's Rankings, Week 17
• iF1 - What if Formula 1 was run by its fans
• It's always a topic of debate - Christine's Rankings, Week 19
• Mark Webber to leave Formula One for sports cars with Porsche
• No smiling in Switzerland
• On the outside looking in? A cynical Brit on IndyCar
• The Romain riddle

Hidden gems in June

Tucked away in the Collections part of the site, we took a closer look at how the drivers prepared and shared their way to the Canadian Grand Prix, including breakfast and transport worries. Over on the Scrapbook, we jotted down notes on Paul di Resta's breakfast TV appearance, thanks to Pat, and also took a look at the latest ads from Tony Stewart and Jenson Button.

Finally, if you're more into live events than anything else, why not peruse our last Sidepodcast Hangout, which took place on my birthday, or if you prefer it to be motorsport related, the incredible Sidepodcast community had all 24 hours of racing covered in the Le Mans thread. In ball sports news, it's worth mentioning the second week of Wimbledon has its own dedicated thread that will be open until Sunday, so tennis fans, followers or vaguely interested passers by, do pop along and say hi!