Tyres Tyres Tyres: Has F1 Gone Too Far?

Formula 1 of late seems a far cry from the Schumacher dominated days of yesteryear. Instead of the multi million Pound  precession of cars we were once faced  with, racing today is far less predictable and overtaking is plentiful. Yet this seemingly vast improvement in racing, is often overshadowed by a significant factor in modern F1: tyres. F1 tyres have taken a leading role in determining the finishing order in races of late. Drivers and cars that are able to preserve their tyres are rewarded with far fewer visits to the pits. But has this damaged what many visualise as the World's fastest sport? Have F1's tyre issues pushed the sport too far from its roots?

The slick tyres used by today's current crop of F1 teams, are made solely by Pirelli. Pirelli were instructed by the FIA, F1's governing body, to create tyres that provided good grip for a short period of time. The intention was to create a challenge for teams with races requiring 2-3 pit stops. However the weekend's race at Barcelona showed how too much tyre wear means drivers are forced to run well within their limits in order to lengthen tyre life. The tyres have become a significant challenge, requiring continual management.

Jody Sheckter had to manage his innovative P34 in 1976

Nevertheless, if we look back over the past 60 years of Formula 1 racing, it is clear to see that racing drivers have rarely been flat out all Sunday long. Generally there has always been a factor that required managing, whether it be gearbox, engine or brake related. Drivers are not just there to push to the limits, but also ensure their machinery can carry them to the finish. In the 50s and 60s the main limiting factor tended to be mechanical, with a lengthy list of racers who 'Did Not Finish' often falling victim to engine and gearbox failures. Through the decades reliability improved, but high performance turbo engines in the 80s were still fragile beasts that needed heavy management over a weekend - they ran up to 600hp less during races than qualifying in order to just survive.

Today however, reliability is so good that races see few mechanical failures with engines competing in 3 to 4 races per season before requiring any rebuilding. Engines and gearboxes require very little management from drivers as a result, with simple engine mapping adjustments providing teams with confidence their cars will see out the distance.

Locking wheels can destroy a tyre in seconds

Especially from the fan's point of view, tyres are the main factors that require management. Many have voiced their disgust, and even 3 times F1 World Champion Sebastian Vettel explained that his Red Bull RB9 could go far quicker over the course of a race if the tyres weren't such a limiting factor.

These issues do not seem to exist because something requires heavy management. Instead it's the fact it results in drivers circulating tracks 10 seconds off their potential pace. We even notice teams instructing drivers to "not fight" against others due to focusing entirely on their own race stint. Most of Barcelona's overtaking came in the form of DRS assisted straight line passes, whilst both Button and Vettel showed little flare when defending positions from attack. This meant despite the number of overtakes being sufficient, each was far less dramatic than many F1 fans would hope.

DRS assisted passes are often less dramatic

The Australian and Bahrain races were thankfully far better and so we can only hope that future races will be closer to them, but Barcelona should certainly serve as a lesson of what we don't want. F1 is the pinnacle of Motorsport, both in terms of drivers and car technology, so the last thing we want is a formula where neither of these things are being pushed to the limits.

The Alonso Philosophy: Round 3 Of The Club 100 Lightweight Sprint Championship

The 3rd Round of the Club 100 Lightweight Sprint Championship took place on the 28th April at Rye House in Hoddesdon. Here's my summary of my day's racing.

Located just a short drive from my home in North London, Rye House is my 'local'. Except this local doesn't serve lagers, but similarly it does have a habit of leaving you a little sore the next day. Rolling out of bed at a not so painful 7:30am, I was excited to return to a track I must have driven around 1000 times. Clear blue skies with promise of warmth meant conditions were thankfully also looking perfect.

Not long after we arrived at one of F1 stars Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton's old playing grounds, in true Club 100 style the racing got started as quickly as possible (the event organisers firmly believe in working to 'the sooner we get started, the sooner we go home'). Having to focus myself for qualifying, my attitude for the day's racing took influence from F1 World Champ Fernando Alonso's consistent performances last year. I figured since the Club 100 season is long and filled with variety, consistency is key. Inspired by his success I targeted podiums for both of the day's races, deciding that points were more important than 'binning it' when chasing that extra place, better to finish the race and grab what I can.

QUALIFYING

Despite it being early morning and the first time I'd sat in a kart for a couple of weeks, with this probably being something like my 1001st lap of Rye House, I was able to immediately settle into a rhythm and start chasing that perfect lap. The pace soon came and my laps were good, with just a few outliers here and there, mostly thanks to traffic. Using every inch of the backbreaking kerb at Pylon (shown in the title pic), I was taking some serious risks.

Upon my return to the pits, it became apparent just how necessary those risks were; pole position by 2/100ths. Doesn't come much closer than that.

Pole position over the start line

RACE 1

Sitting on pole position for Race 1, I was by no means confident. The tiny margin between myself and the pursuing karts meant there was little chance of me breaking free from them if everyone remained settled. But speeding over the line, my start was clean and fast as I swept into Stadium bend. Feeling confident enough not to defend, I pressed on with setting fastest laps in order to drag myself out of the danger zone.

This is when it became apparent that my kart had just a few issues. It didn't lack straight line speed, but an out of line steering wheel began to trouble turn in, with a suspected tracking issue as the problem. This coupled with a heavy vibration meant my working conditions were far from ideal. Nevertheless, I pushed as hard as I could only to be out dragged into turn 1, painfully conceding 1st.

Conceding the lead

Despite the loss, it was here that I really began to 'earn my money' (unfortunately in reality my money likes to travel in the opposite direction). To chase down the new leader I had to race my socks off, setting qualifying lap after qualifying lap with my less than perfect kart. I soon began to match the leader's pace, but the threat of attack from behind later into the race meant I chose to defend rather than attack, remembering consistency is key.

The final result saw me just crossing the line in 2nd, disappointed not to get the winners trophy, but very pleased with the 127 Championship points.

RACE 2

Due to only setting the 4th fastest lap in Race 1, I lined up 4th on the grid for Race 2. As I crept out of the pits to begin our warm up laps, I recognised the machinery; this was Race 1's kart. I immediately returned to the pits to swap to another kart, that wonky one wasn't costing me another race. Once I'd joined the formation lap it seemed as though the decision to swap was the right one. No vibrations and a straight steering wheel, I felt much more confident.

Accelerating over the start line, I managed to maximise my position and slot into 4th; nothing spectacular, but what I had to do. I was happy to realise that I was actually now quicker than the karts ahead, so sitting on the final podium positioned kart's bumper, I was able to notice several key areas where I was quicker. But accelerating back onto the straight in what I thought was a prime slipstreaming position, it became clear my afternoon's kart struggled on the straights. Despite my overall good pace, the lack of top speed made it near impossible to make a clean overtaking manoeuvre for 3rd. In a desperate attempt to move forward, I placed my kart's nose on the inside of turn 1, hoping to force the kart ahead into a mistake. Instead I found myself on the outside of the following corner, which allowed the chasing kart to slip through into hairpin 1. I'd gone backwards rather than forwards.

Regaining 4th before snatching 3rd from the off line kart ahead

Remaining focused and hopeful of a way back through, I pressed on and thankfully squeezed back into 4th as the karts ahead squabbled into hairpin 2. I was even able to steal 3rd from of the out of position kart in front, as he ran wide after a failed attempt at taking 2nd. I suddenly found myself on the tail of 2nd place; this was my chance to snatch the place and break free of the pack, in the same way the current leader had managed to do early on.

Sat on the bumper of 2nd, despite every attempt at carrying momentum and getting that good exit onto the straight, I couldn't quite match the straight line performance of his kart. Almost losing sight of 'Alonso's consistency philosophy', I had a couple of fairly ambitious lunges over the course of the following laps.

Tight squeeze: lunging for 2nd

Thankfully I saw sense when a late braking manoeuvre almost saw both of us out of the race. As we crossed the line for the last lap, I decided to defend my position rather than jeopardising points in trying to steal 2nd. Still, 3rd was far from safe as I had to defend from a late onslaught from behind. To my relief I managed to hold on and grab that final podium position, but more importantly I'd secured a healthy sum of 124 points.

No wins, but 2 podium finishes, Rye House was good to me that day. To top it off I was the highest points scorer of the day, so even though the silverware didn't display it, I felt good as I had come home as the number 1 driver for the day.

I now find myself leading the Championship as we head into Round 4 at Ellough Park. I won't be racing then however, due to getting an exciting chance to drive the Spa Francorchamps F1 circuit in Belgium that weekend (a very valid reason to miss a round I'm sure most will agree). Thankfully though, the Club 100 Championship allows you to drop rounds, so through default that missed round will be one of my dropped days. My Championship hopes are therefore very much alive.

Check out my onboard footage from Race 2 at Rye House:

Unfortunately due to a lack of funds, I had to withdraw from the 2013 Championship despite being the leader at the time. I hope to race in a Club100 kart soon.

Don't bring back Neanderthals, they'll be better at racing

Neaderthals could dominate F1

They say people who live in higher altitudes have stronger hearts due to the reduced amounts of available oxygen. This means when they compete against us sea levelled beings, they can expect a slight natural advantage, since stronger hearts can mean stronger athletic abilities. So imagine my disgust as I read that scientists are considering the idea of bringing back the Neanderthal species with reconstructed DNA. The athletic ability of a species much closer related to our ancestral apes, would be impossible for us humble humans to compete against.

I mean, do the scientists want us to face a future of dominated sport? Sprinting, long distance running, spear throwing: all Neanderthal specialities. And don't get me started on Motorsport. You thought the Schumacher era was bad, imagine a Neanderthal dominated sport, forever! The skills required to be a good F1 driver include reactions, precision, hand to eye coordination and athletic fitness, which funnily enough seem to be very suited to Mr Neanderthal. People are already starting to get sick of the current Vettel era; so please science, don't damn us to another one, especially one from another species!

Circuit De Spa-Francorchamps. Why you should pay it a visit this year

Spa, a track that needs no introduction. Eau Rouge, La Source, Hakkinen vs. Schumacher...they all spring to mind when we think of this great track. Well they do for me, a life long Formula 1 fan who favours the 'original' tracks of the F1 circus. Amongst these modern, 'car park' layouts (Mark Webber's words, not mine), there remain a few classic, tree lined circuits that enable Formula 1 to cling onto its roots - excuse the pun.

The F1 calendar has changed drastically in recent years, shifting a large percentage of its calendar East to new modern tracks, designed to encourage overtaking and induce mistakes. Few tracks remain where tarmac was simply laid where it was practical to do so, creating winding corners, natural dips and undulations. As a result, an increasing amount of Formula 1 circuits are arguably becoming rather indistinguishable. The racing is fantastic there is no doubt about it, but many of these tracks lack the character and individuality of Monte Carlo, the old Hockenhiem and Spa, to name a few.

Car park like run offs

With Hockenhiem's layout being trimmed of its frighteningly fast straights, it has lost a large part of what made it special. Monte Carlo remains largely true to its origins but if you don't fancy clinging to a tree, ticket prices can only be described as astronomical. So Spa, one of the last remaining classic gems of the F1 calendar, is also one of few that offers a far more affordable chance to experience Formula 1 in it's natural environment. For this reason, I think that F1 fans of new and old should all experience this great circuit in the flesh.

And there's another reason too. Because 2013 is the last year F1 will use the naturally aspirated V8s that have been raced since 2006. These engines, smaller descendants of the monstrous V10s of the late 90s and early noughties, sound especially epic through the forests of Spa. Last year I visited Spa for the GP, and was absolutely blown away by the presence of the world's most advanced motorsport on one of the world's most beautiful classic circuits. Its not the volume, or even the speed of these high powered machines that affected me most, although both were equally astounding. Instead it was hearing those V8s sing into the distance, through the dense forest that inhabits the track. This experience, is something I think all car fans should get a chance to experience. One that no other sport can match.

A BTCC fan might tell you that one lap of a race has more action than an entire GP. A Moto GP fan may tell you their motorcycles reach a higher top speed. But neither of them can come close to F1 when it comes to that hair raising feeling an F1 engine creates as it echoes through the trees.

A Force India spits a blue flame

Of course, modern Formula 1 cars create much more than just an engine noise. There's the gearbox, banging through the gears at inconceivable speeds. It's something you not only hear, but see with blue flames popping out of exhausts and most strikingly, something that you feel like a sharp bass line in your stomach. There's the sound of 8 cylinders switching to 4 as drivers come off the throttle, creating a harsh and aggressive note distinctive to Formula 1. On top of that there's the smell of burning rubber and cooked carbon brakes. The orchestra of a Formula 1 car is not done any justice on TV - try telling a conductor his band sounds best through your stereo lounge set up. Witnessing an F1 car up close is something very special, and witnessing it in the theatre of Spa is just fantastic. And this could be the final chance to hear the naturally aspirated orchestra we have now, before forced induction engines are released onto track in 2014.

Vettel & Schumacher pushing at Spa

Now I'm not saying the 2014 engines won't sound amazing, I have no doubt in my mind that they will. But forced induction has a habit of quietening things down. So I say experience the fantastic orchestra we have now. Stand at the end of Kemmel Straight and listen to those V8s scream towards you at 18,000 revs, before feeling the gearbox shove down the gears. Walk through the forest in the middle of the track during a busy practice session. You'll be amazed how you're surrounded by nature but can hear nothing but high revving technology.

Anyway, that's enough of me trying to describe the sound in plain old English. From here on I'll let the videos do the talking. Turn up your speakers...

Screaming V8s up Eau Rouge:

Along Kemmel Straight:

Banging down the gears into Les Combes:

And one to show off the speed and phenomenal downforce an F1 car generates through Eau Rouge:

But remember...videos do F1 cars no justice!