Urgh
I actually find myself at loose ends as to what to write about right now. Nothing is really leaping out at me... anybody got any burning questions you want answered with a post? This is the perfect time to ask me!
3
Are you still playing KSP, and if so, what have you achieved? Any interesting unplanned rapid dissasemblies or lithobraking experiences?
Posted by: David at March 31, 2015 11:36 PM (+TPAa)
4
David, no, I'm not. A recent update made it unplayable on my graphics card... which should be reason enough for me to install the "new" one that I've had sitting here ready to go for nearly a year.
Posted by: Wonderduck at April 01, 2015 12:33 AM (jGQR+)
Posted by: GreyDuck at April 01, 2015 08:51 AM (3m7pZ)
7
Your thoughts on fairness or justice vs. MLB's protected status regarding the currently-in-force Players' Contract that allows a controlled talent to be kept under team control for an extra year by spending the first month of the season on a minor-league team.
F1 Update: Malaysia 2015
We here at F1Update! want to try something new. Our usual "bullet point style" of coverage has gotten pretty darn tiring to us since it really feels like we're just saying the same things over and over again each race. So instead, we're going to be a little more... chatty, shall we say? Possibly less informative, too, but nobody says we're going to stick with this style. So THIS is your F1Update! for the 2015 Grand Prix of Malaysia... relaxed version!
As we put this together, the race was over more than a half-day ago. Many of you will have already learned that, for the first time since Spain in May of 2013, a Ferrari driver stood on the top step of the podium. Sebastian Vettel, in only his second race for the team from Maranello, beat the twin Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg by roughly nine and 13 seconds, respectively. The other Red Car didn't do too badly either as Kimi Raikkonen brought his Ferrari across the finish line in fourth after an incident-plagued race. This was Vettel's first race win since Brazil in 2013.
Many pundits are saying that Ferrari's performance today means that
they'll be challenging the Silver Arrows for the rest of the season, and
that's entirely possible. There are a few indicators that suggest that
this may not be the case. First off, the nature of Sepang
International Circuit itself. Malaysia is incredibly hot and humid when
it's not raining (then it's hot, humid and raining). At one point
during race weekend the surface temperature of the track was over 160°F.
(that's nearly £85 for those of you overseas readers!), much hotter
than anybody could have possibly expected. As a result, the Pirelli
tires were suffering from blisters and higher-than-normal degradation.
There was no reason to complain, as it wasn't overly bad and everybody
had the same situation anyway. When it came to the race, Ferrari made
their tires work better longer than anybody else. It seems that the
SF15-T is gentle on its tires... or gentler, at least. Perhaps
having Vettel behind the wheel helps as well. In any case, the Red Car
of the four-time world champion was able to run the race on two pit
stops, while the two Mercedes had to make three... and that's the
difference, right there.
Of course, there's always more to the story. One could also say that Mercedes lost the race during Q1 and Q2 on Saturday. With heavy rains bearing down on the circuit, the German team decided to do something they almost never do: burn a set of the softer, Option, tires during Q1 to make sure they got through to Q2. They stayed on the Option tire again in the few laps they were able to turn before le deluge came down. Arguably, Mercedes could have stayed true to form and run the harder Prime tire in Q1 and still progressed to the next phase of Qualifying. Why is this important? Because for Hamilton's last stint, when he was going to have fresher tires than Vettel and thus had the best chance to catch him, the team was forced to put him on the Prime tires because the Options they had remaining would never have lasted until the end of the race. The Options were somewhere around 1.0 to 1.5 seconds/lap faster than the Primes, and he pitted on Lap 40 of a 56 lap race. Hamilton finished just over 8.6 second behind... you do the math.
2
Thanks for the update! I almost forgot there was a race. Not sure if I'll cry about the structured format. As our blogging host, I support any format you're having a fun with.
BTW, here's a tangentially on-topic note that hopefuly amuses you... Remember a Top Gear video where Richard Hammond drives a Renault F1 car? He drove a Formula Renault for a warm-up before that. A couple days ago, I went to one of pay-to-drive places and drove a car almost exactly like that, a Formula Ford, on a twisty road course. I promptly wrecked it. So now you know: I'm worse than Richard Hammond. Fortunately, I left the track nose first, so I didn't roll and got away with bruising.
Posted by: Pete Zaitcev at March 30, 2015 09:02 AM (RqRa5)
3
Pete, that'd be this clip I'm thinking. Seeing how he pretty much drives cars while talking for a living, it surprises me not at all that he did a better job.
Excellent work at not killing yourself, by the way. I don't know that I'd be as lucky!
Posted by: Wonderduck at March 30, 2015 09:12 AM (jGQR+)
4
It didn't really occur to me until now that Seb Vettel didn't win a race last year.
5
Personally, I'm a little bummed for McLaren and Button. He seemed like a gentlemanly sort of guy. In my mind, the previous F1 racer with a disposition like that was Berger, and he's not been a champion. Certainly it could be a fake facade that Button is selling to the fans, but then again, look at human faults of HWMNBN and Hamilton. Those were on full display.
Posted by: Pete Zaitcev at March 30, 2015 11:17 AM (RqRa5)
6
New format: Approved. (Honestly, whatever makes the write-up more fun for YOU is approved, but genuinely I like this just fine.)
Two years. Yegods. No wonder this has become less fun over the years; it's basically down to Team A or Team B barring acts of Deity... such as a torrential downpour in ridiculous heat.
Posted by: GreyDuck at March 30, 2015 08:56 PM (AQ0bN)
7
I agree that Vettel won by a pit stop, but one other point in support of Ferrari having found significant pace is that Kimi managed to overcome everything and still pull off a solid 4th.
The most disappointed ( and -ing) team right now has to be Red Bull, with both Toro Rossos finishing ahead of them and having both cars lapped by Vettel.
Posted by: ReallyBored at April 01, 2015 08:50 AM (ulGxe)
Kantai Collection Ep12
So here we are. The culmination of three months worth of Wednesdays, all coming down to this. It's been a long and surprisingly entertaining run, going all the way back to January 7th. Along the way, there's been a Cthulhu summoning, incontinent shipgrannies, a deep and kinda disturbing love for Mutsu has grown, and more comments than any two Series Writeups combined. Seems Kantai Collection struck a chord with some folks, good, bad, or otherwise. I've had long discussions about the series offline, seen more than the show's share of bullhockey get spouted in online forums... cheeseandrice, the historical misconceptions I've seen about what actually occurred during the real Pacific War have been enough to make me loathe the American education system. Despite all that, the series itself has been consistently entertaining, if somewhat pointlessly fluffy at times. Well, we're not making Haibane Renmei here after all. Hell, we're not even making K-On!.
Hnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnng.
Which is a good thing. The show always knew what it was, though maybe not always what it wanted to be. Historic melodrama? Comedy? Lightweight fanservice vehicle? Tragedy? All of the above at the same time? Or just Kantai Collection? Let's go with that. That's good enough, I believe. And if it isn't going to win any "Best of 2015" awards, well, that's okay too. So the end is nigh, how will it all go down? So to speak, of course... "going down" isn't a phrase you want to use when it involves warships. Or maybe it is, if you're the type of person who thinks of anime "that way". If you are... um... ew.
We pick up pretty much exactly where we left off at the end of Episode 11: the Battle of Midway has begun, and history is doing Bad Things to our Shipgirls, which is what you'd expect. Three of the four carriers have been hit, only Hiryu seems to be able to fire arrows, there's an Abyssal surface warfare fleet closing in, and Akagi is in dispair as an anti-shipping bomb is headed right 'twixt her eyes. One can rail against fate, but it seems one cannot defeat it. And then... ...I keep getting distracted. The past two hours have been spent watching WarThunder Fail videos, random AMVs, and falling asleep at my desk. So I'm going to take a nap and pick this up when I'm done.
I'm back. Six hours of nap later, I'm back. If you're wondering why this writeup has taken as long as it has, there you go. Where were we? Oh yes... bombs fall, everybody dies.
1
Excellent write-up! 100% agree with your conclusions, although I suspect I enjoyed the filler episodes more. I had forgotten that you predicted the Fubuki/Yorkie faceoff. I have a hard time thinking of the Abyssal carrier as Yorkie now, though...the Abyssals seem more to be some manifestation of WAR or somesuch. Of course, even in that context that carrier, which is clearly a persistent being, is occupying the historical space of Yorktown.
In retrospect, there was really only one TRUE filler episode: curry cookoff. Eps like "Lets go to Truk" or "The Kongos" are redeemed by either being silly, having lots of Mutsu, or both... and rarely, Mutsu being silly.
But only Curry Cookoff could have been excised from the show's run without important stuff being lost. Yes, I count Mutsu's glorious smile as being important.
Posted by: Wonderduck at March 29, 2015 09:49 AM (jGQR+)
3
Thank you for blogging Wonderduck, I've enjoyed your posts as much as the series itself.
Now to go listen to Kongou Desu again...
Posted by: Riktol at March 29, 2015 04:23 PM (MQZN9)
4
Sorry, I got distracted by the link to the War Thunder Fail Montage.
Montages, really, because that was the 16th and there are a bunch more and wow, watching aerial collisions really doesn't get old, does it?
Anyway. KanColle. Better than it could've been, not as good as it should've been, yet still one of the few watchable series out of the entire season, which... says a lot about the current state of anime, doesn't it?
Posted by: GreyDuck at March 29, 2015 09:46 PM (AQ0bN)
5Montages, really, because that was the 16th and there are a bunch more...
...and I've watched 'em all, plus pretty much everything else on BTG's channel, over the past few months. Plus many of the videos on his friends lists, too.
Nothing but time to kill. Nothing but time.
Posted by: Wonderduck at March 29, 2015 09:50 PM (jGQR+)
6
1. Thanks for these writeups! I'm not the target audience, but you have helped me keep up with an anime series that is clearly iconic.
2. Maybe you should write a futuristic vehicle racing novel. Guys on the teams, personalities of the drivers, life of the news guys covering it, political stuff happening in the places they visit....
What if they had to travel to different planets within a solar system, or farther? They'd pretty much be giving up normal life for racing, even if their transports went pretty fast. But if they only had a few races per planet, every race being entertaining would be more important.
Posted by: Suburbanbanshee at March 30, 2015 12:00 PM (ZJVQ5)
F1 Quals: Malaysia 2015
Allegedly they've heard of sunlight at Sepang. If you just went by
today, however, there's no way that's actually possible, as the session
began with low, heavy clouds. If I saw clouds like that here at Pond
Central on a Summer day, I'd be heading for the laundry room as fast as I
could go. But did it actually rain? Here's the provisional grid for
the 2015 Grand Prix of Malaysia:
P
Driver
Team
Q1
Q2
Q3
1
Lewis Hamilton
Mercedes
1:39.269
1:41.517
1:49.834
2
Sebastian Vettel
Ferrari
1:39.814
1:39.632
1:49.908
3
Nico Rosberg
Mercedes
1:39.374
1:39.377
1:50.299
4
Daniel Ricciardo
Red Bull Racing
1:40.504
1:41.085
1:51.541
5
Daniil Kvyat
Red Bull Racing
1:40.546
1:41.665
1:51.951
6
Max Verstappen
Toro Rosso
1:40.793
1:41.430
1:51.981
7
Felipe Massa
Williams
1:40.543
1:41.230
1:52.473
8
Romain Grosjean
Lotus
1:40.303
1:41.209
1:52.981
9
Valtteri Bottas
Williams
1:40.249
1:40.650
1:53.179
10
Marcus Ericsson
Sauber
1:40.340
1:41.748
1:53.261
11
Kimi Raikkonen
Ferrari
1:40.415
1:42.173
12
Pastor Maldonado
Lotus
1:40.361
1:42.198
13
Nico Hulkenberg
Force India
1:40.830
1:43.023
14
Sergio Perez
Force India
1:41.036
1:43.469
15
Carlos Sainz
Toro Rosso
1:39.814
1:43.701
16
Felipe Nasr
Sauber
1:41.308
17
Jenson Button
McLaren
1:41.636
18
Fernando Alonso
McLaren
1:41.746
19
Roberto Merhi
Manor
1:46.677
DNQ
Will Stevens
Manor
No Time
First things first: the 107% time was 1:46:217. Neither Manor driver brought his vehicle in under that time, so they race at the Steward's permission... which was granted, as both drivers managed to display enough pace during practice to claim they manage it. Assuming Manor can find and fix the gremlin that infected Will Stevens' car between Practice 3 and Quals, we should have a full grid on Sunday!
And what an interesting grid it is, too. Of course it rained in Malaysia; it always does. The teams had enough time for one or two flying laps before the heavens opened up and dumped a substantial portion of the Malacca Strait onto Sepang International Circuit. Lewis Hamilton was nearly caught by this, as he had problems getting his Mercedes started. Because most only got one shot, one bad twitch could cost you the session, as Kimi Raikkonen learned. After the dry laps were in the books, there was no point in going out again.
Q3 was delayed nearly 40 minutes as the Powers That Be waited for the water to stop bucketing down. This it duly did, but the track was still sodden enough for Intermediate tires (and some thought Full Wets) to be required for the entire session. In the process, we may have discovered that, at least in the wet, Ferrari can hang with the Mercs. In the dry, the Silver Arrows still have the clear advantage, though it seems to have been cut somewhat.
We'll see what the race will bring us early Sunday Morning. No idea when I'll manage the writeup, as I've a couple of other things that need to be dealt with on Sunday.
It's underground, Vauc, with lots of piping to help carry the loads. In effect, it's the closest thing that I've got to a basement here.
I don't know why they bother with that 107% rule
That's not entirely true. I believe there have been four times since 2011 that cars have been booted under the rule. Every time, it was HRT, as a matter of fact. I'm of the opinion that they're being kind to Manor right now, in effect giving them testing time instead of preventing them from going out.
Posted by: Wonderduck at March 28, 2015 10:52 PM (jGQR+)
1
I do think it says a little about Clarkson that he reported the incident himself. It doesn't excuse any part of the incident though.
It is a sad day.
Posted by: Tom Tjarks at March 28, 2015 10:08 AM (8TxhX)
2
I will not be surprised when the three of them show up someplace else with a show very much like Top Gear. I do really want the last three episodes to air though, just to cap off this last version.
Posted by: JP Gibb at April 02, 2015 09:08 PM (NnF9/)
Kantai Collection: Good News, Bad News
The good news: a second season of Kantai Collection was announced today, just before the final episode of S1 aired.
The bad news: it seems that crunchyroll got their copy of the episode very very late, and thus it has yet to air here.
Allow me to repeat my prior warning: any spoilers of the episode of any sort will result in the offender being banned. Period. I want to watch this one with no hints or suggestions of any sort. Even saying "you'll love it, Wonderduck" isn't welcome.
So just don't, okay? Cool.
UPDATE: I've finally seen the final episode of S1. That was about as good as we could have hoped for, save for the "rocks fall everybody dies" Bad End. Strong way to end the season. Writeup to begin Thursday morning.
F1 on NBCSN: Malaysia
With a cloud of embarrassment hanging over its head, F1 bids adieu to Australia and made its way to the next destination on the World Tour: Malaysia, and the Sepang International Circuit contained therein. Let's take a look at said circuit's track map:
Some things never change. Since 1999, Malaysia has been dominated by the two "forever straights", separated only by a tight, low-speed hairpin. In effect this was Hermann Tilke's premiere track design, though he did technically design the A1-Ring (now the Red Bull Ring) in Austria first. It's already full of what would be come his signature tics, like the aforementioned long straights, lots of rhythm-destroying turns, and an appalling lack of feel for a racetrack. All of these would carry over to his later designs, with only Turkey truly standing as an acceptable layout.
Well, what's done is done. The circuits are here, they aren't going away anytime soon, so this is what we've got. What do often do get in Malaysia is rain. Lots and lots of rain. If we're lucky, we'll get rain this weekend. According to the forecast, there's showers scheduled on race morning, with thunderstorms in the afternoon. The question, of course, is if "the afternoon" is during the race itself. We'll see.
In injured driver news, both Valterri Bottas (back) and HWMNBN (concussion) are hopeful for returns this weekend. The Finn will do the car self-extraction test on Thursday, and if he's capable of that, he'll be driving. The Spaniard, however, went through a battery of tests this weekend, and will undergo a final medical assessment from the FIA on Thursday as well. I'd expect to see them both racing on Sunday.
Finally, here's the TV schedule for NBCSN's coverage this weekend:
Friday
P2: 100a - 300a live Saturday
Quals: 400a - 530a live Sunday
2015 Grand Prix of Malaysia: 130a - 400a live
As always, times are in Pond Central. Also as always, NBCSN's scheduling is brought to us by Zap2It, which means it's frequently wrong, and constantly impossible to read.
And, completely off-topic, here's this year's World Endurance Racing entry from Audi:
1
In addition to Turkey, I would consider COTA to be a good Hermann Tilke track. They show that he is capable of creating good tracks, he just usually doesn't.
To be fair, many of the track locations are chosen for political reasons, not because they're good sites for a race track. Dead flat plains don't do a track architect any favors, and I doubt anyone could have made a great track out of the Sochi Olympic Park. I read somewhere that Tilke was involved in site selection for COTA, which explains why the track seems to work with the terrain, especially the turn 1 hill followed by the downhill esses.
Posted by: flatdarkmars at March 24, 2015 10:17 PM (h7xWz)
2I would consider COTA to be a good Hermann Tilke track.
If he had been the designer, I'd agree. Tavo Hellmund is credited as the designer of COTA along with Kevin Schwantz. Tilke was an advisor.
Posted by: Wonderduck at March 25, 2015 02:16 AM (jGQR+)
3
Oh! Didn't know that. Explains a lot.
He should advise more often.
Posted by: flatdarkmars at March 25, 2015 06:12 AM (h7xWz)
Posted by: Brickmuppet at March 27, 2015 10:15 PM (ohzj1)
14
Back on topic;
Can you please opine on what makes a good racetrack?
Posted by: Brickmuppet at March 27, 2015 10:20 PM (ohzj1)
15
Muppet, good to finally see you back in the comments again! Hope finals went well?
"Can you please opine on what makes a good racetrack?"
I can, but not in comments... that's a post. Lemme get back to you on that.
Posted by: Wonderduck at March 27, 2015 10:43 PM (jGQR+)
16
I was just looking at this track in Google Earth, and whatever else you may say about it, good or bad, it looks like a safe track. All the turns except #2 have big runoff areas, and #2 doesn't need one because no one will be going fast around it. There's a big grass area there in case someone goes off the track, and that's enough. I didn't see any significant fences or light poles to run into, either; everything is nice and clear all around the track, except on the two big straights -- and that's OK, too.
Kantai Collection Ep11
So it has come to this. Midway. We've known all along that it must be the climax, and after all the waiting, it's here. But will it be a repeat of history as we know it, or will the shipgirls make their own way through the timey-wimey stuff? Only the Production Staff knows for sure, and they ain't tellin' yet. It's a shame some aren't giving the show a chance... I suspect we've got some surprises ahead, and the production staff has earned themselves enough credit to be allowed to take their shot. I'm still betting against the historical ending, but it would be stunning if they pulled it off.
Last episode ended with Fubuki getting her remodel and being named as Akagi's personal escort. We begin this episode with a... flashback? Wha?
Akagi is practically dragging Kaga as explosions occur all around them. Both are badly damaged, quivers empty, flight decks broken, stockings torn, hair a complete mess. It's clear Operation AF has gone terribly, terribly wrong. History repeats, it seems.
Only Hiryu is left standing, while the killing blow for Soryu is about to land. There's nothing to be done for it. Abyssal fighters crowd the skies, each looking to drop a carrier, even a damaged one. Finally, the time has come. History repeats, it seems.
Akagi gets a quick glimpse of her impending doom. Well, I suppose we know how this is all going to go down now, don't we? What's more, her final words are "I'm sorry. Please scuttle me."
I discussed the problems with this tableau back in the Ep02 writeup. Now we get to have it in context.... and with the addition of torpedo trails in the water, to boot. Just as they hit, the screen goes white. Shortest episode ever!
I think, considering what we've seen from them, the answer is "brave enough." The question is whether the Powers That Be will let them do it.
That answer is "no." It'd kill the game dead overnight. The Production Staff could do it. But they won't be allowed to.
That's a pity.
Posted by: Wonderduck at March 23, 2015 09:21 AM (jGQR+)
4
Now that we know what the nature of the "ship's souls" that are at the heart of the fleet girls is, I'm rooting for a major deviation from Midway. There are some interesting questions left that I don't think will be answered: are any of the fleet girls aware of the actual history of their namesakes? Only Akagi and Nagato are shown as having some indication, but they clearly don't understand. Do the Abyss also know any of this? Or are they operating under the same influence as the fleet girls?
It's a shame this series had to be tied so tightly to the game; the writers actually have something good here.
5Now that we know what the nature of the "ship's souls" that are at the heart of the fleet girls is...
Do we? I think that's still up in the air...remember, Akagi's dream doesn't match up to either Real Life History or what's happening in the show. Nagato's having a feeling. Don't get me wrong, the "ship's souls" theory is a sound one and is probably correct, but the events of this episode doesn't confirm it.
Posted by: Wonderduck at March 23, 2015 12:19 PM (jGQR+)
6
You know how discovering that the Yamato wasn't in one piece of the ocean floor didn't affect how the wreck was depicted in Space Battleship Yamato? I think that's what we're getting with Akagi's dreams: the insinuation that the Akagi was attacked and scuttled; how it actually happened is unimportant. Beside which, you're looking at how a "ship girl" is interpreting what the "ship's soul" is telling her...how could a ship girl take that kind of thing literally?
7
You know how discovering that the Yamato wasn't in one piece of the ocean floor didn't affect how the wreck was depicted in Space Battleship Yamato?
SBY debuted in 1974. The wreck of the Yamato wasn't found until 1982, and wasn't confirmed until 1984. Before then, it wasn't known that the ship was in pieces.
Posted by: Wonderduck at March 23, 2015 02:29 PM (jGQR+)
...pation.
Some of you with memories longer than that of goldfish may remember that I had a job interview a couple of weeks ago. This was the company where I had to take a Wonderlic test, and they discovered that I had a giant pulsating brain.
Remarkably accurate representation of Wonderduck
After the interview they said that they'd let me know "early next week." After it became LATE "next week", I e-mailed the company HR person to see where the matter stood. The reply was pretty much exactly what I expected: "We're still trying to decide, we'll let you know." Well, my thinking went, I've done my part, all I can do is wait. So wait I did.
The supposed start date of March 16th came and went. I wasn't terribly surprised, as they had said that they could push it back if they didn't have enough qualified applicants. However, I'd be lying if I thought this an encouraging sign. Well, whatever. Today, as I was getting dressed to have lunch with the folks, I received an e-mail from the company. In effect, they were scared of my giant pulsating brain and decided to hire dullards instead.
I have been told in the past that I'm too smart for my own good. This is the first time that's really the case. The intelligent part of me knew this was coming, it's not a surprise, so on and so forth. It still really, really hurts. I wanted this one badly, and nope, not good enough.
I can't even get a data-entry job. WTF, life?
UPDATED: Since I applied for the job through CareerMonster or one of those jobsites, I get e-mails from the company occasionally saying "here are some positions you might find interesting." It's just after midnight, and one just popped up. They've got six more openings. So much for keeping my application on file, huh?
Remarkably accurate representation of the company and Wonderduck.
Posted by: GreyDuck at March 18, 2015 09:44 PM (AQ0bN)
3
You obviously failed the American teachers' unions by not being a lo-info drone sans ability to reason. Donate 25 IQ points to the nearest anti-Mensa chapter in Duckburg and apply again.
Posted by: The Old Man at March 19, 2015 06:44 AM (o6+UC)
4
Well, that's the trouble with testing -- there's plenty of advice and help on how to do better, but not enough on how to do worse.
Maybe there's a business opportunity: test-antiprep courses that excessively smart people can take when they need to look like amiable conformists within +1 or 2 standard deviations of average.
> they've got six more openings.
And, of course, the trouble with smaller cities -- much more acting talent is required in order to go back with a disguise and an alias and see if you do better.
"But seriously, folks:" People who for whatever reason are committed to a smaller city or a rural area, and have more capability than the local economy can absorb would seem to be an untapped stratum of human resources. There's a lot of talent lying fallow for lack of an efficient way of using it (and corporate culture that can accept a nontraditional work situation)...
Posted by: Ad absurdum per aspera at March 19, 2015 01:38 PM (4sBqR)
5
If it were California, our host would've been considered within an easy commute range from Chicago. I lived like that for a few years. Unfortunately, it is not California.
Posted by: Pete Zaitcev at March 24, 2015 04:04 PM (RqRa5)
Kantai Collection Ep10 (updated)
So I'm running a little late this week, sorry about that. What with my other hobby starting this week, I sorta had to shuffle the writeup a little farther down the priority ladder than normal. It's okay, though... if I had to, this was the episode to delay. Not that it wasn't important, heavens no, but it's hardly The Most Important Episode Ever. Which is why I'm not giving it my usual 100% treatment this week. Hey, I'M not the one looking to get a major remodel, that's Fubuki's job. I'd be satisfied with a haircut and a closet full of clean towels... I've really got to get to a laundromat, but that means going out into the public eye, y'know? Before I get into that, though, let's get going on the Episode 10 of Kantai Collection!
We begin with shots of Foobie training and a not-a-flashback to the end of last episode, when Our Heroine is told she's being remodeled. Nagato tells her that the Admiral specifically said that her upgraded form was going to be essential for the upcoming battle, and I'd like to say that I called that at the end of last ep's writeup. Go me. Sure, it was like hitting a batting practice fastball, but I still called it. I'm in a win-win situation here. Either they go with Foobie Saves The Day, or they go with History Repeating. I'd enjoy either result, though the bloodbath would take guts indeed. Back to current day...
....and Nagato's got a problem. See, she's got the Admiral's notebook of what to do for the coming battle, but the most important piece of information, the location, is in code. It just says to "strike Abyssal base AF," but not which base AF is! There are three possibilities: north, the Aleutians; South, someplace less-than-obvious to my history-laden mind, and Central. Nagato is doing recon-by-fire, sending small fleets out to each location to see which one gets shot at the most. By her logic, the one that's most strongly defended is AF.
Fleets have already been sent to North and South. The newly reconstituted Torpedo Squadron Three gets the Central area, which contains island MI. Orders are to get shot at, but not draw the entire Abyssal fleet down on themselves.
3
Your post is incomplete. You didn't put in a picture of Fubuki in her wedding dress.
I felt that was the most telling part of the episode, clearly we are watching a dramatization of one player's game, not a re-enactment of history like people keep claiming.
Posted by: Riktol at March 16, 2015 03:24 PM (MQZN9)
My post is exactly as complete as I wanted it to be. If you feel you can do better, you're welcome to do so.
Taking the time to explain the whole "marriage" functionality of the game was more work and effort than I judged worth doing. And, since that scene was a retelling of a dream and not an actual event, it's hard to figure it as a "dramatization of a game."
I could be wrong, though.
Posted by: Wonderduck at March 16, 2015 03:37 PM (jGQR+)
5
I don't think it's a dramatization of a player's game as much as it's a synthesis of the intended game experience.
6
It's... kind of terrifying in some kind of mystic sense, though. "I saw you in a dream in a wedding dress! Therefore you are to command our fleets, o my shipwaifu."
Though it's already been remarked that Fubuki is probably doing a better job at it than Yamamoto or, for that matter, Nagumo... and I'm convinced that Duck had it exactly right regarding which history books Fubuki has been reading in her spare time. Fubuki doesn't have Victory Disease - the Abyssals are a big scary alien threat that they don't have a handle on. Fubuki is perfectly happy to tell the carriers to run an adequate search (though she gets less guff about it since in Kancolle-land that doesn't seem to translate into a weaker strike.)
Further, they're going in to hunt the carriers from the get-go... though of course Kancolle is pretty abstract about what would constitute a landing or invasion, no? It ain't that kind of game, after all.
It'll be interesting anyway.
Posted by: Avatar at March 16, 2015 07:37 PM (zJsIy)
7
Okay, granted that most wedding dresses today are styled a lot like evening dresses, and the wedding industry profits hugely by never having to tailor sleeves.
But seriously, guys, that was a sparkly evening dress and an evening tiara. If that's supposed to be her wedding dress, Fubuki is doing her wedding on the cheap, not that there's anything wrong with that.
(And it's not a wedding reception dress, because those are red.)
Of course, if we were really doing WWII-recreation, Fubuki can't have a Western-style wedding dress (unpatriotic), and she can't have an evening gown with that much loose cloth in it (rationing). White wedding gowns were still not universal even in the UK and the United States, and during the war, most girls just got married in their best dress.
Of course, there is the famous war option of making a dress out of parachute silk, but I think you'd need an awful lot of fairy-sized parachutes to get enough silk for a parachute t-shirt, much less a whole dress.
So I guess my point is that the Admiral has awful weird fashion sense in his dreams. The real dream message may have been that Fubuki is the destined Belle of the Ball, or the destined Eliza Doolittle.
Posted by: Suburbanbanshee at March 16, 2015 10:48 PM (ZJVQ5)
The Admiral thought "Fubuki = Doolittle = raid leader."
Actually, the dream was a precognitive death warning, telling the Admiral to "Move your bloomin' arse!"
Posted by: Suburbanbanshee at March 16, 2015 10:56 PM (ZJVQ5)
9
I really don't think the writers are re-doing WWII. Even if they were, they haven't done the groundwork necessary to sell it. This has been a constant complaint I've had throughout is that, since they clearly *arent* redoing WWII, why are they using Pacific battles as a template and sticking so close to how those battles played out?
10
You missed the point. That dream wasn't the Admiral in the early 1940s having a dream; the Tokyo skyline did not look like that back then, man. That was the modern-day Admiral, he who is playing Kancolle-the-game, dreaming about his waifu in the modern day, and then going in and playing the game like that...
I think the big key is this - the anime isn't worried about the rest of WW2 because it's about to end. They don't have to think about "well, wait, how do we make it so we keep winning but then keep fighting for event areas closer and closer to Japan?" (and that's something the game will need to deal with sometime too, y'know...)
We'll find out tomorrow, or failin' that, a week later.
Posted by: Avatar at March 17, 2015 07:46 PM (zJsIy)
So now I've got two people telling me how to do my writeups?
Posted by: Wonderduck at March 17, 2015 08:11 PM (jGQR+)
12
I believe that _I_ was being told that I had missed the point. Which I probably did, given that I started talking about fashion irrelevancies and then headed out to wacko-land.
It is pretty hilarious how the Tokyo Tower continues to show up everywhere in anime.
So what time is KanColle set in, in its own universe? Obviously not WWII, because they're ship spirits in modern girls. But are we talking far future Earth, near future Earth, or AI who don't know they live on a server and are fighting against the alien viruses Reboot-style?
The baths working so fast -- that definitely argues far future, I would think. Unless it's magic, in which case magic has definitely leveled up in the KanColle world. I guess it could be roughly modern times, but I don't really see women today being comfortable walking around in public in those crazy outfits, unless all ship spirits are reincarnated in Japanese cosplayers who believe in skimpy outfits. So it must be very alternate universe.
Posted by: Suburbanbanshee at March 17, 2015 08:30 PM (ZJVQ5)
13
Yeah, I'm happy with the writeup. Also I approve of F1 writing. So it's like, no matter what you're writing up, unless it's Rio, I win! (and even if it is Rio, I can't look away!) My fault for unclear pronoun use though.
Honestly, I like looking into the deep hidden stuff behind various shows, but I don't think Kancolle is suitable for it. I could make the scenario work if someone asked me to do it, but I'd have to put in a lot of detail that frankly ain't in the game or the show, and nothing's convinced me that the writers went to the trouble.
Posted by: Avatar at March 17, 2015 10:26 PM (zJsIy)
14"...nothing's convinced me that the writers went to the trouble." That's the scab I keep picking at.
15
Ah, but the joy of fanfic and WAGuess is that you can make it work anyway!
Amusingly enough, early YA writer S.E. Hinton has revealed that she's been writing fanfic of her own stuff and putting it out in non-official fanfic groups under a fannish name. (Although at that point, I don't know why she wouldn't just release a book of short stories, unless she's under abusive contract.)
Posted by: Suburbanbanshee at March 18, 2015 05:58 PM (ZJVQ5)
F1 Update: Australia 2015
Some might call what happened in Melbourne a farce. Others could characterize it as an example of everything that's wrong with Formula 1. We here at F1U! look at it and wonder what an Australian hot dog would have for toppings. THIS is your F1Update! for the 2015 Grand Prix of Australia!
*SECOND VERSE: Stop us if you've heard this one before. Lights go out, Lewis Hamilton runs away and is next seen by TV cameras with two laps left as the announcers wax rhapsodic about the level of domination both he and Mercedes displayed during the race. Meanwhile, Nico Rosberg ran a race just as good as Hamilton's, only blemished by not being able to catch the reigning World Champion despite similar equipment. That Rosberg was over 35 seconds ahead of the third place finisher should tell you everything you need to know about how the race went.
*THAT WAS UNEXPECTED: Okay, first and second were pretty much locks. But what about the rest of the race? From all appearances, if it wasn't for Mercedes we might have a helluva season on our hands. The five spots from third through seventh were claimed by five different teams... in order: Ferrari, Williams, Sauber (!), Red Bull, and Force India. The first team to double up was Sauber (!!) in 8th, followed by a sixth team, Toro Rosso in 9th. That's a great distribution, and one that's unfortunately not going to repeat itself.
*WHAT? WHY NOT?: Because you don't often have races that end with 11 cars running, that's why. Bad enough that Manor DNQ'd and we were beginning the race with 18 cars. Then news came down that Williams' Valterri Bottas had a back injury and couldn't race, dropping us to 17. As if that wasn't enough, McLaren's HWMNBN'DSI had his engine grenade itself on the sedate drive to the pre-race grid. A minute later, the Red Bull of Daniil Kyvat rolled to a stop, his gearbox transformed from a precisely tuned instrument to a handful of metal shavings and hate. We were down to 15. By the end of the first lap, Lotus' Pastor Maldonado was in the wall, aided in his destruction by Sauber's Felipe Nasr. The other Lotus driver, Lettuce Grosjean, pitted at the end of Lap 1, his engine performing like the team installed the turbocharger backwards, and the fans in Melbourne were watching 13 cars race. On Lap 34, Junior Verstappen's debut race came to an end with a high-pitched report of "smoke in the cockpit" and a plume behind him, and then there were 12. A few laps later, Ferrari let Mumbles Raikkonen leave the pits with one of his tires attached incompletely, ending his day just a few turns out of the pit lane. Eleven. The slowest car on the grid, Jenson Button's McLaren, very nearly earned a point by not failing, despite ending the race two laps down.
*DRIVER OF THE RACE: Felipe Nasr, Sauber. Last year, Sauber had the worst season in their history, scoring zero points and nearly having to pack it in for lack of funds. This year, they're racing two rookies because they brought huge checkbooks to the table. Well, one of the rookies showed he's not afraid to hang with the big names of the sport, finishing fifth ahead of Daniel Riccardo and just behind Felipe Massa. Oh, and coincidentally earning 10 points for Sauber. Not bad, kid... now do it again!
*TEAM OF THE RACE: Well, Mercedes of course. I could give it to Sauber for getting both drivers in the points after last year's debacle, or McLaren for getting one car to the end of the race (the longest they've managed to have a car survive in 2015), but Merc made it clear that this is their season to lose.
*MOMENT OF THE RACE: After Pastor Maldonado's Lotus was installed into the wall between Turns 1 and 2 on the first lap, the Safety Car was summoned for a few laps. On the restart, leader Lewis Hamilton was granted a boon from the Restart Gods. It only felt like he had a three second head-start as they crossed the line; in reality it took him the entire rest of the lap to open up a 2-1/2 second lead over his teammate. If there was any question that Hamilton wanted the win today, that perfectly timed restart dispelled it.
*SELECTED DRIVER'S QUOTES OF THE RACE:
"It's nice to see Ferrari back on the podium, we'll have a good scrap with them the rest of the way... hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaahaahahahahahaahahah!" - Lewis Hamilton
"It's a long season with lots of races to go. I can still beat Lewis." - Nico Rosberg (note: hahahahahahahahahahahahahaahahahahaa!)
"I drank the champagne on the podium and I saved some for the guys in the team, because they told me they like it a lot." - Seb Vettel (note: real quote)
"I am very happy with fifth position in my first Formula 1 race. And that I'm single, young and a F1 driver. My life is perfect right now." - Felipe Nasr
"Meat pies, vegemite and tim-tams for everybody!" - Daniel Riccardo
"I said something boring and generic to commemorate my 7th place finish." - Nico Hulkenberg
"Bet Giedo van de Garde wishes he coughed up more money now, huh?" - Marcus Ericsson
"It's 'Carlos Sainz', not 'Horatio Sanz.' I just want to make that clear." - Horatio Sanz
"I was faster than Button." - Sergio Perez
"Today was a good day. No, really! We got a lot of data, we didn't explode or electrocute anybody, so it's a good day. And we were almost in the points." - Jenson Button
First came the news that Valterri Bottas is out. As mentioned earlier, he had a back injury that was probably suffered during Q2 when he ran wide out of a turn and hit a rough patch in the grass. News from the track is that the injury has limited his flexibility that he cannot get out of the car under the FIA-mandated time. For example, if he was in a crash and the car caught on fire, he'd be unable to get out before his firesuit would be compromised. Well, that makes sense, safety first.
Then just a few minutes ago we saw the McLaren of HWMNBN'DSI die on the side of the track on its way to the grid, vast amounts of smoke emanating from the Honda lump in the back. So slow and unreliable, great combination that!
As if that wasn't enough, Daniil Kvyat's Red Bull rolled to a stop on his way out, though without the mosquito repellant. It looked like it just shut off, though we're now hearing that it's a gearbox problem.
So this means that we'll be beginning the 2015 Australian Grand Prix with fifteen cars. Joy.
More if events warrant.
UPDATE:
One lap in, and we're down to thirteen cars, as both Lotuses are out... one to accident, one apparently down to a trashed transmission. McLaren might still get a point... only three to go!
The Video Is Pretty Decent, Too.
While we're waiting for the Australian Grand Prix to start, I wanted to drop this in your lap.
When this first began, I just started grinning. By the end of it, I was ready to listen to it again, this time with the volume turned waaaaaay up, cigarette lighter ignited in my hand and my head banging. So I sent it to friend GrayDuck, my brother in feathers, to see what he thought. His response was similarly enthusiastic, if totally incoherent from excitement. So now I share it with you. Enjoy.
1
I just finished building a new PC, complete with overpowered surround sound speakers. Your timing in posting this, is, if I may say so, perfect.
I recognized most of the musical sources, but very little of the anime.
Posted by: David at March 14, 2015 08:29 PM (+TPAa)
2
HOLEEKRAP!!
That was bloody refreshing. I think I'll play it again....
Posted by: The Old Man at March 15, 2015 06:48 AM (o6+UC)
3
I'll be honest: Usually when someone says "check out this awesome mash-up" I roll my eyes and shelve the suggestion in a wastebin somewhere. Yes, very nice, someone found that two rock songs (or whatever) happen to share a similar beat structure and decided to intercut/crossfade them. Congratulations, Skippy. Four for you.
This, though... I don't know if "mash-up" is even the appropriate term here. Everything went into the blender, set straight for "liquefy", on this one. And somehow it effing works.
(Yes, I AM listening to it again, thank you.)
Posted by: GreyDuck at March 15, 2015 05:59 PM (AQ0bN)
4
Was great, though it's quite sad that there's not any Black Heaven in there. Might be a bit too old/obscure though...
Posted by: Avatar at March 15, 2015 06:51 PM (a38fD)
5
I only recognized a few of the anime, but I noticed a nice juxtaposition of Cowboy Bebop and Trigun at one point - bounty hunter vs, bounty. It looked almost as though they were fighting each other.
Posted by: Siergen at March 15, 2015 07:58 PM (Cvfrl)
F1 Quals: Australia 2015
If it's Saturday in Melbourne, it must be qualifying for the Australian Grand Prix! How will this season go? We should begin to get an idea after this, the first time it all really counts... let's take a look at the grid:
P
Name
Team
Q1
Q2
Q3
1
Lewis Hamilton
Mercedes
1:28.586
1:26.894
1:26.327
2
Nico Rosberg
Mercedes
1:28.906
1:27.097
1:26.921
3
Felipe Massa
Williams
1:29.246
1:27.895
1:27.718
4
Sebastian Vettel
Ferrari
1:29.307
1:27.742
1:27.757
5
Kimi Raikkonen
Ferrari
1:29.754
1:27.807
1:27.790
6
Valtteri Bottas
Williams
1:29.641
1:27.796
1:28.087
7
Daniel Ricciardo
Red Bull
1:29.788
1:28.679
1:28.329
8
Carlos Sainz
Toro Rosso
1:29.597
1:28.601
1:28.510
9
Lettuce Grosjean
Lotus
1:29.537
1:28.589
1:28.560
10
Pastor Maldonado
Lotus
1:29.847
1:28.726
1:29.480
11
Felipe Nasr
Sauber
1:30.430
1:28.800
12
Junior Verstappen
Toro Rosso
1:29.248
1:28.868
13
Daniil Kvyat
Red Bull
1:30.402
1:29.070
14
Nico Hulkenberg
Force India
1:29.651
1:29.208
15
Sergio Perez
Force India
1:29.990
1:29.209
16
Marcus Ericsson
Sauber
1:31.376
17
Jenson Button
McLaren
1:31.422
18
HWMNBN'DSI
McLaren
1:32.037
DNS
Will Stevens
Manor
No time
DNS
Roberto Merhi
Manor
No time
Yeeeesh. As if last season wasn't bad enough, Mercedes is picking up 2015 right where they left off in 2014, with another front-row lockout. Polesitter is a full 1.4 seconds ahead of the first non-Mercedes challenger, Williams' Felipe Massa, and about a half-second ahead of his teammate Nico Rosberg. The two Ferraris had relatively dull (but good!) Quals sessions. Meanwhile, Red Bull pretty much wants to strangle engine manufacturer Renault. First, Riccardo had his first engine (of four for the year!) die during Practice, then his second is "practically undriveable", full of weird holes in the engine mapping. That's why teammate Daniil Kvyat is so far down the grid, and why Ricciardo nearly missed Q3.
Sauber has to be relieved that Felipe Nasr qual'd 11th, considering the nightmare they've put up with this week. Indeed, he was looking like he'd go through into Q3 until Toro Rosso's Carlos Sainz bumped him out at the last moment. Too, Force India has to be pleased with their results in Quals. Sure, they aren't high up the grid, but they had very little track time with their new car and it's looking to be solidly reliable. Particularly early, reliability is almost as good as speed: if the car can't finish a race, it doesn't matter how fast it is. However, a reliable car can evolve to become quick. A special tip o' the cap to Junior Verstappen, who became the youngest person to qualify for a F1 race today at the ripe old age of 17. Seven-frickin'-teen.
Really, the only team that has any reason to be unhappy is McLaren. Sure, Manor didn't manage to get their cars running at all this weekend (reportedly it took four hours on Friday just to get the car's flashing rain light to function with the new software), but a month ago the team didn't exist and their pieces were being sold away. Just being in Australia as a team, having a chance to get running, is a win for Manor. But McLaren is a different story. In Q1 their best time was set on the soft-rubbered Option tire. It was nearly three seconds behind Lewis Hamilton's fastest time in Q1 on the slower medium Prime tire. They were the slowest through the speed traps, about 10mph behind the fastest chassis, the Williams. They've not even done a full race distance in the new chassis... hell, they've not even done as much as 13 laps at once. To call this a disaster for the legendary McLaren/Honda combination is perhaps understating the case. While there's plenty of time for the car to improve, this start makes one wonder how they can.
Late news from Melbourne! After Quals on Saturday, Valtteri Bottas was taken to hospital suffering back pains. They actually began during the Quals session, but he drove through them. He and the team await the diagnosis, and currently his drive on Sunday is in doubt. If he can't go, the team will not be allowed to replace him, and we'll have a 17-car grid for the race.
Race is late-night Saturday/early Sunday here at The Pond... see ya in the AM.
1
Something I've wondered for a while is why do you draw the grid the way you do, with not showing the finish times for rounds 2 and 3 for the slower people? I used to think that meant only the top ten people were in the race, but with you mentioning a possible 17-car start, that theory goes out the window. (If it's not obvious I don't actually watch the races; I mean to try to catch them but frequently forget, plus I don't actually have cable right now so I'm not sure where I'd watch the actual race.)
Posted by: Rick C at March 14, 2015 04:22 PM (0a7VZ)
2
That's actually exactly what happens, Rick. Some people are kicked out of each successive round of qualifying, so the final round is only the 10 fastest people.
Honestly, I like the format. It lets the fast guys take it easy in the early rounds while the slower teams fight for their positions, then the track has plenty of room in it for the fight for the pole. There aren't a lot of cases where someone with pole pace can't set a good lap because someone from a back-marker team is in the wrong spot at the wrong time... but at the same time the top teams can get caught out and blow it early!
You have to wonder if Alonso wouldn't be out there on track if there was even the faintest hope it would do any -good-...
Posted by: Avatar at March 14, 2015 05:06 PM (a38fD)
3
RickC, it's called "knockout qualifying." In Q1, all 20 cars are out on track, trying to set the fastest time they can. The slowest five are "knocked out" and relegated to the last five slots on the grid, their running finished for the day. In Q2, the next five are knocked out and given slots 15-11.
Q3 therefore sees the fastest 10 shooting for pole position, with none of the backmarkers around to slow them down.
It works really well, much better than the older "single-car, single-lap" qualifying they used to run: one car on track, getting one shot at setting a time, going out in reverse order of finish from the last race (so the car that ended up 20th would have to qualify first).
Posted by: Wonderduck at March 14, 2015 07:54 PM (jGQR+)
4
News reports indicate heavy giggling coming out of an obscure apartment in Beaverton, OR.
6
Ah, I get it now. They're not booted out of the race, they just get the bad positions on the starting lineup. Makes sense.
Steven, what's got you giggling?
Posted by: Rick C at March 14, 2015 11:28 PM (0a7VZ)
F1 Practice 1+2 Thoughts And Sauber: Australia 2015
First off, news has come down that Giedo van de Garde has temporarily withdrawn his various motions and notions, so as to allow Sauber F1 to actually race this weekend. This also has the side-effect of allowing Sauber Team Principal Monisha Kaltenborn to leave Australia once the weekend is over. There are two things behind this, undoubtedly. First, the lawyers on both sides must have come to some sort of agreement regarding compensation for the aggrieved driver. The wonder of it all is how the cash-strapped team could guarantee anything along those lines. Second, it became crystal clear that van de Garde would never drive for the team. Oh, make no mistake, the courts could have said "yes he is" and he'd be named... but when he walked into the team paddock yesterday for his seat fitting, every team mechanic walked out. Every. Single. One. I don't care what the judges and lawyers and bailiffs say... if your mechanics hate you, you aren't racing. You wouldn't make it to the end of the pit lane before breaking down. So there you go: Sauber is racing in Australia. More on this to come, clearly.
As far as the two practice sessions went, there are four conclusions to be drawn:
1) Mercedes will do it again. They were a second clear of the next best teams, and they weren't even trying hard. Expect a repeat of 2014, except maybe more wins.
2) Ferrari might just be back. From all appearances, the SF15-T is a much better drive than last year's F14T. It might be on-par with the Red Bulls, which means it could, in theory, be contesting for podiums and wins. In theory. In practice, with three teams (Red Bull, Williams and Ferrari) jousting for second-best, someone's gonna lose out.
3) Expect nothing from McLaren. The team is having serious problems with their new Honda engines. Combined with faults of some kind, the MP4-30 had Jenson Button saying that they might do well to start 18th on race day. There are only 20 cars, and two of them are Manor chassis that have yet to turn a wheel in practice or in anger. That's how bad it is for McLaren right now.
4) Engine problems may doom everybody. Daniel Ricciardo's Red Bull had an engine change after P1 yesterday. Felipe Massa's Williams had a water leak that may lead to an engine change as well. Cars only get four "power units" to last 20 races, and this is happening now? Oh boy... Manor might actually be in the BEST shape; their 2014 power units are at least a mature technology now, with well-known flaws and foibles.
1
Kinda sad when the bulk of the excitement is going to come from rooting for whichever team is going to come in second...
Posted by: GreyDuck at March 13, 2015 10:26 PM (AQ0bN)
2
I'm sorry that McLaren is having so much trouble, but I'm also stifling schadenfreude giggles that HWMNBN chose this year to return to McLaren.... If Hamilton really chose exactly the right time to bail and go to Mercedes, HWMNBN chose a dreadful time to return in triumph to McLaren.
Sauber Situation, Manor Mayhem
While we wait for Practice 1 to air here in the States, I want to touch on a couple of items that might cut the number of running cars this weekend to 16, instead of the scheduled 20.
First and easiest to deal with is Manor, the former Marussia. Their cars are in the paddock and the team is beavering away, but there has reportedly been an operational snag. As you'll remember, the team went into receivership and their assets prepared for sale. This past December saw an auction of much of their stuff, but importantly some of their things were withheld despite having been listed. This included all of their IT layout, something desperately needed to run the car at the track. Of course, the team didn't know there would be a last-minute reprieve, so they had to prepare their computers for sale, so they scraped everything off the hard drives. Reportedly, they've had problems getting the reinstalled and/or rewritten code to mesh with the Ferrari engines... meaning the cars won't start. I did sneak a peek at the Practice 1 results, and neither car set a timed lap. Unfortunate, but unsurprising.
Even more unfortunate is the disaster looming over at Sauber. We actually first discovered there was a hint of a problem last year when Jennifer Becks, ridiculously cute girlfriend of Adrian Sutil tweeted out during the USGP weekend that it appeared that the team had signed a third driver for the two race seats in 2015. There's nothing wrong with having three drivers, but one of them is supposed to be declared a reserve. Time went on, nothing was clarified, and then it was announced that the team had signed a fourth pay driver as well! Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr were eventually announced as the race-day drivers, and all seemed fine for much of the off-season. Until former F1 driver and 2014 Sauber test driver Giedo van der Garde stood up and in effect said "hey, I've got a contract with the team for a race seat, what the heck is going on?"
There's no question that Sauber was in desperate financial straits at the end of last season. Clearly what the heck was going on was that the team signed two drivers that brought more sponsorship money (and/or were willing to pay more for the seat) than van der Garde, simply to stay alive. Then, quietly, Sutil apparently mentioned that he's got a contract as well. Van der Garde, however, is pushing the matter, and rightfully so. He's got a legal contract, after all. He took the team to court last week... and won. Of course, the team appealed the ruling saying, in effect, that it'd be dangerous for him to be allowed to drive the car at such a late date... after all, it's been set up for Ericsson and Nasr.
That was, of course, a stupid argument: new drivers step into F1 seats all the time. The court agreed with van der Garde, ordering the team to allow him to drive and pay his court costs to boot. The team clearly doesn't want to have him drive, and contempt of court proceedings are actually underway in Australia, with the team ordered to provide a list of assets in the paddock. In theory, if the team doesn't let him drive, van der Garde could end up owning all of the race assets of Sauber. Team Principal Monisha Kaltenborn, herself a lawyer, has been summoned by the court, while van der Garde's legal team is calling for her imprisonment. Reportedly, she hasn't been seen for a while, and one source is claiming there are court bailiffs at the Paddock looking for her.
Not surprisingly, the team did not run in Practice 1, either.
Terry Pratchett
I read Terry Pratchett's works only rarely. Good Omens, certainly. His retelling of the "Faust" story in the Discworld universe, yes. Maybe Carpe Jugulum, I can't remember. But that really covers it, pretty much. I remember being unhappy when I heard he had had a stroke, and quite vexed with the cruel universe that would find it humorous to afflict an author with Alzheimers. But it didn't really hurt me, y'know? Not the way Anne McCaffery did, for example... possibly because Pratchett could still write; Alzheimers is a progressive disease, after all.
Terry Pratchett passed away today, and I didn't really feel anything when I heard the news... until I read his final tweets announcing his death. If you're unfamiliar with Pratchett's writings, one of his main characters was Death itself, who always spoke in capital letters:
AT LAST, SIR TERRY, WE MUST WALK TOGETHER.
Terry took Death's arm and followed him through the doors and on to the black desert under the endless night.
Posted by: Wonderduck at March 12, 2015 10:15 PM (jGQR+)
5
I think assisted-suicide is against the law in the UK, so of course they wouldn't admit it (for fear that his family or friends might face legal repercussions).
6
It was widely reported that Pratchett had some kind of respiratory infection in his chest, and that he just didn't manage to fight it off.
Very few people try to kill themselves when they've got pneumonia or colds, oddly enough. I suppose that having something infectious tends to focus the brain on survival.
Posted by: Suburbanbanshee at March 13, 2015 01:57 PM (ZJVQ5)
I Don't Know
CREATIVITY! It's not all it's cracked up to be. I'm fairly certain I'm either halfway or two-thirds of the way done with the project, but much of the time the image of this part or that part of the project that I have in my head isn't matching up with the results. I think it's because my tools are limiting me... they aren't flexible enough... and my workarounds aren't "working around" well enough. Of course, you know what they say about the craftsman who blames his tools.
Shut up.
I know that the last batch of Creativeness will make or break the project... it's been the focal point of the whole kit 'n' kaboodle since Day 1, after all. Everything I've done up to this point has been getting me "warmed up," if you will, for the big stuff. I've learned the hardware, played with the equipment, expanded my efforts (perhaps too far), and if it works, it'll be spectacular. If it doesn't... well, "nothing venture nothing win" and all that. It will have still been worth doing. At least, to me it will have been. I'm not sure what you, my assembled readers, will think. That's always been the case, of course... make a mistake and the horde will tear you apart and leave your broken and bleeding carcass lying in the dirt. If you're lucky.
If you're not, they'll take your broken and bleeding carcass with them, and what happens after that is anybody's guess. One thing is for sure, though: it won't be pretty, and it'll likely be illegal in most states. And countries. Probably galaxies, for that matter. I didn't even know you could do such things with with the pancreas! So, yeah, and all that.
F1 on NBCSN: Australia 2015
Like a big, hungry, pissed-off grizzly bear dragging itself out of its hibernation cave, the growls of Formula 1 have begun to emanate from the south-eastern tip of Australia. Melbourne is the location, the Albert Park circuit the destination for the ten teams contesting the 2015 Formula 1 season. Let's take a look at the track map for this historic circuit:
Just as the Cincinnati Reds used to open the baseball season with the first game of the year, so too does Australia have primacy of place on the F1 calendar, and the few times that hasn't been the case have felt weird. I've often said that the Albert Park circuit is the perfect starting track for season, for it's pretty much *everything* you could want out of a track. Tight, twisty sections that test the maneuverability of a car? Yep, it's got it. High-speed parts? You betcha. Heavy braking? Oh yes. Fast sweeping turns that strain the downforce levels? Surely. God's Slot Car Track will provide. Plus it's a nice-looking location, to boot.
The only thing that prevents it from being the perfect circuit is a lack of elevation change. It may not be billiard-table flat, but it's awfully close. It's a tough layout for both driver and car. It's considered a street circuit, as it runs along permanent roads through the park. As such, it has many of the problems you'll find in places like Monaco... motor oil dripped into the surface, for example... but without any of the bumps and blemishes you'd expect from a street track, as the entire place was reprofiled and resurfaced to make it as smooth as any permanent layout, despite only being used one weekend a year. Throw in the first time running the cars "in anger," and you get the potential for exciting weekends for some teams.
And despite all predictions, we'll have ten teams on the grid. Marussia fought its way out of receivership and will show up in the pit lane despite no testing, running a heavily modified version of last year's chassis, with Ferrari supplying 2014 engines. That can't be good as far as being a legit challenger goes, but at least the team is on the rid. They're operating under the parent name "Manor Motorsports," which has always been the name on the racing entry, though Virgin and more recently Marussia has been the team name. The equipment carriers still have the "Marussia" logo on them, as do the shirts of the team members receiving them, but my guess is that Manor will be the final name.
One driver that WON'T be on the grid for Australia is McLaren's HWMNBN. During testing a few weeks ago, the Spanish driver was involved in a relatively simple accident, banging into a wall with the side of the car at around 80-90 mph. While otherwise unharmed, he suffered a concussion with unconsciousness and some amnesia to boot. He has not been cleared to return to driving activities yet, and the possibility of missing the next race in Malaysia as well can't be ignored. Concussions are nothing to be sneered at, and caution should always be used concerning them. There's been a lot of conspiracy theories floating about the accident, primary amongst them that he was shocked to unconsciousness by a malfuctioning ERS, but McLaren denies this. Kevin Magnussen, one of McLaren's 2014 drivers and now their reserve, will be in the seat until HWMNBN is okay'd to race once again.
NBCSN will once again be providing coverage of the weekend with the Legendary Announce Team in full throat. Since this is a special event, the first race of the year, it appears that we're getting expanded coverage, too! They're showing up P1 and P3... take a look at the schedule, understanding that you'll want to double-check it on your end before you trust any of it. Zap2It, which powers NBCSN's online schedule system, is slightly less ergonomic than your average steel I-beam.
Thursday/Friday
P1 & P2: 1130pm - 2am (P1 probably timeshifted) Friday/Saturday
P3: 1130pm -1230am live
Quals: 2am - 330am live Saturday/Sunday
Grand Prix of Australia: 1130pm - 200am live
All times are Central Pond Time. Add one hour for Wyoming, Delaware. Subtract an hour for Wamsutter, Wyoming. Remember, all you residents of Coos Bay, Oregon, that you're two hours behind The Pond.
So there we are. And there you are. And here I am. Someone will see you sometime.
1"...despite no testing, running a heavily modified version of last year's chassis, with Ferrari supplying 2014 engines."
What could possibly go wrong?
2
Yeah, Melbourne is not the place to go for elevation change.
Sydney on the other hand... I lived for years on a road that was split in two, with the eastern side a good ten feet lower than the west. The road behind my house was closed most of the time I lived there because the cliff face had collapsed.
Posted by: Pixy Misa at March 09, 2015 06:50 PM (2yngH)
3
Wow, this one will actually be prime time for me!
Posted by: Avatar at March 09, 2015 09:51 PM (zJsIy)
4
I just took a look at the track in Google Earth, and it looks like a very safe track. Plenty of room for runoffs at any of the sharp corners, and no obvious deathtraps I could see.