My First Race...15 Years Ago Today

It's a typical late British summer’s day. The weather is overcast – warm but with a bit of a chill in the air. I don't mind this though as this is my first experience of a motor race, live and in person. Little did I know at the time that this is a day that would affect my life in a big way.

 

The date is September 13^th 1998 – 15 years to the day before I wrote this blog post. It's a Sunday race day at the fastest race circuit in the country, Thruxton.

 

I had been to the track once before in passing with my Dad when we were coming back from London on the A303. I’d heard the race engine notes from inside the car and asked Dad to pull in.  We drove into the circuit and parked near the final chicane (Club). I remember climbing the little spectator bank and there, coming through the chicane, was The Stig!! Well, it was actually Ben Collins, who became the famous character from Top Gear. Ben was driving a Dallara F398 for the Intersport team and was competing in the 1998 Autosport British Formula Three championship.

 

I returned to the circuit in September, but this time, it was a proper race in that year’s F3 championship – round 14 to be exact. There was such an atmosphere and it was a real thrill to be experiencing a high octane race meeting live in the flesh. To be able to walk around the paddock, see into the garages, smell the fuel and meet the leading drivers was great – especially as a 15 year old.

Andrej Pavicevic, Fortec Motorsport

I actually remember very little about the race itself. The driver who shined for me was an Australian called Andrej Pavicevic. I’m pretty sure he qualified second and as he’d been very kind to me earlier in the day chatting to me about his car, I’d turned into a fan. The driver I’d followed all year however was a Brazilian, Enrique Bernoldi, who at the time was leading the championship. Unfortunately, Thruxton would mark a bad run of form for him, with a series of retirements losing him the championship to countryman Mario Haberfeld. However, Enrique still drove in Formula One a few years later, for the Orange Arrows team in 2001 and 2002. During the race I remember his distinctive yellow and blue Promatecme UK team car pulling over (or spinning, I can’t remember!) and Enrique walking back, dejected, through the grass towards the back of the paddock. This was pretty much the defining moment in the race and pretty much all I specifically remember.

The racing, the emotions, the smell, the noise all helped fuel my passion for the sport. It’s a day I’ll never forget and ironically I probably now have driven more laps around Thruxton than some of the drivers who were on the grid on that September day!

The race that could change the world

Motorsport has become cleaner, especially across Europe, with hybrids now fairly commonplace especially in sports car racing. But let’s be honest, it’s never really firmly grabbed the imagination.

Formula E could change the game. Due to launch next year in an 8-round series, this single seater concept could finally be a real answer to motorsport’s ‘green’ problem.

The man behind the series, Alejandro Agag, looks like a slick chap. He’s clearly got the right contacts and can make his mark politically. Plus Formula E is all about the green issue, promoting zero emissions, which is very much a current automotive industry focus.

The lack of emissions and engine sound also opens up a whole new world of potential circuits, with street races now a real possibility where traditional motorsport would not stand a chance.  A race in London is pencilled in for 2014 with the support of the legend that is Mayor Boris Johnson, with LA and Rome also included on the calendar.

Big brands are keen on the series too it seems, such as Michelin and Renault. The series also has some high profile series supporters.

It all sounds positive so far but in my view it needs other ingredients to work. It needs to capture a fan base and a TV audience. Without those two the sponsors won’t turn up and the investment will be lower. As we all know money rules, especially on four wheels.

An impressive TV deal is vital then, as is having some leading drivers to bring in an audience. It’s been mentioned, however, that the series should be focussing on advanced technology more so than good racing, but it’s my view that the two should run in parallel. If the racing proves dull, audiences will switch off, which would be a catalyst of failure.

Formula E is a step change in motorsport – but the fact it’s green doesn’t guarantee it will work.

Formula One, Cornwall and the first Lotus win...unofficially!

If someone said the word ‘Davidstow’ to you, there is a high probability that you’d probably think of cheese. However, there are some people out there…myself included…that think of an entirely different thing when that name is mentioned. I think of motorsport.

OK, so on the face of it, that seems rather a random thing to think about. But there is method to my madness.

Go back 60 years or so and if you’d mentioned the idea of the British Formula One Grand Prix being held in Cornwall, not everyone would have laughed it off. It’s a bit of a different story in 2013! With the pretty terrible road, rail and air links into the county (I speak with some authority on this!), the idea is practically impossible in the modern era.

But Davidstow holds a bit of a secret. Near Davidstow village a site was purchased by the RAF in 1941 which became an RAF Coastal Command airfield, known as RAF Davidstow Moor, which was active from 1942-1945. As was common post-war, the airfield’s perimeter roads and runways were transformed into a motor racing circuit following World War II, when the military no long needed the land.  The majority of the UK’s current circuits, such as Thruxton and Silverstone, started out in a similar fashion.

The Davidstow motor racing circuit opened in 1952 and held three Formula 1 races between 1954 and 1955. In its short life the circuit had two layouts, one 2.6 and the other 3.1 miles in length.  Events that took place at the venue included speed trials, F3, F2 and Formula Libra. Crowds went up to around 20,000 – much more than expected.

On the 'Back Straight' looking west on the old Davidstow circuit

Perhaps most notably, in a race that took place on August 2^nd, 1954, for F1 and F2 cars (although no F1 car turned up), John Coombs in a Lotus Mk8 won. Some regard this as Lotus’ first victory in an F1 race, but as the car that won was recognised as a sportscar, the victory was never official.

There was one main advantage to the Davidstow circuit. There was a lack of local populous, which meant limited noise issues. However, this advantage could also be seen as a disadvantage as it meant there was a lack of crowd, even though attendance figures at the few races that took place were positive as I mentioned earlier. The main disadvantage though, which would still be an issue today, is the location of the circuit.

It’s around 5 miles from the coast and it’s on the North edge of Bodmin Moor, meaning weather throughout the year can be a real issue – especially fog and heavy spells of rain.  This was in evidence during some of the races.

So could Davidstow ever host an F1 race again? Or even any type of motor race? Well, in a word, no. Too much investment would be involved and obviously there would be considerable protests about a race track being opened up on what is now classified as moorland. The South West remains poorly linked in terms on transport too, so long term, it probably wouldn’t work. It’s a shame though, because Davidstow represents the only circuit racing history this side of Castle Combe, which is East of Bristol…some 150 miles away.

So the short history of motor racing at Davidstow seems to forever remain just that…history. But a quirky one at that.

Autosport International impresses…

Last Friday I made my annual pilgrimage to the NEC in Birmingham to the 2013 Autosport International show. It’s an event that is an essential date in the diary if you’re in the industry and, to many, it symbolises the start of the racing season.

I went on the second of two trade days, so I can’t pass comment on either public day, but having seen the reports the show overall was clearly well attended. In this blog I’m not going to go into a huge amount of detail as I know a lot of you reading this will have been to the show this year, but what I am going to do is give some of my opinions into the positives and negatives of the show, influenced by my experience as a professional in the PR/marketing area of motorsport.

I spent some time over the weekend thinking about the one thing I’ll remember from this year’s show. It came to me quite quickly – I was really impressed with the quality of the cars on display. I’m not talking about the more promoted displays either, like the F1 grid or the Richard Burns collection of cars. I’m referring to the cars that were dotted around the show on all manner of stands. For example, my friends over at TrackDriver magazine brought a McLaren F1 GTR owned by Nick Mason, Classic Team Lotus had a stunning ex-Nigel Mansell F1 car, Radical showed off its new RXC and over on the Aurora Bearing Company stand the DeltaWing was on display – a car that is simply amazing in its radical nature. The cars undoubtedly draw people in to the stands, so as a promotional tool they are fantastic.

Whilst there were an awful lot of positives, I have to add some negatives in too. The first isn’t to do with the show itself, more the NEC. I have a real problem with the £10 parking charge – I’m going by train next year now I’ve had a tip off. It’s a pretty outrageous price, particularly when you consider the entry price isn’t exactly a bargain. I don’t know how some families on the public days can justify the expenditure – particularly if they are travelling far.  Secondly, some stands were totally overloaded with information which meant you couldn’t get a clear picture of what the company actually offered. Clearly, some companies overthink their stands, which is where they should look at hiring professional branding or marketing advisors to assist in producing displays that are much more audience focused.

The Dunlop/BTCC display at the 2013 Autosport International

Some of the stands this year however were fantastic; better than at previous shows from recollection. The best stand I’ve ever seen was a few years ago when Prodrive had a magnificent ‘clinical white’ stand, which was extremely eye catching (I dare say expensive too!). In 2013, I was really impressed in particular with the Dunlop/British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) display; it wasn’t overly complicated and was visually appealing with a small mock-up of the iconic ‘Dunlop Bridge’. There weren’t too many staff on the stand either, which leads me on to a topic that I continue to have issues with. I really feel that some companies could make better use of the staff that attend the show. Without naming any firms specifically, it was quite clear that some had far too many staff and, in some cases, the staff weren’t interacting effectively with visitors. I saw far too many visitors wondering around several stands without being approached by anyone. To me, this is a waste of perfectly good resource and those companies should be doing more to engage with the audience.

So what did the Autosport International teach me about the year ahead? Well, there are certainly a lot of exciting new projects underway and it was clear, particularly in the Autosport Engineering area of the show, that innovations continue industry-wide. It appears that motorsport is continuing to fight off the economic climate - after speaking to a journalist friend of mine, it is clear that the BTCC in particular is looking very healthy going into 2013. Having said that, there have been some casualties, such as the loss of the HRT F1 team and the potential loss of Ford/Arena in the World Touring Car Championship.

It will be interesting what 2013 brings. I’m already looking forward to the 2014 show – I hope it’s equally as good.

Vettel is at the back...but will it make much difference?

It's only a few hours until the Abu Dhabi GP and what probably would have been a fairly dull affair has turned into an interesting prospect, thanks to Seb Vettel being dropped from third on the grid right to the back.

This is obviously big news but given that he'll have over 50 laps to claw himself back, it's probably not as big as the news made it sound when the penalty was announced last night.

Red Bull clearly has the best car in F1 at the moment and he'll be able to slice through the field with relative ease I would have thought. And when the red mist decends, Vettel can really be on it. 

I doubt Vettel will get on the podium, but I don't think Alonso will take the championship lead. I hope the latter does make up the points difference as we have more chance of an exciting end of season battle.

It will be an interesting afternoon of action...and I have to record it! :(

Look out Goodwood...here comes Pentillie!

One of the biggest disadvantages, for me at least, about being born and living in the South West of England is the serious lack of motorsport activity taking place. For example, the closest 'proper' race circuit is at Castle Combe near Bristol - a two and a half hour drive from my home in Plymouth. Don't get me wrong though; I'm not slagging the South West off, far from it. It's a beautiful part of the world (despite the weather) and I'm really happy here. But the lack of motorsport has always impacted on me.

I was out with a friend a few weeks ago and noticed a sign by the side of a rural road promoting a 'festival of speed'. This took me by surprise a bit and I didn't really think about it again, until I saw a short report on BBC Spotlight (our local TV station) a couple of days ago. Instantly I knew this was the event that the sign I'd seen several days earlier related to - the inugeral Pentillie Festival of Speed, near Saltash in Cornwall.

After my experience at the British GP earlier this year at Silverstone, where the weather had caused chaos with the car parks, I wasn't going to take any chances here. It was only a thirty minute drive to the venue, Pentillie Castle, the other side of the river Tamar from Plymouth. I purposely got there early and I was glad I did - the fields where already muddy from a horrid day the day before, so I predicted a chaotic scene later in the day when everyone started to leave. Other than a bit of wheel spin, I parked without a problem - but was less positive when thinking about getting out later!

After quite a lengthy walk with all my photographic equipment, I got to a hairpin bend and saw some of the competitors practicing. This got busier, so I moved more towards the castle once the 'crossing' had opened for fifteen or so minutes after one of the practice sessions. This was a good decision as, in addition to seeing the cars continue up a different part of the course, there were static displays of some stunning cars (an old Mercedes W192 replica, a WRC Subaru Impreza, a 1930's Bentley to name a few), all set against a beautiful setting within the fine grounds of the castle. The views of the Tamar valley were simply stunning also, particularly as the weather had stayed dry and - amazingly - featured some sun too. After completing a lap of the course and achieving some photos I was happy with, I left early to avoid the traffic issues I'd predicted as I mentioned earlier.

A modified Mini at the Pentillie Festival of Speed 2012



The amount of people attending surpassed my expectations and I'm sure it made the organisers happy. A combination of a bank holiday, good weather and a great mix of cars proved popular.  For the first year it was fantastic in my opinion - with particular highlights being the stunning location, good signage, great toilet facilities and helpful staff. Good beer, too!

There were negatives too though, but these aren't meant to be overly critical as it was the first running of the event. There should be more crossings in the future, improved access via paths and (in an ideal world, which totally depends on budget) tarmaced car parks - but if Silverstone can't event afford this, Pentillie can never be expected to do the same.

I'm just delighted that (at last) a motorsport event, which plans to expand, has been put on in this part of the world. Long may it continue! Well done to the organisers.

Putting something back...the FOTA Forum

I was privileged to attend the FOTA (Formula One Teams Association) Forum in the evening of July 3^rd, held at the Williams F1 Conference Centre, in advance of the British GP.

I registered for the event quite randomly after seeing promotion on the web and I was thrilled to receive an email a few days later confirming my attendance.  It clearly was an event in demand!

After a thoroughly miserable drive up in the classic British summer weather (heavy rain), I arrived early at the gates to the Grove facility.  After parking, a small group of ‘early adopters’ and I waited patiently until a delivery van had disappeared (welcome to the secret world of F1!) before we entered the Conference Centre.  You’re greeted by a display of F1 cars in the foyer and you instantly get a feeling of the prestigious history associated with the Williams team…even their most recent trophy from Pastor Maldonado’s win in Spain 2012 was on open display!

We were all privalaged to be allowed to tour the museum of Williams cars, set in a fantastic low-light setting that gave off a real atmosphere.  Then it was up the stairs into an area that explained about the more technical aspects of F1, from wind tunnel importance to the design of the tubs. Next to this was an engaging room featuring ex-Williams driver’s helmets and a huge variety of Constructor winning trophies from down the years.  It was in this room we were offered refreshments and I must say a huge thanks for the fantastic effort put on by the staff at Williams as it made for a fantastic, memorable experience.

Lee McKenzie, the BBC F1 reporter/presenter, hosted the guests and it was a real pleasure to see Sir Frank Williams take to the stage and say a few words.  The applause surrounding this moment really gave you a sense of how respected this truly remarkable man is, by both industry insiders and fans alike.

Current Williams driver Pastor Maldonado was then introduced after signing hundreds of autographs in the Champions Gallery earlier, answering questions on his recent crash in Valencia with Lewis Hamilton, the impact he has experienced in Venezuela after becoming the country’s biggest sporting icon, and his amazing win at the 2012 Spanish GP.

As Pastor rushed off for more PR engagements, Ross Brawn (AMG Mercedes), Martin Whitmarsh (Vodafone McLaren Mercedes) and Bob Fernley (Force India) took to the stage and immediately took questions from the fans.

(L to R) Lee McKenzie, Bob Fernley, Martin Whitmarsh and Ross Brawn on stage

The focus for many of the questions were on tyres and DRS.  MW stated that the current tyres used in F1 are “massively exciting for fans”, due to the amazing change in grip levels that can suddenly occur.  I certainly agree with this…it’s made F1 very exciting.  Interestingly, when Ross Brawn was quizzed about DRS, he suggested that it is by no means a perfected system, saying that “the fans need to tell us if DRS is working”.  This underlines the spirit of the FOTA Forum to be honest…F1 clearly wants to get fans (old and new) more involved in the future of the sport which will benefit everyone in the long run. 

There were two other questions that really took my interest.  The first asked why there is such a tight gap between the majority of cars during qualifying, which MW felt was mainly down to a lack of significant rule changes this season, which has allowed more teams to refine the development of their cars and close the gap to the bigger teams.  The second question I enjoyed was to do with new technology and the fact that with sportscars allowing more freedom for new ideas (the DeltaWing seen at Le Mans this year springs to mind), is F1 still the pinnacle of motor racing?  MW felt that F1 has to remain at the top in the tech stakes and that the sportscar model isn’t necessarily a good one, relying too much on a handful of manufacturers (Audi and Toyota) which could affect its own future, certainly in the LMP1 class.

After well over an hour of questioning, the three men left the stage and went straight into media interviews.  It was time for the ‘legends’ to make their appearance…former F1 drivers Derek Warwick and John Watson, together with former Williams heavy weight Patrick Head. 

The whole Q&A was extremely engaging, with them discussing everything from their experience with turbo cars, current F1 drivers, the pressure put on them by the media and their thoughts on driver stewards.

I was lucky enough to be picked by Lee to ask a particularly emotive question which I really had just thought of moments earlier after DW had answered a question on safety.  I asked Derek what it was like physiologically getting into the Lotus F1 car at Jerez in 1990 after his team mate Martin Donnelly had a serious, career-ending crash in the same design of car that same weekend.  Derek unfortunately had witnessed a lot of tragedy during his career and it was touching to hear him explain how it was.  As a racing driver of that era, it came down to two things…you have to create an emotional detachment and, at the end of the day, it’s your job, so you carry on.  These sentiments were echoed by John Watson, with both also discussing the fatal Gilles Villeneuve accident back in 1982.  I will always be grateful to the panel for addressing this difficult question and I know that the audience were very engaged.  I just underlines the fact that the drivers of F1 cars are driven by passion more than anything else and they know the risks.

As the three legends left the stage, Lee closed the Forum and everyone left the hall gradually (via the shop in my case!), bringing to a close what had been a fantastic event.  I will hold it long in my memory.  Thanks FOTA!