1. The old A1-Ring in
Austria, scene of an
unlikely story
RICHARD JAMES
PARTRIDGE CHARTS
THE PACE OF CHANGE
IN THE FORMULA ONE
INDUSTRY.
It was supposed to be a normal
Formula One weekend.
So how did I find myself crouching
in the undergrowth and breathing
heavily after sprinting for cover?
I stared up through the thick
coniferous canopy at the strange
luminescent lights that seemed to be
hovering above me.
No, this wasn’t a dream or some
drink-fuelled fantasy. I really was
being stalked by an alien space ship at
THIS IS A TRUE STORY
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2. the A1-Ring in Austria.
I’d spotted the mysterious lights
moving silently in the sky as I walked
back to my hotel up the hill from
the local Bierkeller. I had become
increasingly nervous as one explanation
after another failed to make sense of
the unfolding phenomenon .
I eventually reach the obvious
conclusion that - as a font of pit lane
knowledge - I was about to be abducted
by the envious aliens. I panicked and
dived for cover in the adjacent forest.
To this day I have no explanation of the
events of that night, other than aliens
were clearly in the area and beaming up
the latest Formula One technologies for
closer examination.
And why wouldn’t they?
For Formula One is now blessed
with some of the world’s brightest
minds working in research and
development for the teams and
suppliers.
Gone are the days when gentlemen
chased each other round the
Nurburgring with one hand on the
steering wheel, cravat blowing in the
wind and a cigarette hanging from
the bottom lip whilst their loyal
LUXURY/4
LUXURY
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3. mechanic waited in the pit lane with
a big spanner and a can of oil .
These days no expense is spared in
the search for that extra technological
edge over the opponent; the drivers
must be in peak physical condition
and the sponsors activate every angle
to maximise returns.
For a sport that originated from
these humble origins it is quite
extraordinary that it has progressed
to being in the vanguard of technical
achievements on a par with those
developed at governmental level and
NASA. Its reach and impact is both
global and immense.
Things really moved forward during
the Max Mosley reign as FIA president
from 1993 to 2009 when there was
a focus on developing Formula One
technology for use in standard road
cars. The likes of Toyota, Honda and
BMW used their involvement partly
for promotion and partly for the
opportunities the sport allowed for
research and development.
Many advancements have come
directly from Formula One. The
sequential gearbox, active suspension
units, KERS and aerodynamic designs
all have their origins in Formula One.
Many of these features are now
standard in road cars. In the related
Formula E series, the massive
investments in battery technology are
already beginning to filter into the
global electric car market .
Richard Branson, whose DS
Virgin Racing team competes in
Formula E, believes the innovation
culture associated with Formula One
could potentially turn around and
swallow the traditional Formula One
format whole.
Speaking at last summer’s London
Formula E event in Battersea Park, he
said: “There’s still going to be room
for Formula One for a few more years
but I would say there will come a
time when Formula E will overtake it.
“With Formula E, you can still hear
the roar of the cars from the tarmac
as they come through a corner, but at
least you can have a conversation and
a drink when you’re watching which
you can’t do with Formula One.”
Clearly an investor in new
technologies like Branson would say
that. However, he may have a point
in that the advances in technology
in Formula E may actually drive
manufactures and sponsors from
Formula One to the electric version
in the not too distant future .
Other innovations born out of
Formula One have had far reaching
consequences across industry with
McLaren Applied Technologies
leading new applications for energy,
health, transport, financial services and
solutions for The National Air Traffic
Control Service (NATS) at Heathrow -
maybe this is what the aliens were after.
With many of the world’s biggest
airports running close to capacity,
McLaren’s Decision Insight platform
developed a system which helps
controllers to optimise the flow of
air and ground traffic thus reducing
emissions through greater efficiency.
In short the planes spend less time
taxiing on the ground and less time
in a holding patterns which reduces
wear and tear on the planes, lowers
pollution and also means passengers
have shorter journey times.
Driver safety in Formula One is
of paramount importance in the
modern era, which is in stark contrast
with the post-war years when
Richard Branson
believes the
innovation culture
in Formula E
could swallow the
traditional Formula
One format whole
FOM chief executive
Bernie Ecclestone
with former FIA
president Max
Mosley
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4. Formula One drivers were seen in the
same light as WWII pilots.
Historically there was little
protection for the drivers or the
spectators in a sport where life was
often way too cheap. Between 1952
and 1994 36 drivers were killed in
Formula One Grand Prix races.
New technology in those sepia-
tinted days included innovations
such as the 1968 recommendations
on driver safety harnesses. In 1972
the best they could come up with
was to put a 15W red light on the
back of the car – hardly NASA level
innovation. Driver deaths became
so commonplace that the sport was
forced to reform further and, with
the FIA’s backing, teams developed
cars that could protect the drivers and
stand up to high speed impacts.
The Monocoque, the principal
component of the car’s chassis
including the driver’s survival cell
and cockpit, was originally conceived
by Colin Chapman’s Lotus Team in
1962 as a lightweight metal casing
for the driver to sit in.
McLaren then became the first team
to send their cars onto the starting grid
with a carbon fibre safety cell in 1981.
Today’s carbon fibre survival cells are
twice as strong as steel can absorb
incredible amounts of energy during
a crash. Take Kimi Raikkonen’s 150
mile an hour Silverstone crash at the
British Grand Prix in 2014: incredibly
he walked away with just bruises .
Formula One fans have also never
had a wider choice of tracks to choose
from. But what’s new or special about
the modern circuits ?
How can they possibly compare
with the more traditional circuits
like Monza, Silverstone, Suzuka
and Monaco where the history of
Formula racing lives and breathes
through the very asphalt?
In a recent interview, three-time
world champion Lewis Hamilton
explained that he liked the variety
of the tracks on the current 21-date
calendar, but wondered why we only
have one designer of tracks -namely
Hermann Tilke. He said he felt that
quite often the new generation of
tracks don’t grasp the true essence of
Formula One and that the circuits
are too calculated.
The track in Sochi is very flat,
and a massive contrast to Suzuka
which is a real racing circuit, with
elevation change, sweeping corners
and so on. According to Hamilton,
too many of the new tracks have too
little character - with the notable
exceptions of Abu Dhabi, and Austin.
Richard Cregan, an organiser
of both the Sochi and Abu Dhabi
races, told the Black Book that, “the
circuits now have to be designed to
be year-round venues for driving
circuits, car launches, conferences,
tyre testing and other events. The
hospitality suites are now designed to
be flexible with moveable walls. Sochi
is especially popular in the winter
when corporations in Moscow and St
Petersburg hold events there.”
So what next for Formula One?
Will it morph into Formula E or
develop further in its current format?
Can the manufacturers and sponsors
continue to support and finance the
sport if the pace of the technological
evolution slows down?
Since the A1-Ring incident I have
not been troubled by the aliens which
perhaps indicates that they are now
seeking their inspiration elsewhere -
or maybe they’ve learnt all they need
to know. Or could it just be that I’m
now drinking weaker beer?
The Yas Marina
Circuit in Abu Dhabi,
one of the favoured
modern tracks on
the Formula One
calendar
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