So here it is…

The time has come to close down the blog for a much-needed Christmas break. If you want to keep up with Formula 1 over the holiday period, I suggest you type “Kingfisher Airlines” into Google News every day. And watch out for the New Year’s Honours List. I’ll be back, firing on all cylinders, on [...]

Source: http://joesaward.wordpress.com/2011/12/17/so-here-it-is/

Peter Ashdown Ian Ashley Gerry Ashmore Bill Aston Richard Attwood

Revell's Dan Fink's Speedwagon Build Report

Hi Guys,

Here's my build of the speedwagon kit - I'm adding a bit of detail but the build is mostly out of the box.

I'm enjoying having some time off from work over the holiday season so I can assemble some the parts that I sprayed back in September.

The basic chassis (with detail master brake rotors, Replicas calipers & detail master brake lines):

A pic of the body parts (if you're wondering why there's holes in the roof, they're for the roof rails as Thom Taylor's original drawing had roof bars as did the real car):

Will post some more build pics as the build and week progresses.

Cheers,

Source: http://cs.scaleautomag.com/SCACS/forums/thread/993204.aspx

Ian Ashley Gerry Ashmore Bill Aston Richard Attwood Manny Ayulo

2011 Formula One Calendar

2011 FIA Formula 1 World Championship Race Calendar (Provisional)


Round Grand Prix Circuit Date
*
Bahrain BIC March 11-13 http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_f2dCclIT9q8/S5kc4Eay8OI/AAAAAAAAFbI/yPbhnQgAlzE/s400/2010+FORMULA+1+GULF+AIR+BAHRAIN+GRAND+PRIX.jpg
1
Australian Albert Park March 25-27 [australia_waving_flag_256.gif]
2
Malaysian Sepang April 8-10 [malaysia_waving_flag_256.gif]
3
Chinese Shanghai April 15-17 [china_waving_flag_256.gif]
4
Turkish Istanbul May 6-8 [turkey_waving_flag_256.gif]
5
Spanish Catalunya May 20-22 [spain_waving_flag_256.gif]
6
Monaco Monaco May 26-29 [monaco_waving_flag_256.gif]
7
Canadian Gilles Villeneuve June 10-12 [canada_waving_flag_256.gif]
8
European Spain June 24-26 [european_union_waving_flag_256.gif]
19 British Silverstone July 8-10 [united_kingdom_waving_flag_256.gif]
10 German Nürburgring July 22-24 [germany_waving_flag_256.gif]
11 Hungarian Hungaroring July 29-31 [hungary_waving_flag_256.gif]
12 Belgian Spa August 26-28 [belgium_waving_flag_256.gif]
13 Italian Monza September 9-11 [italy_waving_flag_256.gif]
14 Singapore Singapore September 23-25 [singapore_waving_flag_256.gif]
15 Japanese Suzuka October 7-9 [japan_waving_flag_256.gif]
16 Korean KIC October 14-16 [korea_south_waving_flag_256.gif]
17 Indian Noida October 28-30 http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_f2dCclIT9q8/TTvUnNQO1uI/AAAAAAAAGkc/1Qtn_gtX60I/s1600/india_waving_flag_256.jpg
18 Abu Dhabi Yas Marina November 11-13 [united_arab_emirates_waving_flag_256.gif]
19
Brazilian Interlagos November 25-27 [brazil_waving_flag_256.gif]

* Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix postponed – future date to be confirmed

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/F1InsightAFormula1Blog/~3/y2nC_JY9eoY/2011-formula-one-calendar.html

Frank Armi Chuck Arnold Rene Arnoux Peter Arundell Alberto Ascari

Jenson Button - classic F1

Jenson Button has enjoyed arguably the finest season of his Formula 1 career. The McLaren driver may have won the world title in 2009, when he was driving for Brawn GP, but his driving in 2011 has been even better.

So much so that former Renault team boss Flavio Briatore, who dropped Button at the end of 2002, has even been forced to admit that he "never realised" the Englishman was "that good".

Button's three victories in 2011 - including his remarkable climb from last to victory in Canada - were among the very best of the year.

Even more impressive than that, though, is Button's achievement of finishing above compatriot and fellow McLaren driver Lewis Hamilton in the standings. Hamilton, a man widely thought of as the fastest driver in the world, has never before been beaten by his team-mate.

Given his remarkable year, it is appropriate that Button is in the hot seat for the final edition of this year's BBC Sport's classic F1 series.

As regular readers will know, we have asked all F1 drivers for their five favourite races of all time, serialising them ahead of each grand prix.

The drivers have been free to choose whether to interpret the question as a request for their selection of the five greatest races of all time, or for their favourite races from their own career - or a selection of both.

Hamilton, Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel, for example, chose their own races, while Mark Webber picked several all-time classics. Fernando Alonso went for a mix - as has Button.

Making the selection was not easy for Button - as you will find out if you read on or watch the video embedded below - but what a choice it is. There are two historic races that would be on many people's lists of greatest grands prix ever, plus three from the 31-year-old's own career that could also be on that list.

In Button's own words, here is his countdown from five to one:

In order to see this content you need to have both Javascript enabled and Flash installed. Visit BBC Webwise for full instructions. If you're reading via RSS, you'll need to visit the blog to access this content.


5) Britain 1987

"Nigel Mansell at the British Grand Prix at Silverstone in 1987, when he pulled an epic dummy on Nelson Piquet into Stowe and went on to win the race. It was an amazing race to watch, especially dummying his team-mate like that."

4) Europe 1993

"Ayrton Senna annihilated everyone, overtook five cars on the first lap and was leading when he crossed the line. An amazing race. I was actually there watching it. It was one of the first races I saw live."

3) Germany 2000 (in Button's maiden F1 season with Williams)

"I had a problem at the start, well, the pre-start and had to start last. I fought my through in wet conditions and finished on the tail of David Coulthard. He finished third, I finished fourth and that was almost my first podium in F1. It was an amazing race for me fighting my way through. It was also at the old Hockenheim track with the long straights, so it was pretty scary in wet conditions. (Editor's note - the race was memorable for another reason - Ferrari's Rubens Barrichello won from 18th on the grid, in a race marked by a safety-car period following a track invasion)

2) Brazil 2009

"My second favourite race of all time would be Brazil 2009. This is a tricky one for me because it was either this one, when I clinched the title, or my first ever win in Hungary 2006. But I've chosen Brazil, mainly because it clinched me the world title.

"It was a very aggressive drive through the field from I think it was 14th or 15th on the grid. I don't even know where I finished, but it was one of those races, fighting my through, knowing every single point counted to winning the world championship. I really wanted to get it wrapped up before heading to Abu Dhabi - and that's exactly what I did."

1) Canada 2011

"My favourite race of all time has to be the Canadian Grand Prix this year. It's tricky because every win really matters to you and really means a lot and you remember pretty much every lap. But I've chosen this one because of what I went through, the high and lows throughout the four hours.

"To come away with that victory after being 21st and fighting my way through to first on the last lap of the race, that's a race I will remember forever.

"That's the one, if I have kids, I will first mention to them when they start watching Formula 1. I'll say: 'Daddy used to do that and he used to be all right. And he won the Canadian Grand Prix.' And I'll put it on 'play'."

The highlights programme broadcast on the BBC on the evening of the Canadian race is embedded below. Beneath it are long and short highlights of Vettel's victory in last year's Brazilian Grand Prix, as a warm-up for this weekend's action in Sao Paulo.

In order to see this content you need to have both Javascript enabled and Flash installed. Visit BBC Webwise for full instructions. If you're reading via RSS, you'll need to visit the blog to access this content.


WATCH HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 2010 BRAZILIAN GRAND PRIX
WATCH EXTENDED HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 2010 BRAZILIAN GRAND PRIX

The classic races will also be available on the BBC red button on digital television in the UK.

On Freeview, they will be broadcast only between first and second practice at the Brazilan Grand Prix - from 1355 to 1555 GMT on Friday 25 November.

On satellite and cable, the races will be broadcast from 1500 on Wednesday 23 November to 1400 on Thursday 24; from 1500 on Thursday until 1155 on Friday and again from 1355 to 1555 on Friday.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/andrewbenson/2011/11/jenson_button_-_classic_f1.html

Bobby Ball Marcel Balsa Lorenzo Bandini Henry Banks Fabrizio Barbazza

Why are the FIA bringing out their toolkits?

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_f2dCclIT9q8/TUUgS2L7_oI/AAAAAAAAG40/O-U57y8LQY0/s1600/start5_barc_2010.jpg

By Matt Carver

It's been two months since Sebastian Vettel was crowned as the Formula 1 world champion of 2010, after what was arguably the most enthralling and closely-fought championship in recent history. But bizarrely, the sports governing body, the FIA, have decided that it needs 'spicing up' with a whole raft of new technical regulations.

Even without these supposed enhancements, the setup for the 2011 season looks stronger than ever. The live TV broadcasts will now be in High Definition, there will be five former world champions on the gird, the teams are closely matched, and worldwide viewing figures are very strong. So this begs the obvious question: If it's not broken, why are the FIA bringing out their toolkits?

The answer can be found in a simple, four-syllable word that sparks a lot of debate: Overtaking.

The Return of KERS

For 2011, the Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS) will again be available to all the teams, after its banishment for 2010 following an uninspiring implementation in the previous season. For those unfamiliar with the concept, a KERS unit is essentially just a large battery which harnesses a reserve of energy from heavy braking. This energy can then be fed though the drive train at the press of a button for an 80bhp boost for several seconds per lap.

It was originally intended as a 'push-to-pass' button to aid overtaking, but the unit itself was heavy and had a strong destabilizing effect. The cars that were fitted with KERS were more unstable and thus slower for the majority of a lap, but had the extra muscle on the long straights. So it quickly became more of an overtaking deterrent than an aid, and there is no reason to believe that it will be any different next season.

The Controversial Moveable Wings

The big concern for next season is the introduction of moveable wings, which will allow a chasing car to greatly reduce its aerodynamic drag, allowing for greater top speed, but only when closely following a competitor. This is hugely controversial, for the simple reason that it hands an artificial advantage to the chasing car, effectively handicapping the leading car for having superior track position. The problem here is that it appears to violate a fundamental rule of fair racing. Surely you can't artificially penalize a driver for having track position just to make it more entertaining. This is no different from telling Usain Bolt that whoever wins the silver medal is now allowed to use performance enhancing drungs, but only until he starts winning, then he will be back on the protein 'shakes so that it doesn't get boring.

The Nightmare Scenario

Let's take Spa for example, the much-loved host venue for the Belgian Grand Prix. There is always plenty of overtaking at Spa, mainly due to the layout of the first few turns. The tricky first hairpin leads uphill through the staggeringly fast Eau Rouge bend, onto a lengthy straight, leading down to a tight right hander. It's hard to see how any driver could sufficiently defend their position through this section against a competitor who has artificially increased top speed. This could lead to the nightmare scenario; A driver with a narrow lead may decide to deliberately concede position before starting the final lap, as the advantage of the movable wing could be more beneficial than having track position. This would be a farce in every sense of the word, and could damage the sport's competitive integrity.

There can be no doubt that on some occasions, overtaking in F1 can become almost impossible. In Hungary last year, Vettel was forced to spend more than twenty laps simply staring at the back of Fernando Alonso's Ferrari, despite being significantly faster. Alonso's championship hopes eventually faded as he spent the last 40 minutes of the season finale waiting in vain for Vitaly Petrov to plough his Renault into the Abu Dhabi tyre wall. But on other occasions, the wheel-to-wheel action was spectacular. In Turkey, The two Mclarens where bumping wheels for the lead at turn one, just a few minutes after the Red Bulls were bashing each other into the scenery. Robert Kubica provided plenty of excitement whilst scything through half the field in Singapore, and the Japanese fans at Suzuka were amply entertained by Kamui Kobayashi flinging his BMW Sauber past anyone and everyone at the hairpin.

Surely this should lead us to one inevitable conclusion. It is the layout of certain circuits that appears to be curtailing the action. Only time will tell if alterations to the cars themselves will have the desired effect.


This original article "Formula 1's Risky New Regulations" is written by Matt Carver who is a Contributing Writer at Suite101.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/F1InsightAFormula1Blog/~3/xTX-uZVXEhI/why-are-fia-bringing-out-their-toolkits.html

Johnny Boyd David Brabham Gary Brabham Jack BrabhamÜ Bill Brack

Karthikeyan Makes Surprise F1 Return With HRT

Narain Karthikeyan has made a surprise return to Formula One after being announced as one of Hispania HRT’s drivers for the 2011 season. The Indian driver was unveiled as the first racer to be working with the Spanish based squad, who look likely to enter into a second season of racing despite on-going financial concerns. [...]

Source: http://f1fanatics.wordpress.com/2011/01/07/karthikeyan-makes-surprise-f1-return-with-hrt/

Chris Craft Jim Crawford Ray Crawford Alberto Crespo Antonio Creus