Formula 1 2019

[Pato del Muerto 52489]

32 minutes ago, Lobo said:

What bizarro traffic app sent you by COTA to get from San Antonio to Dallas?  

The one where you 90 with no traffic on a toll road from shulenberg to Georgetown. 

[Guest Lobo]

well yeah, but wouldn’t that app pick up on deep red traffic on every paved surface within a 5-mile Radius of COTA?   

[elfenix 34230]

There probably wasn't red traffic on 130 during the race

[utee94 15811]

Got home and unpacked RV last night, then dropped at storage today, so first chance to post about the race.

First I'll say, what an awesome weekend for racing.  Weather was fantastic, if a little cool in the mornings.  After some years of not so great weather, this one was welcome.

Bumps were bad enough that I can see why there's some urgency to do something about it. So far I've only had time to watch P1, but definitely heard Lewis complaining about them on the radio.  In person at the autograph signing session in Saturday, Lewis didn't mention the bumps, and when asked Valtteri just said "it's part of driving" and didn't dwell on it beyond that.

Those big curbs also seemed dangerous, it was tough to tell but was it one of those curbs that launched the F4 car airborn Sunday morning?  That car easily could have flipped, really glad it didn't (and that dude went on to finish 3rd in the Sunday race I believe).

Congrats to Bottas for the win and to Lewis for the great racing effort, could have easily just wandered around the track at 5th place but that's not his style, so congrats on the podium and the WDC.

Ferrari, ugh, what can you say.  Culturally they just fail.  LeClerc is a welcome change but with that team around him, I just don't think he can have consistent wins/podiums.

Ran into and hung out with a bunch of Dutch fans throughout the weekend, they didn't seem to take too kindly to Lewis (and others) saying Max is a danger out there on the track.  But, well, there it is.

 

 

[wood 11225]

F1 could return to Indianapolis following Penske takeover https://www.racefans.net/2019/11/04/f1-could-return-to-indianapolis-following-penske-takeover/

[utee94 15811]

Oh, couple other things folks have mentioned that I wanted to touch on.

1) During the day, they were definitely checking/scanning tickets for entry and egress.  I don't know whether or not they were checking wristbands, haven't had one of those since year1 and didn't pay any attention to others entering at the same time I did.

However, during the evenings for the concerts, they weren't checking much of anything, at least not over at the "backside gates" at Turn3, Turn6/7, etc.

2) It was way more crowded on ALL days than the last several years.  I can't really comment on how it compared to year1 attendance since there are a lot fewer grandstands and it's nearly impossible to tell what the GA attendance is, but across the board there were more people sitting in their grandstand seats for ALL practice sessions, and especially qualy.  The place was packed out compared to recent years, so that part wasn't a lie.  Now, compared to the first few years?  Definitely not as many as year1 but after that it's tough to say. 

3) It's always been pretty easy to sneak hooch in.  Unopened beer cans might get caught during the day, or 1.75L handles of liquor, but we've always quite easily filled large water bottles with vodka and the checkers don't give them a second glance.  And for the concerts, they rarely use the metal detectors and we've never been bothered even when taking in 6-packs of beer cans (which we did once again for Pink and ID).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[wood 11225]

37 minutes ago, utee94 said:

Oh, couple other things folks have mentioned that I wanted to touch on.

1) During the day, they were definitely checking/scanning tickets for entry and egress.  I don't know whether or not they were checking wristbands, haven't had one of those since year1 and didn't pay any attention to others entering at the same time I did.

However, during the evenings for the concerts, they weren't checking much of anything, at least not over at the "backside gates" at Turn3, Turn6/7, etc.

2) It was way more crowded on ALL days than the last several years.  I can't really comment on how it compared to year1 attendance since there are a lot fewer grandstands and it's nearly impossible to tell what the GA attendance is, but across the board there were more people sitting in their grandstand seats for ALL practice sessions, and especially qualy.  The place was packed out compared to recent years, so that part wasn't a lie.  Now, compared to the first few years?  Definitely not as many as year1 but after that it's tough to say. 

3) It's always been pretty easy to sneak hooch in.  Unopened beer cans might get caught during the day, or 1.75L handles of liquor, but we've always quite easily filled large water bottles with vodka and the checkers don't give them a second glance.  And for the concerts, they rarely use the metal detectors and we've never been bothered even when taking in 6-packs of beer cans (which we did once again for Pink and ID).

Yeah it was definitely a better crowd than last year. Re: the ticket scanning, what I've been seeing them doing the last year or two or three is scanning tickets when they see that people have one, but not asking for a ticket  or saying anything to people who aren't already presenting one, as with my wristband all three days last year. And yeah, my wife and her friends went to P!NK on Saturday night & said they went in through the main entrance and the attendants weren't checking tickets at all...

[wood 11225]

[faps 806]

Danny Ric is a treasure.

Also, please no F1 at Indy. Never liked that course for F1.

[utee94 15811]

Agree on both counts.  Ricciardo is a badass.

And I'm not a fan of F1 at Indy.  It just doesn't work there for various reasons.

 

 

[wood 11225]

#3 on his way outta town...

 

Edited November 6, 2019 by wood

[utee94 15811]

He's the best.  So happy for his good result on Sunday and the entire weekend.

I understand some of the reasons he left RBR but I still can't help but think of what might have been if were in Gasly/Albion's seat this season.  Or, maybe his car would have mysteriously kept on breaking.  Who knows.

[faps 806]

Ah man, I really wish he was still at RBR picking up a win here and there. And just generally being at the front of the grid more often.

I thought he and Max had a really good relationship together, sorta like Lando and Carlos. The vids of them goofing off were awesome.

[Dutch 4465]

Danny Ric seems like one cool dude; would like to see what he could do/have done in a Merc. 

[elfenix 34230]

ferrari team was staying next to a client's nephew, said nephew shot the shit with seb a bit, seb left tickets and an autographed hat for him.  pretty cool

[DallasHorn26 586]

My GF's (no pics) brother is a track engineer for one of the teams. She spent the weekend there with her Dad and got to hang out most of the time in the Paddock area with her brother and his team. She met several of the drivers and the celebs that visited the garage. 

[wood 11225]

18 minutes ago, elfenix said:

ferrari team was staying next to a client's nephew, said nephew shot the shit with seb a bit, seb left tickets and an autographed hat for him.  pretty cool

I've never been a great fan of Seb, but I've always heard he's a really good guy 'in real life'. Lately he's growing on me for sure.

[utee94 15811]

Finally catching up on watching practices on the Sky broadcasts, it was pretty funny listening to all the Brits trying to figure out what the XII on Ricciardo's helmet stood for.  Twelfth Congressional district? That was awesome.

Sadly, even when they got it right, they still got it wrong, because they realized it was the Big XII conference, but then they mentioned "because it has twelve teams."

Well, you'd think, right????

 

Edited November 8, 2019 by utee94

[wood 11225]

Looks pretty good imho, but I just can't understand why brake pads & rotors are being limited. What are they thinking?

F1’s 2021 rule changes: 10 things you need to know 

https://youtu.be/hk-JKrs0rrc

[Pato del Muerto 52489]

Are they trying to get cars braking earlier because of some low speed turn congestion?

[wood 11225]

32 minutes ago, Pato del Muerto said:

Are they trying to get cars braking earlier because of some low speed turn congestion?

IDK. Maybe. One set of rotors & pads per event, with a 3 place grid penalty if you exceed the limit. Sounds nuts to me. Maybe the idea is to get them to go to heavier materials that don't stop as quickly, leading to longer braking distances. If that's the only effect, then I might be ok with it. For some reason I think it won't work out that way though.

[ChickenSandwich 9832]

22 minutes ago, wood said:

IDK. Maybe. One set of rotors & pads per event, with a 3 place grid penalty if you exceed the limit. Sounds nuts to me. Maybe the idea is to get them to go to heavier materials that don't stop as quickly, leading to longer braking distances. If that's the only effect, then I might be ok with it. For some reason I think it won't work out that way though.

or more parity during the race depending on how they managed them during the weekend.

Did Red Bull figure out the Ferrari secret to their top speed?  They apparently asked for clarification on modifications that allowed for a temporary increase in fuel flow that could defeat the F1 measuring equipment.  Max seems to imply it is why the Ferrari pace was off in Austin, but could be Lec on an old engine and Seb was only a tick off the pole. 

https://f1i.com/news/360758-cagey-verstappen-calls-out-ferrari-for-us-gp-struggles.html

[Anton Chigurh 3319]

It’s been a process of elimination. RB and Merc will ask FIA for clarification and then see if Ferrari gets slower. I am not convinced that was it yet, but we will see.

[wood 11225]

Renault admit wanting to make McLaren similar to a 'B-team' from 2021 http://www.insideracing.com/index.php/formula-1/9453-renault-admit-wanting-to-make-mclaren-similar-to-a-b-team-from-2021

I had heard this a while back ... that Renault did have intentions of McLaren actually being their B team ... believe it or not lol. It was predictable how that was going to end. Now Renault has lost a data-gathering partner in engine development, and McLaren has Merc PUs again and probably has the inside line to Merc works status sooner or later. Well played, Renault. Well played...

[wood 11225]

I love this photo so much. Spectacular on so many levels ... lol that crowd separated from the track by nothing more than a strip of armco, and is that a dude in a tree back there?

[Anton Chigurh 3319]

I love this photo so much. Spectacular on so many levels ... lol that crowd separated from the track by nothing more than a strip of armco, and is that a dude in a tree back there?

Is that the Glen?

[wood 11225]

Montjuic, Barcelona, 1975. I retract my "lol" above. Turns out that was the same year that 4 fans were killed. There had been concerns on Friday and Saturday over poorly secured armco, leading to a driver protest, the promoter locking all the cars up in the stadium, etc. The drivers & teams gave in, but Emmo retired in protest after 1 lap. The bad accident happened on lap 26, and the race was stopped on lap 29. Jochen Mass's only F1 win & the race where Lella Lombardi got the first & only ever F1 points for a woman. I knew about the history, but I didn't know all that was in 1975. My bad.

That was the last GP at Montjuic. Crazy to think my wife and I walked those same streets a few years back, having no idea about the F1 history there.

 

Edited November 11, 2019 by wood

[Pato del Muerto 52489]

I enjoy how different the two cars are to each other. 
 

[utee94 15811]

54 minutes ago, Pato del Muerto said:

I enjoy how different the two cars are to each other. 
 

Yup, those were the days.

[wood 11225]

No Sao Paolo for Toto.

Quote

“Brazil will be the first race since 2013 that I won’t attend,” confirmed Wolff ahead of this weekend’s race. Mercedes has already won the constructors’ championship and Lewis Hamilton sealed the drivers’ title at the last round. “With both championships secured, it gives me more time in Europe to focus on other open topics,”

https://www.racefans.net/2019/11/11/mercedes-wolff-to-miss-first-f1-race-since-2013/

[Dutch 4465]

Not much of a surprise, but Red Bull confirmed Albon will keep the 2nd RBR seat for next season.  He has finished in the points in each of his seven GP with RBR and has out-pointed Verstappen during that stretch.

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article.analysis-why-red-bull-have-put-their-faith-in-albon-for-2020.2bSfffNCAhebqECvrkpTOZ.html

Edited November 12, 2019 by Dutch

[52-80 19150]

23 hours ago, wood said:

I love this photo so much. Spectacular on so many levels ... lol that crowd separated from the track by nothing more than a strip of armco, and is that a dude in a tree back there?

 

[wood 11225]

Thought y'all might like this ...

 

[utee94 15811]

Love that circuit.  This is the era where I started liking the appearance of the cars a little less with each iteration, but those are still better-looking than many we've seen since.

It is really interesting to see them test driving the backup cars, and also to hear them talking about the Michelin vs. Bridgestone tire (tyre) differences.  A bygone era I suppose.  

 

 

Edited November 13, 2019 by utee94

[Paper_jam 831]

I haven't followed tire issues that closely, but I hear a lot of complaints from fans about the Pirelli tires in F1. What's the TL:DR version?

 

 

[Anton Chigurh 3319]

I haven't followed tire issues that closely, but I hear a lot of complaints from fans about the Pirelli tires in F1. What's the TL:DR version?
 
 

So, previously, Bridgestone made super durable tires that could be pushed on and not fall off a cliff. However, this was also during the refueling era, so cars were going to have to pit anyway.

We have much more range in tire compound options now. Back then, it was just “prime/option/wet” essentially. Because the ranges of each of the compounds are more limited, and they are chosen months in advance, sometimes you get races where tires die quickly, or where they will try and run long and conserve to avoid a second (or third) pit stop.

Back then, you also qualified on the fuel you were going to start the race with. Now, you qualify in Q2 on the tire you start the race with. That leads to most teams starting on the softest tire which will not last that long since they’re used, on a heavy car, and the shortest lasting anyway, which also makes strategy options more limited. 2 stop races don’t leave much open to strategy as much as 3 stop races do.

Yes, there were a few times along the way where Pirelli really screwed up the tire construction itself (first half of 2013 and the first half of 2018 come to mind), but overall it’s not as bad as people make it seem. They generally make what F1 has asked them to make.

[Hawndoh 2386]

The tires need to be kept in a very narrow operating temperature to be effective or they lose all grip and fall apart. 

It takes a lot of effort to keep the tires in that good zone and so much of the race is spent holding back to save the tires and the drivers asking their engineers when they are allowed to drive fast. 

Then they are finally told they can go fast for a lap or two before pitting and getting new tires. 

[wood 11225]

Alonso, Button, Rosberg to tackle Mount Panorama in S5000 race? - https://www.planetf1.com/news/fernando-alonso-jenson-button-nico-rosberg-to-tackle-mount-panorama/

Also saw in another story that Rubens might do it too...

Edited November 14, 2019 by wood

[utee94 15811]

I'd watch that.  

Love the comments, "Lewis starting to worry that his friends are in a DM without him..."

 

[wood 11225]

BBC News - Mercedes-Benz to cut jobs amid tougher emissions rules 

Kallenius: $1.5 Billion must be slashed. Wolff missing Brazil GP to attend to 'important topics' in Germany.

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-50416250

[faps 806]

Is this the first in a series of events that leads to them exiting as a team and becoming an engine supplier solely again?

[Huckleberry 32851]

There's a joke in here somewhere having to do with a Nazi collaborating company being negatively affected by gas emissions but I can't bring myself to make it despite being a huge asshole.

[wood 11225]

3 hours ago, mcbrisket said:

Is this the first in a series of events that leads to them exiting as a team and becoming an engine supplier solely again?

I dunno. I hear Ola is an F1 nut, so who knows.

[wood 11225]

No surprise here...

Vettel: Austin bumps caused United State Grand Prix retirement https://www.racefans.net/2019/11/15/racefans-round-up-15-11-2/ 

[Atxracer 797]

I know we disagree on this. But, if he would have managed the bumps, like the hundreds of other things you have to manage in a race, like everyone else, he wouldn’t have broken his suspension.  

[Atxracer 797]

And, no surprise Vettel is whining.

Edited November 15, 2019 by Atxracer

[Anton Chigurh 3319]

It’s pretty vague. The “bumps or the track”. I think it was probably the sausage curb they installed at T8 was it?

 

Also, another TD issued. This one is for preventing any flammable liquid from the cooling systems being used for combustion. I guess the current thought it that Ferrari may somehow have oil in the intercoolers or somehow leech it into them (or maybe even coolant from an air-to-water cooler) in Q and they combust it for more powah similar to the oil burning from the past few years.

 

[wood 11225]

2 minutes ago, Atxracer said:

I know we disagree on this. But, if he would have managed the bumps, like the hundreds of other things you have to manage in a race, like everyone else, he wouldn’t have broken his suspension.  

I'm sure he & the team didn't think he was doing anything that would lead to the suspension failing catastrophically. Just because he was the only one with suspension failure, that doesn't mean he's wrong about the cause or did something wrong. If Ferrari had a history of suspension failures this year, you might have a point, but I don't think that's the case.

We saw cars losing parts all weekend, just driving around. It's not like he was the only one who had a problem due to the bumps. They also said the bumps caused Leclerc's throttle issue, Max's broken wing, and more. It wasn't just a Ferrari thing. And we had multiple F1 drivers, who've driven God knows how many circuits and kart tracks, saying this is the bumpiest circuit they've ever driven. Ever. Anywhere. By far. Even DE instructors were saying the same thing the week following the race.

 

[wood 11225]

22 minutes ago, Atxracer said:

And, no surprise Vettel is whining.

I'm no Vettel apologist, but I'm pretty sure he was just answering a question.

[wood 11225]

15 minutes ago, Anton Chigurh said:

It’s pretty vague. The “bumps or the track”. I think it was probably the sausage curb they installed at T8 was it?

 

Also, another TD issued. This one is for preventing any flammable liquid from the cooling systems being used for combustion. I guess the current thought it that Ferrari may somehow have oil in the intercoolers or somehow leech it into them (or maybe even coolant from an air-to-water cooler) in Q and they combust it for more powah similar to the oil burning from the past few years.

 

Vettel's car looked fine after 8 and it didn't look like he hit the curb. He also said he didn't hit the curb fwiw. The suspension was intact when he hit the T9 bump, and it broke when he came back down to the ground. 

Re: that new TD, I've been wondering how they're pulling a specific component of the coolant into the fuel (if they are). Pretty amazing if true.