September 09, 2010
Medical Question
Anybody out there ever have a hernia repaired? Someone I know has a bad one, and is going to have a surgery scheduled soon. I'd like to know more about the procedure, but not the usual wiki stuff...
Thanks in advance!
Thanks in advance!
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September 08, 2010
WMSC Pats Ferrari On Head... Again.
The World MotorSports Council met today to rule on the case of Ferrari and their use of team orders at the Grand Prix of Germany. As you may remember, Felipe Massa was leading that race with his teammate HWMNBN trailing, when a radio call came from the guys on the pitlane: "Okay, (HWMNBN) is faster than you. Can you confirm that you understand that message?" Shortly thereafter, Massa did not accelerate coming out of a turn, allowing HWMNBN to blow into the lead and eventually take the victory.
Immediately after the race, the Race Stewards called Ferrari onto the carpet, fined them $100000, and sent the matter up to the WMSC for further sanctions. They had violated Articles 39.1 and 151.c of the Sporting Regulations, which states "team orders which interfere with a race result are prohibited" and "any fraudulent conduct or any act prejudicial to the interests of any competition, or to the interests of motorsport generally." Penalties could range from a fine, exclusion from the results of the race, a further race ban, to being booted from the championship, or anything in between in any combination.
The WMSC's ruling in this rather clear-cut case? They confirmed the Stewards' fine and decided not to take any further action in this case. They then went on to say that "The Judging Body has also acknowledged that article 39.1 of the Sporting Regulations should be reviewed and has decided to refer this question to the Formula One Sporting Working Group."
In short, not only did Ferrari escape any noteworthy punishment (100 kilobucks is approximately 0.00025th of the Scuderia's annual budget... it's probably less than their team's windshield wiper allowance), but the WMSC may very well change the rule! Now, nobody denies that team orders exist in F1 despite the ban, but teams are usually much more circumspect in their breaking of the rules. Ferrari did their violating with a not-at-all subtle radio message for the entire world to hear, and Massa made sure everybody knew what had happened.
Understand, it's not like I'm surprised by the decision in the least. After all, it's well known that "FIA" stands for "Ferrari International Assistance." I'm just sick and tired of their flagrant rules violations always being winked at... "oh, you naughty scamps. Run along and play now."
What will it take for the team to be actually penalized for an infraction?
Immediately after the race, the Race Stewards called Ferrari onto the carpet, fined them $100000, and sent the matter up to the WMSC for further sanctions. They had violated Articles 39.1 and 151.c of the Sporting Regulations, which states "team orders which interfere with a race result are prohibited" and "any fraudulent conduct or any act prejudicial to the interests of any competition, or to the interests of motorsport generally." Penalties could range from a fine, exclusion from the results of the race, a further race ban, to being booted from the championship, or anything in between in any combination.
The WMSC's ruling in this rather clear-cut case? They confirmed the Stewards' fine and decided not to take any further action in this case. They then went on to say that "The Judging Body has also acknowledged that article 39.1 of the Sporting Regulations should be reviewed and has decided to refer this question to the Formula One Sporting Working Group."
In short, not only did Ferrari escape any noteworthy punishment (100 kilobucks is approximately 0.00025th of the Scuderia's annual budget... it's probably less than their team's windshield wiper allowance), but the WMSC may very well change the rule! Now, nobody denies that team orders exist in F1 despite the ban, but teams are usually much more circumspect in their breaking of the rules. Ferrari did their violating with a not-at-all subtle radio message for the entire world to hear, and Massa made sure everybody knew what had happened.
Understand, it's not like I'm surprised by the decision in the least. After all, it's well known that "FIA" stands for "Ferrari International Assistance." I'm just sick and tired of their flagrant rules violations always being winked at... "oh, you naughty scamps. Run along and play now."
What will it take for the team to be actually penalized for an infraction?
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September 07, 2010
Rocket Girls Ep12: A Wrapup
Over three years ago, in the midst of one of my occasional bouts of blog-self-loathing, I mentioned that I had some thoughts about the final episode of the show Rocket Girls. Shortly thereafter, I forgot that I even mentioned it and away it went into the depths of the internet. Flash-forward to last week, when Pete Z won the fourth installment of the "Name This Mystery Ship" contest... which brings with it the winner's choice of a blog post. His selection was for me to write up those thoughts on Rocket Girls ep12.
To be honest, I had no idea what he was talking about. I found the post where I mentioned it the first time, and that jogged no memories. I had no idea what I was referring to! Still, a promise is a promise, so it was off to the show to watch ep12 again, see what sprang to mind.
By the end of it, I knew exactly what I meant.
If you remember, JAXA's manned two-seat capsule, the Mangosteen, had made rendezvous with NASA's space shuttle Atlantis in an attempt to rescue a space probe destined for Pluto. The problem was that the probe had reached an orbit too high for either the shuttle or the capsule to reach individually. After an amazing kludge, however, the shuttle gave Mangosteen enough of a boost so it could reach the probe, fix it, and send it on it's way. While unlikely, I could roll with that; it made for good story after all.
However, all is not well. Due to a data-entry mixup (ain't that always the way?), it turns out that the Mangosteen won't be able to return to Earth without burning up during re-entry. Some quick thinking on the part of both NASA and JAXA gives our heroines, hot pilot Yukari and mission specialist Akane, one chance: a skip re-entry. This involves the capsule rebounding off the atmosphere a couple of times so as to slow down enough to come through okay. Okay, I can buy that... it's been done before. But there's a snag: there's a whole slew of numbers (Coordinates? Drag coefficients? Shoe sizes?) that are needed so's the capsule can perform the maneuvers correctly. One tiny mixup and poof, they're burned to a crisp... and the crew of the Mangosteen traded away their pens to the NASA astronauts. No problem! Akane is a super-geeeeenius and can memorize any long sequence of numbers you care to throw at her. Okay, I can buy that, too.
Re-entry begins. The G-forces build. Akane, frail little flower that she is, passes out leaving hot pilot Yukari to just wing it. Soon enough, the stresses build enough to drop Yukari as well.
And this is where I began to get really angry at Rocket Girls.
more...
To be honest, I had no idea what he was talking about. I found the post where I mentioned it the first time, and that jogged no memories. I had no idea what I was referring to! Still, a promise is a promise, so it was off to the show to watch ep12 again, see what sprang to mind.
By the end of it, I knew exactly what I meant.
If you remember, JAXA's manned two-seat capsule, the Mangosteen, had made rendezvous with NASA's space shuttle Atlantis in an attempt to rescue a space probe destined for Pluto. The problem was that the probe had reached an orbit too high for either the shuttle or the capsule to reach individually. After an amazing kludge, however, the shuttle gave Mangosteen enough of a boost so it could reach the probe, fix it, and send it on it's way. While unlikely, I could roll with that; it made for good story after all.
However, all is not well. Due to a data-entry mixup (ain't that always the way?), it turns out that the Mangosteen won't be able to return to Earth without burning up during re-entry. Some quick thinking on the part of both NASA and JAXA gives our heroines, hot pilot Yukari and mission specialist Akane, one chance: a skip re-entry. This involves the capsule rebounding off the atmosphere a couple of times so as to slow down enough to come through okay. Okay, I can buy that... it's been done before. But there's a snag: there's a whole slew of numbers (Coordinates? Drag coefficients? Shoe sizes?) that are needed so's the capsule can perform the maneuvers correctly. One tiny mixup and poof, they're burned to a crisp... and the crew of the Mangosteen traded away their pens to the NASA astronauts. No problem! Akane is a super-geeeeenius and can memorize any long sequence of numbers you care to throw at her. Okay, I can buy that, too.
Re-entry begins. The G-forces build. Akane, frail little flower that she is, passes out leaving hot pilot Yukari to just wing it. Soon enough, the stresses build enough to drop Yukari as well.
And this is where I began to get really angry at Rocket Girls.
more...
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September 06, 2010
F1 on SPEED!: Italy 2010
There once was a time when F1 was about going fast at the expense of everything else. Driver safety was an afterthought, if it rated a thought at all. You had eggshells on wheels with big engines and small tires and no wings. It was a time when if a season completed without a driver death, it was considered a miracle. It was a time when the tires were skinny and the drivers weren't. It was the time of Ascari and Clark, Fangio and Rindt, Stewart and McLaren, Hill and Bandini, Surtees and von Trips. It was a time when the drivers were truly men. It was the time that the sport was truly king.
And Monza was its Holy Church.
There was once a time at Monza when a driver would simply stomp on the gas pedal and not lift off until the car broke or the race ended. Today... well, not much has changed, actually. A modern F1 car is on full throttle for nearly 80% of the lap, a truly punishing endurance test for an engine when you consider that we're talking nearly 90 minutes at 18000rpm. They'll reach 210mph at the end of the front straight, just before braking for the Variante del Rettifilo.
At Monza, terms like "downforce" and "drag" are dirty words. Cars run with the bare minimum amount of wing possible; if their use wasn't mandated by the FIA, the teams would probably go without. In fact, the use of the rear wing is so minimal here that many of those teams that run an "F-Duct" system are likely to find the feature useless around this track.
SPEED will bring us its usual sterling coverage beginning from 7am to 840am on Friday, with the day's 2nd Practice session. Saturday, from 7am to 830am, we'll see the usual Quals session. And Sunday brings us the 2010 Grand Prix of Italy LIVE from 630am to 9am, with a replay from 12noon to 230pm.
If I had to bet on the race, which fortunately I don't, I'd probably lean towards McLaren. Like Spa, this is not a track that favors the Red Bull chassis (and their remarkable action around turns), and I feel like Ferrari is just smoke and mirrors for some reason. But that's why they actually run the races, isn't it? See you then!
And Monza was its Holy Church.
There was once a time at Monza when a driver would simply stomp on the gas pedal and not lift off until the car broke or the race ended. Today... well, not much has changed, actually. A modern F1 car is on full throttle for nearly 80% of the lap, a truly punishing endurance test for an engine when you consider that we're talking nearly 90 minutes at 18000rpm. They'll reach 210mph at the end of the front straight, just before braking for the Variante del Rettifilo.
At Monza, terms like "downforce" and "drag" are dirty words. Cars run with the bare minimum amount of wing possible; if their use wasn't mandated by the FIA, the teams would probably go without. In fact, the use of the rear wing is so minimal here that many of those teams that run an "F-Duct" system are likely to find the feature useless around this track.
SPEED will bring us its usual sterling coverage beginning from 7am to 840am on Friday, with the day's 2nd Practice session. Saturday, from 7am to 830am, we'll see the usual Quals session. And Sunday brings us the 2010 Grand Prix of Italy LIVE from 630am to 9am, with a replay from 12noon to 230pm.
If I had to bet on the race, which fortunately I don't, I'd probably lean towards McLaren. Like Spa, this is not a track that favors the Red Bull chassis (and their remarkable action around turns), and I feel like Ferrari is just smoke and mirrors for some reason. But that's why they actually run the races, isn't it? See you then!
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Labor Day 2010
Thanks to the good folks at Firestone on Alpine for working on Labor Day. The Duckmobile really needed those two new tires, and the alignment job, and the nearly half-inch of total toe adjustment. It's nice to have a car that isn't fighting me for directional control again, and isn't making odd squealing noises, and has a modicum of traction in the wet!
Happy Labor Day, everbody!
Thanks to the good folks at Firestone on Alpine for working on Labor Day. The Duckmobile really needed those two new tires, and the alignment job, and the nearly half-inch of total toe adjustment. It's nice to have a car that isn't fighting me for directional control again, and isn't making odd squealing noises, and has a modicum of traction in the wet!
Happy Labor Day, everbody!
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The Never-Ending Reinstall
It's been a while since I last did a re-install of Windows, and I was noticing some slowdown in the Chiyo-chan for whatever reason; it wasn't from any virus or spyware that I could detect. I suspect it might have been because of the whole problem with the external hard drive a month or two ago. Whatever, it's not like I had anything to do tonight, and with a NASCAR race on, I could watch that while I reinstalled Windows. Pure genius! I'd be done before the race was over!
Yeah, not so much. The race lasted four hours. By the time Tony Stewart won, I was still downloading updates... the last two times I did this sort of thing, it only took three hours total to have everything done. As I post this, I've still got a few apps to install, and it's almost seven hours later. Ugh.
We'll return to regular blogginationing on Monday.
Yeah, not so much. The race lasted four hours. By the time Tony Stewart won, I was still downloading updates... the last two times I did this sort of thing, it only took three hours total to have everything done. As I post this, I've still got a few apps to install, and it's almost seven hours later. Ugh.
We'll return to regular blogginationing on Monday.
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September 04, 2010
Name This Mystery Ship IV
While I am working on the post that Siergen won for identifying the HMS Unicorn last time around... he selected a topic I know next to nothing about... here's another possibility for someone to win their very own post on a topic of their choosing! Name this ship:
Winner gets a post on a topic of their own choosing... hopefully not one as difficult as Siergen's, but pretty much anything is free game!
I'm hoping this one is difficult... if it's not, you guys are even more obsessive than I am!
UPDATE: Okay, maybe it was still "easy." Only took about four hours for Pete Z to come up with the Wakamiya, a seaplane carrier of the IJN.
She's best known as the ship that launched the world's first naval-launched air raids (against German targets in Tsingtao) on September 5th, 1914... 96 years ago today. In a way, this humble 8000 ton vessel with its four seaplanes and canvas-and-metal hangars is the direct predecessor of today's 104000 ton, 85 plane Nimitz-class carriers.
Funny how these things happen, isn't it?
Winner gets a post on a topic of their own choosing... hopefully not one as difficult as Siergen's, but pretty much anything is free game!
I'm hoping this one is difficult... if it's not, you guys are even more obsessive than I am!
UPDATE: Okay, maybe it was still "easy." Only took about four hours for Pete Z to come up with the Wakamiya, a seaplane carrier of the IJN.
She's best known as the ship that launched the world's first naval-launched air raids (against German targets in Tsingtao) on September 5th, 1914... 96 years ago today. In a way, this humble 8000 ton vessel with its four seaplanes and canvas-and-metal hangars is the direct predecessor of today's 104000 ton, 85 plane Nimitz-class carriers.
Funny how these things happen, isn't it?
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, I won't post a guess in this contest unless no one gets it by Tuesday night.September 03, 2010
Extraction #2 Successful
Well, the bad tooth has been removed, and this one was a different experience altogether. The nitrous didn't make me feel sick to my stomach this time, which was a pleasant bonus. The tooth didn't come out quite as readily as the last one, which wasn't nice. Turns out that it had two roots, where the first one (the mirror image tooth of today's) only had one... and one of the roots off broke when the Doc did the deed. No fault on him, he's very good. Heck, my dentist sends his children to him for oral surgery. Eat where the truck drivers eat, go to the oral surgeon your dentist uses.
And hey, he's got this print hanging in the extraction room:
Oh, and his assistants expressed an interest in visiting the site too... Hi, Ladies! The other tooth extraction post with that picture you wanted to see is right here. Thanks for visiting... and for helping make the extraction go easily!
Well, the bad tooth has been removed, and this one was a different experience altogether. The nitrous didn't make me feel sick to my stomach this time, which was a pleasant bonus. The tooth didn't come out quite as readily as the last one, which wasn't nice. Turns out that it had two roots, where the first one (the mirror image tooth of today's) only had one... and one of the roots off broke when the Doc did the deed. No fault on him, he's very good. Heck, my dentist sends his children to him for oral surgery. Eat where the truck drivers eat, go to the oral surgeon your dentist uses.
And hey, he's got this print hanging in the extraction room:
"In Gallant Company" by Robert Taylor
...which is nice. I don't think he was too impressed by my fascination with the Battle of Midway last time, but how many of his patients know the difference between the F4F-3, the F4F-4, and the FM-2? Oh, and his assistants expressed an interest in visiting the site too... Hi, Ladies! The other tooth extraction post with that picture you wanted to see is right here. Thanks for visiting... and for helping make the extraction go easily!
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September 01, 2010
Dissecting The Austin F1 Circuit Map
There comes a time in every person's life when one of their core beliefs is shaken to its very core, and they must reassess everything they thought prior to that time in response. My friends, one of those times has come to me, for reader David has pointed me in the direction of a press release from the promoter of the new US Grand Prix in Austin, Texas. This press release contains a proposed circuit map as designed by Hermann Tilke. As readers of my F1 posts are aware, I am not fond of Hermann Tilke as a track designer. Only his design for the Istanbul Otodrom is any good as far as I'm concerned, with his other layouts ranking "meh" at best. Here's the overhead map for the Austin track:
I have to admit, publicly and with no shame whatsoever, that I actually like this. There seem to be a number of homages to other tracks here, like Tilke sat down and borrowed some of the best features of them. For example, I see Suzuka's famed "S Curves" or Silverstone's Maggots-Becketts-Chapel complex in the Turns 3-4-5 on the map, Montreal's Hairpin at Turn 11, Turkey's Quad-8 at Turn 16-18, and Abu Dhabi's massive back straight is echoed by the 3/4th of a mile long back straight here.
All of which is nice, to be sure, but it gets better... oh yes, yes it does... when you look at the elevation map. Seems this time, Tilke's gotten to play with something other than a featureless plain.
more...
I have to admit, publicly and with no shame whatsoever, that I actually like this. There seem to be a number of homages to other tracks here, like Tilke sat down and borrowed some of the best features of them. For example, I see Suzuka's famed "S Curves" or Silverstone's Maggots-Becketts-Chapel complex in the Turns 3-4-5 on the map, Montreal's Hairpin at Turn 11, Turkey's Quad-8 at Turn 16-18, and Abu Dhabi's massive back straight is echoed by the 3/4th of a mile long back straight here.
All of which is nice, to be sure, but it gets better... oh yes, yes it does... when you look at the elevation map. Seems this time, Tilke's gotten to play with something other than a featureless plain.
more...
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August 31, 2010
Well, Sure, Why Not?
There are two things that I know that most of my readers will like: ukulele music or hawt anime chix0rz. "But Wonderduck," I hear you cry, "why ukuleles?" Why, indeed? Well, sez I, it's my blog and this is what I want to post tonight.
Kaiser Chiefs and the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain
"Ruby"
And if that wasn't enough? Hawt anime chix0r:
-Amagami SS, ep08
Don't say I never gave you nuthin'.
UPDATE: Because I realized that this band is horribly unrepresented here at The Pond, allow me to introduce you to a group that you've never heard of. Lady and Gentlemen, for your listening entertainment, Moxy Fruvous:
Kaiser Chiefs and the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain
"Ruby"
-Amagami SS, ep08
Don't say I never gave you nuthin'.
UPDATE: Because I realized that this band is horribly unrepresented here at The Pond, allow me to introduce you to a group that you've never heard of. Lady and Gentlemen, for your listening entertainment, Moxy Fruvous:
King of Spain
So there. Ha.
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August 30, 2010
Oh No, Not Again
As you may remember, a couple weeks back I had a tooth pulled. I'm pleased to report that it has healed very well, and other than a bit of soreness for the first couple of days the extraction site has troubled me not at all.
A week ago, I woke up with an intense pain in my mouth... on the side of my jaw opposite the extracted tooth. A visit to the dentist and a X-ray later, a massive cavity was discovered. Turns out this one went in from between two teeth, which explains why it didn't bother me until it hurt like the dickens. Dr Tooth gave me two options: a $4000 root canal that didn't have the greatest chances of succeeding, or another extraction.
I get the tooth out on Friday. Sunuvabeechmartin.
At least it doesn't hurt all the time. Just when, y'know, something hot or cold hits it. I should be able to make it that long.
As you may remember, a couple weeks back I had a tooth pulled. I'm pleased to report that it has healed very well, and other than a bit of soreness for the first couple of days the extraction site has troubled me not at all.
A week ago, I woke up with an intense pain in my mouth... on the side of my jaw opposite the extracted tooth. A visit to the dentist and a X-ray later, a massive cavity was discovered. Turns out this one went in from between two teeth, which explains why it didn't bother me until it hurt like the dickens. Dr Tooth gave me two options: a $4000 root canal that didn't have the greatest chances of succeeding, or another extraction.
I get the tooth out on Friday. Sunuvabeechmartin.
At least it doesn't hurt all the time. Just when, y'know, something hot or cold hits it. I should be able to make it that long.
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August 29, 2010
F1 Update!: Belgium 2010
If there's one thing you can expect at Spa, it's that the weather is unpredictable. Would the circuit in the Ardennes give us another wet race, or would the unpredictability throw up a dry circuit? THIS is your F1U! for the 2010 Grand Prix of Belgium!
*PREDICTABLE, REALLY: When the cars pulled up to the grid, the latest weather forecast was that it was going to rain, but not for ten to fifteen minutes. Knowing that, all the heavy hitters took to the track on the soft slicks, ready to run hard and fast. A lousy start by polesitter Mark Webber let the McLarens of Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button and the Renault of Robert Kubica blow by him, with Felipe Massa's Ferrari sitting right on his diffuser. Still, it looked like the first lap would be normal, if a little confused... until it began to rain on the downhill section of the circuit. Even with that, everybody seemed to be able to drive their vehicles through the spitting weather... until they reached the final chicane. Hamilton just couldn't get himself whoa'd up and blew the turn, which should have left the door open for Button, Kubica et al to go by.
Except nobody could make the turn, and it wasn't just the first five, either. It looked like the entire field blew the chicane... except for HWMNBN, who actually seemed to get his car turned into it. Then Rubens Barrichello's Williams plowed directly into the right-rear tire of the Ferrari. Rubens, front suspension turned into splinters and shards, retired on the spot. Surprisingly, HWMNBN was totally undamaged other than a flat tire and drove directly into the pit lane for a set of Intermediate tires. As the leaders came around to finish Lap 2, the carcass of the Williams had not yet been cleared so a safety car was called.
*TOTALLY PREDICTABLE: While three or four other cars dove into the pits to switch to Inters, the leaders stayed out on their slicks. The safety car went in after one lap, and we here at F1U! braced ourselves for the inevitable pileup in La Source when the slick tires skated on the wet track. Except it never happened. The rain had totally stopped, and the track, while not exactly dry, wasn't treacherous anymore. HWMNBN ripped his Inters to shreds in a couple of laps and had to stop again, dropping to the back of the field. Such a shame. A few laps later, Vettel wrecked Jenson Button and earned himself a drive-through penalty for doing so (see the Mooooooo-oooove Of The Race, below).
*PREDICTABLE, REALLY: It stayed dry until Lap 34, when it began to drizzle again. Of course, this happened seconds after Race Control sent a message to the teams saying that rain was expected in 10 minutes. Typical, really. The leaders stayed out on their slicks, hoping to get just one more lap in before it became too damp... and Lewis Hamilton, leading by nearly 15 seconds, missed a turn and went into a gravel trap. He managed to keep from getting stuck, but everybody took the hint and pitted. Somehow, HWMNBN managed to spin off track despite his full wet tires, broke his suspension and came to a stop right on the racing line. Another safety car came out, but nothing would keep Lewis Hamilton from winning the race a few laps later, bringing another exciting race at Spa-Francorchamps to an end.
*DRIVER OF THE RACE: Slappy Schumacher loves Spa. He's won the race six times, had a seventh victory taken away from him, and has proven that he knows the place like the back of his hand. He proved it again today, dragging himself up from the depths of the grid from 21st to end up 7th. It pains us to say this, but his performance today really deserves to be given the Driver of the Race award. Ow.
*TEAM OF THE RACE: Trying to cleanse our palate, we're going to give this one to Force India. Adrian Sutil finished fifth after a beautiful drive. His teammate Vitantonio Liuzzi claimed 11th place, but was promoted to 10th after Toro Rosso's NKOTT was hit with a 20-second time penalty for cutting the chicane while defending against Liuzzi. Last year, of course, FI got their first podium here at Spa, and while this finish wasn't quite as good, it was still an encouraging result for this "bubbling under" team.
*MOVE OF THE RACE: We're breaking with tradition a little here today, in that we're not giving the MotR to a pass, but an avoidance! On Lap 40 with the rain coming down, Jarno Trulli lost control of his Lotus at Pouhon, perhaps the highest-speed turn on the track, with five or six others bearing down on him. Trulli's car continued to rotate down the track, but yet Vitantonio Liuzzi and Heikki Kovaleinninninnie managed to avoid him without losing control themselves, despite the wet conditions and the high closing speed!
Thus was disaster avoided, but only because of quick reflexes and high skill. Nice job, guys!
*MOOOOOOOOOOO-OOOVE OF THE RACE: When the best drivers in the world race like cows, they earn themselves the Moooooo-ooove of the Race. It's hard to argue that Seb Vettel isn't one of the best drivers in F1, but boy does he do stupid stuff sometimes. Today, he was closing in on Jenson Button as they approached the final chicane. Close behind on wet pavement, he moved inside then decided to dodge to the outside with a quick flick of the wheel. Predictably, his Red Bull's tires couldn't handle the traction demands and voomph! Away he went:
Of course, you can't drive in F1 without having near-superhuman reflexes so he was already correcting his slide even as it was beginning. And then the tires got grip again.
Even though he was correcting the fishtail caused by his first correction, he couldn't gather it up a second time and was surely destined for the grass... except for one little thing.
Button's McLaren was in the way. Vettel's nose speared right into Button's left sidepod, shattering the radiator, ending his race and perhaps his championship hopes. Vettel drove right into the pits, got a new nose and continued on. For his overenthusiastic passing attempt (again), we present Seb Vettel with this Moooooo. Blech.
*SELECTED DRIVER QUOTES OF THE RACE:
more...
*PREDICTABLE, REALLY: When the cars pulled up to the grid, the latest weather forecast was that it was going to rain, but not for ten to fifteen minutes. Knowing that, all the heavy hitters took to the track on the soft slicks, ready to run hard and fast. A lousy start by polesitter Mark Webber let the McLarens of Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button and the Renault of Robert Kubica blow by him, with Felipe Massa's Ferrari sitting right on his diffuser. Still, it looked like the first lap would be normal, if a little confused... until it began to rain on the downhill section of the circuit. Even with that, everybody seemed to be able to drive their vehicles through the spitting weather... until they reached the final chicane. Hamilton just couldn't get himself whoa'd up and blew the turn, which should have left the door open for Button, Kubica et al to go by.
Except nobody could make the turn, and it wasn't just the first five, either. It looked like the entire field blew the chicane... except for HWMNBN, who actually seemed to get his car turned into it. Then Rubens Barrichello's Williams plowed directly into the right-rear tire of the Ferrari. Rubens, front suspension turned into splinters and shards, retired on the spot. Surprisingly, HWMNBN was totally undamaged other than a flat tire and drove directly into the pit lane for a set of Intermediate tires. As the leaders came around to finish Lap 2, the carcass of the Williams had not yet been cleared so a safety car was called.
*TOTALLY PREDICTABLE: While three or four other cars dove into the pits to switch to Inters, the leaders stayed out on their slicks. The safety car went in after one lap, and we here at F1U! braced ourselves for the inevitable pileup in La Source when the slick tires skated on the wet track. Except it never happened. The rain had totally stopped, and the track, while not exactly dry, wasn't treacherous anymore. HWMNBN ripped his Inters to shreds in a couple of laps and had to stop again, dropping to the back of the field. Such a shame. A few laps later, Vettel wrecked Jenson Button and earned himself a drive-through penalty for doing so (see the Mooooooo-oooove Of The Race, below).
*PREDICTABLE, REALLY: It stayed dry until Lap 34, when it began to drizzle again. Of course, this happened seconds after Race Control sent a message to the teams saying that rain was expected in 10 minutes. Typical, really. The leaders stayed out on their slicks, hoping to get just one more lap in before it became too damp... and Lewis Hamilton, leading by nearly 15 seconds, missed a turn and went into a gravel trap. He managed to keep from getting stuck, but everybody took the hint and pitted. Somehow, HWMNBN managed to spin off track despite his full wet tires, broke his suspension and came to a stop right on the racing line. Another safety car came out, but nothing would keep Lewis Hamilton from winning the race a few laps later, bringing another exciting race at Spa-Francorchamps to an end.
*DRIVER OF THE RACE: Slappy Schumacher loves Spa. He's won the race six times, had a seventh victory taken away from him, and has proven that he knows the place like the back of his hand. He proved it again today, dragging himself up from the depths of the grid from 21st to end up 7th. It pains us to say this, but his performance today really deserves to be given the Driver of the Race award. Ow.
*TEAM OF THE RACE: Trying to cleanse our palate, we're going to give this one to Force India. Adrian Sutil finished fifth after a beautiful drive. His teammate Vitantonio Liuzzi claimed 11th place, but was promoted to 10th after Toro Rosso's NKOTT was hit with a 20-second time penalty for cutting the chicane while defending against Liuzzi. Last year, of course, FI got their first podium here at Spa, and while this finish wasn't quite as good, it was still an encouraging result for this "bubbling under" team.
*MOVE OF THE RACE: We're breaking with tradition a little here today, in that we're not giving the MotR to a pass, but an avoidance! On Lap 40 with the rain coming down, Jarno Trulli lost control of his Lotus at Pouhon, perhaps the highest-speed turn on the track, with five or six others bearing down on him. Trulli's car continued to rotate down the track, but yet Vitantonio Liuzzi and Heikki Kovaleinninninnie managed to avoid him without losing control themselves, despite the wet conditions and the high closing speed!
Thus was disaster avoided, but only because of quick reflexes and high skill. Nice job, guys!
*MOOOOOOOOOOO-OOOVE OF THE RACE: When the best drivers in the world race like cows, they earn themselves the Moooooo-ooove of the Race. It's hard to argue that Seb Vettel isn't one of the best drivers in F1, but boy does he do stupid stuff sometimes. Today, he was closing in on Jenson Button as they approached the final chicane. Close behind on wet pavement, he moved inside then decided to dodge to the outside with a quick flick of the wheel. Predictably, his Red Bull's tires couldn't handle the traction demands and voomph! Away he went:
Of course, you can't drive in F1 without having near-superhuman reflexes so he was already correcting his slide even as it was beginning. And then the tires got grip again.
Even though he was correcting the fishtail caused by his first correction, he couldn't gather it up a second time and was surely destined for the grass... except for one little thing.
Button's McLaren was in the way. Vettel's nose speared right into Button's left sidepod, shattering the radiator, ending his race and perhaps his championship hopes. Vettel drove right into the pits, got a new nose and continued on. For his overenthusiastic passing attempt (again), we present Seb Vettel with this Moooooo. Blech.
*SELECTED DRIVER QUOTES OF THE RACE:
more...
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August 28, 2010
Name This Mystery Ship III
Again, no clues, no hints. Winner gets a post of their very own!
C'mon folks, let's not let flatdarkmars have all the fun!
Again, no clues, no hints. Winner gets a post of their very own!
C'mon folks, let's not let flatdarkmars have all the fun!
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F1 Quals: Belgium 2010
The best thing about Spa is that you can never really be comfortable with your car's setup, simply because you never know exactly what the weather is going to do. But did it play hob with today's qualifying? Here's the provisional grid:
As the Legendary Announce Team went to their first commercial break just before Q1 started, they said that there was no chance of rain for the session. When they came back, we were treated to a sight not often seen in Q1: practically the entire pit lane jammed with cars lined up, waiting for the track to go green. A radio transmission from Renaut explained it all: "Rain in 10 minutes." Since there'd be no chance to go fast once the rain began, everybody was trying to get on track and turn a hot lap on the soft tires. Once the light at the end of the pit lane turned green, everybody acted as if it was race day. Nose to tail driving, passing, the works, all to get a clear smidgen of track so to get that best time... but all that effort went to naught when Renault's Vitaly Petrov discovered that the curbs were still wet from the morning's rain. He wound up pronging his car at Turn 14, one of the few places where an immobile vehicle can't easily be extracted, as everybody was on their out-lap. A red flag was thrown, sending everybody back into the pits. Again we had the traffic jam when we came back from commercial, this time with only a couple of minutes before the rain was schedule to arrive, and again we had a swarm of cars on track hoping to get a fast lap in. It was not to be however, as it began to rain.
One of the odd quirks of Spa-Francorchamps is that it's a very long track. At just over four miles in length, it's quite possible for it to be dry in the pit lane, but pouring somewhere else. In this case, the second sector of the circuit, or roughly from Les Combes to Fagnes, was soaking wet while the rest of the layout was more-or-less dry. Wisely, everybody went to rain tires for the remainder of Q1 but not before Lucas di Grassi, Jarno Trulli and others caused a schmozzle that nearly collected Slappy Schumacher. Slappy did a great job threading his Mercedes through a rather narrow gap between pirouetting cars.
In the end, however, the usual suspects ended up on top. Red Bull got their 12th pole in thirteen races, McLaren was 2nd. The big surprise was the demise of Ferrari, seemingly resurgent in the past few contests. HWMNBN ended up in 10th, while his teammate Felipe Massa, a notoriously bad driver in the wet, outqualified him in 6th. Either the Red team is set up for a dry race on Sunday, or they just stunk up the joint.
A congrats has to go out to Virgin and Lotus, both of whom managed to get a car through to Q2. Sure the weather played a part, but it still counts. Spare a moment for Mercedes. Not only did neither of their cars make it to Q3, but both drivers are taking grid-spot penalties: Slappy a 10-spot for his attempted murder of Rubens Barrichello a month ago and a 5-spotter for Nico Rosberg, as he had to change his gearbox. Ross Brawn has probably designated Belgium as a "test race" now.
The Grand Prix is Sunday morning... we'll see you afterwards with F1U!
As the Legendary Announce Team went to their first commercial break just before Q1 started, they said that there was no chance of rain for the session. When they came back, we were treated to a sight not often seen in Q1: practically the entire pit lane jammed with cars lined up, waiting for the track to go green. A radio transmission from Renaut explained it all: "Rain in 10 minutes." Since there'd be no chance to go fast once the rain began, everybody was trying to get on track and turn a hot lap on the soft tires. Once the light at the end of the pit lane turned green, everybody acted as if it was race day. Nose to tail driving, passing, the works, all to get a clear smidgen of track so to get that best time... but all that effort went to naught when Renault's Vitaly Petrov discovered that the curbs were still wet from the morning's rain. He wound up pronging his car at Turn 14, one of the few places where an immobile vehicle can't easily be extracted, as everybody was on their out-lap. A red flag was thrown, sending everybody back into the pits. Again we had the traffic jam when we came back from commercial, this time with only a couple of minutes before the rain was schedule to arrive, and again we had a swarm of cars on track hoping to get a fast lap in. It was not to be however, as it began to rain.
One of the odd quirks of Spa-Francorchamps is that it's a very long track. At just over four miles in length, it's quite possible for it to be dry in the pit lane, but pouring somewhere else. In this case, the second sector of the circuit, or roughly from Les Combes to Fagnes, was soaking wet while the rest of the layout was more-or-less dry. Wisely, everybody went to rain tires for the remainder of Q1 but not before Lucas di Grassi, Jarno Trulli and others caused a schmozzle that nearly collected Slappy Schumacher. Slappy did a great job threading his Mercedes through a rather narrow gap between pirouetting cars.
In the end, however, the usual suspects ended up on top. Red Bull got their 12th pole in thirteen races, McLaren was 2nd. The big surprise was the demise of Ferrari, seemingly resurgent in the past few contests. HWMNBN ended up in 10th, while his teammate Felipe Massa, a notoriously bad driver in the wet, outqualified him in 6th. Either the Red team is set up for a dry race on Sunday, or they just stunk up the joint.
A congrats has to go out to Virgin and Lotus, both of whom managed to get a car through to Q2. Sure the weather played a part, but it still counts. Spare a moment for Mercedes. Not only did neither of their cars make it to Q3, but both drivers are taking grid-spot penalties: Slappy a 10-spot for his attempted murder of Rubens Barrichello a month ago and a 5-spotter for Nico Rosberg, as he had to change his gearbox. Ross Brawn has probably designated Belgium as a "test race" now.
The Grand Prix is Sunday morning... we'll see you afterwards with F1U!
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August 27, 2010
F1 Practice: Belgium 2010
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh... SPA! It's a lovely thing to have F1 back after a month layoff, and what better way to come back than to race at the best road course in the world? But with the wonderful track comes not so wonderful weather, and today's practice sessions proved to be no exception to the general rule. Yes, it rained... a lot, particularly in the first session.
In the second practice session, it rained for about the first 15 minutes or so. The track then slowly began to dry, so that by the last 20 minutes or so everybody was using their slick tires. Then came the strangest message I've ever seen from Race Control: "Red Flag Conditions: Spectators in potentially dangerous area."
It appears that some fans may have been spotted inside the fences somewhere around the circuit, so the little-seen Race Control Car came out on track to make a couple of leisurely laps, just to make sure there wasn't anybody traipsing around the asphalt. While there's a red flag, all action stops but the session clock keeps running. When the track was finally "cleared", there were only three minutes left. Mark Webber's radio communication said it all: "We've been waiting all day for some dry laps. Now that we've got it, they stop us..."
Eventually HWMNBN turned the fastest lap of the session, kicking Adrian Sutil and his Force India off the top spot for practically the first time all session. Could we see another Force India on pole tomorrow? Let's just hope so!
Other than that, though, the session was a little dull. While I did watch the whole thing, it was more for the novelty of seeing F1 again than for the action. Tomorrow though, the action is for real with qualifying... and it's predicted to be raining. See you then!
In the second practice session, it rained for about the first 15 minutes or so. The track then slowly began to dry, so that by the last 20 minutes or so everybody was using their slick tires. Then came the strangest message I've ever seen from Race Control: "Red Flag Conditions: Spectators in potentially dangerous area."
It appears that some fans may have been spotted inside the fences somewhere around the circuit, so the little-seen Race Control Car came out on track to make a couple of leisurely laps, just to make sure there wasn't anybody traipsing around the asphalt. While there's a red flag, all action stops but the session clock keeps running. When the track was finally "cleared", there were only three minutes left. Mark Webber's radio communication said it all: "We've been waiting all day for some dry laps. Now that we've got it, they stop us..."
Eventually HWMNBN turned the fastest lap of the session, kicking Adrian Sutil and his Force India off the top spot for practically the first time all session. Could we see another Force India on pole tomorrow? Let's just hope so!
Other than that, though, the session was a little dull. While I did watch the whole thing, it was more for the novelty of seeing F1 again than for the action. Tomorrow though, the action is for real with qualifying... and it's predicted to be raining. See you then!
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August 26, 2010
Pocky Ninjas!
Flushed with the excitement of a successful hunt, the Pocky Ninjas pose with their latest victory. Many had fallen to their stealthy ways, and many more would fall in the future, but this one was their greatest conquest.
To be sure, the Pocky Ninjas always believed their most recent triumph to be their greatest, for they had great respect for their prey. They were aware that there were those that thought their views to be anachronistic in these modern days. Many rivals scoffed at them behind their backs they knew, but they paid the nattering no mind: none save the infamous Yam-Yam Pirates could boast a string of victories nearly as long as theirs, and the Pirates still had quite a ways to go before they could be considered "equals."
If you wonder, late at night, where all your tasty cream-covered biscuit sticks have gone to, it's a sure bet that the Pocky Ninjas have paid you a visit. You will never notice until it's too late, and there's nothing you can do to stop them.
Flushed with the excitement of a successful hunt, the Pocky Ninjas pose with their latest victory. Many had fallen to their stealthy ways, and many more would fall in the future, but this one was their greatest conquest.
To be sure, the Pocky Ninjas always believed their most recent triumph to be their greatest, for they had great respect for their prey. They were aware that there were those that thought their views to be anachronistic in these modern days. Many rivals scoffed at them behind their backs they knew, but they paid the nattering no mind: none save the infamous Yam-Yam Pirates could boast a string of victories nearly as long as theirs, and the Pirates still had quite a ways to go before they could be considered "equals."
If you wonder, late at night, where all your tasty cream-covered biscuit sticks have gone to, it's a sure bet that the Pocky Ninjas have paid you a visit. You will never notice until it's too late, and there's nothing you can do to stop them.
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August 24, 2010
USS Shaw
Like the USS Hammann, there was nothing particular special about the USS Shaw (DD-373). Just one destroyer in a fleet with dozens similar to her, really.
Laid down in 1934 as the tenth of the Mahan-class of destroyers, she weighed in around 1500 tons. Armed with five 5"/38 guns and a whopping 12 torpedo tubes, there was no question that she was quite able to fight other ships her size, and with a top speed of 35kts she could outrun many of the ships she couldn't stand toe-to-toe with. None of these numbers, however, made her different than any other destroyer in the US Navy. She joined the Pacific fleet in 1940 after her shakedown cruise, training and overhaul. In November of 1941, she found herself at Pearl Harbor, in a floating drydock for the sort of repairs that any ship needs after a while.
It wasn't until December 7th, 1941 that she became famous, thanks to one picture. The Shaw, hit by three bombs probably meant for the USS Nevada, was set ablaze. While the crew attempted to extinguish the fires, it was quickly realized that the attempt was doomed to failure and abandon ship was called at 0925. Five minutes later, her forward magazines exploded.
After seeing this photograph, one could be excused for thinking that the Shaw was destroyed, in much the same way as the USS Arizona. Indeed, for some 30 years I just assumed that was the case. In fact, it wasn't.
The explosion severed the Shaw's bow completely and to be honest, fairly neatly... at least as far as that sort of thing goes. It also sank the floating drydock she was in (YFD-2, in case you were wondering), which went a long way towards extinguishing her fires.
If you'll direct your attention towards the top of this picture, you'll see just how dramatically she was truncated... as if an axe amputated everything forward of her bridge structure. If you look at the bottom of the picture, you'll see the Cassin and the Downes just forward of the battleship Pennsylvania. In fact, the sole Pearl Harbor survivor I've met served on the Downes. But I digress.
Someone had the bright idea that the Shaw, bifurcated though she was, could be repaired. Refloated, fitted with a wooden bow and fixed up enough to be able to sail on her own, she steamed off to San Francisco. There, she was "placed under the anchor" and refit with a replacement bow.
By the end of August, 1942, 68 years ago, the USS Shaw returned to Pearl Harbor, a ship whole again. She served through the rest of the war in the Pacific, making her presence felt at Guadalcanal, Cape Gloucester, Saipan, and Luzon. She was decommissioned on October 2nd, 1945 and stricken from the Navy List two days later. She was scrapped in 1946, ending what could only be called an eventful life.
Laid down in 1934 as the tenth of the Mahan-class of destroyers, she weighed in around 1500 tons. Armed with five 5"/38 guns and a whopping 12 torpedo tubes, there was no question that she was quite able to fight other ships her size, and with a top speed of 35kts she could outrun many of the ships she couldn't stand toe-to-toe with. None of these numbers, however, made her different than any other destroyer in the US Navy. She joined the Pacific fleet in 1940 after her shakedown cruise, training and overhaul. In November of 1941, she found herself at Pearl Harbor, in a floating drydock for the sort of repairs that any ship needs after a while.
It wasn't until December 7th, 1941 that she became famous, thanks to one picture. The Shaw, hit by three bombs probably meant for the USS Nevada, was set ablaze. While the crew attempted to extinguish the fires, it was quickly realized that the attempt was doomed to failure and abandon ship was called at 0925. Five minutes later, her forward magazines exploded.
After seeing this photograph, one could be excused for thinking that the Shaw was destroyed, in much the same way as the USS Arizona. Indeed, for some 30 years I just assumed that was the case. In fact, it wasn't.
The explosion severed the Shaw's bow completely and to be honest, fairly neatly... at least as far as that sort of thing goes. It also sank the floating drydock she was in (YFD-2, in case you were wondering), which went a long way towards extinguishing her fires.
If you'll direct your attention towards the top of this picture, you'll see just how dramatically she was truncated... as if an axe amputated everything forward of her bridge structure. If you look at the bottom of the picture, you'll see the Cassin and the Downes just forward of the battleship Pennsylvania. In fact, the sole Pearl Harbor survivor I've met served on the Downes. But I digress.
Someone had the bright idea that the Shaw, bifurcated though she was, could be repaired. Refloated, fitted with a wooden bow and fixed up enough to be able to sail on her own, she steamed off to San Francisco. There, she was "placed under the anchor" and refit with a replacement bow.
By the end of August, 1942, 68 years ago, the USS Shaw returned to Pearl Harbor, a ship whole again. She served through the rest of the war in the Pacific, making her presence felt at Guadalcanal, Cape Gloucester, Saipan, and Luzon. She was decommissioned on October 2nd, 1945 and stricken from the Navy List two days later. She was scrapped in 1946, ending what could only be called an eventful life.
USS Shaw, 1945
Again, congrats to flatdarkmars for being the first to guess the Shaw's identity. Per his request, there will be another mystery coming soon!
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August 23, 2010
Name This Mystery Ship II
Once again, no clues or hints. Leave your guess in the comments. The first to give the correct answer will win a post on a topic of your choice!
And, for the record, I won't write about religion, politics or pr0n (though anime ecchi is okay). Anything else is free game!
Once again, no clues or hints. Leave your guess in the comments. The first to give the correct answer will win a post on a topic of your choice!
And, for the record, I won't write about religion, politics or pr0n (though anime ecchi is okay). Anything else is free game!
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August 22, 2010
Strike Witches 2 Loves Me
I just finished watching ep07 of Strike Witches 2, and while that particular episode was extraordinarily silly, it was the preview for ep08 that made me sit up and take notice. Certainly this was nice:
I mean, who doesn't like a good Mitsubishi Navy Type 0 fighter once in a while, right? Probably an A6M2, considering the year the show is set in.
But that wasn't what made me drool in anticipation. No, this one quick shot was what did it:
We already knew the Yamato was going to be showing up, so no surprise there. No, it's the other two ships in this screencap that got me excited. I am tentatively identifying them as the Zuiho on the left and the Shoho on the right. Note the lack of islands on the flight-decks, which do not appear to stretch the full length of the hull. While that alone doesn't preclude them from being one of the IJN's escort carriers (like the Unyo or Taiyo), which also have those same traits, you'll note on the lefthand carrier there is a wire mesh-like object extending out from the starboard side.
There's a similar object on the other carrier as well, though it's mostly hidden behind the Yamato. That's actually the ship's radio masts, which could be cranked down for flight operations. I don't think the escort carriers needed such a system. The true giveaway, though is that both ships look like they have "wings" off the stern end of their flight decks. That was a feature that allowed pilots to check their positioning out of the corners of their eye as they landed, and the Japanese CVEs didn't have those, but the Zuiho and Shoho did. We'll just need to wait for ep08 to be released to be sure... but I feel pretty confident.
Ladies and Gentlemen, this is what it's like being a Pacific War otaku.
I mean, who doesn't like a good Mitsubishi Navy Type 0 fighter once in a while, right? Probably an A6M2, considering the year the show is set in.
But that wasn't what made me drool in anticipation. No, this one quick shot was what did it:
We already knew the Yamato was going to be showing up, so no surprise there. No, it's the other two ships in this screencap that got me excited. I am tentatively identifying them as the Zuiho on the left and the Shoho on the right. Note the lack of islands on the flight-decks, which do not appear to stretch the full length of the hull. While that alone doesn't preclude them from being one of the IJN's escort carriers (like the Unyo or Taiyo), which also have those same traits, you'll note on the lefthand carrier there is a wire mesh-like object extending out from the starboard side.
There's a similar object on the other carrier as well, though it's mostly hidden behind the Yamato. That's actually the ship's radio masts, which could be cranked down for flight operations. I don't think the escort carriers needed such a system. The true giveaway, though is that both ships look like they have "wings" off the stern end of their flight decks. That was a feature that allowed pilots to check their positioning out of the corners of their eye as they landed, and the Japanese CVEs didn't have those, but the Zuiho and Shoho did. We'll just need to wait for ep08 to be released to be sure... but I feel pretty confident.
Ladies and Gentlemen, this is what it's like being a Pacific War otaku.
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F1 on SPEED!: Belgium 2010
It's been nearly a month since the last appearance of the F1 Circus here on this site, but finally... finally... we can get on with it. And where better to come back to than arguably the best track on the calendar, Spa-Francorchamps. Let's take a look at the track map:
Spa is the longest circuit on the calendar at just over 4.3 miles and a lap time of around 1m49sec or so. It's also one of the fastest, it has the largest amount of changes of altitude, the least predictable weather, and practically no slow spots. It's a video-game sort of track, to be honest, but damn is it fun!
It also used to be the most dangerous course in F1, back in the old nine mile long "triangle track" days. Trees, ditches, and houses lined the public roads the cars used to race on, but it's been nearly 40 years since a F1 race ran on that circuit. Just because Spa-Francopants is safer now doesn't mean it's less exciting. Eau Rouge-Raidillon may be the best turn complex in the sport with its steep flat-out climb to a whip-cracking style of right-left corner. There's been some startling accidents here, including last year's incident that took both McLarens out at the same time on the first lap. From Rivage to around Blanchimont is all downhill. In good weather it's all fast sweeping curves on the very edge of adhesion. In poor weather? Heh heh heh heh heh... and early predictions are for rain all weekend.
The past couple of years have seen Spa give us the most interesting races of the season. In 2009 we had Giancarlo Fisichella's Force India on pole and finishing second. In 2008, there was the Hamilton-Raikkonen Incident at the Chicane. What will the big track in the Ardennes Forest bring us in 2010?
We'll find out beginning on Friday morning from 7am to 840am with LIVE coverage of the 2nd Practice session on SPEED. It'll be good to hear the Legendary Announce Team again. Saturday we'll get plausibly live coverage of Quals from 7am to 830am.
Sunday, of course, we'll see the live broadcast of the 2010 Belgian Grand Prix on SPEED from 630am to 9am, with a replay from 1130am to 2pm. All times, of course, are are Pond Central. Add one hour for the East Coast, subtract two for the West, and add around 4.3 years for Alpha Centauri.
And if there's any doubt that F1U! will be all over the broadcasts, we must ask "what are you smoking?" See ya then!
Spa is the longest circuit on the calendar at just over 4.3 miles and a lap time of around 1m49sec or so. It's also one of the fastest, it has the largest amount of changes of altitude, the least predictable weather, and practically no slow spots. It's a video-game sort of track, to be honest, but damn is it fun!
It also used to be the most dangerous course in F1, back in the old nine mile long "triangle track" days. Trees, ditches, and houses lined the public roads the cars used to race on, but it's been nearly 40 years since a F1 race ran on that circuit. Just because Spa-Francopants is safer now doesn't mean it's less exciting. Eau Rouge-Raidillon may be the best turn complex in the sport with its steep flat-out climb to a whip-cracking style of right-left corner. There's been some startling accidents here, including last year's incident that took both McLarens out at the same time on the first lap. From Rivage to around Blanchimont is all downhill. In good weather it's all fast sweeping curves on the very edge of adhesion. In poor weather? Heh heh heh heh heh... and early predictions are for rain all weekend.
The past couple of years have seen Spa give us the most interesting races of the season. In 2009 we had Giancarlo Fisichella's Force India on pole and finishing second. In 2008, there was the Hamilton-Raikkonen Incident at the Chicane. What will the big track in the Ardennes Forest bring us in 2010?
We'll find out beginning on Friday morning from 7am to 840am with LIVE coverage of the 2nd Practice session on SPEED. It'll be good to hear the Legendary Announce Team again. Saturday we'll get plausibly live coverage of Quals from 7am to 830am.
Sunday, of course, we'll see the live broadcast of the 2010 Belgian Grand Prix on SPEED from 630am to 9am, with a replay from 1130am to 2pm. All times, of course, are are Pond Central. Add one hour for the East Coast, subtract two for the West, and add around 4.3 years for Alpha Centauri.
And if there's any doubt that F1U! will be all over the broadcasts, we must ask "what are you smoking?" See ya then!
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