the inner ramblings of H

Monaco GP – Saturday (Qualifying)

Sat, 15 May 2010 20:38:25 +0000

Wow, absolutely shattered, very long but very good day.

So despite another early mornin **** up which meant we missed the train we wanted to catch, we luckily caught a different one and got a connection at Nice into Monaco and only ended up a little behind time. We found a spot in Secteur Rocher and set up base camp…at 8am.

First bit of activity was Formula Renault qualifying at 9am till 10am which was followed at 11am by Formula 1 final practice. The noise of those cars amazes me every time, no matter how many times I hear them on TV it no where near compares to the screaming of the V8 in the flesh!
As the area started to fill with more spectators the sun broke through the fine clouds, it was almost as if they brought it with them. Luckily the view either side of us wasn’t great, so we really had space around us most of the time.
One of the biggest highlights of the day happened during final practice…Alonso binned his Ferrari into the barriers up at Casino, and as such wrote himself out of qualifying – anyone who knows me knows I don’t care one bit for Alonso…but that’s for another time!

So qualifying came and went with very little surprise for Monaco (I was secretly hoping for rain to mix it up) and Mark Webber continued Red Bulls incredible form by making it 6 consecutive pole positions – equally Ferrari’s record. Our Brits, Lewis and Jenson finished 5th and 8th respectively, not great but we’ll see what they can do tomorrow.

Then as talk turned to what time and where to sit tomorrow I decided to go a bit of a hill climbing scouting mission, the result is below, what a view!!!
I watched the GP2 race from up there, and the sound of their engines was as impressive. They also managed to put 3 or 4 cars in the barriers…I’m sure the F1 guys will do the same to.

Right my train is drawing near my stop so I’ll leave you here and pick it up tomorrow…

Monaco GP – Friday

Fri, 14 May 2010 22:21:28 +0000

So today was a first for me. I’m at the Monaco Grand Prix this weekend, and today I actually got to walk along the track! This, for me, was an amazing moment. I’ve been a huge fan of Formula 1 for as long as I can remember. The speed, danger and most importantly for me the design and technology of the sport has it in my eyes head and shoulders above all others.
We lucked our way into the pits with some creative ticket flashing, covering up the bit which may have given away that we weren’t grandstand members, but what the hell we’re all fans at the end of the day. It’s always a pleasure to see F1 cars up that close, and then spotting the legend that is Sir Jackie Stewart was incredible.
We made our way down onto the track and walked in the opposite direction to the normal lap, as we rounded Rascasse we noticed a number of bars on the track between there and La Piscine…well it would have been rude not to wouldn’t it So there we were, drinking a pint, in the Monaco sun, on the track…too surreal for words!
Continuing round we saw so many stunning yachts, wonderful cars and beautiful women that I can’t wait to get back there tomorrow for qualifying…I keep you posted

Stephanie for Miss England Cheshire

Wed, 05 May 2010 15:43:02 +0000

VOTE STEPHANIE ATHERTON FOR MISS ENGLAND CHESHIRE 2010

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My name is Stephanie Atherton and I am competing for a place in Miss England 2010.

I have already been selected as a heat finalist in the Miss Cheshire contest and need your help to reach the Miss England semi final.

Please vote for me by texting the following

Cheshire 01 Stephanie A

84205

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0901 656 1500

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when prompted.

Voting starts05/05 and ends 05/06
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Long time no speak

Sat, 13 Mar 2010 21:16:25 +0000

So it’s been a while since I wrote a post, maybe I’ve been too busy, maybe I’ve been lazy or maybe I’ve just not been inspired enough by anything to write something, but who cares…I’m back!
Now Im sure it’s no coincidence that the Formula One season is starting again this weekend and I’m on here again, but what can I say, it’s the sport I love.
Ferrari look the team to beat from the little we’ve seen so far, Red Bull look good to but I suspect that it may be harsher on the tyres, McLaren look to be struggling with downforce despite have the unique ‘wing stall’ feature, and Mercedes may be paying the price for a complete driver line up change. The team I’d say I’m most excited about though are Force India, I’m not sure what it is about them but they have really struck a cord with me, but I have been a fan of Sutil since I first saw him race. Let’s just hope they can cause an upset here and there
Right, I’m gonna get back to my website overhaul (I’ll fill you in on that soon enough) and let’s hope that this posts well from my iPhone…I’ve not tried it before.

Catch you soon

One race doth not a season make…

Fri, 02 Oct 2009 19:24:20 +0000

Renault cost me title, says Massa

Massa lost out to Hamilton by one point in 2008

Ferrari’s Felipe Massa has accused Renault of robbing him of the 2008 drivers’ championship.

The Brazilian was leading last year’s Singapore Grand Prix when Nelson Piquet Jr crashed deliberately, which helped Fernando Alonso to win the race.

“All of what happened was robbery. Regarding the race nothing has happened, the result stays the same. That’s not right,” said Massa.

“It changed the championship. I lost by one point.”

via BBC SPORT | Motorsport | Formula 1 | Renault cost me title, says Massa.

Lets get a few things stated right from the start here:

Fact 1 – Ive always liked Massa as a driver

Fact 2 – Ive always liked Massa as a person (from what ive seen on TV)

Fact 3 – Lewis Hamilton was crowned 2008 Formula One World Champion

Fact 4 – Renault fixed the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix

Now whilst I agree that Felipe should be annoyed that he (probably) lost points due to the actions of Renault at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix (he was leading at the time the safety was deployed after Piquets nose dive into the wall) I cant agree that this incident alone cost him the Championship.

A Championship is won or lost over the course of a season, not one race.

And when you look at the bigger picture im sure you’ll agree with me one this one

Lets look over the 2008 season, we’ll keep a running total and then at the end you can decide who or what, if anything, is to blame.

Australia – Retired

Engine failure (im classing this as a Ferrari error)

Ferrari -1

Malaysia – Retired

Felipe spun out on lap 30

Ferrari – 1 Massa – 1

Bahrain – 1st

No-one to blame here

Ferrari – 1 Massa – 1

Spain – 2nd

Finished behind Raikonnen, but I don’t think we can blame him

Ferrari – 1 Massa – 1

Turkey – 1st

Win number 2

Ferrari – 1 Massa -1

Monaco – 3rd

Finished behind Hamilton and Kubica

Ferrari – 1 Massa -1

Canada – 5th

44 seconds behind Kubica

Ferrari -1 Massa -1

France – 1st

Win number 3

Ferrari – 1 Massa – 1

Great Britain – 13th

Finished 2 laps behind Hamilton, spinning out FIVE times after failing to master the extreme wet conditions. No-one else to blame but Felipe im afraid, unless at a stretch we blame his tyres

Ferrari – 1 Massa – 2

Germany – 3rd

Behind Hamilton and Piquet

Ferrari – 1 Massa – 2

Hungary – Retired

Engine failure number 2

Ferrari – 2 Massa – 2

Europe – 1st

Win number 4

Ferrari – 2 Massa – 2

Belgium – 1st

Win number 5 (after stewards impose 25 second penalty on Hamilton for gaining an unfair advantage at the bus stop chicane)

Ferrari -2 Massa – 2

Italy – 6th

Finished 29 seconds behind Vettel

Ferrari – 2 Massa – 2

Singapore – 13th

The race that Massa claims cost him the Championship. Leading before the Safety Car brought out by Piquet’s crash. However during his pit stop Felipe drove off whilst the the fuel rig was still attached, not his fault, but Ferrari’s for releasing him early. So if we are blaming Renault for costing him ‘the win’, we must also blame Ferrari for costing him points too.

Ferrari -3 Massa -2 Renault – 1

Japan – 7th

Finished 46 seconds behind Alonso

Ferrari – 3 Massa – 2 Renault – 1

China – 2nd

Finished behind Hamilton

Ferrari – 3 Massa -2 Renault – 1

Brazil – 1st

Win number 6

Ferrari – 3 Massa – 2 Renault – 1

So whilst Massa notched up 6 wins to Hamilton’s 5, he also failed to score points in 5 races to Hamilton’s 4.

I understand that Felipe feels hard done by in this whole situation, and the fact that he has lost another year to the injury sustained in this years Hungarian GP (although with Ferrari’s performance it wasnt a bad year to miss) but this claim does nothing for his reputation and im sure hasn’t pleased Lewis too much either

Ill leave you with this last fact in summary and you can come to your own conclusion

Fact 5 – Massa suffered 2 engine failures and 1 botched pit stop thanks to Ferrari, spun off and could not return to the track in one race and spun off numerous times during another, and lost points due to Renaults Race Fixing, all of which contributed, but not one singular event can be totally blamed.

Get well soon Felipe and we look forward to your future battles

(Very) Early ramblings…

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 22:09:35 +0000

I find myself currently wandering around the countess of chester hospital at 5.30am trying to keep myself awake as ive been here now since 3am. My mum rang me (which scared the crap out of me btw) to say she was having serious upper abdominal pains and wanted a lift in. crazed stumbling around for clothes and car keys followed, why are they so difficult to find in an emergency – keys that is, not clothes – then a mad blast to get her. Despite telling the reception that it was too painful to sit and she needed to lie down it still took 15mins to get somewhere for her…and that was only after she gave up and lay on the floor. Im not knocking the NHS, i’ve a lot of respect for them and know quite a few people who work in that field, but I have to admit I felt like dragging the drunk git who was taking up a bed outside to allow someone with real illness have a space, grrr. Anyway im now just passing the time whilst the doc does her thing.

I find a quiet hospital at night a strangely wonderful place. Im walking the corridors of a building which during the day is a cacophony of noise and people, all worrying about themselves or someone else. But now, in the calm of the twilight hours, its just me and the helpful cleaner who pointed me in the direction of the nearest (working) coffee machine. Sat in the empty main reception is surreal so say the least.

Right time to make a move, good news is my mum has been checked over by the doc, and despite the fact they arent sure what is wrong, she is feeling a lot better. Looks like it’ll be up to her usually doc to do the main work. Now to get her home and settled, then get my head down for an hour before work. Rant over.

(Written very early this morning)

How not to fix a car…

Wed, 16 Sep 2009 17:50:17 +0000

Oooo, two F1 posts on the run…good times!

So Flavio and Pat have ‘stepped down’ from their positions and have decided not to contest the race fixing allegations…how noble that sounds.

Flavio Briatore

But can we just address that in plain english, they are doing a runner before they can be found guilty of any wrong doing! I hope the FIA arent just going to let this go because the head honcho’s have gone. What kind of message would that be sending out to the other teams? You can try and alter the outcome of a race by what ever devious means you can come up with, but if you get caught the boss has to resign!

Pat Symonds

Dont get me wrong, I dont want to see hundreds of staff losing their jobs (however if they are skilled enough to work with an F1 team im sure it wont be too difficult to get another one) but this is far more than trying to get a win to please the sponsors in an otherwise poor season.

A young driver in his first season at the pinnacle of motorsport has now effectively ensured he will never return to F1 due to a reputation destroyed by being bullied into cheating. Not to mention the potential dangers in slamming into a wall with a F1 car. Marshalls are generally posted to insides of those types of corners as it means they are close to the track but are in a safer position than the outside. I wonder if this would have ever come out if a marshall had been killed as a result of these actions?

But who knows, I may be totally off the mark with this, maybe its all just a big misunderstanding. I look forward to the outcome of the meeting on the 21st…

Don’t call it a comeback…

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 22:03:04 +0000

Lotus will return to F1 in 2010

Racing legend Jim Clark won both his world titles with Lotus in 1963 and 1965

Lotus are to return to Formula 1 next season for the first time since 1994…

…The organisation behind the new Lotus team have bought the rights to the name Team Lotus – which competed in F1 from 1958 through to 1994

via BBC SPORT | Motorsport | Formula 1 | Lotus will return to F1 in 2010.

You know, im really not sure how I feel about this. Whilst its great to have the name of one of the greatest teams in F1 history (and still 4th most successful of all time) back in the sport, I find it hard to get behind a Malaysian team who have basically just bought a brand.

As a life long Liverpool FC supporter I cant help but feel how gutted I’d be if some billionaire bought Swansea City and then the rights to the Liverpool name and rebadged them.

That may sound extreme but whilst for the 2010 season ‘Lotus’ are going to be based in Norfolk, a purpose built facility is being constructed in Malaysia…an idea that would no doubt have been the furthest thing from Colin Chapman’s mind at Monaco ’60 when Sir Stirling Moss won their first Grand Prix.

Mobile test

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 12:02:33 +0000

Just a quick one to see how easy it is to use this from my mobile…so far so good. Good God can you imagine it, Inner Ramblings being able to come from anywhere…

Hmmm

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 23:42:31 +0000

Having just signed up I now seem to find myself at a total loss as to what to blog about, but im sure that has happened to everyone…right? But what if it hasnt, what if everyone else just flew straight into it, keyboard smoking with the sheer speed of the typing, fingers dancing across it like those crazy people who do the hot coals walk. Ermm?

So maybe I should tell you about the incredible meal I just cooked for myself?

I found a recipe for a Sausage and Guinness Casserole which was an ideal way to use up the abundance of Sausages I found myself in possession of. Let me explain. I am not a crazy person who gets drunk and goes late night shoplifting for sausages, im a slightly crazy person who had an awesome birthday bbq at the wkend, and as per usual I didnt want to run the risk of running out of food and drink, so despite telling people to bring stuff with them I still went out and bought a whole bunch of meat and alcohol…so I am now in the envious position of trying to find concoctions to use it up before it spoils (if you have any ideas, please tell). But to sum it all up, bloody good grub!

As for the bbq, it seems that my birthday spells the start of the summer for us in the UK, this however doesnt go down well with everyone else as it’s in September. It was cracking the flags all day and thankfully right through the evening. Yet again Wayne and Jo stole the show when it comes to supplying random alcohol, after last years Beetroot and Birch wine (separate bottles), this years winner was a flavoured neat vodka…worryingly you couldnt taste the vodka at all, it just tasted like liquid jam! Thinking back this could be the reason for the drumming sound in my head on sunday morning. I like to think im lucky when it comes to the people I have as friends and my family, a good mix, which in all honesty I like to keep separate most of the time, you dont get bored then ha. But it was good to see them all enjoying themselves at the bbq, ill let them loose on each other same time next year…maybe.

Well I think ill leave it there for my first run, whilst typing I’ve actually thought of a few things for next time…lets hope they stay fresh in the mind.